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Hershey, PA - July 2004

Thirteen-year-old Evan Buckley, Buck to his friends, woke up with a start. A glowing lady was sitting at the end of his bed. He scooted back away from her, and he asked, “Are you a ghost?”

The apparition shook her head. “I’m not a ghost. I’m what you would call an ascended being; my name is Morgan LeFay.”

Buck asked, “Like the woman in the King Arthur mythology?”

She chuckled. “Sort of. My race is the origin of the myth, but that’s not what I’m here to talk about. I have been checking in on you from time to time, and I came when I sensed you feeling extreme rage. Something I am sure is not normal for a human your age.”

Buck shook his head. “It’s not. I was offered a full scholarship to attend MIT, something that’s definitely not normal for a kid my age, but my parents refuse to let me go. They want me to be normal, like all the other kids.”

Morgan sighed. “They were supposed to love you, Evan. They’d just lost a child; the Buckleys should have easily accepted you.”

Buck snorted. “The only member of this family who doesn’t treat me like a waste of space is my sister, Maddie. But she left home a few years ago, and her husband doesn’t like our parents, so I’ve only seen her a few times since I was eight. Why have you been checking on me? And what do you mean they were supposed to love me?”

Morgan said, “They are not your biological parents; they just believe they are thanks to a few implanted memories. Your erm… creation, was due to an accidental activation of one of my friend’s inventions.”

Buck asked incredulously, “Do you have any idea how impossible all this sounds?”

She nodded. “I have some idea, yes. My friend, Janus, was known for creating machines that should not exist. I believe your military call him ‘completely batshit insane.’ One of his machines created you in a pod without your parent’s knowledge or consent. If they had found out, due to political maneuvering, your father, Major John Sheppard, would have been court-martialed. I made the decision to spirit you away and hide you with the Buckleys. I also hid you away in time. Technically, you have not yet been conceived.”

Buck laughed. “This is crazy talk. You’re insane; you have to be.”

“While it sounds crazy, it’s definitely true,” Morgan confirmed. She conjured a copy of Buck’s birth certificate and passed it to him. She explained, “This is your actual birth certificate, the one on file with the Virginia government.”

Buck took it from her and read it over. “So my true name is Evan Aiden Sheppard. Why?”

She sighed. “I had to choose a name for you, so I chose the name of the man both of your parents trusted implicitly, Major Evan Lorne. The three of them work together on a secret city-ship called Atlantis. Aiden, I chose because it means little fire.”

Buck read through the birth certificate and was surprised that no mother was listed. He asked, “Who is my mother?”

The ascended woman hid a smirk as she said, “Meredith McKay. I feel I should warn you. It’s not safe to disclose that name to anyone that’s not your parents or General Jack O’Neill. It could result in both of your parents being removed from their current base, and that must not happen. If they are removed, the wraith will win.”

Buck thought the warning was a bit over the top, but he agreed, “Fine. So that means I don’t have to stay here with the Buckleys since they aren’t my parents, but won’t that mean I’ll be put in the system until someone can track down my parents?”

“No, definitely not,” Morgan said sternly. “While your parents are out of contact in Pegasus, you have a grandfather and an uncle in the United States who will take you in; once they prove you are biologically theirs with a DNA test. We just need to get you to Virginia Beach.”

Buck said, “The last time I went by train to DC for a school trip, it was just over four hours. I think I remember seeing on the boards that the train ride to Virginia Beach was another six hours. Are you going to take their memories of me away?”

Morgan nodded. “From your parents, yes. However, I’ll leave your sister’s memories of you intact. I think one day she’ll need you.”

Buck whispered, “Doug is not a good man.”

Morgan declined to comment on the situation and instead suggested, “How about you pack what you want to take with you while I deal with the Buckleys.”

Buck got busy packing his favorite clothes and pillow into a suitcase, and then he pulled out his laptop and research from their hiding place and placed it all carefully into his backpack. He’d been doing engineering research on the sly, which is how he came to MIT’s attention in the first place. He also made sure to pack his new birth certificate and the letters he’d received from MIT offering the scholarship, in the hope that his actual family would help him attend the following semester.

When she returned, he was sitting on the bed with a suitcase and backpack beside him, ready to go. She looked around at the room full of memories, and she asked, “That’s it, you have everything you want to take?” She could see school memorabilia, sports trophies, and band posters littering the room.

Buck nodded. He waved around at the decorations. “This was for my paren… the Buckley’s benefit. In the hope that they might actually love me if I looked like a normal kid.”

Morgan said, “I’m sure your biological family will love you. I’m not sure when you’ll meet your parents, but your uncle and grandfather will shower you with love… once they get over their initial shock.” At his skeptical look, I am sure this time. I’m sorry I had to leave you here for so long. The timing had to be right for me to introduce myself. Now, do you have enough cash for the train to Virginia Beach?”

Buck nodded. “I do. I got birthday money from Mads the last time she visited; I was saving it for an emergency. I think this definitely counts. How will I stay in touch with Maddie?”

Morgan leaned back as she thought about it. She suggested, “How about you send her postcards every so often, maybe to her work. I would recommend getting a PO Box, so she can reply if she wants to. She may not respond, but it’s better than nothing.”

Buck nodded. “Ok. How will I know where to go once I am in Virginia Beach?”

Morgan gave him the address, which he wrote down and put in his backpack with the birth certificate.

The young teen asked, “Why are you doing this?”

The being gave him a sad look, and she explained, “I’ve seen what will happen if I don’t… make adjustments… that future does not spark joy. For anyone. I made a decision when I rescued you, and I don’t want my meddling to go to waste.”

Buck muttered, “Spark joy? What the hell does that even mean.”

Morgan waved her hand airily, “It’s a thing where I last saw you. You’ll understand one day.”

He asked, “Will I see you again?”

Morgan shrugged. “Perhaps. Now, the most important thing. You can not tell anyone about me or what I’ve told you. If you’re asked by anyone other than your parents or Jack O’Neill, tell them you were doing a school project on genealogy when you found out you weren’t related to your parents. If you’re pushed as to how you found the Major, tell them you looked him up online.”

Buck nodded solemnly and promised he wouldn’t say a word.

She waved. “Toodles, kid. I have a General I need to nag about DADT.”

-x-

Buck finally arrived in Virginia Beach after a full day of buses and trains. It would have been quicker to fly, but it’s harder to get on a flight as an unaccompanied minor. At least the bus drivers and train conductors believed that he was going between parents. He was also taller than the average, just turned 13-year-old, so he was able to convince a few he was actually 15 and about to turn 16.

The taxi he’d caught from the bus depot approached a sizeable mansion-like house on the waterfront. At that moment, when he got the first glimpse of the house, he realized he had no idea who he needed to ask for. All the glowing ancient lady had told him was that his biological grandfather and uncle lived here.

When the taxi dropped him and his luggage off, he pulled the birth certificate out of his backpack before he nervously approached the front door and knocked.

An older woman answered the door and asked, “Can I help you?”

Buck said, “I’m here to see the Sheppards.”

“About?” She asked with a raised eyebrow.

The teen leveled her with an unimpressed look as he said, “Private family business concerning Major John Sheppard.”

The door was opened wider, and a man in his twenties said, “Anna, I’ve got this.” He leveled Buck with a familiar unimpressed look as he asked, “What private family business could you possibly have with my brother?”

Buck held out the birth certificate and said, “The kind where he’s my dad.”

The man glanced at the birth certificate before he said, “You better come in while we look into this.” He took Buck through to a dining room and gestured for him to take a seat at the table. He asked, “Are you hungry? You look like you were chewed up and spat out, kid.”

Buck nodded. “I’ve been traveling all day on the bus. It’s not the most comfortable, but it was the easiest way to get here without adults getting in my way.”

Dave raised his eyebrows at this. He said, “I’ll ask Anna to bring you something while I go talk to my father about all this. Do you have any allergies?”

When Buck shook his head, the man, who was apparently his uncle, left him alone in the dining room, so Buck pulled one of his engineering books out of his backpack and started quietly reading. He knew boredom was dangerous for him, so Buck worked at keeping his brain busy wherever possible. 

The older woman, Anna, brought him a plate of sandwiches, and he thanked her quietly as he kept reading while he waited. He could hear raised voices from elsewhere in the house, but he dismissed it as unimportant. He was used to ignoring yelling in the house from his years of living with the Buckleys.

Eventually, his uncle returned with an angry older man beside him. The older man said, “You expect us to believe you’re the offspring of my son?”

Buck nodded. “Yep. That’s what my birth certificate says. It’s easy to confirm with a simple DNA test.”

The older man took a seat on the opposite side of the table from Buck and demanded, “What’s in it for you?”

Buck sighed and admitted, “Maybe people who actually give a shit about me instead of just their image in the community. The people who raised me are all about how they look to others, so when I was offered a full ride to MIT, they forced me to turn it down because a 12-year-old being offered a place at MIT was not normal.”

“Jesus,” his uncle said with a grimace beside his father. “Seriously, they made you turn it down?”

Buck ignored the question as he asked, “Can I get your names? It’s weird calling you maybe uncle and maybe grandfather in my head.”

The older man laughed; while he was reluctant to believe the kid’s story, he couldn’t deny that the teen looked a lot like John’s long-dead grandfather. He said, “I’m Patrick Sheppard, John’s father, and this is his younger brother David.”

The man in question scowled as he said, “I prefer Dave. David means I am in trouble.”

“Thank you,” Buck said. “I’m Evan Buck… I mean Sheppard, I guess. But I prefer to be called Buck. Look, I don’t need a lot; I’m pretty self-sufficient, just; it would be nice to be able to do my experiments without adults freaking out that I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m smart, but the people that raised me acted like I was just faking it to get out of classes. I’m beyond over it.”

Patrick said, “I can understand that. How about tomorrow we get the DNA test done for peace of mind, and once we have the results, I’ll contact a friend at MIT to see what’s going on with your scholarship. Especially since your scholarship will be in your other name, so that will need to be sorted out. Do you know how you ended up with the people who raised you?”

Buck shook his head. “Nope. But I’m pretty sure it wasn’t something they’d want to bring attention to since my mom’s name isn’t listed on the birth certificate. So, if it’s all the same to you, I’d be happy if I never had to see them again.”

Patrick nodded. “Okay, we can discuss it later.”

The teenager held up his hand to stop his grandfather. He admitted, “Look, I get that you want to be responsible, but they’ll probably celebrate that I am gone. As far as they are concerned, I am a nuisance, and I get in the way of them living their best life. They only kept me around for appearance’s sake, they would have been ostracized for putting a preteen up for adoption. The only one from that family I want to keep in touch with is my sister, Maddie, and that’s unlikely because her douche of a husband hates me. So… how about this? If an Amber Alert goes out, I’ll agree to turn myself in; then, you can have your lawyers question how they got custody of me. If no alert goes out, nothing changes.”

“Sure, that sounds reasonable,” Dave said placatingly. “How about we find you a room to use while we arrange for the DNA tests. We should be able to get them done tomorrow at the lab in town.”

Patrick said, “I’m just glad you’re on leave, Dave, since you’re the level-headed one in this family.”

Dave led the tired-looking kid up to the second level, where he was shown into a guest room. At least until they could confirm he really was his brother’s kid. As the kid sat on the bed, he asked, “So you’re thirteen?”

Buck nodded. “Yep. I just turned thirteen a few weeks ago.”

The older man asked, “So if your pare… the people who raised you, are so fixed on normality, how did you get on MIT’s radar?”

“Through a competition they run,” Buck explained. “I submitted the concept for an engine I designed, and I won the scholarship. Engineering and design come easy for me. I just struggle to get the equipment for my experiments that will keep up with me.”

Dave said, “That won’t be a problem here. Now, how about you get some sleep. I’ll get you and Dad up early tomorrow for a trip to the lab. We should be able to pay them to put a rush on it, so we have the results in a few days.”

Buck said, “Thank you for not kicking me out while you wait for confirmation. I appreciate it.”

Dave nodded before he shut the door leaving Buck to his own devices.

The next few days were fraught with tension as they waited for the results. Buck worked away at his latest project on his laptop, just existing with the Sheppards as they watched him closely, looking for signs they were related, of which there were many.

Eventually, a courier turned up with the test results. They had done two DNA tests, one to test familial ties between Dave and Buck the other to test for the grandfather relationship between Patrick and Buck. Both proved beyond any doubt that Buck was related to them and was 99.9% likely to be John’s son.

Patrick got them settled in the den and said sadly, “This is all well and good, and we’ll happily take you in. But we will have a tough time introducing you to your father. He hasn’t spoken to us for several years, not since our last major fight. They started when I wanted him to go to college to get a business degree, so he could take over the company my father started, but he wasn’t interested. I found out when he graduated that he’d used my funds to get a math degree, and then he signed up for the Air Force. I was livid and said things I shouldn’t have. We’ve had other fights over the years, but that last one was the final nail in the coffin for him. I told him he was an idiot for divorcing his wife. I’ve tried to get in touch to try and make it right, but to no avail.”

Dave said, “Even I’ve tried. Emails are bounced, and I tried searching internally within the systems I can access as a Navy SEAL, but his records are classified above my security clearance. I’m surprised you knew he was a major.”

Buck shrugged and, thinking quickly because he didn’t want to give Morgan’s involvement away, he said, “I did a quick search for him on a library computer, and there was an article about a Major John Sheppard in an obscure Air Force publication. I figured it had to be my dad.” He sighed, “So we try and find him, and hopefully, he can point us to my mother. In the meantime, I go to school and get my degrees and figure out my future.”

Patrick asked, “So you plan to do multiple degrees?”

Buck nodded. “Of course. I plan to start with an engineering degree with a minor in aerospace engineering. Maybe physics as well. I’m still deciding, though.”

Patrick offered, “So, like I mentioned the other day, I’ve got a friend on the admissions committee at MIT. I’ll contact them regarding your scholarship and let them know you were forced into sending the rejection. The original scholarship is in the name of Evan Buckley? Do you have your original letters here?”

Buck nodded to confirm both questions before he ran up to his new, more permanent room in his suite to find the packet he’d received from MIT. He passed it to his grandfather and said, “Part of it requires me to have a nanny due to my age. They are allowed to attend classes with me, so someone doing the degree themselves would be good. Having someone bored beside me during class would drive me crazy.”

Dave said, “I know someone that can do it. I met her on some exercises we did with the Marines, and we became good friends. She’s looking for someone to sponsor her degree program. She’s got an agreement to move to the reserves to complete her engineering degree, but she needs help paying for it all. She’s an explosives expert, but she doesn’t get much credibility due to a lack of higher education. You know what the old crowd is like.”

Buck muttered, “Skill should always outweigh scholastic achievements. Also, who’s stupid enough to pick a fight with a marine explosives expert? Couldn’t she end them with a grenade?”

Dave laughed. “She could. She’s pretty awesome; I’ll contact her and see what her plans are. Maybe while dad makes his calls.”

Patrick nodded. “I’ll make sure that they accommodate whoever accompanies Evan… sorry Buck, on his college career. Just make sure she’s planning a long degree program. According to this paperwork, Buck will need a supervisor until he turns 18.”

Buck said, “I’ll be fine if she can’t; I’m sure we can find someone a few years down the line.”

Dave said, “I can ask. I’m sure she would be up for doing a master’s degree if it was sponsored, and she could get approval for that long a break from the Marines. I offered to pay for it myself, but she wouldn’t take my money. So this would be a good compromise.”

After an interesting summer spent in Virginia with his Uncle Dave and Grandpa, Buck settled into life at MIT rather quickly. He was staying in a small apartment off-campus with Marine 1st Lt Laura Cadman, and they had monthly dinners with Patrick and Dave, whenever his uncle was in the country.

He’d been compared to a Rodney McKay, and Buck had pondered briefly if he was related to Meredith, but he didn’t let it distract him from his goal of graduating with at least one Ph.D. by the time he was 18. Laura was a great babysitter. He was able to help her with her classwork; in return, she taught him all the martial arts she had learned in high school and helped him get fit and strong so by the time he graduated, he would be fit enough for the Navy SEALs. He was planning to do the civilian challenge route to joining the Navy SEALs, to avoid the pressure of being a legacy candidate.

When he wasn’t doing summer school during the school breaks, Laura would go home to spend time with her parents, and Buck would spend time in Virginia Beach with his family. He spent a lot of time with Patrick during these breaks learning about the Sheppard and Lonsdale family histories. He found out more about the split between his father and grandfather and how things had been difficult with John ever since the death of his wife, John’s mother, from cancer. 

A year before he graduated, Buck was on a trip home when his grandfather had a heart attack. He was able to keep his head and call 911 while doing chest compressions to keep his grandfather alive. Dave rushed home as soon as he was able, and between the uncle and nephew, they were able to browbeat Patrick into changing his lifestyle so he would live longer. Dave got him into running for fun and as a way to get out of his head for an hour each morning, and Buck, thanks to Laura, got him into yoga for relaxation.
 
Buck eventually graduated from MIT with a Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, and he was ABD in his Physics Ph.D. Laura graduated with a Chemical Engineering master’s degree, and she went back to the Marines with a rank and pay increase to Captain to match her new qualifications. She wished him luck at Coronado.

Chapter Text

Coronado, CA - September 2009

Thanks to Laura, Buck found BUD/s relatively easy. She’d gone online and found every resource she could about the Navy SEAL training, and she made sure he would handle it all with grace. She also taught him about explosives, and they’d spent a reasonable amount of time at the range so he would be ready for the weapons training part of the course.

He was disappointed. He’d heard through the grapevine that his father had been in the USA a few times, but John Sheppard was still refusing point-blank to see his family before disappearing back into the black hole project he was part of.

Whenever Buck had downtime, which was rare, he spent the time either working on his dissertation or doing classwork towards a math degree; in honor of the father he still hadn’t met.

After a year in SEAL training, he was assigned to a team out of Little Creek, thankfully not the same team as his Uncle Dave. He was assigned to SEAL Team 10, and after another year of intensive training, his team was deployed to the Middle East.

-x-

Meanwhile, Laura had come to the attention of Project Bluebook, due to her expertise in explosives, and after a year of training in Colorado Springs, she was sorted for assignment to Atlantis, not long after the city ship had returned to the Pegasus Galaxy. She was gutted she couldn’t share the news with Buck; she thought he would get a kick out of the knowledge that there is life beyond that on Earth. She did warn him that she had been reassigned to a top-secret project, so he and the rest of the Sheppard family would know that contact would be limited to occasional emails.

She had seen photos of Buck’s father on visits to the house in Virginia Beach, and she knew the Sheppards had been trying to find him. So the last thing she expected was to see him as co-leader of the Atlantis Expedition when she stepped through the Stargate from Midway Station.

She gathered with everyone else in the main gate room and looked up when the Brigadier General whistled to get their attention. To be heard over the din of those arriving, he shouted, “Welcome to Atlantis, I’m Brigadier General John Sheppard and beside me is Dr. Rodney McKay, we are the leaders of this expedition. First up, you all have a briefing on how to stay alive in Pegasus, followed by a mandatory medical check-up. Military, go with Colonel Lorne for your briefing, scientists with Dr. Zelenka.”

Laura glanced at the military leader once more before she left the room to follow the rest of the Marines to their briefing. She knew instinctively that John Sheppard would not accept the information about Buck from her. So she had to get planning to get Dave on Atlantis.

-x-

“Diaz!” The medic supervisor yelled, “Got a patient for you.”

Corporal Eddie Diaz jogged over from the supply cupboard that he’d been restocking. “Staff Sergeant?”

The staff sergeant gestured to one of the beds where a tall blond man was seated, looking contrite as his commander spoke quietly to him. He said, “Lieutenant Sheppard was grazed by some shrapnel on their last skirmish. Can you clean out the wound then stitch it closed?”

Eddie nodded. “Sure thing. Does he still need to be assessed by one of the docs?”

“Their medic assessed him,” The staff sergeant reassured. “He just didn’t have the equipment to get the shrapnel out in the field. The kid was covering someone when a grenade went off.”

Eddie went back to the supply cupboard and retrieved the equipment he’d need. He approached the lieutenant and asked, “You ready for me to clean up your arm?”

The SEAL nodded. “If it means longer with you, then definitely.”

The commander groaned. “Jesus Buck, flirt on your own time. I’ll leave you both to it.”

Buck grinned at the medic. “I’m Buck; anyone ever tell you that you’re hot like burning?”

Eddie smirked, “Not since yesterday.” He wasn’t going to tell him it was his pregnant best friend yelling at him for turning down the offer of a date. “Let’s get that shrapnel out of your arm, huh?”

Buck nodded. “Sure. Then we can go on the sandbox version of a date.”

Eddie set out the equipment beside him, including the tweezers and irrigation he would need to make sure the wound was completely clear. He said, “Hold your horses; let’s just get this wound clear of debris first. I’m not agreeing to anything while you’re on painkillers.”

With a smirk, Buck admitted, “I haven’t had any; it doesn’t hurt that bad. That’s why my commander was on my case. He wanted me to take them as he knew I would need stitches.” He shrugged. “I have a high pain tolerance. Lots of accidents in my childhood.”

Eddie asked, “Are you sure? I can get the doc to prescribe something before I start cleaning it out. It’s going to hurt like the devil.”

Buck nodded. “I’m sure, Corporal. I promise I won’t even flinch. Hell, the last time I had stitches, I did them myself. They weren’t the tidiest, but they worked.”

“Okay…” Eddie picked up the tweezers and commented, “Just hold as still as you can so I can get the shrapnel out.”

He worked steadily for nearly half an hour, cleaning out all the small pieces of shrapnel in the wound. He wanted to keep the lieutenant distracted, so he asked, “Tell me about why you did your own stitches?”

Buck chuckled, “I was trying an… um… experiment with C4 with my babysitter when I was at MIT. The test went fine, although we got chewed out by the professor that caught us when I fell out of the tree. I’d cut my leg badly on a branch as I fell, but we didn’t want my grandpa to find out about us using C4 again since we’d promised we’d stop using it on campus. So Laura helped me clean up the wound, but she’s squeamish about needles, so I had to do the stitches myself.”

There was so much odd in that statement that Eddie couldn’t quite parse it all. He eventually said, “You went to MIT?”

Buck nodded. And he could see the confusion on the cute medic’s face. So he took pity on the older man and said, “I went to MIT when I was 13; that’s why I had a babysitter.”

As he irrigated the wound to try and get the last bit of dust out of the larger gash, Eddie asked, “And your babysitter taught you how to use C4?”

“Yep,” Buck confirmed. “She’s a Marine Explosives Specialist. My grandpa sponsored her master’s degree so that she could supervise me. Over the five years we were there, she helped me get fit for the SEALs.”

Eddie asked, “And the experiment was on a professor’s car?”

“Not exactly,” Buck said with a mischievous grin. “We tried it out on his tires. He was being a dick about letting me test out of his class. He didn’t like MIT’s policy on younger students gaining entrance and skipping high school.”

The medic got the sutures ready, and he said, “Last chance, are you sure you don’t want painkillers for this?”

Buck shook his head. “I’ll be fine. I promise.”

“Okay,” Eddie said with a sigh. Thinking it would distract him, he asked, “So why did you join the SEALs? It’s not often they have an MIT graduate, let alone one that doesn’t even look old enough to have graduated from college.”

Buck was mindful of the stitches going into his arm, so he didn’t shrug as much as he wanted to. He said, “School got boring. So as soon as I was old enough to join the SEALs, I chose to graduate. I had one Ph.D. when I graduated, and I’m ABD in my second. I’d be finished that one too, but getting access to a physics lab while doing SEAL training isn’t easy. As for the SEALs, well, my babysitter tried to push me into the Marines, but I wanted to follow my uncle into the SEALs; he’s the commander of SEAL Team 2. So I did the civilian challenge contract as I didn’t want to be seen as a legacy enlistment.” He looked down at his arm, where the medic was nearly finished. “So, how many stitches?”

Eddie laughed. “Twenty all up. You know the drill?”

Buck nodded and ticked off on his fingers as he listed, “Keep them covered, keep them as dry as possible. And I’m guessing I need to come and see you every day for dressing changes?”

Eddie nodded. “Yep. Someone here will be able to help you.”

Buck asked shyly, “Can I ask for you specifically, Corporal?”

Knowing it could be the start of a lasting friendship or epic levels of trouble, Eddie threw caution to the wind and said, “Sure, why not. Now get out of here before my CO comes to investigate why you’re still here.”

-x-

Eddie had tried in the beginning to keep the baby SEAL at arm’s length, to keep their developing relationship to just friendship, but he couldn’t deny the feelings he had for the younger man. DADT might have been repealed, but homophobia in the services was still very real. However, what he hadn’t counted on was Buck’s cunning.

Buck had to visit the medical tent for daily dressing changes on his arm, so he used that time to learn more about the corporal and to feel out if he was genuinely open to the flirting, as well as working out Eddie’s schedule. So when it came time to get his stitches out, he timed it to be at the end of Eddie’s shift in the medical tent.

As Eddie was packing up the equipment, Buck asked nervously, “Do you want to take a walk with me?”

Eddie raised an eyebrow at him and asked, “A walk? Where would we go?”

“The range?” Buck suggested. He honestly hadn’t thought this plan would work, so he struggled to think of somewhere they could go where they could talk. “I need to get recertified for my weapons now that my arm is healed. So we could do a few practice rounds, talk for a bit. I know the Army requires you to shoot regularly, even though you’re a medic.”

Eddie agreed, “They do.” He looked at the nervous face of the Lieutenant and asked, “Are you sure you want to do this? You’re an officer, and I’m just a grunt.”

Buck snorted. “I don’t see you as a ‘just a grunt’; I see you as a highly competent medic who is smart and can think outside the box for solutions.” He considered the medic, who still looked hesitant. Eventually, he asked, “Do you know that one of my favorite activities, when I have downtime, is reading. I read the UCMJ when I contemplated asking you out, especially since DADT has been repealed, and there is nothing in there that prohibits us from dating, as we aren’t in the same chain of command. ”

Eddie said, “We’ll still have to tell our COs.”

Buck nodded. “Of course. My only request is that we keep it to just our COs, though, at least on base. SEALs are not all as enlightened as I would like them to be, and a few of them are homophobic to the point of violence. Thankfully nobody on my team.”

Eddie smiled. “I was going to ask the same thing. A couple of the other medics are in on the campaign to get DADT returned.”

Buck screwed up his face. “That’s just… ugh.” He shook his head to get rid of the thoughts of idiots, then he asked, “So, we’re on for the range?”

Eddie smiled. “Sure, I’d like that. I can assess how your arm is doing with activity while we shoot.”

As they walked to the range, they came to an agreement that when it was just the two of them, their ranks would be left at the door, and they would use first names with each other. At the range, while Buck was shooting, Eddie was assessing his arm. He wanted to make sure the wound had correctly healed without affecting his ability to hold the various rifles he was certified to shoot. As the range was busy, they were shooting in the same firing lane. Taking turns between each round. They were having fun chatting and getting to know each other, mixed in with subtle, low-key flirting.

As Eddie took his turn, one of the SEALs approached Buck and sneered, “Slumming it with the grunts now, sir?”

“Petty Officer Jones,” Buck intoned flatly. “How can I help you?”

Jones shrugged negligently as he gestured between the two men. “I was just curious about your little date here?”

Eddie put down his rifle as he’d finished his round, and he looked the Petty Officer in the eyes as he asked, “Oh, is that what you call medical checkups these days? I think you might need to find someone who can teach you what a date is.”

Jones snarled, “If it were a medical check, you wouldn’t be shooting, and you would have equipment.”

Eddie chuckled darkly. “Or I’m just here to assess how his arm copes with the rifles he’s certified for, as part of the sign-off that he’s ready to be taken off light duties?”

Jones gestured angrily at the rifle he’d just placed on the table beside him. “And that?”

Buck said, “Not that it’s any of your business, Petty Officer Jones, but he was killing two birds with one stone and getting his range time done at the same time, something that was approved by both Colonel Hartley and the range officer. Now, are you done harassing the Corporal, or do I need to talk to the Commander about your attitude?”

Jones stood to attention, and with a sneer on his face he couldn’t quite hide, he said, “You don’t, sir.”

Eddie watched the Petty Officer storm off, and in case anyone else was listening in, he said, “I’m done, Lieutenant Sheppard; how about we head back to discuss my findings.”

Buck nodded. “Sounds good, Corporal.”

They left the range, and Buck took Eddie through to his private office. It was a pretty basic office, with a desk, a couple of chairs, and a small cot for late nights doing paperwork. Buck took a seat on the cot and directed Eddie to pick a seat.  

Eddie sat in the guest chair in front of the desk and beside the cot. He said, “Your arm will be fine as long as you keep doing the physical therapy exercises the doc gave you. Just let me know if the muscles get too tight, and I can massage them to try and ease them.”

Buck nodded. “Sure, sure. What about dating? Are you sure you still want to do this after seeing what could be in your future?”

Eddie raised his eyebrows, and he moved to sit beside the younger man on the cot. He briefly wondered if it would take both of their weight, but he chanced it anyway. “You mean bigots like the Petty Officer?” When he saw Buck nod, he said, “I’ve been dealing with bigots my entire life, Buck. Jones can’t do anything to affect me directly. I feel worse for you since you have to work with the pendejo cabrón occasionally.”

Buck snorted. A member of his team, Grouch, had been teaching him Spanish, French, and Pashto since he had arrived on the team. With his brains, he’d been picking them up quickly. He said, “I really had fun today, and I can honestly see myself falling hard for you, Eddie Diaz.”

“I could easily fall for you too, Evan Sheppard,” Eddie said quietly. “But before we go any further, I need to come clean about my personal situation. I am going home in a week so that I can be there for the birth of my son.”

Buck backed away with wide eyes. “You have a partner already?”

Eddie shook his head. With a sigh, he said, “No, definitely not. It’s complicated, and it’s weird.”

The younger man shrugged. “I’m ok with weird.” Out of anyone on base, he had the market cornered on weird.

“Okay,” Eddie said hesitantly, “Umm, so, I’m bisexual, but… I only like girls for sex. My best friend from high school is like me, but she only likes guys for sex. So, whenever I’m home, we fuck like bunnies if we’re both single. The last time I was home, the condom broke. Long story short, she’s due to give birth soon, and I am flying home in a week so I’ll be there in time for the birth. We aren’t together as a couple, and we have no plans to ever be together as a couple, regardless of my parent’s demands. But she is my best friend, and we do plan to co-parent our kid, regardless of our respective relationship statuses. Anyone we date will need to understand that.”

Buck said honestly, “That’s cool. I love kids. As long as you’re definitely single, I still want this. I’m not a homewrecker, and I won’t help someone cheat on someone back home.”

Eddie cupped his cheek and asked, “Are you sure? I come with a lot of baggage.”

The younger man covered his hand and nodded. “I come with just as much, trust me. When I’m home, I live with my Grandpa and Uncle Dave because we don’t know who my mother is, and my dad is buried deep in a classified project. I still haven’t actually met him, because, thanks to some epic-level misunderstandings, he hasn’t spoken to his family for over a decade. If you can deal with my baggage and everything it comes with, I’ll help with your baggage for as long as you’ll have me.”

Eddie asked, “Can I kiss you?”

“I’d be pretty disappointed if you didn’t,” Buck said softly.

Eddie moved his hand to cup the back of Buck’s neck before he pulled him forward into a soft kiss.

Eventually, Buck pulled back just far enough to rest his forehead against Eddie’s; he felt like his heart was going to beat its way out of his chest. He said, “We need to talk to my CO before we get any more serious. The sooner we come clean, the better it will be. He doesn’t do well if he’s blindsided by surprises.”

Buck called his CO to see if he was available for a quick chat before he led Eddie down the hall to his office. Lieutenant Commander Harrison ushered them in and gestured for them to take a seat on the sofa.

When Commander Harrison saw the looks on their faces, he knew the flirting campaign Buck had started in the medical tent had worked, so he asked, “You’ve decided you both want to try this?”

When the two men nodded, he picked up the phone and called the medical CO. He wanted to loop in the other officer, just in case shenanigans were pulled on the two men.

When he saw the corporal look at Buck with a worried look on his face, Commander Harrison reassured, “It’s just so we’re all on the same page, Corporal. Some would go out of their way to cause trouble for Lieutenant Sheppard.”

Eventually, Colonel Hartley entered the room, and after they all got the salutes and introductions out of the way, he took a seat in the remaining chair. He gruffly asked, “What’s going on, Harrison? Why do you have one of my corporals sequestered away.”

Commander Harrison said, “They are here to declare that they are dating. Due to their ranks, I wanted to make sure you knew what was going on, as there are some in the SEALs who will report them to try and cause issues.”

Colonel Hartley asked, “Report them for what? They technically aren’t breaking any rules. According to the UCMJ, fraternization doesn’t apply in this case as they are not even close to being in the same Chain of Command.”

Buck said, “It doesn’t stop people from trying if they want to create trouble, sir.”

Eddie said, “There are some who believe Lieutenant Sheppard has only been fast-tracked due to nepotism, sir. When that isn’t the case at all.”

Colonel Hartley asked, “You’re a second-generation SEAL?”

Buck shook his head, “Technically no, sir. My Uncle Dave Sheppard is a SEAL, part of SEAL Team 2. But my father is actually in the Air Force.”

The colonel gave him a pointed look and said, “So then why are you being fast-tracked? Because from where I’m sitting, you’re very young to be a Lieutenant.”

Commander Harrison said, “He is young, but he’s one of the most mature Lieutenants I’ve ever worked with. He went to MIT at 13, graduated at 18 with a Ph.D., and he’s ABD in his second Ph.D.”

Colonel Hartley gave his corporal a hard look. He asked, “Are you sure you want to do this? It could make things difficult for you.”

Eddie said, “Actually, sir. We’ve talked about it, and we’ve decided other than our families, we only want the two of you to know. We already had one rather unpleasant confrontation, so we’re happy for others on base to think we’re friends, rather than friends who are also dating.”

Colonel Hartley said, “If you’re both absolutely sure, then I have no issues with it. I’ll keep some paperwork with Commander Harrison, so the relationship is on record, just in case someone does try to cause issues, but otherwise, good luck to the two of you.” He checked his watch before he said, “I need to get back to the tent; we’ve got a helo inbound in 20.” 

He was about to step out the door before he had a realization, so he stepped back and said, “Corporal Diaz, if Lieutenant Sheppard is injured, you won’t be allowed to treat him unless it’s an emergency. This is to cover both of your asses. Okay?”

Eddie smiled, “Understood, sir.” He ignored Buck’s muttered ‘No fair,’ from beside him.

Once the door was shut, the Commander asked, “So how do you date in a war zone?”

Buck shrugged, “We actually talked about that earlier; we were thinking things like time on the range. That’s where Jones accosted us both. Movie dates in my office. Since it’s only been assigned to me to assist with what little paperwork I have to do and to give me a private place to study, so it shouldn’t be a problem to give Eddie access. But we’ll think of things we can do to keep ourselves entertained. For me, it doesn’t have to be elaborate or big; just time together is enough for me.”

Eddie said, “Me too. Even reading while Buck is studying or working on a project would be enjoyable for me. He was telling me earlier that he has some great books on his tablets.”

Commander Harrison asked, “You have multiple tablets, Buck?”

With a snort, Buck said, “Of course. A couple of laptops, too, they all fit in my personal weight allotment. I have a tablet for games, one for fiction books, and the other for my reference books. I’m stress testing them for Grandpa. So with books, Grandpa buys the physical copy of the books I need, and he found a service that scans the book to the right digital format for me. It saves on weight, and I still have the hardcopy in the library at home.”

The commander said, “Right. I think it’s best if we play this by ear. You do whatever you can to keep your relationship to yourselves, and I’ll help you in any way I can.”

The boys both chorused, “Thank you, sir.”

“Dismissed,” he said with a smile. As they were about to walk out, he said quietly, “Don’t get caught using the office for anything inappropriate.”

Buck snarked as the commander left the office, “I never get caught.”

Chapter Text

Classified Location - July 2011

They’d been dating for four months —or at least the deployment version of dating— when Eddie wanted Buck to finally meet Shannon and their newborn son Christopher. He had heard all about them from Eddie, including all the photos Shannon had been sending of their son.

As soon as she saw him beside Eddie, she snarked, “So I finally get to meet your cute SEAL?”

Buck chuckled, “Yeah. I’ve been looking forward to it. Especially after he told me about you and Christopher.”

Shannon said, “I bet that was a fun discussion. So I have a kid with my best friend; we’re just fuck buddies because neither of us like romance with the opposite gender, but we love sex.”

Eddie hid his face in his hands and murmured, “Dios mío.”

Buck leaned over and kissed his reddened cheek and said, “She’s blunt; it’s great. She can never meet Laura.”

Shannon asked, “Who’s Laura?”

Buck said, “She was my babysitter at MIT since I couldn’t attend on my own due to my age.”

With a frown, Shannon settled Christopher, who was fussing on her lap, and she asked, “How old were you? I mean, you look like you’re barely old enough to have graduated high school.”

Eddie snickered, “He has a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering, is ABD in a second Ph.D. in physics, and he is working on a math degree when he gets bored between missions. He went to MIT when he was 13, which is why Laura was with him. She’s a captain in the Marines and taught him everything she knows about explosives.”

Shannon’s jaw dropped. “Damn, Eddie, you found a good one.”

Buck asked, “So, how about you finally introduce me to the cutie in your arms?”

She held him up and said, “This is Christopher Aiden Diaz; he’s three months old.”

“Awww!” Buck gushed. “He looks like a squishy version of you, Eds.”

Eddie asked, “How are you doing, Shan? Are my parents still harassing you?”

She rolled her eyes. “They are persistent. They are still harping on about how we should do the right thing, get married, and give Christopher real loving parents. Is as if they think we can’t be real parents without being married or a couple.”

Eddie groaned. “They won’t give up. They firmly believe in the sanctity of marriage and that parents should be married, even if they don’t love each other.”

Buck scowled. “Been raised by people like that, wouldn’t wish it on anyone. I ran away and found my biological family when I was 13; I was much happier after that.” He glanced at Eddie; he knew they were still finding their footing in their relationship, but he always wanted to help, so he asked, “Do you not have family who can help you in El Paso?”

Shannon shook her head. “Dad passed away my last year of high school, and Mom just this past summer, and I am an only child. Thanks to Eddie, I was able to see Mom in LA before she died, which was awesome. She’d moved after Dad died, too many memories in El Paso for her, and she wanted a fresh start.”

Eddie shrugged. “Your parents showed me what a healthy relationship looked like. I mean, your dad was the stay-at-home husband while your mom worked. Something I’d been raised to believe was wrong. Between that and talking with my older sister, Adriana, I learned that a lot of what they taught me was wrong.”

Buck asked, “That machismo, the man works, the woman keeps the house type of bullshit?”

Eddie nodded. “Yeah. Total bullshit if you ask me. Shannon is on maternity leave, but when she’s at work, she has a great job with a global tech giant that she shouldn’t have to give up, but we are trying to find a nanny to take care of Christopher while she’s working. My combat pay will cover a lot of it.”

Buck hesitated, but he eventually offered, “If Eddie’s parents start to get overbearing and you need to get the hell out of dodge, I have a place you can stay in back home in Virginia Beach. Grandpa won’t mind; in fact, I think he’d love the company. And Anna would love to have a baby to care for; she gets bored just looking after Grandpa when Dave and I are on deployment.”

Eddie asked, “Are you sure? I mean, you’ve only just met Shannon.”

“You trust her,” Buck said bluntly. “So I trust her. Grandpa will probably do background checks and all that. Pretty sure he already has on you. He’s paranoid about anyone getting close to me and Uncle Dave. But yeah, he’d be fine with it. He’s mellowed in his old age, and I’d breathe easier knowing he had someone other than Anna to talk to when he’s at home.”

Shannon asked, “He won’t mind the noise of a screaming baby?”

Buck smirked. “He won’t hear it. I have a suite at the opposite end of the house, and it has a good soundproofing system. All our suites do. Grandpa didn’t want to hear either of our sex lives.”

Eddie asked nervously, “Buck, just how big is your place?”

Buck bit his lip nervously as he pulled out his iPhone. He had a picture of the house on it for when he got homesick, so he pulled it up and showed it to Eddie.

Eddie laughed. “Holy shit, that’s your place? Shannon, you’ll be fine.” He flipped the phone around so she could see the size of the house. “Even without the soundproofing, I doubt he’ll hear you from opposite ends of the house.”

She leaned closer to her screen to try and get a look. “Wow, that’s huge. Are you sure, Buck?”

Buck nodded. “Absolutely. I’ll let Grandpa know on our next call. I’m introducing him to Eddie, which should be fun.”

Shannon said, “I’ll look into openings on the east coast. I know our HQ is in Norfolk, so I might be able to transfer.”

Buck had his suspicions since he knew from talking to Eddie that his best friend worked in marketing for a nationwide tech giant, so he asked, “Who do you work for, Shannon?”

With a curious look at the expression on his face, she answered, “Sheppard Industries. I work in the marketing department. I was hired out of college when I got my communications degree, and since they have a branch office in El Paso, I didn’t have to move.”

Buck rubbed the back of his head. “Yeah.” He looked at Eddie and accused, “You didn’t tell her my name, did you?”

Eddie frowned. “Nope. But, wait, you’re related to those Sheppards?”

“Yeah,” Buck said as he rubbed the back of his neck. To Shannon, he said, “Transferring won’t be a problem, pretty sure when Grandpa finds out you work for him, he’ll make sure it’s arranged as soon as you need it.”

Shannon asked, “Huh?”

With a grin, Buck waved and said, “Hi, I’m Lieutenant Evan Sheppard, known as Buck to my friends, and grandson to Patrick Sheppard, CEO, and owner of Sheppard Industries.”

Shannon rocked Christopher as she tried to process the information. “Seriously, Eddie? You’re dating the heir to Sheppard Industries?”

Buck wriggled his hand and said, “Well, I’m not technically the heir; that’s my father, if we ever find him, that is. He’s buried deep in some secret classified project. If not him, my Uncle Dave will be next in line. He’s also a Navy SEAL. Military service seems to run in the family. Also, I kinda hadn’t told Eddie yet.”

Christopher was starting to fuss, so Shannon said, “I need to get this little guy to bed. I’ll think about your offer, and if they get any more pushy, I’ll probably take you up on it. Adriana and Sophia are trying to be buffers, but as I said, your parents are persistent.”

Eddie said, “Sorry, Shan. I wish I could have got more time off to be with you when he was born. Tell Adriana and Sophia I miss them, please.”

Shannon nodded. “Will do. Buck, it was nice to meet you, and thanks for the offer of a safe haven. It means more than you realize.”

Buck blushed. “No problem, Shannon. It was nice to finally meet you and Christopher too.”

As soon as the call ended, Eddie asked, “Why didn’t you tell me?” He could sort of understand the secrecy, but not really. He was a bit hurt that his boyfriend didn’t trust him with this, or at least tell him before the call with Shannon.

Buck slumped back on the cot as he admitted, “I didn’t really know how to bring it up. I mean, it’s a lot on top of everything else. I didn’t want you to run screaming for the hills. I was going to tell you soon, but I wasn’t sure how; it’s not something I’ve ever told people before.”

The older man pulled Buck into his arms, and he whispered, “Never? What about at MIT?”

Buck shook his head. “I was there on a full scholarship, Eds. Laura warned me that it would be safer for both of us if people believed it was due to affordability, not MIT trying to entice me there. I was nervous that telling you would be that one thing that finally sent you running away.”

“Cariño,” Eddie said as he held Buck’s face between his hands, “Sweetheart. You’re like the sun, and I am pulled into your orbit. Nothing beyond a cataclysmic asteroid is going to scare me off.”

Buck pulled him into a sweet kiss; he had no words for how he was feeling after that declaration. He eventually whispered, “I love you, Edmundo Diaz. So fucking much.”

 “Te amo, mi sol, mi mundo, mi corazón,” Eddie said as he pulled Buck into a tight hug. “I love you; no matter what you throw at me, I’ll always love you. I should have realized that you were related to those Sheppards when you said you were stress testing your tablets for your Grandpa. It never clicked.”

-x-

“Grandpa!” Buck greeted enthusiastically a few hours later. They often struggled to align their schedules for the video calls, especially around Buck’s missions.

Patrick grinned when he saw his grandson on the screen. He worried about all of his kids when they were overseas. “How’s it going, kiddo? How’s that boyfriend of yours?”

“He’s good,” Buck said with a soft smile as he looked at Eddie sitting on the cot on the other side of his office. “Do you want to meet him?”

The older man leaned forward as he asked, “He’s there with you?”

When Buck beckoned, Eddie stood and joined him. Buck already had a chair set up beside him so they could both talk to Patrick. He smiled bashfully at the screen, and with a slight wave, he said, “Hi, sir.”

Patrick snorted. “Call me Patrick for the love of God. I called my dad sir, and he had a stick up his butt.”

Buck laughed and commented, “It’s probably lucky I never met him. So, Grandpa, this is Eddie, Eddie Diaz, and we’ve been seeing each other for the last few months now. I was going to wait until we had leave until I introduced you both, but something’s come up.”

Patrick frowned. “What’s going on, Buck?”

The younger man scowled. “It’s a bit of a long story, but the short version is, Eddie has a best friend he’d occasionally sleep with back in El Paso, they had an accident with the condom, and they now have a son. They’ve decided together that they want to co-parent Christopher. The problem is, Eddie’s parents are very traditional, and they believe that parents are only good parents if they are married.”

Patrick shook his head. “Religious?”

Eddie scratched the back of his neck before he shook his head. “They are, but that’s not where the attitude comes from. My mother’s parents taught her that a woman’s place is with her husband running the household, and she refuses to deviate from that.”

Buck said, “I’ve offered Shannon, Eddie’s best friend, the use of my suite if she needs to get out of town. Which I suspect will happen sooner or later. She already works for SI in the El Paso office, so it will just be a matter of transferring her to the Norfolk HQ.”

Patrick dragged his work laptop closer and asked, “What’s her full name?”

Eddie said, “Shannon Delia Morgan, she’s in the marketing department. She’s been working there for six years.”

Patrick nodded as he pulled up her employee record. He sighed, “There’ll be no problems with the transfer. It’s already been offered to her a few times, but she’s refused to leave El Paso.”

Eddie nodded. “The first offer came through just after she found out she was pregnant with our son. Her parents have both passed away, and my family is the only support she’s had up until now. She’s not ready to give up on El Paso yet, but I think it’s just a matter of time. My parents have been getting progressively worse, and I’m pretty sure she’s holding back from admitting what they’re really saying to her.”

Patrick nodded somberly. “It’ll be rough for you feeling like you’re in the middle of it while you’re so far away. I’ll get things set up at this end, so as soon as she’s ready to move, we can get her and your son on a plane to Virginia.” He could see from her employee records why she had been offered transfers already, and he knew she would be a boon to their VP of Marketing. 

Buck noticed the look on his grandfather’s face, so he asked, “What are you plotting, old man?”

Eddie saw Patrick give him a hesitant look, and he promised, “Look, I won’t repeat anything I hear. I do know how to keep secrets, even from my best friend.”

With a nod of thanks, Patrick admitted, “She’s been offered the transfers because my VP of Marketing sees potential there. Potential for Ms. Morgan to replace her when she retires in a few years. Mary has been mentoring her remotely, even while she’s been on maternity leave.”

Buck frowned. “Isn’t Mary the one that works from wherever her husband is based at the time?”

Patrick grinned. “From wherever her husband is assigned for photography gigs, yes. But we have the whole company on Skype, so it’s easy to stay in touch. I think the R&D VP is the only one who works in the office, and that’s more because it’s easier for him to check out the projects. SI is all about flexibility where we can.”

Eddie nodded. “That’s one thing Shannon raves about. Most companies wouldn’t be as flexible with working moms. Her boss has offered her a 50/50 split with work and home time when she goes back once her leave is up.”

Patrick said, “Keep me updated; I’ll make the arrangements at this end. Don’t worry about ordering a plane ticket for her. As soon as she’s ready to go, I’ll send the company plane to pick her up. It’ll be less stressful on young Christopher. Newborns hate to fly.”

Eddie swallowed hard. He couldn’t believe that this man was willing to offer so much, considering they’d just met. “Thank you, Patrick. Knowing she has somewhere safe to land is a load off my mind. Now it’s just a matter of waiting for her to reach the end of her rope. Right now, she’s hell-bent on Christopher having contact with his grandparents.”

Buck grinned and murmured, “Grandpa is an awesome grandparent, and I’m sure he will spoil the hell out of your kid.”

Eddie whispered, “Thank you, cariño.”

Patrick asked, “So aside from that, how have you both been? I’m guessing Eddie isn’t a SEAL by the uniform?”

Eddie shook his head, and he explained, “I’m an Army medic. It’s how we met.”

They managed to spend half an hour talking before Buck was called into a meeting. Eddie settled into the cot to get back to reading the Clive Cussler book he was getting into before the call as he waited for his boyfriend to return.

When Buck finally settled in beside him after his meeting, the older man murmured, “I wasn’t expecting that.”

Buck smirked, “My grandpa, once he trusts you, is generous to those we consider family. He knows I am serious about you and that I wouldn’t offer the use of my suite unless I trusted you.

“Thank you, Evan. You have no idea just how much what you did means to me.” Eddie pulled him into a gentle kiss. 

-x-

Buck had been sent on a few extended missions lasting a few weeks at a time, so after Buck had a word with him, Commander Harrison had arranged for Eddie to have his own key for Buck’s office, just in case he needed quiet time while Buck was away on some of his longer missions.

Eddie was eternally grateful for the safe place to hide. He always made sure he wasn’t followed and often used the office when calling Shannon and his family, for the added privacy. He’d been getting hassled by some of the others in his tent due to the arguments he’d been having with his parents. Even with headphones in, so they could only hear his side of the conversation, it was clear he was refusing to marry the mother of his child, and a few of them agreed with his parents that it was the honorable thing to do.

When Eddie was talking to Shannon on Skype just after Halloween, Buck had been away for a few weeks on his latest mission at this point. He was sitting at Buck’s desk as it gave him a sense of being close to his boyfriend even though he was away.

Shannon asked, “Any word on our boy yet?”

Eddie shook his head. “Nothing. He said this one would be longer, but I wasn’t expecting the total comms blackout, I guess.”

Shannon was still in bed. She’d gone to bed late as Christopher had been fussing. She had a day off, so she decided to spend the morning in bed while her son was still sleeping. She was exhausted after another day of battling Eddie’s parents over Christopher. She leaned back against her pillows and said, “It’s the uncertainty. He’s like Schrödinger’s cat until you know for sure. Is that the only reason you look like you’ve barely slept?”

Eddie shook his head. “I think the reason I look like hell is the same as yours. The last few calls I had with my parents were… unpleasant. They seem hellbent on pushing their opinions, and I understand they’ve pushed the nanny we hired to quit?”

His best friend shrugged. She admitted, “We’re still working on that trial contract unless something is done about them. They keep turning up unannounced, telling me I’m doing everything wrong with raising our son. They also contradict most of what Susan is doing. It’s why she’s refusing to sign the permanent contract. She’s thankfully agreed to stay on until I have another option so I can keep working.”

Eddie asked, “The email they sent last night mentioned not being allowed to take Christopher out?”

Shannon snorted in derision. “Assholes, I knew they would lie through their teeth.”

Eddie cut off her rant and asked, “So can you tell me what actually happened?”

She said, “Yesterday they turned up when they knew I was at work and tried to take Christopher from Susan. She had to threaten to call the police if they didn’t leave. I had told her they didn’t have permission to remove my son from my house, no matter what they say.”

Eddie shook his head. “Dios. What the hell are they thinking?”

Shannon shrugged. “I think…” She dropped her head into her hands before she changed what she was going to say, and instead, she said, “As soon as Buck is back, I’m going to take him up on his offer.”

“Good,” Eddie said vehemently. “Neither of us should have to put up with that shit. What about my sisters? You mentioned they were buffers between you and my parents?”

She said, “I stopped going to your parent’s place a month ago, Eddie. If we meet so they can see Christopher; I make sure we’re in a public venue. I asked where your sisters were the last time we had coffee, as I haven’t seen them for a few weeks, and your mom just said they were busy. Sorry, Eddie.”

Eddie said, “I’ve still got an hour before I am due on shift; I’m going to make some calls, see if I can get them to back off a bit. I’ll let you know.”

Shannon smiled wanly. “Thanks, Eddie.”

He hung up and immediately put a call through to his parents. When Helena answered, she called Ramon, his father, into the room. “Ramon, Edmundo is calling.”

Ramon took a seat beside his wife and commented, “This is unexpected, mijo. You weren’t due to call for a few days.”

Eddie shrugged. “Well, this couldn’t wait. I got your email; then, I talked to Shannon. It’s interesting how your email was woefully lacking in details.”

Helena asked defiantly, “Like what, Edmundo?”

Eddie glared and said, “Like the fact you didn’t ask either of us for permission to take our newborn son out for the day. You just turned up unannounced, again, and tried to force the nanny we hired to hand him over. Susan had to threaten to call 911 before you would leave.”

He was so fixated on the screen and watching for his parents’ reactions he didn’t notice the door open, as a tired-looking Buck snuck into the office. Buck had been hoping to surprise his boyfriend, and he wasn’t aware he would be walking into world war three. He took a seat on the cot and pulled out his tablet so he could send a message to Shannon to check on her.

Ramon demanded, “We should be the ones taking care of Christopher, not some stranger, some woman who doesn’t understand family. You have several family members available to babysit your son during the day.”

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Walking into my house and demanding our nanny hand over your grandson is not ok; it’s not even close to ok. Susan is paid to follow our instructions, one of which is that Christopher is her charge while Shannon is working. ”

Helena cried, “It should be us.”

“That’s our decision to make,” Eddie said with a growl. “We are his parents, not you. We get to decide who takes care of him. And neither of us trusts any of you with him alone.”

Buck sent a message to Eddie so it would show up on his screen; it said, ‘Grandpa is ready to send the plane to El Paso.’

Before his parents could protest, he said, “You’re my parents, not hers, and honestly, we’re both adults; we get to decide what to do with our lives. Not you. We’re done with you both meddling in our lives.”

Ramon scowled. “It is not meddling. We’re worried; we’re all worried. Your sisters both believe that one day Shannon will just disappear with your son, and you’ll never see him again; they want you to do the right thing. You refuse to marry the mother of your child. What’s going to stop her from running away with him, so you never see him again. Maybe we should take custody of Christopher; at least we know how to take care of a child.”

Eddie yelled, “Enough! I’m done with this shit. When you’re ready to apologize, and it has to be a genuine apology, send us an email. Until then, don’t contact either of us. If you persist in trying to take Christopher, I’ll file a restraining order with the police.”

He shut the laptop hard and put his head in his hands.

Buck settled on the arm of the chair beside him and rubbed his back in comfort. He murmured, “As soon as they said they should have custody, I messaged Grandpa. He’s sent the plane and a small security team to El Paso to pick her up. I already messaged Shannon, and she’s packing what she needs, and she’ll be safe in Virginia by the time you wake up tomorrow. I trust him to take care of her and Christopher.”

Eddie said quietly, “I don’t get why my family can’t just be happy for me. They have a grandson, it’s what they’ve always wanted, and now they won’t see him because they are idiotas.”

Buck asked, “Your sister’s kids are girls?”

Eddie nodded. “Yeah, they have three girls between them both. Adriana and James have twins, Becky and Astra, and Sophia and Quinn have Stacy. All three of them are four.” He checked his watch to see the date before he confirmed, “They are not far apart in age, so the twins just turned four a few weeks ago, and Stacy turns five in October. Before I left for my deployment, my mom was bugging my sisters to have more kids. Neither of them wants more kids.”

Buck said, “Twins sound like they would be hard work.”

With a shrug, Eddie said, “Not so much; they are actually really quiet kids. I just don’t know if I can trust my sisters. You heard my parents; my sisters are just as angry that I refuse to marry Shannon. I guess I’ll wait and see if they reach out; they should have my email address, since I told my parents to pass it on when I gave it to them.”

Eddie spun on the chair and buried his face in his boyfriend’s stomach as he tried to rein in his anger. Once he was done wanting to punch things, he stood and pulled Buck into a hard kiss. “I've missed you, corazón. It’s been a long few weeks.”

Chapter Text

Classified Location - December 2011

Buck sat back in the medical bed a few weeks before Christmas as Colonel Hartley prodded around his shoulder. With a sigh, he said, “It looks like you got lucky; you’ll be in a sling for a few weeks, then light duties for another two weeks before you can go out on active missions.”

Eddie was standing with Lieutenant Commander Harrison on the other side of the bed. Buck’s commander asked, “Does that mean he can go home for a few weeks of leave? Maybe consult a specialist back home?”

With a smirk, Colonel Hartley said, “That sounds like a good idea. Perhaps he can piggyback on your flight, Corporal Diaz.”

Eddie smiled, “That sounds like a great idea, sir. Is there anything I need to know for the flight with his shoulder?”

Colonel Hartley held up a finger to indicate to the three men to wait, then he went into the storage cupboard and came back with a complicated sling. He said, “He needs to wear this, with his arm strapped down to reduce movement in his shoulder, to give the soft tissue time to recover.” He looked up at Eddie, knowing precisely what his corporal was going to ask, and said, “He can still hold Christopher, as long as he is sitting down, and someone else does the heavy lifting part.”

Eddie smiled. “Thank you, sir. I’ll talk to his Grandpa, and we’ll make sure he gets an MRI while he’s home.”

Buck asked, “What time’s the flight?”

“Our transport leaves in three hours,” Eddie confirmed. “I’ll call now and get you added to the flights. Excuse me, sirs.”

Once he was gone, Colonel Hartley said, “Please ask the hospital to email through copies of your MRI for your medical files. And if you need surgery, let me know so I can arrange for more time off.”

Buck nodded. “Yes, sir.”

The Colonel handed over a small bottle of pills. “These are painkillers; use them if you need to, don’t try and stubborn it out; that will just lead to the healing taking longer.” As he worked with one of the medics to get the sling on and strapped correctly, he said, “Also, I mean it with the sling; the only time you should take it off is to shower. And be careful with your arm while it’s not in the sling.”

The younger man had concentrated as they put on the sling, so he could see how it all strapped on. He reassured, “I’ll behave, sir. I don’t want to be on light duties any longer than necessary. After all, that’s when Lieutenant Commander Harrison trickles down all his paperwork.”

The commander in question snorted, and he said, “Come on, Sheppard, I’ll help you pack. Make sure you don’t use that arm of yours.”

“Thanks, sir,” Buck said enthusiastically. The painkillers he had been put on were still coursing through his system, so he was pretty damn happy with the world.

Eddie was waiting for him outside his tent by the time he was done packing for two weeks at home. He said, “I’ve got you seats on the same flights all the way back to Virginia. Your grandpa is going to meet us at the airport.”

They had to take a couple of different connecting flights to get home. First, a military flight into Coronado with a few of the returning SEAL teams, then a flight to Washington and a short hop from Washington to Norfolk. 

When Patrick saw the sling, he tutted his disapproval. He asked, “What happened?”

Buck explained, “Dislocated badly while rappelling. I was able to finish the mission, but I did a fair bit of damage in the process.”

Eddie said, “That’s why I asked you to make an appointment for an MRI and a CT scan. Colonel Hartley wants to make sure he hasn’t done any permanent damage.”

Patrick picked up Buck’s duffle and said, “Well, I got you booked in tomorrow morning, first thing, to see our orthopedic specialist, Dr. Jarvis; you last saw him when you broke your arm that one summer. He said he’d order the scans once he’s had a good look at your shoulder.”

“Thanks, Grandpa,” Buck said as he pulled the older man into a sideways hug with his good arm. “It’s good to see you.”

The older man said, “The house is going to be pretty full this Christmas. Your uncle is home for a few weeks before he leaves for a classified assignment.”

Eddie grinned. “I can’t wait to meet him.”

As they got into the car, Buck said, “I can’t wait to finally get some in-person Christopher cuddles, Shannon, too.”

Patrick snorted. “Nice to see where your priorities lie, Buck. Kid first, then his mom.”

“He’s the cutest kid,” Eddie protested with a laugh. “We’ve had to make do with Skype cuddles for months. It’s just not the same.”

The older man laughed. “Well, kiddos. If we time it right, he should be waking up from his afternoon nap when we get home.” He looked over at his grandson and noted the exhaustion on his face, even though he was trying to hide it. “You look like you’re ready for your own nap, though?”

Eddie said, “He couldn’t get comfortable on the plane, and the painkillers were just taking the edge off. The flight out of Kandahar wasn’t so bad; he could lie down for most of that flight. But the commercial flight was packed, and between his long legs and his shoulder, he was screwed from the get-go.”

Patrick nodded. “I wanted to send the company jet, but it was still in Australia. The RnD director took a team to Brisbane a few days ago to check on one of the factories. They are getting too many failed batches, and they are trying to find out why.”

Buck reassured, “It’s ok, Grandpa, I’ll get a good sleep tonight, and I should be fine tomorrow. The colonel gave me some morphine to take before bed. I just didn’t want to take it before my flights.”

Eddie asked, “You said that before, but I don’t understand why.”

Patrick said, “They make him a bit loopy. So, you end up with a Buck that is like a two-year-old after a bag of pure sugar, and when the crash hits, waking him up is awful. We learned the hard way when he broke his arm one summer.”

Buck said, “I’m not that bad.”

“Kid,” Patrick admonished. “You nearly brained Dave with your cast for waking you up.”

Buck disputed, “It wasn’t for waking me up, it was for waking me up by playing Nickelback. That’s a crime to my ears.”

Eddie agreed, “Nickelback is a crime to anyone’s ears.”

They pulled up at the house, and Buck struggled to get his seat belt off so he could go inside and stretch out on the sofa.

His boyfriend reached between the seats and clicked the button to release the seatbelt before he said, “Wait just a sec, Buck, and let me help you out of the car, please.”

With a huff, Buck agreed, and he waited for Eddie to pull him out of the car, so he didn’t strain his arm trying to stand without hitting the door frame.

He saw Shannon waiting by the front door with Christopher in her arms, and he grinned, “Nice to finally meet you, Shannon.” He kissed her on the cheek, then leaned down and kissed a bewildered Christopher on the forehead.

Eddie pulled Shannon and Christopher into a hug before he took Christopher from her arms for a proper cuddle.

Dave called out, “Don’t all hang about on the front step. Come in and relax, and you can all tell me why the hell Buck is strapped up like a mummy.”

Buck gingerly sat down on the sofa beside his uncle, and he complained, “I’m not strapped up like a mummy, but it’s close.”

His uncle murmured, “What happened? Last time we emailed, you said you were saving your leave for a special occasion.”

“I was,” Buck confirmed. “But then I had an accident on our last mission, and I got tangled in the ropes badly enough that I dislocated my shoulder. I got it back in place well enough, but the doc thinks I did some ligament or maybe tendon damage, and he’s worried enough that he sent me home to get medical scans.”

Dave frowned as he asked, “I thought your team was one of the best with rope work?”

Eddie said dryly, “They are. But it wasn’t just his team, and the guy who was working the ropes for Buck fucked it up. He has issues with Buck and can’t show them openly due to their ranks, so I am guessing he used the ropes to fuck with him in a different way. Something I whispered to his commander before we left.”

Dave asked, “What’s his issue?”

Buck rolled his eyes and said, “He thinks I shouldn’t be slumming with a medic as my best friend. I should stay in my own lane.”

With a huff, Dave said, “Sure, if he were on your team, it would be an issue, but you aren’t even in the same chain of command, you aren’t even in the same services, for fuck’s sake.”

As he sat on Buck’s other side with Christopher in his arms, Eddie said, “Our COs don’t mind, and I think that’s the biggest problem. He’s tried to complain to both of our COs, both of whom told him politely to drop it.”

From the recliner on the other side of the room, Shannon said, “Telling your COs as soon as it got slightly serious was the perfect move. They can cover you both and deflect any unwanted attention.”

Dave said, “Usually, rumors of relationships on the various SEAL teams spread like wildfire. There are comments about you two being close, but the other teams aren’t even speculating about a relationship, which is impressive. How do you do it?”

Buck was almost asleep already when he murmured, “No PDA outside of my office, and we spend time at the range, sparring in the gym, and jogging together around the base. To everyone else, we just look like good friends.” 

“That’d do it,” Dave said with a grin. He said, “Why don’t you head to bed, Buck? I’m here for a week before I head to my next assignment.”

Buck nodded. He snuggled into Eddie and asked, “Can you help me, dulzura? I want to shower off the plane.”

As his grandson stumbled past him, with help from his boyfriend, Patrick said, “I already bought a waterproof sling for you to use; it’s in your ensuite.”

Buck squeezed his shoulder with his good hand on his way past and said, “Thanks, Grandpa.”

-x-

As promised, Buck’s appointment really was first thing in the morning. The specialist had come in early to squeeze Buck in before his regular appointments, as a favor to Patrick.

Buck was still feeling a bit loopy from the morphine, so he’d asked Eddie to come with him to talk to the doctor to make sure no information was left out. 

After the introductions, Dr. Jarvis asked, “So how can I help you, Buck? It’s been a while since I last saw you.”

Buck said, “I had an accident during a mission where I got caught up in the ropes, and I ended up with a badly dislocated shoulder. I put it back in so we could complete the mission, but the base medics are worried that I did some tendon or ligament damage.”

Eddie handed over the medical file that Colonel Hartley had given him before they caught their flight. He said, “These are Buck’s notes from Colonel Hartley. He’s the medical CO of our camp.”

The doctor had a quick read-through of the relatively sparse notes before he asked, “Do you mind if I have a feel around your shoulder? I’d like to see how it’s doing.”

Buck said, “That’s fine. I’m still feeling the morphine I took before bed last night. So it’s probably good timing. It was pretty damn sore last night.”
 
Dr. Jarvis asked, “You’ve been keeping the sling on?”

Buck and Eddie both nodded. Eddie said, “I made sure he slept somewhat sitting up last night, so he wouldn’t try and roll onto his side. He can be a restless sleeper. He also had a separate strap that kept his arm in place overnight.”

The doctor gently took the sling off and felt around the shoulder joint, taking note of the swelling. After poking, prodding, and manipulating the joint, he said, “I’m not happy about the swelling. For someone in an office job, it would be fine. But I want to be sure that you haven’t done any soft tissue damage. I’m going to get you to go next door to the imaging center. I preemptively booked you in for both an MRI and a CT scan when Patrick called me.”

Eddie said, “He’s been asked to get copies of any scans and medical notes for his file back at base. Do I sort that out with you or with the imaging center?”

Dr. Jarvis said, “Either works. I’ll be emailing Buck copies of my report and the scans, but you can get a disc for his medical files from the imaging center.”

Buck grinned. “Thanks, doc. Colonel Hartley is a stickler for hard copies.”

Eddie helped him back into his sling as Dr. Jarvis said, “I’ll call you later on today with the results.”

They both said, “Thanks.” As they left the office.

It took a few hours to get all the scans done, and Buck was beyond grumpy by the end of it. They’d moved his shoulder around to get scans from different angles. Once they were done, and Eddie had a hardcopy of all of the scans with Buck’s permission, the couple stopped for a late lunch on the way home. 

As they waited for their food, Eddie said, “So that seemed hopeful.”

Buck asked, “You think so?”

“Yeah,” Eddie confirmed. “He did pretty much the same exam that Colonel Hartley did. He didn’t seem too worried, and he didn’t seem to concentrate on any one test. I think you’ll be prescribed light duty, as we expected.”

Buck said, “I’ll feel better once I have that confirmation. If I need surgery, that’s going to fuck over my promotion track since I’ll be sent back stateside to recover.”

The older man turned in the bench seat they were sharing so he was facing his boyfriend, and he said, “Whatever happens, you have me, you have Shannon and Chris, and you have the Sheppards. You’ll get through this, and if I read things correctly, there will be an investigation into your accident. To see if it was just an accident or if there was more to it. It’s on record that he holds a grudge against you, against both of us for being friends, so hopefully, if there was negligence, he’ll be gone.”

Buck gave Eddie a quick kiss. “We can hope. I want to feel safe on the job, that’s for sure.”

The waitress came out with their food, and Eddie cut up Buck’s meal so he wouldn’t try to use his injured arm before he tucked into his own steak.

Dr. Jarvis got back to Buck later that afternoon. He quickly reassured Buck that there was no lasting soft tissue injury. He reminded Buck that he would need to stick to light duty for at least two weeks, then ease back into his usual workload for the next two weeks. He also mentioned that Buck would need to follow the rehab plan he was sending to the base doctor.

-x-

After dinner, Eddie was having a cuddle with Christopher, who was fast asleep on his chest, and Buck was cuddled into his side, relaxing after what felt like a long day. He murmured, “You and Shannon made one pretty cool kid.”

Eddie nodded. “We did.” He ran his fingers through Buck’s hair, and he whispered, “Christopher is yours too, you know. You’ve been part of his life since he was born, and I plan to keep you around for the rest of ours, so you’re stuck with the three of us, Ev.”

Buck looked up at his boyfriend and asked, “Are you sure? How does Shannon feel about this.”

She cuddled up behind the younger man and said, “I feel the same way, Buck. You are ours, Buck, just as we are yours. There is no getting away from us now; hell, you moved us into your home, dude. You gave us the gift of safety; it’s priceless.” She ran her finger down Christopher’s cheek as she murmured, “This kid is one of the luckiest kids in the world. He has three awesome parents who would do anything to keep him safe. A badass Army Medic, a kick-ass Navy SEAL, and me, the one who would keep you all out of jail.”

Buck grinned. “Moving you here was one way I could be sure to keep you all safe and sane. Watching Eddie through some of those calls was heartbreaking; what his parents were doing was tantamount to gaslighting.” He moved so he could look Eddie in the eyes as he said, “And it was always worse when your sisters weren’t there as buffers.”

Eddie nodded. “They were definitely worse when it was just them. The threat to claim custody because we refuse to get married, though, that was it for me. I don’t think I can forgive them. Any of them. My sisters may not have been involved in the worst of it, but they didn’t stop any of the rest of it.”

Shannon said, “They did what they could do to deflect attention when I visited. And they made sure over the last few months before I moved that I was never alone with either of your parents. That has to count for something.”

Eddie shrugged. “Maybe. If they apologize for siding with Mom and Papa, then I’ll consider it. If it’s a genuine apology.”

Buck snuggled in tighter, wanting to comfort his boyfriend, being careful with both his shoulder and of Christopher, who hadn’t made a sound through the somewhat tense conversation. He murmured, “I’m not letting any of you go.”

When Buck registered his uncle and his grandpa talking in hushed tones about limited contact, he gave his uncle a speaking look and asked, “What deep dark hole are you disappearing into?”

Dave smirked. “Come on, kid, you know better than to ask that. You understand better than most how deep dark classified missions work. I’ll be able to send and receive emails weekly, so there will be no getting out of sending me photos of that kiddo of yours. ”

“Alright,” Buck acquiesced. “Do you at least know if it is the same deep dark hole as dad or Laura?”

Dave shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve still not heard from John, and contact with Laura has been sporadic, so, if it is, I haven’t been told.”

Buck sighed. “Yeah, she’s been sporadic with me as well. I’ve sent her a few emails about Eddie, Christopher, and Shannon but haven’t heard much back. She’s been busy trying to iron out the kinks in a new explosive compound. I offered to help, but it’s all classified.”

Dave reassured all of them, “I’ll stay in touch, I promise. It’ll take something pretty dire for me not to email at least weekly.”

Chapter Text

Atlantis - January 2012

It had taken Laura nearly a year to get Dave’s SEAL team assigned to Atlantis to assist with the wraith and other assorted threats in the pegasus galaxy, of which there were many. There were a few planets that Rodney wanted to explore, but they were known to be regularly patrolled by the Genii, so the gate team needed to be guarded by heavy combat specialists, and Cadman had suggested the SEALs would be the perfect team. She had to cash in a few favors so that Dave’s team would be selected, but she thought it would be worth it if it meant Buck was finally reunited with his father.

So after a few weeks of training in the mountain, in January 2011, Dave Sheppard walked through the gate with the rest of his SEAL team. When he saw Laura, he ran over and pulled her into a tight bear hug. He murmured, “I did wonder if you had been sucked into the SGC when I was read in. Your emails over the last year have been sporadic at best.”

She grinned. “Yeah. I could only send emails in our scheduled data bursts, and occasionally they’ve been delayed when there was no room in the data packet for personal emails. I’ve been on Atlantis for nearly a year now. It’s taken me all this time to get you here.”

He frowned, ignoring the chatter of those around him as he asked, “Why? Why would you want me on Atlantis?”

She grasped his shoulders and spun him around so he could see his brother standing on the stairs to the control center, and said, “Because I found John and thought you would want to know.”

John had seen Cadman greet one of the SEALs like an old friend, and as he was about to whistle to get everyone’s attention, she spun him around and he froze when he saw his baby brother standing in the gate room dressed as a damn Navy SEAL.

Beside him, his partner, Rodney, had noticed him freeze up after watching Cadman greet the SEAL, so the scientist took over. John jumped slightly when he heard Rodney whistle and yell, “Welcome to Atlantis! Everyone needs to head to a ‘how not to get dead’ briefing. Scientists follow Dr. Zelenka. Military; you’re with Colonel Lorne. Except for Cadman’s friend, stay here; you can have your briefing later.”

Dave waited until everyone left before he sprinted over to his brother and pulled him into a long-overdue hug. As John stood there, seemingly in shock, Dave murmured, “God, we’ve missed you, big brother.”

Rodney suggested, “Why don’t we take this reunion somewhere private? Cadman, you too; you’re not off the hook. Come on.”

He took them through to a conference room that overlooked the gate room, and once they were all seated and he’d made sure there was enough coffee in the room, Rodney thought at Atlantis for every privacy option she could give them.

John took a seat next to Rodney as he tried to process what was going on. He demanded, “What the hell, Dave? You’re a SEAL? A fucking commander?”

Laura muttered, “He’s not the only one in the family.”

John heard her and asked, “Dad had another kid?”

Dave shook his head. “No, John. It turns out that you did.”

John opened his mouth a few times before closing it. Eventually, he asked, “You’re saying I have a kid old enough to join the SEALs?” He turned to Captain Cadman and asked, “And you knew?”

She shrugged. “Yes, and sort of. I wasn’t 100% sure, so I finagled and traded favors to get Dave here to confirm it. The fun part was getting him here without him finding out you were the co-leader; I had to do some fast talking with Lorne so he could warn his counterpart in the mountain. I didn’t want to disappoint Buck if I was wrong or if your first meeting went badly.”

Rodney gave her an incredulous expression before asking, “His kid is named Buck?”

“No,” Laura denied. “His kid is named Evan. But, thanks to the assholes that raised him before he ran away, he hates his name and he prefers Buck, a nickname he was given in middle school.”

John asked, “How do you know all this?”

Dave chuckled. “She was his babysitter for five years at MIT; since they frown on 13-year-olds attending MIT alone. He has a Ph.D., and he’s nearly finished his dissertation in his second Ph.D., and I think he recently got his first math degree.”

John’s jaw dropped. “I know I’m smart, but I don’t think I’m MIT at 13 smart. Rodney was, but not me. What’s his study track?”

When Dave nudged her, Laura said, “He has a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering. He likes designing engines for fun. His current dissertation is for physics, and it’s taking him longer as he struggles to get lab time on the few breaks he gets from the sandbox, which is why he’s putting effort into his math degree.”

Dave said, “He’s also dabbling with a chemistry degree, something about creating a better fuel or something. Seriously, the kid has always been one step ahead of me and Dad.”

John asked, “What do you mean, you and Dad?”

“He ran away from his adoptive home at 13,” Dave explained. “He was offered a full scholarship to attend MIT after he secretly entered one of their design competitions. The people that raised him forced him to turn it down because all they wanted was a normal child.”

Rodney snorted. “Yeah, attending MIT at 13 with a babysitter is not in any way normal.”

Dave said, “He lived with us for all his school breaks after that, and you could usually find them both getting up to mischief together. And he literally saved Dad’s life, you know. He was home for the summer when Dad had a heart attack. He was 17, I think. He held it together, called 911, and got Dad’s heart going again until the paramedics arrived. Dad had to have minor surgery to clear the blockage, but with me and Buck nagging him, he’s changed his lifestyle, and even his cardiologist is happy with his progress. Buck even convinced Dad to take up yoga.”

John was still trying to process everything, so after a long drink of his coffee, Rodney asked, “If he’s so smart, why did he join the SEALs? No offense to the SEALs, but it’s not usually where you find scientists.”

Laura laughed. “He finds school boring. He’s an active kid, trust me. Any chance he got, we were out running, doing martial arts, anything to keep himself active and fit. The kid’s now built like a brick shithouse.”

John asked, “Do you have a photo of him?”

Cadman pulled out her datapad. She said, “I got one from him last week in his dress uniform. Due to his education, he’s been fast-tracked with the SEALs, and he was promoted to lieutenant not long after he was deployed last year.” She slid the datapad across to John so he could see a photo of his son for the first time.

John looked over the photo, looking for similarities, as he tried to think back to who he’d slept with back then. He asked, “Do you know who his mother is?”

Dave shook his head. “Not a clue. His birth certificate only lists the father’s name, your name, John.”

Eventually, John bit the bullet and asked, “So this is why you’ve been trying to get in touch with me for the last seven years?”

Dave sighed, “Not the only reason, no. As soon as you left the house after that last big fight, Dad regretted it. It’s one of the reasons why he never objected to my joining the Navy. You should have seen his tears when Buck graduated SEAL training and was given his trident. He was so fucking proud of the kid, and he commented that he wished you could have been there.” He regarded John with a serious look and said, “He’s learned from that fight, trust me, John. He desperately wants to see you so he can apologize for pushing you away.”

John glanced first at Rodney, then Cadman. He asked quietly, “Did he ever tell you what the fights were about?”

Dave said, “Just the basics on that last one, although I think Buck knows more than I do. I only remember him saying that he blew up on you for divorcing your beard. That she was a good cover while you were active military, and that it was dangerous for you to give that up. Except he said he used shitty language to cover up his fear, so it probably came across wrong.”

John laughed. “Oh wow. Did he get therapy or something?”

“All the therapy,” Dave confirmed. “Especially after Buck arrived. The kid was a seething ball of anger at the world, which he hid behind some impressive masks. We all ended up in therapy, even me. It helped. I’m guessing the words he used were not even close to what he was feeling at the time?”

With a snort, John shook his head. “No. He basically called me an idiot for giving up the best thing that would happen to me and threatened to disown me. So I walked out.”

Laura giggled. “Yeah. He’s a lot better at communicating now. He had no choice; Buck could run rings around him in the early days. Also, Buck met Nancy, and that meeting was spectacular.”

Dave tried to smother a laugh. “Oh yeah, I forgot about that. Because of his upbringing, Buck has a knack for reading people’s intentions. She came around trying to get into Dad’s good books in the hope that you’d be pushed into remarrying her. Buck called her a gold digger and told her to fuck off.”

John asked, “Seriously? How did she take that?”

Laura commented, “Well, her reaction caused your dad to call the cops, and she has an active restraining order against the entire Sheppard Clan. Including you, if you ever return to Earth. Dave and I just sat back eating popcorn with Anna, as Buck schooled her in exactly how he wouldn’t let his dad’s dick touch her toxic lady parts ever again. Oh, and that sex with her can’t have been all that great since his dad was 100% gay, and he knew that without even meeting you. Buck said all the right things to wind her up; it was like he knew the exact buttons to push, so by the time the cops got there, she was screaming blue murder and vitriol. It was fantastic. It was almost as good as watching Rodney on a tear.”

Rodney commented, “I definitely want to meet this kid of yours, John. You need to organize a trip home; maybe contact O’Neill so he can arrange it around your kid’s leave.”

John gestured at the two across the table and said, “And their leave, since they’ll be coming with us. Support for the kid and all that.”

Laura said, “He’ll probably be fine, but I would love to be there to see the look on his face.” She could see in the tight grip that her boss had on his scientist’s hand, that he’d pretty much reached the end of his rope and needed some quiet time to process everything he’d learned, so she suggested, “How about I go and sort Dave’s briefing and room assignment and then get him to medical. Give you time to process… all of well… everything.”

John nodded. “Thanks, Captain. I’ll try and catch up with you both at dinner.”

Laura stood to lead Dave out of the room. However, before they left the room, Dave said, “Oh, btw I have a gift for Dr. McKay, as suggested by the geeks in the mountain.”

Rodney perked up. “Coffee?”

Dave nodded. “The best we could find that would rot the intestines of a normal human. At least that was how the geeks I spoke to worded it; they were clear that normal coffee wouldn’t do. Buck found the small roasters we use these days for all of our coffee. He’s a coffee snob, and he prefers his industrial strength.”

John shrugged. “They aren’t wrong. That is actually perfect for Rodney.”

Laura dragged Dave out of the room with a wave and left John to his brooding.

Rodney closed the door behind them and sent out a thought to activate all the privacy options again. Then he turned to his partner and asked, “Are you ok?”

John shook his head. “Not even slightly, Mer. I don’t remember sleeping with anyone back then. At all. It would have been just before I graduated college, and I already knew by then I was gay; I was also seeing Nancy at the time, and I only slept with her a few times.”

Rodney asked, “So maybe you were roofied? Or he’s not actually your kid?”

“It’s not that simple,” John said with a grimace. “Due to the amount of money Dad inherited from my grandparents, he’s very paranoid about anyone claiming family ties. He would have done all the DNA tests possible before accepting the kid as his grandkid.” He’d transferred the photo Laura showed him to his own datapad earlier, so he slid it across to his partner so he could see the evidence for himself. “Rodney, my kid is a fucking lieutenant in the SEALs. I wouldn’t be surprised if they push him towards some of the military strategy degrees since he’s so damn smart.”

Rodney leaned in and murmured, “Whatever happens, I’ll be there with you. I promise. Now you have an email to write to O’Neill. Because we both know he’s going to want to meet your kid.”

-x-

“Unscheduled off-world activation.”

John and Rodney sprinted for the gateroom. They’d been enjoying a quiet dinner in the mess. As they ran, John was on his radio, “Stackhouse, Bates, get your teams to the gateroom.”

The klaxon suddenly stopped, and over the radios, Chuck said, “General Sheppard, Dr. McKay, Commander Sheppard, Captain Cadman, you’re all needed in the Main Tower. General O’Neill and Dr. Jackson are waiting in the conference room.”

Rodney muttered, “Why do I have to be there? He’s your kid.”

John laughed. “Because while we may not be married, you agreed when we got together that you were in this relationship, boots and all. So this is what you get for being my partner.” He pulled Rodney to a stop in the hallway, and after he got a confirmation from Atlantis that it was just the two of them there, he quietly admitted, “There is no way I can go back to face my dad without you, Rodney.”

Rodney gave him a lopsided grin. “Fair enough. I’ll be right there by your side as you face the dragon. And speaking of dragons, let’s go see what’s so urgent about your son that O’Neill made a special trip out here.”

As they walked to the conference room, John snarked, “I’m going to tell him you call him a dragon one day.”

They walked in just as Captain Cadman was saluting the general.

Jack said, “I thought I had trained that out of you, Captain.”

Laura laughed. “Nope. I just lulled you into a false sense of security, sir.” She looked at the others gathered around the room and asked, “I guess this is about Buck?”

Jack nodded. “It is. This whole thing is a bit weird, to be honest. And while weird is all part and parcel of the SGC wheelhouse, this is well before Sheppard joined the program.”

John asked, “What’s so weird about it?”

Daniel slid a piece of paper over to John; it was a birth certificate for Evan Aiden Sheppard. There was no mother listed. He asked, “Is this even possible?”

Dave took the birth certificate from John and said, “This looks like the one Buck showed us when he turned up on our doorstep.”

Jack asked, “And you’re 100% sure he’s John’s kid?”

Dave and Laura both laughed. Dave explained, “Our dad is paranoid when it comes to things like that, so the first thing he did was have a DNA test run. He’s definitely John’s kid.”

Laura said, “Even without the DNA test, it’s obvious. You both have very similar mannerisms, and he has the Sheppard Lean™.”

John said, “He probably picked that up from Dave or Dad. They both do it as well.”

Dave snorted. “No. He was doing that lean from the day he arrived on our doorstep. It’s got nothing to do with me or Dad.”

Jack asked, “What’s your involvement, Captain Cadman? As far as I know, you’re not a Sheppard.”

Before she could answer, Dave said, “She might as well be. She spent five years at MIT with Buck as he was doing his Ph.D. studies. As he was under 18, he required a supervisor slash nanny to attend. She helped him train for the SEALs and taught him everything she knows about explosives.”

Laura shrugged when they all gave her dubious looks. “He’s a quick learner, and after the first time, we promised not to use them on the MIT campus.”

Dave snorted. “That’s not what I heard. Didn’t he blow up one of the professor’s cars after he refused to let the kid test out?”

“No,” the marine denied hotly, “he only blew up the tires. He laughed so hard when it worked that he fell out of the tree and had to give himself stitches on his thigh.”

Rodney put his head in his hands and said, “OMG, Baby Sheppard is just as insane as you, John.”

Daniel asked, “How old was he when he did his own stitches? Why didn’t you do them, Cadman? Don’t all marines have first aid training?”

Laura shrugged, “I think he was fourteen, and I am squeamish around needles. He did a good job; it barely scarred.”

Jack said, “We’ve done a deep dive into Evan’s history, and there are concerns that there is nothing before he turned thirteen.”

Dave said, “That’s when he turned up on our doorstep. We wanted to look into his background, as we were pretty sure the people he’d been living with were neglectful, but he refused to give us their details. He agreed that he would turn himself in if they put out an amber alert for him, but it never happened. We just accepted that he’s a stubborn shit, and nothing was prying that information from him.”

Laura said, “I tried to get the information out of him, but all I learned was that they were more concerned with appearances than being parents. So when he was invited to join MIT when he was only twelve, they forced him to turn it down. It’s why he left.”

Jack nodded. “Okay. I want all of you to pack for a few weeks on Earth. We’re going to meet this kid of yours. John, bring your team as a security detail.”

Rodney said, “We can bring Ronon. Teyla has a thing, I can’t remember what, but she has a thing she can’t miss. She’s been preparing for it for weeks.”

With a laugh, John said, “She’s got that trade negotiation with P93-27S. They have that near elk and almost bacon, and we are trading for the rice that now arrives on our supply runs. Just Ronon should be fine as long as he can take his gun.”

Dave said, “If we’re heading home, you’ll need to run a background check on Shannon too. She lives in Buck’s suite with her six-month-old, Christopher.”

John asked, “Buck has a kid?”

Dave hedged, “Not really. It’s complicated; you’ll have to ask them about it when we get there.”

Jack said, “Go pack, brief Lorne and Zelenka. I’m anticipating this trip to be at least a week, but warn them both it could be two. I’ll be going to Afghanistan to retrieve your son while you go to Virginia to read in your family.”

John asked, “I don’t understand. Why read in my family? Dad’s a civilian, and he’s never even contracted to the military.”

Jack shrugged and said, “I have a gut feeling about all of this. It all feels connected, and I think to figure it out, we’ll need to hear from everyone involved.”

Dave suggested, “Then I would suggest you bring Corporal Diaz with him, sir. He will be more likely to leave with you if he can have a support person with him.”

Daniel asked, “Can you give me his details? Then I can get the background check started before we leave the mountain.”

Dave wrote down what he knew about Buck’s boyfriend, and for good measure, he added Shannon and Anna’s details as well so they could also be read into the program, since they both lived at the house in Virginia.

Chapter Text

Virginia Beach, VA - January 2012

They used public transport to get to Virginia since General O’Neill had taken the SGC transport plane to Afghanistan. So it was just the five of them for the first leg of the trip. As they were being driven to the airport, John asked his brother, “Are you going to warn Dad we’re coming?”

Dave shook his head. “Nope. He’ll be suspicious with the sudden visit. It’s better if we just turn up.”

Rodney leaned forward so he could see Dave as he asked, “He won’t mind the influx of people?”

“Nah,” Dave reassured. “He’ll be fine with it. It’s Anna I should probably warn so that she can order enough food for all of us. Shit.”

John asked, “She still runs the house with an iron fist?”

Laura laughed, “Boy, does she. After Patrick’s heart attack, she had everyone converted entirely to heart-healthy meals. I wouldn’t want to get on her bad side.”

Dave made a quick call to Anna to warn her that she would need to prepare for an extra 12 adults in the house for a week.

She asked, “Just who are you bringing home, Dave?”

Dave glanced at the others in the car, and with a mischievous look on his face, he said, “Just some people from work, we’re in the area, and I decided it would be easier to stay at the house. Oh, before I forget, the house needs to be clear of all citrus products. One of the scientists coming with us is deathly allergic.”

“Okay,” Anna agreed. She recognized the mischievous tone, so she asked, “Will I be warning your father?”

Dave laughed as he said, “Absolutely not. And don’t worry about dinner tonight; we’ll order in, as it will be a smaller group. Part of the team won’t be joining us for a day or so.”

Anna said, “Right. I’ll go arrange menus and food for the next week, and I guess we’ll see you in a few hours.”

John said, “She’s going to kick your ass so hard. I promise I’ll give a great speech at your funeral.”

Rodney asked, “Who is Anna? You haven’t mentioned her before.”

With a shrug, John said, “I didn’t know her well, she was only there for six months before I moved out, but she’s Dad’s housekeeper.”

“She’s also a part-time nanny right now,” Dave admitted. “She looks after Christopher when Shannon has to go into the office.”

Laura bounced in her seat and said, “I’m looking forward to meeting the little man. Buck has told me so much about him.”

When they were on the plane to Virginia, they had upgraded their tickets to first-class, as they didn’t want to try and cram Ronon into economy seats. Since they had the section mostly to themselves, John asked, “Now that O’Neill isn’t here, and there shouldn’t be anyone listening in, do you want to explain what’s going on with Buck and his boyfriend’s son living at the house?”

He wasn’t entirely sure how much he could say, as it really was his nephew’s place to explain. But Dave also knew his brother could be just as stubborn and bullheaded as his son, so he said, “Christopher is ten months old now; he’s the biological son of Eddie, Buck’s boyfriend, and Shannon, their best friend, who are co-parenting, I think, with Buck. I’m just not sure if Buck has worked that out yet. It’s all a bit complicated, but they are all happy with the arrangement.”

Laura spent most of the flight talking to Ronon as the others dozed. They had a feeling they would need the rest before the explosive reunion.

-x-

Dave got the others to hang back when they arrived at the Sheppard beach house late in the afternoon. He found his dad in the den lying on the floor with Christopher as Shannon took photos of the two of them from the sofa.

She looked up when she heard the noise at the door; she was expecting Anna, not Dave, who was supposed to be out of contact for a year or more. She asked, “Dave? I thought you were on deployment?”

Dave nodded. “I am, technically, but something came up, so I had to come home.”

As Patrick sat up, he picked up Christopher and started rocking him. He asked, “What’s going on, Dave?”

Dave looked behind him to where John was waiting in the hall, but before he could say anything, John stepped up beside him and said, “Hi, Dad. It’s been a while.”

Patrick’s jaw dropped, and he whispered, “You found him?”

Laura poked her head around the door and said, “Actually, I found him. It just took me a while to get Dave to our base to confirm it.” She looked at the two Sheppards and asked, “Why are we still in the hallway?”

Patrick was still trying to come to grips with the fact his eldest son was home after being gone for over a decade. So he deflected and said, “Laura! How are you?”

She grinned, and as she bounced into the room and settled beside Shannon on the sofa, she replied, “I’m good, Patrick. Glad to be here so I can see Buckaroo’s reaction. How have you been? Still doing yoga in the mornings?”

Shannon laughed. “He is, and he’s roped me and Christopher into it as well. Although Christopher just uses it for tummy time.” She turned to Laura and asked, “You must be Laura; Buck seemed scared of the two of us meeting.”

Laura nodded. “Apparently, you’re my sister from another mister, and you just use words where I use well-placed C4.”

Rodney could see that John and Patrick were both a bit stunned with the actual meeting, so he guided his partner into a seat and said, “We have news to share, but first, we need everyone to sign an NDA.”

Shannon asked, “Even me?”

John nodded. “Yep, even you and Anna.”

Rodney pulled out three NDA’s from the bag he’d placed by his feet. And he stood and passed one to Patrick and another to Shannon. He asked, “Where’s Anna?”

The woman in question walked in, wiping her hands on a hand towel. She said, “John, it’s nice to see you again, now what’s this thing you need me to sign?”

Rodney held out the thick legal document, and he said, “It’s an NDA so that you can be read in on our project.”

She took a step back and looked horrified at the thick stack of legalese. Anna said, “Nope. Do I have to read it? If you need to talk about whatever it involves, I can hide out in my suite; it’s fully soundproofed.”

He could see Rodney was about to protest, so John put his hand on his partner’s leg to get his attention before he said, “That’s fine, Anna. We plan to have a meeting tonight with just the eight of us to go over the program and what’s going on over the next week, at least as far as we know so far.”

Anna said, “I’m happy to hole up in my suite with my kindle while you have your meetings. I’ll text if you are encroaching on my meal prep time. If I do inadvertently hear anything, it’s covered by my employment contract with the Sheppards.”

Patrick nodded. “We had all household employees sign new contracts after Buck arrived, as we didn’t want news about him getting out while he was attending MIT. Anything discussed or overheard in the house is not to be mentioned. Buck’s presence is not to be mentioned. I think even Laura signed it when she was on babysitting duties.”

Laura nodded. “I did. It was fair but strict. It should cover anything overheard inadvertently, and honestly, I can’t see Anna spilling any secrets; she’s crazy loyal.”

John murmured, “Rodney?”

Rodney said, “Yep, soundproof rooms, and we’ll avoid discussing anything about the project during meal times. Thank you, Anna.”

She said, “I’m going to disappear up to my rooms now, or did you want me to take Christopher up and keep him entertained?”

Shannon picked up her son and passed him over to the housekeeper slash nanny. “Thanks, Anna. It looks like we have a busy night of reading and learning ahead of us.”

She wasn’t wrong. It took them a few hours to go through the NDA and sign it.

As they were reading, Ronon asked, “What is that document?”

With a chuckle, John said, “It’s a non-disclosure agreement. Basically, it means anything named in the agreement can’t be discussed with anyone who hasn’t signed it or isn’t part of the program. And before you say you haven’t signed it, it hasn’t been necessary since you’re already part of the program in a slightly different way.”

Ronon nodded. “True enough. How about we go for a run while they read through the docs? You look like you’re about to crawl out of your skin.”

Rodney looked up. “That’s a good idea. I can answer any questions these two might have while you’re gone with Cadman’s help. The other Sheppard is armed should something happen.”

Laura laughed. “As if they’d get close. We’ll be fine here, General Sheppard.”

“Call me John, please,” John said with a grimace. “How about we drop ranks in the house since we’re all friends here.”

“Sounds good, call me Laura,” she replied with a grin.

Rodney pushed his partner and said, “Yes, yes, let’s all be friends. How about you go for your run with Conan and stop being distracting, John.”

John grinned and pulled his partner into a kiss before he ran out of the room with Ronon on his heels.

Patrick watched the scene bemused before he turned to the scientist and asked, “I have to ask, why are you here?” He’d heard of Rodney McKay, who in the technology world hadn’t. It had been big news when the astrophysicist had disappeared into a classified government think tank all those years ago.

Rodney pointed at the NDA and said, “When you’re done reading, I’ll introduce myself properly and my place in your son’s life.”

Patrick said, “I think first I want a bit of time with my son to clear the air before we get into any heavy discussions.”

Shannon suggested, “How about when John and… Conan, was it? Get back from their run; I can keep everyone in the dining room while you two talk. For now, let’s get these read and signed so we can be read in on their big bad secrets.”

With a laugh, Dave corrected, “It’s Ronon, but Rodney likes to call him Conan. After the movie.”

Patrick asked, “Does John actually have to be back here for that part?”

Rodney shrugged. “Technically, no. With Cadman and the younger Sheppard here, I could do it. John just has a way of smoothing out my rough edges.”

Laura said, “What Dr. McKay is saying is that he’s blunt to a fault, but to be honest, I think with you, Patrick, blunt will be best; rip off the band-aid before you talk to John. So get reading.”

When Dave left the room with Rodney to arrange dinner, Shannon whispered, “Is Buck going to get the chance to meet his Dad. I mean, that’s who John is, right?”

Laura nodded slightly. “The general in charge of the program is off retrieving him and hopefully Eddie. He’s taken Dr. Jackson and Colonel Davis with him, so he’ll be read into the SGC on the way back. I’m hoping they’ll arrive tomorrow sometime.”

Shannon giggled. “That’s going to be fun to watch.” She signed and initialed in all the appropriate places before she put the NDA on the coffee table in front of her.” She saw Patrick was still reading, so she said, “Come on, Patrick. You know you’re going to sign it no matter what it says. I can assure you it doesn’t require giving up company secrets or your firstborn.” She shrugged. “Okay, so you might have already given up your firstborn to whatever program this is, but it’s safe to sign the NDA.”

Patrick signed and added his NDA to Shannon’s on the coffee table, then he asked, “So, Laura… Just how deep a rabbit hole are we jumping into?”

While trying to hold back her giggles, Laura said, “Honestly, Patrick, I think Alice would have run for the hills. The Mad Hatter had nothing on the insanity of this program.”

“Comforting,” Patrick muttered dryly.

Rodney came back in with Dave and said, “Dinner is ordered, and it should be here soon. We ordered extra for Anna, and she said she’s already fed Christopher and put him to bed. John got back and is up in his suite taking a shower; he sent Conan to Dave’s suite to use the shower there. They’ll be back down soon.”

Laura pointed at the signed NDAs and said, “They’re all signed and ready to fall down the rabbit hole, as Patrick put it.”

Rodney tilted his head in contemplation. “That’s actually a pretty accurate analogy.”

They made small talk until dinner arrived, and once they had delivered Anna’s meal to Buck’s suite where she was babysitting Christopher, they got down to eating. Most of them were in the dining room, but John and Patrick had retired to the den with their meals so they could talk and clear the air.

When he realized after a few minutes his son wasn’t going to make the first move, Patrick said, “I’m sorry. As Buck likes to put it, I grew up with emotionally constipated parents. I was taught to suck it up and move on when feelings got in the way, which is stupid because it meant I never learned how to communicate with you or Dave. I usually left that side of things to your mother.”

John huffed. “She was definitely better at communication than any of us. At least back then, she was. Dave was saying you’ve had to change after Buck arrived, something about him running rings around you.”

Patrick chuckled to himself. “Yeah. Look, when he arrived here, he was jaded, and just over everything in general; but he hid it behind the mask of a happy kid. It took a while for him to accept we just wanted him to be himself, and not whatever the assholes that raised him were trying to force him to be.”

John asked, “These are the people that forced him to turn down MIT? Have you ruined them yet?”

“No,” Patrick admitted. “Only because Buck refuses to give up their names. He said we could deal with them only if they put out an amber alert for him. They never did.” He ate a few mouthfuls of his dinner before he said, “Anyway, so when Buck arrived, all pissed off teenager, Dave suggested we all go into therapy. He didn’t want my lack of communication skills to fuck up any other family relationships. I needed to learn how to communicate, Dave needed to learn how to relax, and Buck needed to learn how to be a kid again.”

John asked, “Didn’t he go to MIT just after he got here?”

Patrick nodded. “He did. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t learn how to let go and actually have fun like a kid. After their first year, I had to ban them from ordering C4 as they were experimenting with it on campus. I was worried they were going to get kicked out. Pretty sure they kept doing it, but they were more subtle about when and where.”

“That’s not what I heard,” John said with a laugh. “Laura was saying he fell out of a tree laughing when they blew up one of his professor’s cars or tires or something like that. The kid had to give himself stitches in his thigh.”

Patrick shrugged. “The professor was a jerk and deserved everything he got for being an ageist asshole. He didn’t like MIT’s policy around young genius students being allowed to test out of classes. He refused point-blank, so Buck instigated a prank campaign to either force the guy to resign or force MIT to take his complaints seriously. The guy was eventually fired when they found out he was doing it to all the underage students, not just Buck.”

John asked, “Why were you so determined for me to do a business degree? Because let’s be honest, that’s what started the cold war between us.”

Patrick sat back on the sofa and regarded his eldest son thoughtfully. He eventually admitted, “I was afraid of losing you. If you did a business degree and trained to take over SI, I would’ve been able to keep you close. Clearly, the wrong move as I lost you anyway with all my pushing. I was scared you’d die like your mother. I mistakenly thought if I kept you close, I could protect you.”

John kept a blank expression as he asked, “And Nancy? You have to admit that was our biggest and worst fight out of all of them.”

Patrick dropped his head in his hands. With a sigh, he eventually said, “Do you remember the Cahills?”

Not sure where his father was going with the non-sequitur, he shrugged. “Vaguely. I think Matthew, the eldest was in my year at school. Why?”

“He was killed about two weeks before that fight,” Patrick explained. “One of his platoon saw him outside a gay club while they were on a liberty weekend. He was waiting for his girlfriend, who worked there as a bartender, which obviously didn’t matter to the others in his platoon. Several of them are still serving life terms in Levenworth for murder with hate crime stipulations. I was scared that you’d be next.”

John shuddered. “Hell, Dad. I had no idea. Usually, word about that sort of thing trickles out around the services.”

The older man said, “The bastards covered it up. Several of the men backed out when Matthew said he was just there waiting to walk his girlfriend home. I was worried that someone with a grudge would try and out you without Nancy as your beard. Although Dave still thinks you didn’t realize you were gay when you divorced her.”

“I did, and I didn’t,” John admitted. “Well, I didn’t truly admit it to myself until I met Rodney. Then it was like, ‘Oh, there you are.’ It took me several years and nearly losing him a few times before I let myself accept it. I’m not sure how he will take the reality of me having a kid who’s an adult. Fuck, I haven’t really even processed it yet.”

Patrick reassured, “He’s a good kid, a lot like you but definitely smarter than all of us put together. Dave said he’s being accelerated through the ranks because of his degrees and intelligence. He’s already a Lieutenant, and he’s only a year out of training. I asked the kid about it when he was home at Christmas, but he just shrugged it off. I’m not sure if it was classified or if he was just too dosed on painkillers to register the question.” At John’s questioning look, he explained, “He had a badly dislocated shoulder just before Christmas, so he piggybacked on Eddie’s trip home to see their son.”

John was confused; he’d thought Christopher was Eddie’s son, not Buck’s. He still wasn’t clear on why Shannon was living with his dad. He asked, “So Christopher isn’t Buck’s kid?”

Patrick shook his head. “He’s Shannon and Eddie’s son. Buck and Eddie are together, and Shannon is their best friend. It’s all complicated, but Eddie’s parents made it impossible for Shannon to stay in El Paso, where she was. They are hell-bent on Shannon marrying their son, even though neither of them actually want to get married.”

John blinked slowly as he tried to understand. He asked, “So Buck adopted both Shannon and Christopher when he started to date, Eddie?”

“Once Buck decides someone is his,” Patrick said with a long-suffering sigh, “he basically sucks them into his orbit, and he will go to the ends of the earth to protect them. As soon as he realized Christopher was in danger and Shannon was stressed to the max, he contacted me. The Diaz parents tried to take Christopher from the nanny when Shannon was at work; they were just lucky that the woman had balls of steel. When Eddie called them to demand answers, they threatened to sue them both for custody since he refused to marry Shannon. They believe parents can only be good parents if they are married.”

“So…” John started, but he wasn’t quite sure how to word the question. He tried again, “So Shannon is Eddie’s ex?”

His dad chuckled and shook his head. “No, not at all. They are best friends that used to sleep together.” At the confused look on his son’s face, Patrick said, “It’s all very complicated, but nothing to worry about. Wait till you see them together; it’s sweet.”

He gave his son a serious look, and he said, “I want us to stay in touch, I know you’re not home often, but I’d like to see more of you when you’re back in the US, get to know you again. Maybe keep in touch by email if that’s possible?”

John smiled as he said, “I’d like that, Dad. Thank you for taking care of Buck when I couldn’t; it means a lot to me.” He glanced out to the dining room where everyone else was. “We should go see if the others are done eating, then we can take you through the briefing. Ideally, we’d like to get it done before the others get here.”

They both picked up their meals and trooped out to the dining room for the briefing.

Rodney pulled John down into the chair beside him and asked, “Everything okay?”

“It will be,” John reassured his partner. “Right, so are you two ready to walk through the looking glass.”

Shannon grinned, “Lead on, McDuff. Personally, I’m thinking aliens; it has to be something world-changing for an NDA that fucking huge.”

Patrick gave her a considering look before he agreed, “It’s either that or a war no one knows about; I mean, there isn’t a lot that would use Navy SEAL teams and explosives experts.” He glanced at Rodney and said, “Or world-class astrophysicists.”

Shannon said, “War with aliens, then.”

Dave shrugged and admitted, “Multiple wars with different aliens. Rodney’s been in the program for a lot longer than any of us, so he was around for the Goa’uld conflict, the Ori, and now we are fighting wars on two fronts. In the Milky Way Galaxy, the fight is against the Lucian Alliance, basically space pirates, and in the Pegasus Galaxy, we are fighting the Wraith, human-eating space vampires.”

Patrick asked, “How long are we talking?”

Rodney said, “I joined the SGC over 20 years ago. First at Area 51, then I was offered the CSO position on the Atlantis Expedition in late 2003. John joined us in early 2004 after being assigned to McMurdo and accidentally discovering the program.”

Shannon asked, “So can you tell us about the aliens?”

Rodney, with help from John, Laura, and even Dave, spent the next two hours telling Patrick and Shannon about the SGC and the various races they’ve been fighting for the last 20 years.

Patrick asked, “So why are you reading us into it now?” He gestured at Shannon as he said, “We’re civilians.”

Laura said, “O’Neill has a gut feeling, and they learned a long time ago not to ignore his gut feelings about things.”

Shannon laughed, “It all sounds so surreal, space vampires, space pirates, and this is all happening under the nose of the American public. I mean, the cover story sounds completely bogus, yet you get away with it. If people are talking to Rodney and he says he’s working on a project that involves Deep Space Telemetry, that would be fine, completely believable. But from a civilian point of view, an explosives expert, an expert combat pilot, and a Navy SEAL honestly is a stretch to believe that you’re in a Deep Space Telemetry project.”

Laura nodded. “That’s what I said when I was recruited, but I was ignored.”

John asked, “Can you tell us more about Buck? Do you have any photos from when he was growing up? I’ve seen the ones you have up on the walls from his graduations, but I’m curious about how much he looked like me growing up. Dave said he had the Sheppard Lean™ when he got here.”

Patrick smirked, “He did; it was uncanny. He definitely takes after you more in mannerisms than looks. And his penchant for holding grudges is definitely something he got from your genetics.”

Laura laughed. “Oh yeah, damn, he held onto grudges for ages. When he first got to MIT, he was picked on a lot because he was this tiny skinny thirteen-year-old; he gets really pissed off when people treat him like a child. From what he said, he never had the opportunity to be a child, not really, so why should he accept people treating him like a dumb kid when he’s proven he can get by in an adult’s world. Going to MIT at thirteen and holding your own is no easy feat.”

Rodney admitted, “He had a point.”

John asked, “Where was he before here? Why didn’t he have a childhood?”

His dad explained, “We don’t know, he wouldn’t say, and if the kid didn’t want you to know something, nothing would get it out of him.”

Dave said, “He would make the occasional comment about their expectations, but that was about it. They seemed to expect him to be the perfect child, completely normal. Being genius-level smart was abnormal, and they tried to browbeat him into being an average student, doing sports, join the football team. All the stuff he hated with a passion. He reached the end of his rope when they forced him to turn down a free ride to MIT.”

Rodney muttered, “They sound like monsters. Even my parents, who were dicks, wouldn’t have forced me to turn down a free ride to MIT.”

John checked his phone and found a message from the General. He said, “O’Neill said he has Buck and Corporal Diaz, and they are about to board a flight to Norfolk.”

Shannon grinned. “Awesome. Christopher will be excited to see them both again.” 

Chapter Text

Classified Location - February 2012

Buck looked at the Air Force General waiting in his office and asked, “Can I help you, sir?”

Jack O’Neill looked at the young lieutenant in front of him, and he could see a lot of John Sheppard in his mannerisms. He said, “I’m General Jack O’Neill, that’s with two Ls. I’ve got a message from Commander Sheppard for you to read. Then you and a support person of your choice will be flying back stateside with me.”

Buck was nervous about what could be so important that an Air Force General was delivering the letter, so he asked, “Do you mind if I get the support person before I read the message, sir?”

Jack nodded. “Go for it, kid.”

Buck ignored the kid comment, and he ran to the medical tent to get Eddie. He had a quick word with the officer in charge before Eddie was jogging back to his office with him.

As they jogged, Eddie asked, “What’s going on?”

Buck said, “An Air Force General is in my office with a message from Dave.”

Eddie stopped him with a hand on his arm. “That’s a bit suspicious, don’t you think?”

Buck nodded. “Yep, absolutely. This is why I want you with me when I read whatever he has. He said I could ask a support person to come home with me for whatever is going on. Will you come?”

Eddie nodded. “Of course, Ev. Whatever you need. As long as he can arrange it so I’m not AWOL.”

Buck nodded. “Come on, let’s go face the music.”

They both saluted as they entered Buck’s office, and Jack returned it with a grin.

Jack checked out the name tag before he said, “Oh good, Corporal Diaz; just who I was hoping to see. Right, take a seat, gentlemen.”

They took a seat side by side on the small cot Buck kept in his office as the General took the small desk chair. Jack said, “I have a letter here from Commander Sheppard, and then we are flying stateside and meeting him at your house in Virginia Beach if you are both agreeable.”

Eddie asked, “Do Shannon and Patrick know we’re coming?”

Jack nodded. “They do. We’ve had to do a lot of background finagling for this meeting to happen.” He handed over the short letter to Buck.

Buck opened the envelope and asked, “Did you screen this?”

Jack shook his head. “No. We trusted the commander to keep it brief and to the point. It’s mostly so you’d trust me enough to catch a flight with me with little to no information.”  

Eddie asked, “Sir? You can’t tell us anything?”

Jack shook his head. “Not here, no. We’re reading you both in on the flight home. It’s just not secure enough here to read you into the project.”

Buck read through the short note and then passed it to Eddie. He was aware of the General’s eyes on him the entire time.

Eddie asked, “So when do we leave?”

Jack said, “I’ve got a quick meeting with the base commander; I can do that while you both pack. Ready to go in an hour? I’ll meet you outside the base commander’s office.”

The two men nodded their agreement, and with a quick salute, they sprinted out of the office toward their quarters on the other side of the base. 

The flight home was long. Thankfully it was on the general’s personal plane, so there were no connecting flights as they flew directly to Norfolk. Two other men were waiting on the plane for them, a civilian, who introduced himself as Daniel Jackson, an archaeologist, and Lt. Colonel Paul Davis. After the colonel introduced himself, he handed over a large pile of papers to each of them. He said, “These are NDA’s you need to sign. They should take an hour or two to get through before you sign, but it’s essential for the project we need to read you in on before we get to Virginia.”

Daniel sat next to Paul once the NDA’s were signed, and together they explained the discovery of the Stargate and how it worked, the battles with the Goa’uld system lords and other galaxy big bads, and the eventual trip to Atlantis. He ended it by explaining why Atlantis was so important to the Stargate Program. The archaeologist explained the battle with the Marilyn Manson wannabes called the wraith and how they literally feed on humans. 

By the time they got off the plane in Virginia, Buck and Eddie were struggling to process the existence of aliens and how many times the different races had nearly destroyed the planet.

They had a car service waiting for them at the airport when they landed, so it was a quick transfer of luggage before they were on their way to the beach house. 

Eddie said, “I can’t wait to see Christopher.”

Daniel asked, “That’s your son, right?”

Eddie nodded. “Yeah, he’s ten months old. It’s been a few months since our last trip home.”

Buck said, “He seems much happier in Virginia; Shannon does too.”

Jack asked, “Where were they before if you don’t mind me asking?”

On the flight over, Buck had realized that the general was more relaxed than most military, so he felt comfortable when he snarked, “You mean the background check didn’t tell you?”

Daniel chuckled, “He’s got you there, Jack. Unless you just got Paul to run the checks and didn’t read what he sent you… again.”

Jack muttered, “That’s what he’s there for. He’d point out anything important or anything that would fail the check.”

Eddie said, “They lived in El Paso until my parents got too overbearing. Buck offered for them to move into his suite in Virginia Beach last year, and after another month of nagging and gaslighting from my parents, Shannon took him up on the offer. She gets help with Christopher from the Sheppard’s housekeeper, Anna, and they are both much happier.”

Daniel leaned forward in his seat and said, “I have to ask, how does it work with the three of you. Are you all together, a throuple or whatever they call it these days?”

Buck shook his head. “Gods no. Me and Eds are together, Eddie is Christopher’s biological father, and Shannon is our best friend and Christopher’s biological mother.”

With a confused look, Daniel commented, “You don’t often see exes that get on as well as you all seem to.”

Eddie shrugged. “Because she’s not my ex. We were never together, not like that. It’s complicated, and most people consider it pretty weird, to be honest.”

Jack said, “He won’t trust me on that. He’s fascinated by anything and everything when it comes to human behavior.”

“Fine,” Eddie said eventually due to the earnest look on the archaeologist’s face. “Shannon and I are both bisexual, but we are not like most bisexual people. We both like sex with men and women, but not relationships; she saves those for women. And I am the opposite; as evidenced by Buck here, I love relationships with men. So through the last year of high school, until I met Buck, Shannon and I had a friends-with-benefits relationship as we tried to help each other find our one.”

Buck said, “We’re still trying to help Shannon find the love of her life, as long as it isn’t Laura.”

Jack asked, “Laura?”

“Laura Cadman,” Eddie clarified for the three men. “She’s an old friend of the Sheppard family.”

Buck nodded. “Yep. The two of them together would be utter chaos. Shannon is like Laura, except she fights with words instead of C4.”

Jack muttered, “Oh boy. Maybe I should have left her in the mountain.”

Daniel grinned. “Too late now. She will have been there for a few hours at least.”

Buck missed the muttering, and he wondered what they were in for. He was glad to be home to see his family, though. He was grateful that he and Eddie had been able to coordinate their leave just before Christmas, so they could come home and meet Christopher. Although, that had been because of Buck being injured in an incident during a mission. He’d dislocated his shoulder badly and needed a visit stateside for scans. The incident in question had resulted in one of the other SEALs getting a dishonorable discharge after the investigation had found he’d sabotaged the ropes Buck was using so he would be injured. The man had not appreciated Buck and Eddie’s friendship and wanted Buck out of the SEALs.

They finally pulled up at the house, and after a quick check of his phone, Jack said, “They’re all in the den.”

Buck muttered, “All?” as he led them all through the house to the large den in the center of the house.

Shannon was the first to see them, and she leaped up and barrelled into Eddie and Buck as she pulled them into a hug. She murmured, “Fucking finally. It’s been a madhouse.”

Eddie asked, “Are you ok?”

Shannon nodded. “Yeah. It’s just been a crazy few days as they wrangled things. Learning about the Stargate Program was a trip and a half.” She looked at Buck and asked, “You ok, Buckeroo?”

Buck nodded. “I think so, just glad for the trip home, ya know. Where’s Christopher?”

“He’s upstairs taking a nap,” Shannon explained as she pulled back from the hug. “Anna is watching him while we all talk. She’s not being read in, at her request.”

She grabbed their hands and pulled them over to the sofa she’d commandeered. She shoved Buck into the center seat, and she and Eddie took the seats on either side.

Buck asked, “So what’s going on?” He looked around the room, noting just how many people were there; he waved at Laura and Dave, who were talking on one of the love seats, then he noticed his dad sitting beside his Grandpa and another man he vaguely recognized. Shocked, he said, “Oh.”

John smirked. “Yeah, oh is right.”

Jack said, “How about first I introduce everyone since I seem to be the only one here that knows everyone. Who don’t you know?”

Buck said, “Just the two men with Da… John.”

Jack said, “The one sitting next to John is Dr. Rodney McKay, and the behemoth holding up the wall behind them is Ronon; they are both members of John’s team on his base. Ronon is their protection detail while they’re on Earth. Everyone has signed the NDA and been read in, yes? Even Ms. Morgan?”

They all nodded, and Patrick said, “The only one in the house that is not read in is our housekeeper Anna who threw up her hands at the size of the NDA and said she didn’t want to know. She’s currently in Buck’s soundproofed suite upstairs, and she’ll move to her own soundproofed rooms when Christopher is downstairs.”

Colonel Davis went around the room to those new to the SGC and collected the NDA’s, and he gave them all a check to make sure they were all signed correctly. Once he was done, he placed them all carefully into his briefcase, and with a salute to the various officers in the room, he exited the house and took the car service back to his office in Washington.

Buck looked around the room, expecting to see another woman, but he could only see Shannon and Laura. He tilted his head and asked, “So where’s Mom? Morgan said she worked with you on Atlantis.”

John and Rodney both sat up, and John demanded. “What?”

Buck sighed. “I had a visit from an ascended glowing lady, Morgan LeFay, just after I turned 13, and she explained that I was an accidental baby, and she took me to keep all three of us safe. Apparently, if I had been found when I was conceived, Dad would have been court-martialed.”

John asked, “So who is your mother? There wasn’t a name on your birth certificate that we could find.”

Completely unaware of the bombshell he was about to drop, Buck said, “Meredith McKay. I think that’s why she chose Aiden for my middle name, as McKay and Aiden both mean fire, at least that’s what my research showed.”

Rodney’s jaw dropped before he said indignantly. “I’m not a bloody girl.”

Jack tuned out the ranting from the scientist as he said over the noise, “Son, I think you need to explain further.”

“Ugh,” Buck said as he leaned into Eddie for comfort. “I only met Morgan once, and it was at some ungodly hour of the morning, so my memories are a bit fried. She said my dad touched a thing, and I guess, because he was in love with… my other dad, that the machine activated and made me.”

Morgan appeared and said, “That about sums it up. In the original timeline, in 2010, John Sheppard accidentally activated one of Janus’ machines and created a pod baby, Buck.”

Shannon snickered. “That’s awesome, pod baby Buck.”

The ascended woman ignored her laughter and said, “In that timeline, before I removed Buck, DADT was a problem until late 2018, and it was enforced exceptionally harshly, so John and Rodney would have both been jailed for creating the baby, regardless of the fact they did not do anything themselves to create it. So I made the decision to hide Buck away. I used another of Janus’ inventions to move Buck back in time and gave him to the Buckley’s as they had just lost a child, and I mistakenly thought they would accept another. They did not, and for that, I am beyond sorry.”

Buck smiled, “Your second attempt at help was much better, Morgan. I’ve been happy and free to actually have a childhood, as weird as it was, and I could live my best life. I still don’t get the spark joy comment, though.”

Jack glared at the being and demanded, “The kid is why you wanted DADT repealed?”

Morgan screwed up her face. “No. Well, not entirely. I found the notion of prosecuting someone over whom they loved abhorrent.”

Rodney said snidely, “I thought the ascended had that whole non-interference thing going on.”

Morgan smirked as she sang, “Loopholes. You didn’t know about Buck, so how could you know I was meddling? Anything after that was to fix my mistake. Because of the secrecy involved in your Stargate Program, I would suggest using Buckley as his last name should you need to create an identity for him in the future.”

Jack muttered, “In other words, you see him using it in the future.”

Morgan said snippily, “The future isn’t set in stone, Jack O’Neill. You should know this by now.”

With that zinger, she vanished back into the aether.

After a few minutes of silence, Patrick asked, “So that’s why you wouldn’t let me go after your adoptive parents, the Buckleys?”

Buck nodded. “She removed their memories of me, so they would have been so confused. She’d implanted me as a savior sibling, not knowing that most failed savior siblings are rejected by the family. The Buckley’s were assholes; well aside from my sister Maddie. I still send her postcards occasionally talking about trips I take. She’s going to think I am just drifting my way around North America. I haven’t told her anything about leaving home or finding my real family. Maybe one day.”

Eddie said, “I’m so confused.”

Buck said, “From what I understand, my dads are the leaders of Atlantis, a city base in the Pegasus Galaxy. There are machines there that can be activated with just a thought if you have a specific gene, which Dad has in spades, and he activated one that created me. I was hidden away in time to protect them. Morgan said that without them on Atlantis, the wraith would win and find earth.”

Rodney asked, “I don’t understand that. Why would we need protection? It’s not like we knew.”

Jack said, “DADT would have seen both of you prosecuted, regardless of intention. A simple DNA test would show that you’re both his parents. John would have been jailed for having an inappropriate homosexual relationship, and you would have been fired from the SGC, and you know what happens to people the SGC sacks.”

Rodney sighed, “Deep dark hole on a prison planet. Right. And in the meantime, we have a bouncing not-so-baby Buck, who seems to be the perfect combination of my smarts and John’s insanity.”

Patrick snorted. “You got that right. I’m just glad Laura taught him safety with C4. He uses it as a fidget toy.”

Laura asked, “You still doing that, kid?”

Eddie nodded. “He does; it drives his CO crazy. They always order extra now. They’ve discovered him having it on him at all times can come in handy when they are under attack.”

They heard the cry on the baby monitor, and Shannon jumped up. “I’ll just go get Christopher, and you guys can have the cuddle you’ve been waiting for while I get his apple puree ready.”

When she left the room, Ronon moved to sit between Dave and Laura, now that the drama of the situation was mostly over, and they talked quietly about the crazy ancients as Jack said, “I think we need to keep the pod baby news to just those in this room, and Ms. Morgan of course. At least until we know more about the device that John activated.”

Rodney said, “I’d like to read in Radek and Miko. They know the most about the database on Atlantis, and between them, they’ll be able to find the information. If it’s there to be found.” He turned to Buck, “Do you know when you were conceived?”

Buck shook his head. “Just that it was sometime in 2010. Sorry, I don’t know more than that. I don’t think Morgan wants us to know more than that.”

“Cryptic bastards,” Jack muttered. “Well, she’s not as bad as the others, but they are all pretty cryptic. I know she was a friend of Janus before she ascended, which could also be why she decided to meddle. I agree with Miko and Radek, and I think Lorne too. It’s pretty clear he’s the intended godfather.”

Buck asked, “Evan Lorne?” When he saw a nod from several people in the room, he explained, “He’s who I was named after. Morgan said she picked the name of the person both my dads trusted implicitly.”

John commented, “Janus was crazy. I mean, Elizabeth said it best, I think, ‘The more someone told him not to do something, the more he had to do it.’ Some of his machines that we’ve found are insane.”

Daniel thought back to some of Janus’ experiments he had interacted with directly, and he darkly muttered, “You’ve got that right.”

Shannon entered the den with a snuffling Christopher, and she passed him over to Eddie. “I’m just going to get his snack ready.”

Laura came over and crouched down behind the sofa so she could see Christopher. “So this is the Christopher you’ve been talking about so much?”

Buck nodded. “Yeah. He’s Eddie and Shannon’s son.”

Eddie nudged him and corrected, “He’s our son. Shannon would have words with you for that.”

As she walked back into the room with a small cup of puree, Shannon said, “I agree, he’s our son. Family is more than blood, Buck.”

Buck gave his dads a mischievous look before he asked, “So who’s grandpa and who’s pops?”

Patrick laughed at the looks of horror. “Oh, the looks on your faces, that’s fantastic. Thanks, kiddo. I needed that after all the seriousness.”

Shannon snarked, “At least those two are unlikely to tell me how much of a failure of a mother I am.”

Eddie muttered, “And my parents won’t be seeing our son until they apologize to you, and they mean it. I’ve already emailed them to tell them as much.”

Patrick nodded. “I was on speaker for one of their calls to Shannon. They were very dismissive of her and her abilities as a mother; they wouldn’t stop pushing her into coming back to El Paso and marrying you. It was ridiculous. We changed her number soon after.”

Shannon grinned. “We left a voicemail on my old phone with my new lawyer’s details. He screens the callers and passes on any that are important. Buck, I have to be honest, Patrick has been awesome for both me and Christopher. Thank you for offering us this lifeline.”

Chapter Text

Virginia Beach, VA - February 2012

John watched his son as the not so little kid was still sitting between his boyfriend and their best friend as they all spent some time with their son. He wanted to talk privately with their kid, and he was feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the people in the den, so he pulled Rodney to his feet and asked Buck, “Can we go somewhere and talk?”

Buck nodded and said, “We can go to my suite since Christopher is down here.” He led them through to the living room area of his suite, and after he shut the door, he said, “Can I have a hug?”

John grinned. “So it’s you that got Dad and Dave hooked on hugs, huh?”

Buck nodded. “Yeah, well, the Buckley’s barely touched me and left me touch starved. Something we only figured out after therapy. Only Maddie ever hugged me, and she left home when I was eight. So we got into the habit of hugging regularly. It’s great!”

John said, “I’m sorry I held onto my grudge. I had no idea that you were waiting for me to get in touch. I’ve been here for a few days, hashing things out with Dad, clearing the air. He’s a lot different than when I left.”

Buck said, “It’s ok. I do understand why. Grandpa was pretty honest about all the fights and why you left in a snit. Apparently, I am just as capable of holding a grudge. Laura’s had to talk me out of a few grudge-inspired bombs.”

Rodney said, “At least you didn’t build a nuclear bomb to get back at bullies.”

Buck said, “I prefer the subtle approach. I usually do something subtle, so they think it is a failure on the part of their car that does a shitload of damage. Plus, I didn’t really get bullied. Laura was a great bodyguard.”

John grinned. “He’s so our kid.”

Rodney muttered, “I can’t believe the ancient lady left my name off the birth certificate.”

Buck smirked. “It works in my favor if you think about it. How weird would it have looked if it had Rodney McKay on it? There would have been more scrutiny than any of us wanted. I did search for Meredith McKay, but I couldn’t find anything. I even hacked the Births, Deaths, and Marriages registry.”

Rodney said, “I’m Canadian, so there would have been nothing in the registry. As for everywhere else, I released a virus while I was in MIT that would change any reference to Meredith Rodney McKay to just Rodney McKay. I hate that my parents named me Meredith.” 

Buck could see John still had regrets about missing out on his childhood, but with the potential for paradox, he wasn’t sure if it could have been changed since it was possible that finding out before his conception could have nullified it entirely. So he said, “Look, I know you regret not getting in touch, but Grandpa and Dave did everything they could to make up for it. Once I got over what the Buckleys did, I had an awesome childhood. I never wanted for anything, including equipment to experiment with. Hell, Grandpa even retrofitted one of the garages as a workshop for me to take my concepts into the real world.”

John smiled sadly; he’d missed so much of his kid’s life, even though the kid was technically only two years old. Technically. He started to chuckle, and at the weird looks he got from the other two in the room, he admitted, “I just realized, Buck’s technically only two years old. I mean, he’s a year older than our grandkid.”

Rodney scowled. “I hate time travel; it’s a mind fuck.”

Buck shrugged. “I think if you’d come home earlier, you might have inadvertently changed things and maybe even prevented my conception. So, as much as I hated that I had to wait so long, I understand it. You’re here now, and now that we’re read into the project, we can stay in touch. However,” the younger man gave both of his dads a serious look, “That doesn’t explain why the General and Daniel are here? Surely they didn’t need to be around for the reunion.”

John shook his head. “No, I’m pretty sure O’Neill’s here to offer you a place in the Stargate program and get you into at least Cheyenne Mountain, if not Atlantis. Although, I think, with the introduction of Christopher, Atlantis is off the table. The good thing is, as a medic, Eddie will come under the command of the CMO. So you and Eddie can work together on the same gate team.”

Buck shrugged. “He’s an Army medic, not a Navy SEAL. The nearest we’ve ever got to working together so far is when he patched me up when we first met. We got together not long after, so he wasn’t allowed to treat me unless it was an emergency.”

John said, “Well if they take on your SEAL team for the mountain like we have with Dave’s team, he’ll probably be assigned as your team medic. Most of the teams in the mountain have someone designated as a medic. Especially if you wind up leading your own team.”

Buck said, “There are a few on my team that would not do well with the knowledge of aliens. And others who would struggle to pass the colonoscopy level background check the SGC seems to do. My commander can pass the basic background check, but he’s had a few anger management issues come up in the past that I think would come up on a deeper scan.”

Rodney shrugged. “That depends on O’Neill. He has good instincts when it comes to people, and he has veto. It’s how John got assigned to Atlantis even though he has a black mark on his file.”

John smirked. “The black mark is for defying orders to rescue a downed helo. The SGC is big on not leaving people behind, no matter what. O’Neill knew the order to return to base without attempting rescue was bullshit.”

Buck nodded. “Sounds like it. What happened to the officer that ordered you back to base?”

John shrugged. “He’s probably still there. I don’t know; I never bothered to look into it after I was reprimanded and assigned to McMurdo. So why did you do a math degree while serving?”

The younger man grinned. “I’m dangerous when I’m bored, and the desert gets really fucking boring. So since I couldn’t find a decent lab over there to finish my research into my physics dissertation, I decided to do a math degree instead. The brass is trying to push me into a few of the military strategy type degrees, but they don’t interest me, and I’m not planning on being career military. Once I’ve had my fun, I figure I’ll go back into engine design full time.”

Rodney said, “Well, you sign on as a scientist for the SGC, even as a SEAL. They are always looking at improving the engines on the various spaceships the SGC has. From what Dave has told us, you have designed quite a few engines that could be space worthy.”

Buck shrugged. “Some, yeah. I haven’t done anything with them. I tried to get into the NASA design teams, but they told me to go and get some life experience. They didn’t even look at my portfolio or previous design work. So…”

Rodney laughed. “Those assholes wouldn’t know a good design if it hit them in the face. They also hate MIT graduates; I don’t know why.”

“Snobbery,” John snarked.

Rodney looked at his son, and wanting to be on familiar ground; he asked, “Can we see your workshop?”

Buck nodded. “Yeah, we’ll grab Eds on the way through. He wants to see my latest design; I have a large touch screen in the workshop so he can have a good look.” He sighed as he stood, “Before we go down, what should I call you both? I mean, I’m used to calling John Dad; I’ve been doing it for years. But I think calling Rodney Mom would not go down well.”

Rodney scowled. “Definitely not. I think, because we are keeping my involvement in your… erm… origins a secret, maybe stick to Rodney? Or if you must use something, Pops?”

Buck nodded. “I’ll stick to Rodney while in the SGC; if I call you Pops, the wrong people might go digging. I mean, most would assume it’s because you’re together as a couple, but some would notice my intelligence and would go digging to see if there is more to it.”

Most of the group ended up following them out to the workshop, Buck was glad it had taken over an entire four-car garage, so there was plenty of room for everyone as they explored.

While everyone was looking around and generally exploring the large workshop, Buck and Eddie were going through the latest engine design on the big screen, Eddie understood mechanics from a repair and maintenance perspective on an almost savant level, and he often made suggestions for how to improve the design to make both tasks easier on the future mechanic. Over the last few months, he’d collaborated with Buck on a few designs he’d been working on as they enjoyed just spending time together in Buck’s office between shifts and missions. Buck had offered to send him to school for an engineering degree a few times, but Eddie was happy just helping out.

Jack approached when he saw Eddie was engrossed in the schematics and said, “So I’m sure you’re aware I’m not just here for the reunion.”

Buck nodded. “I want to say duh, sir, but that would be a dumb move.”

Eddie almost snorted, but reined it in as he looked over the schematics on the touch screen. He nudged his boyfriend and whispered, “Play nice, cariño.”

Jack smirked. “Yes, well, I see a lot of John in you, kid. Don’t lose that.” He gave Buck a serious look. “We’ve already started the background checks on your SEAL team in preparation for reading them in on the Stargate program. We like what Commander Sheppard’s team is doing on Atlantis, and we would like a SEAL team in Cheyenne Mountain to do the same for the SGC teams. It would be a heavy combat team for when gate teams run into problems or need a heavier than normal guard on missions. We are planning on adding three teams, one each from the SEALs, Marine Force Recon, and Army Rangers.”

Daniel said, “This offer goes for Corporal Diaz as well; he’d be assigned officially as your team medic. Since we already know Buck’s SEAL team doesn’t have a medic currently.”

Dave said, “Eddie, you should definitely take it. The SGC pays to have their medics given full paramedic training. They have an arrangement with a provider in Colorado Springs.”

Ronon asked, “What’s the difference between medic and paramedic?”

Eddie shrugged. “It’s mostly just time and a piece of paper. The skills are similar, but medics mainly do combat first aid, and paramedics are trained for everything. The main difference is I can use a paramedic qualification in the civilian world, but my medic training counts for nothing if I leave the Army.”

Ronon said, “That seems counterproductive. Why put in the time and money to train you in something that’s useless later?”

Jack snapped his fingers at the large man, and he said, “And that’s why I mandated full paramedic training for the medics on the gate teams. We’ve read in the paramedic trainers and taken them on a few gate missions, so they got a feel for the training we needed. It’s been great, and a few of the medics have even left the program once their time in the military is over and joined fire departments around the country.”

Patrick asked, “Will they have to live on base?”

Jack shook his head. “No. Most of the personnel on base actually live in Colorado Springs. You’ll move with them?”

Patrick nodded. “Yep, pretty sure Shannon will want her and Christopher closer to his dads. We’ve managed to alter Shannon’s role in Sheppard Industries so it can be done remotely, which is great for her so that she can spend more time with their son.”

They spent a few hours making plans, and Buck talked quietly with Jack about the members of his current team. A few of the SEALs he currently served with would not take the existence of aliens well, and one was homophobic to the point of violence, and he went out of his way to harass anyone on base who was rumored to be gay. 

Jack reassured Buck that the bigot would be investigated, and they would see how well the team did with fewer members on gate missions before they discussed replacements. Jack also wanted to make sure Buck was ok with Eddie joining the team as a medic. He knew that the rank disparity could make things awkward sometimes, but the two men seemed to make it work.

When he asked how, Buck admitted, “Only my commander and Eddie’s CO know about our relationship. We came clean to them both as soon as we realized the flirting was serious. We talked it over and decided it would be too awkward to tell the others we served with. Plus, Jones would’ve made my life hell for dating a male NCO. DADT might be gone, but the attitudes sure ain’t.”

Jack said, “Anyone who has issues with homophobia, xenophobia, or really any of the phobias aren’t welcome in the mountain. How will they handle aliens if they can’t handle a gay couple? There are planets out there where clothes are not even close to what most humans would call decent.”

Daniel said, “What about P30-283, the one we nicknamed Swinger Planet. They really wouldn’t cope with that one. Marriage is seen as unnecessary, and partner swapping is done to seal trade agreements? It was an entertaining first contact mission, that’s for sure.”

Jack muttered darkly, “Not one I want to repeat.”

Buck said, “I want to talk about it with Eddie before signing on the dotted line, but I’m tentatively in. I also want to set up a separate contract for my engineering work. I’ve got some concepts kicking around that could be useful to the SGC. But I’ll want Grandpa’s lawyer to work on the contract. I’m not signing my patents over to the government.”

Rodney said, “I’ve got a lawyer that’s already read into the program who can negotiate on your behalf. He got me an awesome contract that allows me to keep my patents, and I can use my inventions once the program is declassified in the civilian world. He’s based in Colorado Springs.”

Buck grinned. “Thanks, Rodney, that would be awesome. Right, I am exhausted; it’s been a long day, so I’m going back inside to have some Christopher and Eddie cuddles, then a long sleep.”

Jack said, “Paul is coming back tomorrow morning with paperwork for you both to sign for your transfer to the SGC. I’ll also get him to print out a copy of our usual scientist contract so Rodney’s lawyer can rip it to shreds and submit a better one.”

Eddie asked, “What about our things over in Afghanistan?”

Daniel said, “We’ll organize a beam out once you’re assigned to the mountain so you can pack your things. We’ll transport everything to a warehouse we use and beam it out from there. Easy peasy.”

Buck and Eddie had both decided they had processed enough new information for the day, and they both said in unison, “Okay. Goodnight.”

And they legged it out of the workshop to have cuddles with the smallest Diaz.

-x-

The following day, Buck creeped out of bed; he was making an effort to let his boyfriend sleep in. He’d been doing some seriously long shifts in the medical tent before they left Afghanistan with General O’Neill, so Eddie definitely needed the sleep.

He got dressed in his usual running kit before he went downstairs to see his grandpa. He hoped the older man was still doing regular morning runs after his heart scare a few years ago.

When he got to the bottom of the stairs, Patrick asked, “You joining me, kiddo?”

“Yeah,” Buck said with a grin. “I need to loosen up the muscles after the flight here.”

They left a note on the fridge telling the rest of the family they would be back later, and they got started on Patrick’s usual circuit. It would take them past a local park, and Buck wanted to sit for a while and talk away from curious ears.

Patrick was still panting a bit from trying to keep up with Buck when they eventually sat down. He took a few minutes to catch his breath before he asked, “What’s wrong?”

Buck shook his head. “Nothing. I’m more worried about you, to be honest.”

“Why?” Patrick was confused; he finally had both of his sons under one roof. Something that hadn’t happened for over a decade. “I’m good.”

Buck gave him a wicked side-eye and asked, “Are you sure? There was a lot of bad blood between you and Dad.”

The older man reassured, “We’ve talked, and we’re still talking. It’s not perfect between us, but… it’s better than it was. He understands that I was scared when we had that last fight.”

Buck nodded. “You had a good reason to be scared. I read through DADT before it was repealed. The penalties were vicious, and it didn’t even need to be proven; there just had to be a hint of impropriety.”

Patrick said, “That’s what I told him. When we had the fight, there had been a few high-profile cases of DADT prosecutions. A few that just lead to dishonorable discharges. But there were a couple that resulted in time in Leavenworth. I was worried he would end up following them, or worse, end up dead from a blanket party.”

“Nancy was a safety net?” Buck asked. “Are you sure he knew he was gay before he married her, though? Uncle Dave doesn’t think so.”

Patrick shrugged, “I don’t know. Dave was young when they got married. He was still in middle school, I think.”

Buck nodded. “He was. But he remembers that Dad seemed happy, but not all there. It’s hard to explain. What about the other fights? Have you talked those out?”

“Yeah,” Patrick said with a frown. “It’s going to take us a bit to work through it all, but you’ve helped a lot with that. Taking you in was an olive branch to him. He’s wanted to get in touch for a few years now to clear the air, but he didn’t know how.”

Buck said quietly, “I don’t think it would have happened any earlier, to be honest. I think Morgan would have interfered if a reunion was likely before my conception. Look at the timing of our meeting; I didn’t get to meet you until Dad was already in the Pegasus Galaxy and out of contact.”

He considered the timing, and with a sigh, he admitted, “You’re probably right. You arrived in mid-July; we’ll have to ask when they left. Come on, let’s head back to the house. I want to see if your theory is right.”

They stood, and they jogged back to the house after a quick stretch. This time Buck was being careful not to push his grandpa too hard.

John and Eddie were in the kitchen talking quietly by the coffee pot when the two men arrived back all stinky and sweaty. Buck asked bluntly, “When did you first leave for Atlantis?”

 His dad frowned and answered, “July 2004.”

As he walked into the room, Rodney said, “The 16th of July if you want the exact date. Why?”

Patrick said, “Buck arrived here on the 17th of July, 2004. Which means Morgan visited him the day after you left.”

John sighed, “So she timed it so there was no way we could meet before we left for Atlantis. I wonder if she would have interfered if I tried to visit you when Atlantis was stuck in San Francisco Bay.”

Buck nodded. “I think she would have interfered if it happened before my conception. She seems invested in my future, or more specifically, my having a future.”

Eddie pulled Buck into his arms and said, “She’s not the only one, cariño.”

As he pulled away, the younger man protested, “Gross, Eds, I’m all sweaty.”

Patrick chuckled. He said, “I’m going to do my cool-down stretches, then have a shower. By the time I get back, Anna should be finished making breakfast.”

Buck said, “A word of advice, stay out of her kitchen when she’s cooking. She’s got a mean wooden spoon slap if you get in her way.”

Eddie said, “That’s just because you try to steal the cookies before they’ve had time to cool down. And it’s not just Anna that’s like that. My abuela is the same. You will get smacked on the knuckles with her wooden spoons if you enter the kitchen while she’s cooking. She’s very protective of the recipes; they are family secrets passed down through the generations.”

Anna entered the kitchen and scowled at the group. She said, “You all know the rules; well, Mr. Diaz and Dr. McKay don’t yet, but the kitchen is my territory during meal times. Breakfast will be ready in half an hour.”

They all exited the kitchen quickly, not wanting to delay breakfast. Buck said, “I will be in the workshop after breakfast if anyone wants to join me. There are sofas in there if you wanna just hang out.”

Rodney said, “I’ll be there. I would like to see some more of what you’re working on. Eddie said you’re working on your physics dissertation?”

Buck nodded. “That’s what I had planned to do while I have access to my workshop. I just have a couple of experiments to run, then I’m finished with the research, and I’ll just need to get it all typed up and formatted. Come on, let’s go play.”

Chapter Text

Colorado Springs, CO - September 2012

Over the next six months, they got everyone transferred to Colorado Springs. It took Patrick a while to find the right house, he was about to throw in the towel and have one built, but then the perfect house that would fit all the Sheppards and their extended families came up for sale not far from Cheyenne Mountain.

Not long after they settled into the new house, Shannon pulled Buck and Eddie aside and said, “We need to talk about Christopher. He’s not meeting his milestones. The doctor we had in Virginia said we had nothing to worry about, but I think they’re wrong.”

Buck suggested, “Why don’t we see if one of the doctors in the mountain can assess him? They have access to more technology than doctors outside the program.”

Eddie said, “I’ve got a shift in the infirmary tomorrow, so I can ask Dr. Lam if she has someone on staff who has a specialty in pediatrics.”

Shannon nodded. “Please. He’s a happy kid; you’ve both seen that, but he struggles, and that’s not fair.”

Buck said, “He is a happy kid, but I’ve noticed he’s been having trouble with crawling, walking, and other basic things. I was going to wait until we’d settled in before talking to you both about it.”

Eddie and Buck approached Dr. Lam together, and she said she’d see him. She had been working in pediatrics before she was hired to take over as Chief Medical Officer after the death of the last chief.

The diagnosis of Cerebral Palsy was a blow to all three of them, but Dr. Lam was hopeful. She said, “We can’t cure CP, but we can help ease a lot of the symptoms as he grows through a combination of appropriate surgeries and the Goa’uld hand device.”

Eddie asked, “I don’t think I’ve seen that yet. What will it do?”

Caroline said, “It depends on who’s using it, and for Christopher, I’d ask Vala to help us as she is great with muscles and bone issues. General Carter is good, but she’s more of a blunt instrument. So Vala can use the device to help with muscle atrophy, scoliosis, curvature in the spine, and other bone deformities. The more we can do for him as a child, the better off he’ll be in the future once he’s done growing.”

Buck asked, “You mentioned surgeries?”

The doctor nodded. “There will be times when the hand device isn’t enough, where we’ll have to go in to correct growth plate issues and some of the muscular issues that those with CP can develop. Vala can assist with the post-surgical healing and scar reduction.” She looked down at Christopher, who was sitting happily in Shannon’s arms, staring at her. She said, “I think once Vala meets this little man, she will be happy to help.”

Buck commented, “It’s those Diaz puppy dog eyes; once you look into them, you’re lost forever.”

Shannon nodded. “Yep, Christopher so far has everyone he’s ever met wrapped around his little finger. Can the hand device help with his vision? Most of the people I’ve met with CP wear glasses.”

Dr. Lam looked hesitant as she said, “Some of the vision issues, yes. But not all. When Vala scans him with the hand device, she will be able to tell you both what the issues she’s found are and what she can help with. We’ll work together, so your little ball of sunshine has the best chance.”

Shannon smiled gratefully. “Thank you.”

Caroline leaned forward and put a hand on Shannon’s knee. She said quietly, “Whatever you’re thinking, you need to stop. It was not your fault, and you need to stop feeling guilty.”

Eddie agreed. “She’s right. I know why you think it’s your fault, that you’ve been told since his birth that you’re a bad mother, which is why my parents won’t be getting access to our son. We don’t think it’s your fault, so you need to stop thinking it. Sooner than you think, Christopher will be old enough to understand that you feel guilty, and that will make your relationship with him difficult. So you need to let that shit go.”

The doctor offered, “We have a great psychologist in the mountain who is good with undoing the damage erm… gaslighting causes.”

Eddie tilted his head in thought. “See, it’s not just us that think they are gaslighting you. But that’s really what they do: nag and browbeat you enough so eventually, you believe their opinion is the only right one.”

Buck shrugged. “They taught you how not to parent your kid, and you get to do your own thing with Christopher. That’s a win as far as I’m concerned.”

They spent another hour with the doctor and Vala, when she arrived, going over the details for Christopher’s treatment. Vala scanned him with the hand device, and she was able to ease some of the muscle pain he already had developing in his legs. They arranged for monthly visits around Vala’s gate missions in the future, and Dr. Lam would perform any surgeries with assistance from one of the other surgeons who had done a pediatric surgery rotation in training.

When they got home, they sent out a blast email to the various Sheppards detailing the diagnosis and what their plans for treatment were. They decided not to tell the Diaz family, as they felt if Eddie’s parents found out, they would do something stupid like try and claim custody of their grandson, which they all agreed would be detrimental to his health.

-x-

Buck’s time in the mountain was split between gate missions and working on the engine design for the next version of the F-302 Interceptor. He’d spent a lot of time studying the schematics they had for the various Goa’uld craft they’d captured, as well as the wraith dart, and he was using their design principles in the new attack fighter. He was working with a few of the scientists at Area 51 to get his design into the testing phase. 

Eddie had been assigned to the infirmary for his paramedic training. Because he needed to be close to the base for missions, they had arranged for one of the trainers to do their training in the base infirmary for those doing the paramedic courses, due to their time sensitivity. 

Buck was assigned his own gate team, SG-21. They were a team of five: himself and three other Navy SEALs from his old SEAL team (the only three that passed the SGC background checks), and Eddie was assigned to the team as their medic. They were mainly used for search and rescue missions, and they doubled as a combat unit when a planet was known to be dangerous. For the first year, Buck was assigned a mentor from one of the more experienced search and rescue teams to help him adjust to leading a gate team around his engineering workload.

Buck and Eddie disclosed their relationship to the rest of the team as soon as they were settled in the mountain, and they were surprised to find out that the other SEALs already knew.

Lieutenant Josh Connors said, “Do you honestly think no one on the team knew? We just didn’t say anything because we knew Jones was one bad mission away from a gay bashing, and the two of you would have killed him. You’d think he would’ve learned after Atkinson got court-martialed for injuring Buck, but he always was thick as pigshit. Either way, he wasn’t worth it.”

 After reading through a good selection of the after-action reports from the various team gate missions, Special Warfare Operator Oscar Dunford, known as Grouch, took on the role of team trainer. He got them up to speed on all the weapons the SGC had to offer, including the ZAT, the Goa’uld staff weapons, and the vast range of weapons used by the various services in the mountain. He also pushed Josh into upskilling their hand to hand and working with Teal’c so that they would be ready for anything. 

Their final member, Buck’s second in command and team sniper, Master Chief Lewis Selby, was training Eddie up to be his spotter. Thanks to the many ‘dates’ spent in the training range in Afghanistan and the mountain, Eddie’s range scores were comparable with the SEALs, so Lewis felt safe having Eddie guard his back while he protected the team from a distance.

-x-

“Lieutenant Commander Sheppard?” The Marine at the door of his lab asked. When Buck looked up, he said, “You’re wanted in the conference room, urgently.”

Buck packed up what he was working on and locked his computer before he double-timed it down to the conference room. 

He found Colonel Cameron Mitchell waiting with the rest of SG-21. The colonel said, “We tried calling you, but your radio was off.”

Buck nodded. “Sorry. I was in the middle of some calculations. I thought I’d let Walter know I would be unavailable. What’s going on?”

Selby rolled his eyes and muttered, “It’s SG-14… again.” He was tired of the constant rescues of the gate team due to the actions of their scientist. In the two years since they arrived in Colorado, SG-14 held the record for needing the most rescues. 

Buck took a deep breath and asked, “Where are we going, and what’s the situation?”

Mitchell said, “They are trapped on P84-37M. They are trapped by what Major Grey described as bears with wings.”

Connors said, “And let me guess, SG-3 ran screaming?”

Mitchell muttered, “They walked, actually.”

Buck pulled out a tablet and looked up the details on the planet the colonel had mentioned. He said, “I can’t find any mission orders for the planet. What were they doing there?”

Mitchell said, “Dr. Kavanagh found something on an old mission report he wanted to investigate. Major Grey agreed that it was worth looking into.”

Grouch looked up from his tablet and asked, “How did they get trapped then? Nothing in the previous mission reports from the planet mentions bears with wings. And on that note, the mission reports don’t indicate anything of significance being found on the planet, not even any ruins. Do you have the report from Dr. Kavanagh or the Major?”

From the conference room door, Walter said, “I’ve already sent the report to your tablets. I’ve got the quartermaster preparing your gear.”

Cameron said, “I had a talk with the zoologists, and we went through the footage that the team sent through. Dr. Sallis believes the team has wandered into the bears’ territory and upset them somehow.”

Buck sighed, “So stun and get them out before the bears wake up? Just out of curiosity, what size bears are we talking about: drop bears or grizzly bears?”

“Closer to Kodiak bear sized,” the colonel admitted. “Rickards took the video, and even he sounded freaked out about the size.”

Eddie asked, “He grew up in Alaska with polar bears that raided their village, but the bears with wings freaked him out? Dios.”

Seeing the missed question, Selby asked, “Do they actually fly, or are the wings just there?”

Mitchell shrugged. “I’m not sure. I mean, from the video they sent back, they look like they won’t support the bears’ weight, but who knows, what we know doesn’t always apply.”

Buck said, “Alright, we’ll head in and hope that we can get them out in one piece.” He looked up at Walter and asked, “Can you pull the records from our last rescue missions of SG-14 and email them through, please?” 

Walter nodded in confirmation and said, “I’ll also send through the AARs from Major Grey for the same missions and any mission briefings.”

“Thanks,” Buck said gratefully. He turned to the rest of the team. “Gear up, take Zats if they’re available; I would prefer we not kill any of the giant bear things since it appears we encroached on their territory.”

Eddie whispered, “I’m not looking forward to this,” as they got dressed and equipped for the mission. “The last two rescues of SG-14 were a clusterfuck.”

Buck nodded. “I know. And part of me wonders if I am holding a grudge because he’s a dick to my papa, but Kavanagh always seems to drag them into situations that require a rescue.”

Selby said, “It’s not just you, Buck. Alex —sorry, I mean Major Grey— has been bitching about him for a few months. He refuses to follow orders, and they end up in sticky situations all the time. He’s been putting the details into his AARs, but they have been shrugged off as unimportant by whoever reads them for some reason.”

Buck nodded. “Okay. Let’s get this done, and we can add our own reports to Major Grey’s. Maybe escalate them up the chain of command. I’ll talk to Alex when we get back.”

Once he had holstered his weapons, he turned and asked, “Everyone ready?” When he got everyone’s confirmation, he signaled for them to roll out, and he radioed Walter to start the dialing process.

When they arrived on the planet’s surface, Selby said, “The reports said they were examining a grove of trees that seemed to have a fractal pattern in the planting that matched something the ancients used. The grove is approximately four klicks south of the gate.”

Buck said, “Usual formation, rifles up. The bear things may be watching for reinforcements. Warning shots first; hopefully, they will back off for long enough so we can rescue SG-14. Did the report state where they were taking shelter?”

Selby chuckled as he said, “The report stated it was beside a purple bubble tree. Part of me wanted to think they had been drugged. But looking at the fauna, I think we need to keep an eye out for purple trees.”

The team looked around at the blue grass and the orange, teal, and pink trees, which all had white tree trunks. Buck commented, “The biology team must have had a field day here.”

Grouch disagreed. “From the reports I read, the only thing different about the flora is the colors. Everything else is like the trees from home. Maybe it’s just an experiment gone wrong.”

Eddie held his hand up as they approached the grove and whispered, “I can hear wings.”

They all switched to the zat pistols as they crept through the trees. Selby said, “I can see the bears. That is not good. They’re fucking huge.”

Buck leaned over Selby’s shoulder and said, “Fuck, I wish we had Ronon’s gun. Let’s hope the Zat works. Is there any sign of SG-14?”

Connors said, “I can see them; they are at your 10 o’clock. They don’t look injured, just pissed off.”

Eddie agreed, “They look okay, maybe a few bruises, but no one seems to be holding themselves like they are injured.”

Buck said, “We’ll go in a V formation. Zat the bear things that look threatening or try to rush us, but otherwise leave them alone. Eddie, you and Grouch check everyone out as we stand guard, then we hoof it back to the gate.”

When he got everyone’s agreement, they lined up and started to approach the stranded team. As they got closer, they could hear Major Grey yelling at Kavanagh to stop digging. 
 
Buck looked around as they got closer to the group. The bears were hanging back and just watching, but they closed ranks around the two gate teams. He sighed and asked, “Dr. Kavanagh, why are you ignoring the orders of your team lead?”

Dr. Kavanagh said, “That’s not how it works. For the scientific parts of the mission, I am in charge. The major doesn’t know enough to make those types of decisions.”

“Wow,” Buck said as he heard the entitlement in the scientist’s voice. “Fix up the damage you’ve done to the trees; then we’re leaving.”

The doctor shook his head in refusal as he kept digging.

Grouch growled, “You can either do as you’re told, or you’ll be stunned and restrained. It’s entirely up to you, Dr. Kavanagh.”

The rest of SG-14 had already started to replace the dirt in the holes that Kavanagh had been digging, as they’d noticed it seemed to appease the giant bears.

He trusted his team to get the scientist sorted, so Buck asked the major, “Have they tried to communicate with you at all, or have they just stood there with their wings out?”

Major Grey said, “It’s just been a silent vigil. I’ve been trying to get Kavanagh to listen and stop digging, but he just ignored me and muttered about military idiots not being smart enough to find our asses with both hands. I’m honestly done.”

Buck turned to the scientist and asked, “What’s it going to be, Dr. Kavanagh? So far, I haven’t seen you move, and it looks like your team is cleaning up your mess.”

Connors muttered, “We should just hogtie him and drag him back through the gate by his ankles.”

The scientist paled and started to help fill in all the holes he’d dug under the trees.

Major Grey said, “The bears turned up as soon as he left the first hole without filling it in; that’s why I tried to get him to stop digging.”

Buck asked, “What was he looking for? I mean, the report he submitted was minimalist at best; it mentioned trees that looked like a fractal that the ancients used, but that’s it. There was no mention of any technology or artifacts that he thought would be here.”

The major shrugged. “He thought there might be ancient artifacts buried under one of the trees near the center. Personally, I think this is just one of those random, ‘happenstance patterns in nature’ type of thing. He dug up the base of over 30 trees and found absolutely nothing. Well… except terrifying bears with wings. We tried to leave, but the bears would close ranks and prevent it. Nothing overt or violent, just a wall of fur, basically.”

Buck looked over at his team and noticed that the bears were starting to relax as the holes were filled. Eddie motioned with his head at the bears and said, “They remind me of the old stories my abuela used to tell me. Old forest guardians, they would stand guard over the forests, protecting them from interlopers. They have different sizes, shapes, or forms, but most cultures on Earth have legends of guardians: Tata Duende, Dryads, Leshy, Hākuturi, even the Hundun of Chinese mythology. So it’s not surprising other planets would have similar creatures. Most are peaceful unless provoked, much like these guys.”

Connors said, “I suspect that digging up the area under the trees may cause damage to the trees, and maybe even the fractal pattern Kavanagh is obsessed about if they are not properly filled back in. If you watch the giant bears, they relax slightly after each hole is filled back in.”

Buck considered what the two men had said, then he asked, “So, do you think the bears are just keeping us here until they are happy we’ve fixed all the damage, then they’ll just let us go?” He walked around checking out the trees, and he took the time to smooth out any of the filled-in holes at the base of the trees.

The bears were still there, surrounding the grove when Dr. Kavanagh announced all the holes were filled in. They were still not threatening them as a group, so after SG-14 double-checked to make sure they were all filled in, and the grove looked how it did when they arrived, Buck said, “Let’s move out. Selby, Eddie, I want you both leading the group. Grouch, Connors, and I will take the rear, SG-14 in the middle. Let’s go.”

They formed up, and as Selby and Eddie took the lead, the bears separated and let them through. Most of them watched Dr. Kavanagh closely as he walked through their guard line. As Buck walked past the bears, he murmured, “Thank you,” and he was surprised when one of the larger bears bowed, seemingly in returned thanks. 

Stunned, Buck bowed before he jogged to catch up to the rest of the group. When he turned back a few minutes later, the bears had all vanished.

Chapter Text

Colorado Springs, CO - August 2014

Buck was pissed off. He’d briefly talked to Major Grey to get an initial report when they got back to the mountain, and his theory about Dr. Kavanagh had been proven to be correct. Every time they’d needed a rescue, it was due to Dr. Kavanagh not following orders. 

He bribed the major with a decent coffee to come to his office to talk through the issue. Once they were settled on his sofa, he asked, “Has he done this on other missions? One that hasn’t resulted in a rescue, I mean.”

Alex Grey nodded. “Most of them. I’ve learned it’s easier not to fight with him. I’m 99% sure he’s got someone higher up in his pocket since my requests to have him removed from my team were all denied.”

Buck frowned. “I haven’t seen any of those, and I got Walter to pull up all the records before we left.” He pulled out his tablet and asked, “When did you send the last request?”

Alex said, “I put in a request every two weeks for the first six months he was assigned to my team. That was about two weeks after he returned from Atlantis. He’s honestly a nightmare, and he really hates you.”

Buck shook his head. “No, he hates my dad. The only thing he hates about me is my genetics.”

Alex snickered and admitted, “The only way he could hate you more is if you were Dr. McKay’s kid.”

“Yeah,” Buck agreed quietly, “That’s true enough.” He browsed through the tablet and eventually found the removal requests. They had all been denied by General Landry, the previous base CO. He asked, “Why didn’t you put in a new request when General Carter took over the base?”

With a sigh, Alex admitted, “I was warned not to by General Landry, that the orders keeping Kavanagh on a gate team came from higher up than him, and that if I made noise about wanting him gone, I would be replaced. It was basically the same warning as the one that stopped me filing the requests for his removal. They said if I didn’t stop, I would be replaced, not him. I can honestly tell you; it’s been tempting over the years; he’s an honest-to-god nightmare to deal with.”

Buck said, “Fuckers. Well, they don’t scare me; I have bigger and badder leverage than they do.” He knew if he was threatened or removed from the SGC, both his parents would come down on the powers that be like a tonne of bricks. He reassured, “Leave it with me; I’ll do what I can so he’s at the least warned about following orders. I’m going to have a chat with Dr. Kavanagh; why don’t you wait with SG-21 in my lab?. They’ll be taking up sofa space as they write up their reports.”

Alex asked, “Are you sure they won’t mind?”

Buck chuckled. “They’ll be waiting for the same news as you. They know I’ve reached the end of my rope with this idiot. Go and get changed, and I’ll see you in my lab when I’m done.” 

As soon as Alex had left, Buck pulled up the relevant AARs on his tablet so he could review the rescues: not just by SG-21, but the other search and rescue teams in the mountain. It took him half an hour to see that the reports had been buried, and that was something he’d assign someone to investigate later.

He knocked on Dr. Kavanagh’s lab door, and when he heard a mumble from inside, he entered. He stood at parade rest, waiting for the scientist to acknowledge his presence. When that wasn’t looking likely to happen any time soon, he cleared his throat, and when the doctor scowled at him, he said, “Ignoring me won’t make me go away, Dr. Kavanagh.”

Dr. Kavanagh rolled his eyes and demanded, “What will make you go away, Sheppard? I don’t want you here.”

Buck snarled, “It’s ‘Lieutenant Commander Sheppard,’ and you know exactly why I am here. You have a history of defying the orders of your team lead.”

Kavanagh yelled, “That’s not how it works. Out in the field, Grey makes military decisions, and I make the scientific decisions. It’s not my fault you idiotic jarheads are too stupid to find your own asses with both hands. How about you leave the science to actual smart people and go and work out or something? Just leave me the fuck alone.”

Buck blinked a few times before he left the office without a word. He decided to talk to General Sam Carter, the current CO of the Cheyenne Mountain Complex.

He evaded her assistant and poked his head in the door. “General Carter, do you have a minute? I have a semi-urgent issue to raise with you.”

Sam nodded. She was desperate for any distraction since the expense reports for the mountain were making her cross-eyed. “Lieutenant Commander Shepard. Take a seat; how can I help you?”

Buck sighed. “Are you aware we’ve had to go rescue SG-14 eight times in the last six weeks?”

Sam frowned. “No, I wasn’t. Is it just standard bad luck? Or…?”

With a huff, Buck said, “It’s Dr. Kavanagh and his inability to follow orders. I’ve read Major Grey’s after-action reports from each mission. And they all state that Dr. Kavanagh has refused to leave their location until he’d cataloged everything. This means they have often been late for check-in, and when we’ve been called in to rescue them, they were under attack because they didn’t leave the planet. The missions that don’t require rescues still have insubordination noted in the AARs.”

Sam sighed. “Have the locations been important at least?”

Buck shook his head. “Not that I can see from the reports. According to the details I found in the database, most of them are low priority ruins. They certainly aren’t worth the risk to the rest of his team or the risk he poses to my team when we have to go in and rescue them. From the reports, they’ve had to be rescued by most of the other SG SAR teams.”

“Huh,” Sam said with sudden understanding. “I heard some grumblings, but I don’t hear a lot of the gossip since I took the big chair. Have you tried talking to Dr. Kavanagh?”

Buck nodded. “Twice. The second time was just a few minutes ago. I’ve tried not to let my biases affect me since I know how much he hates both of my parents, so I gave him more of a chance to change his behavior before trying again. In the brief discussion we had a few minutes ago, he called me a stupid jarhead and told me to leave the science to actual intelligent people.”

Sam spat out her coffee. “He honestly said that? Wait, he called you a jarhead?”

“Yeah,” Buck admitted. “I wasn’t sure what I should correct, so I just left his office and came here. I mean, he’s under the impression that he’s in charge of all scientific decisions in the field and refuses to accept he’s wrong.”

Sam gave him a calculated look; she recognized the expression on his face as one he used when withholding bad news. She asked, “What else?”

Buck explained, “There were requests every two weeks from Major Grey to have him removed from his gate team, but Landry turned him down every time. When Landry left, he repeated his warning to the major not to make any new requests, as he would be the one being replaced.”

 Sam picked up her phone and called the CSO for the SGC, Travis Dyson. “Travis, can you bring Dr. Kavanagh to my office, please.”

When she put the handset down, Buck asked, “Do you want me to leave?”

She chuckled. “Nope. I want you to stay right there. I think Dr. Kavanagh needs a come to Jesus meeting. It’s about time he learns that he’s not the smartest brain in the mountain.”

Buck blinked a few times. “He thinks that? Seriously? He only has one Ph.D. and a Master’s degree. He doesn’t even have any other degrees.”

Sam had been read in on the pod baby secret, so she was aware of just how much Buck could be like Rodney at times, and the comment made her laugh. “Wow, you sound so much like your Pops right now.”

Buck shrugged, and he said waspishly, “I can’t help my genetics.”

Sam saw the message on her computer to warn her that the doctors were on their way in. She said, “How about you stand behind me, looking menacing.”

Buck grinned. “Sure.” He was still in his full tactical uniform, so he moved to stand behind Sam with his arms crossed. He knew he looked scary, especially when he scowled.

The two doctors entered Sam’s office, and she gestured for them to take a seat. She addressed Dr. Kavanagh, “Do you know why you’re here, Peter?”

The doctor in question shrugged and shook his head. It was clear to all in the room that he had a good idea why he was there, as he was nervously watching the leader of SG-21 standing behind the general, especially since Buck looked more pissed off than any of them had ever seen.

Sam leaned back in her chair and said, “SG-21 have had to rescue your gate team eight times in the last six weeks, and that’s not including the rescue missions by the other search and rescue teams; most of whom now refuse point blank to deal with your team at all. You are on record as refusing to listen to the team commander when he tells you to pack it up and leave.”

Travis asked, “Is that true?”

Dr. Kavanagh protested, “On gate missions, the scientist on the team makes the call. When the discoveries are important, we can’t let them fall into the hands of Earth’s enemies. The soldiers don’t know what they are dealing with, so why should they get a say?”

Sam asked, “And calling Lieutenant Commander Sheppard —now what was it again? Oh, that’s right, ‘a stupid jarhead who should leave the science to actual intelligent people.’ What was that about?”

Dr. Kavanagh said, “He tried to tell me that I should be following the orders of the team lead. That the discoveries were not that important compared to human lives. He’s wrong.”

Travis chuckled. “Peter, you still believe you’re the smartest person in the mountain.” He turned to Buck and said, “It may be common knowledge in the mountain, but Peter here seems to have missed the memos, so Buck, can you please list your qualifications?”

Buck nodded. “Sure. I have a Ph.D. in aeronautical engineering and a second in physics, both from MIT. I also have a math Master’s degree from Caltech and a B.Sc. in chemical engineering from Northwestern.”

Travis saw Peter pale, so he thought he would drive the nail in harder. He asked, “And is leading SG-21 your only role in the mountain?”

Buck shook his head. “Not even slightly. I also lead the F-303 design team, and on the rare occasion I have free time between gate missions, my engineering work, and my family, I help you out in the lab with your studies of the ancient hardware we get from Atlantis; something I’ve had less time for lately since the increase in rescue missions thanks to this muppet.”

With a hint of jealousy in his tone, Kavanagh asked, “Why do you get to play with the ancient experiments?”

Buck gave him a condescending look as he said, “Since I have just as strong an expression of the ancient gene as my dad.”

Dr. Kavanagh demanded, “Then why are you a Navy SEAL? You should be working in the science team full time.”

Buck shrugged. “Because it’s fun. I get bored when I’m in the lab or workshop all day.”

Sam said, “I’ve heard horror stories about your antics on campus at MIT due to boredom. You blew up a professor’s car after he tried to stiff you on your grade?”

Buck shook his head. “No. He refused to let me test out of the class, so Laura helped me test out C4 on his tires. It’s how I ended up doing stitches in my own thigh since I wouldn’t let Cadman take me to the ER.”

Dr. Kavanagh said, “You’re off your rocker.”

Buck nodded. “I am, but I’m still smarter than you. If I have to rescue your team again due to your stupidity, I’ll be camping outside O’Neill’s office so he can have you arrested and sealed away on a prison planet, completely unable to get someone killed for your selfish ambitions.” 

Sam said, “You won’t have to. He’s no longer on a gate team. He’ll be reassigned to Area 51 as of tomorrow. And I’ll be raising an investigation as to why he was not removed after his team lead requested it for six months straight. If it is bribery or a Trust issue, I think being transferred will be the least of his problems. As for SG-14, they will be getting a new scientist for exploration missions. One that actually has self-preservation and a working set of ears.” 

Buck nodded. “Thank you, General Carter.”

She turned to face Buck and asked, “What exactly was today’s mission caused by?”

Dr. Kavanagh opened his mouth to explain, but before he could get a word out, Buck had his hand up, and he said snidely, “She was asking the smart person in the room.” He turned back to Sam, and with a more respectful tone, he said, “Dr. Kavanagh had wanted to visit the planet as he had seen in a previous mission report a grove of trees that seemed to grow in a fractal pattern often seen in ancient designs. He dug holes in the base of the various trees and upset the local fauna.” 

He handed her the tablet he had in his vest that contained the video recording from his body cam. He said, “The local forest guardians appear to be Kodiak-sized bears with wings, and they refused to let SG-14 leave until they had undone the damage Dr. Kavanagh had done to the base of the trees. Major Grey ordered him to stop numerous times, but Dr. Kavanagh refused to listen. It wasn’t until we threatened to restrain him that he cooperated.”

Sam said, “It will be dealt with, Lieutenant Commander Sheppard. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.”

Travis said, “Buck, you need to head out; you’ve got that meeting with your engineering team in 10 minutes. I’ll join you in your lab once I’m done here.”

Buck looked at Sam, and as soon as he was dismissed, he sprinted through the mountain to his lab —it wouldn’t be the first time he attended a meeting in his full BDUs.

When he arrived, he found his gate team, Major Alex Grey, and the rest of SG-14 waiting for him on the sofas he had for relaxing in one corner. As he walked through the lab, he said, “Dr. Kavanagh has been reassigned to Area 51. He was educated in not assuming he’s the smartest man in the mountain.”

Eddie asked, “What do you mean?”

Buck took a seat on Eddie’s lap and said, “I went to talk to him about following orders; he called me a stupid jarhead and told me to leave the science to the experts. Rather than correcting him, I went to see Sam. I don’t want someone like that risking the lives of our gate teams.”

Grouch said, “Thank fuck for that. I was sure we were going to have to hogtie him this time, just to get him back to the gate. It was ridiculous.”

Alex asked, “What about the fact my requests were denied?”

Buck smirked, “General Carter is looking into it. She’s warned him that if bribery or a Trust issue are involved,  being transferred to Area-51 will be the least of his issues. She’s promised your next scientist will have a working set of ears and a decent sense of self-preservation.”

The major sagged back into the sofa. He said, “Thanks for going to bat for us, Buck. Hopefully, you’ll get more time in the lab now that you won’t have to drag our asses home every other mission.”

Chapter Text

Colorado Springs, CO - October 2014

Dr. Lam was proven correct when Vala absolutely fell in love with Christopher from the moment they met. He was a favorite around the base with a lot of the staff. She worked with Christopher and Dr. Lam and managed to keep his growing pains at bay while managing his muscle development and preventing atrophy. He still needed crutches to walk when he was in public, but he could manage through their home okay with the handholds Patrick had installed throughout the house just for his use. She was also able to prevent the degradation of his eyesight, so he could avoid wearing glasses in his early years.

In October 2014, Buck and Eddie were first in line to get a marriage certificate as soon as it was legal for them to get married in Colorado. Shannon had even gotten licensed so she could be their celebrant. They used the backyard of the Sheppard house in Colorado Springs for a brief ceremony with Christopher, Patrick, and Vala as witnesses to satisfy the legal requirements. Vala was there as Christopher was too young to sign the forms, and Ana, their old housekeeper, had retired rather than move to Colorado with the rest of the family. 

Once the legal formalities were done, they all headed into the SGC so that they could piggyback onto a supply run to Atlantis with the rest of their wedding party. Early in the planning, it had been decided that they would use the large atrium on Atlantis for the ceremony. That meant that those from Atlantis who wanted to attend could, without having to leave the city in the hands of junior officers and scientists for the duration. Thankfully with the rebuild of Midway Station, there were weekly dial-ins between Atlantis and the mountain, one each way for supplies and personnel changes.

It was attended by many of those at the SGC; several SG teams that they trained with even took time off to attend the wedding.

John was in their spare room, helping his son get changed into his dress uniform. He said, “I can’t believe I only found out about you a few years ago, and here you are getting married.”

Buck snickered. “I’m just glad I’ve had years to get used to the idea that I was created here, in a pod. I’m grateful that Morgan saved me, even if she did stick me with those wannabe parents. When she realized just how toxic they were, she got me out of there, and I got to spend time with Grandpa. How’s Pops taking it all?”

 John snorted. “He’s doing better than me, I think. It’s why I’m with you, and he’s with Eddie. Something about keeping our Sheppard emotionalism contained. It’s the time travel of it all, you know; it really is a bit of a mindfuck.”

The younger man nodded. “It really fucks with the tenses too. To make it worse, I couldn’t even explain half of what was going on to Grandpa and Uncle Dave, as I had orders from Morgan not to share the details with anyone but you, Pops, or General O’Neill. So when I got the hell out of Hershey, I had to talk fast so Grandpa wouldn’t send the police after the Buckleys for kidnapping, or worse. I’m just glad Buckley was a common name there, so he couldn’t figure out which Buckleys I was living with.”

John chuckled. “That would have taken some exceptionally fast-talking. Dad is like a dog with a bone when he’s pissed off. And what they did to you with your MIT scholarship, that would have got his back up.”

“Honestly,” Buck said with a shrug. “They weren’t worth worrying about. I think my real family has made up for the years of their bullshit. Well, that and the therapy we all went to.”

John tied his son’s tie and made sure all the ribbons and rank insignia were straight on his uniform before he said, “I think you’re ready. Let’s go down and find your husband-to-be.”

Buck grinned. “I like the sound of that.” 

As they left the room, John activated his radio. He said, “McKay, we’re on our way. Is Eddie done getting dressed?”

McKay replied, “He’s already waiting with the rest of SG-21 in the anteroom.

Buck followed his dad through the corridors of Atlantis, and they found the rest of SG-21 waiting with Rodney and Eddie, who was also in his dress uniform for the wedding.  

He gave his pops a quick hug before he sidled up beside his husband-to-be and whispered, “Damn, you look hot, Diaz.”

Eddie leaned back and looked him up and down before he whispered, “As do you almost-husband mine.” 

They could hear the rest of SG-21 gagging behind them, even though they were used to the couple and the PDA they shared when they weren’t around others in the SGC.

Selby said, “Come on you two, everyone’s waiting for you in the atrium.”

Everyone was full of heart eyes as a tiny Christopher, acting as their ring bearer, went first down the aisle, escorted by the other three members of SG-21. They’d decided not to have official attendants, but they’d wanted Christopher to be part of the ceremony, and SG-21 offered themselves up as escorts for the young boy.

Shannon had taken Christopher shopping, and when he got his suit, she had found him new crutches that matched his tiny tuxedo. She’d had his suit tailored, so a special pocket was added to hold the rings and keep them safe. The three-year-old was all smiles as he handed over the rings to his dads.

The rings used a rare metal that had been found off-world in the search for a new outer hull for the F303; it was a gorgeous metal, one that was non-conductive, the temperature never changed, and a chip could be inserted as a backup tracker, in case of emergency. The locals from P38-32N were happy to create the unique rings for the two men, and they even added a local mineral from the planet’s moon that looked similar to blue opal for Eddie’s ring, and a gold fire opal for Buck’s.

Shannon had been happy to stand up in front of everyone to officiate the wedding, and as she knew them so well, she’d made sure to keep the ceremony short and sweet. 
 
The whole ceremony was pretty informal, one of Rodney’s science geeks was a budding photographer, and she offered to take photos of the wedding. The mess had been given a couple of almost elk to use for the wedding dinner by Teyla and her people as her gift to the grooms.

 The party went on until late into the evening, and the Sheppard family had fun catching up on what had been happening in their lives since they all got together last.

Eventually, it was time for them all to return to earth, again piggybacking on the weekly gate dial-in to Colorado. The boys had a blast and knew the photos from the event would look awesome, given the setting. Buck was carrying Christopher, as the young boy had wanted to snuggle with his papa when he got tired, and Eddie had the boy’s backpack and crutches as they walked through the gate back to Cheyenne Mountain. 

-x-

A year after Dr. Kavanagh was reassigned to Area-51, Buck was back in Sam’s office. She’d called in him and Captain Sorenson of SG-18, the Army Ranger search and rescue team. 

She said, “SG-1 has been captured. We sent in SG-3 to retrieve them, and they’ve now missed two check-ins. I want both of your teams to go in with SG-25 as a backup. Commander Sheppard, will Sergeant Diaz be able to deal with any medical issues, or would you like SG-12 to go in to assist him?”

Buck asked, “What do you know about their capture?”

Sam said, “I don’t know a lot. But you should know, Daniel was with them. They were exploring some ruins that had ancient origins. Jack’s on his way to the mountain.”

“Fuck,” Buck swore. “Did Dr. Jackson at least tell General O’Neill he was going on a gate mission?”

Sam snorted. “No.”

Captain Sorenson put his head in his hands. “This is going to be a disaster.”

Buck blew out a breath, and he asked, “SG-12 is all military paramedics, right? Like Eds?”

Captain Sorenson said, “Most of them are, yes. There are a few still in training, but they’ll do ok.”

Buck said, “Right, I’ll take SG-12 just in case Eddie needs assistance. I take it I’m the senior officer on this one?”

Sorenson nodded. “You have seniority over all three teams, so it’s your mission, Commander Sheppard. I’ll go alert the teams while you get the mission briefing from the original mission from General Carter, sir.”

As the captain jogged out of the room to warn the teams and get suited up, Buck called, “Sorenson, can you ask Sergeant Diaz to get my gear ready. Let him know gamma config; he’ll know what that means.”

Captain Sorenson saluted and left the office.

Sam said, “The mission should have been fairly simple. The early reports from SG-3 showed that there were injuries; they reported finding blood at the ruins. We had them on a strict hourly check-in schedule. We’ll do the same for you and your teams. I suspect it’s the Lucian Alliance; they’ve been trying to get their hands on Daniel and Vala for years. They must have found out they’d be on P30-255 somehow. ”

Buck said, “I’ll leave SG-25 at the gate to guard it. Do you know how far they were from the gate?”

Sam looked up the last report from SG-3 before she confirmed, “The ruins were three klicks North West from the gate. Do your best to bring them home.”

Buck nodded solemnly. “Will do, ma’am. Try and keep O’Neill distracted, please. Feel free to contact my grandpa if you need help; he’s babysitting Christopher today.”

Sam said, “That’s actually a good idea. Your kiddo is a literal ball of sunshine, and he loves his Grandpa Jack. I’ll call Patrick now. Dismissed.”

Before he left the room, he muttered, “Dr. Jackson better not ascend. I have December in the pool.”

He left the room to Sam’s loud laughter. The SEAL sprinted through to the locker room where Eddie was waiting with his equipment and the backpack he used for what he called the ‘oh fuck’ missions.

Eddie asked, “It’s that bad?”

“Worse,” Buck confirmed. He noticed the other teams waiting around for orders, so as he got his vest sorted, he said, “We’re on a rescue mission to find and recover SG-1 and SG-3. SG-25, I want you all guarding the gate; keep the gate dialed and redial as necessary. They’ll keep the iris closed until they receive our IDC. They suspect the Lucian Alliance, and we know they have death gliders.”

Selby gestured at the backpack and asked, “So you’re armed for bear?”

Buck nodded. “Yep. We may need to blow our way in or out or both.”

Sorenson commented, “I’d heard you were crazy; I didn’t think you were that crazy.”

Buck said, “The time to negotiate has passed. They’ve taken Dr. Jackson and Vala. Lethal force is approved for their return.” He looked around at the four gate teams in the room. He saw the leader of SG-12, the medical team. He asked, “Captain Halliman, are you ok with following Sergeant Diaz’s orders in the field?”

Halliman nodded. “He has more rescue experience than any of us. So definitely. If anyone on my team has an issue with it, let me know now so you can stay behind.”

Buck led them through to the gate room once he confirmed they were all armed and ready. As they waited while Walter dialed the gate, he ordered, “SG-21 will lead, then SG-12 and SG-18 bringing up the rear. The ruins are three clicks northwest of the gate. Keep your eyes and ears open.” 

Buck and Eddie had been working on a specialized search and rescue drone while they were between projects. They’d wanted something that could do reconnaissance flights without being spotted, with decent cameras that could record and give a live view to the operator. Something that was higher quality and more stealthy than what was commercially available. Because, as a sniper, he was used to working from a distance, Selby made the perfect drone pilot for their team, so Buck asked, “Selby, are you good to put the drone into practice?”

Selby nodded and held up his hand with the controller. “It’s already loaded on the MALP and ready to fly as soon as it’s through the gate.”

Buck said, “Thanks. We’ll wait for the aerial footage to come through before we walk through the gate.”

Walter said, “Deploying the MALP.” After a few seconds, he confirmed, “Master Chief Selby, the drone is ready to deploy.”

Lewis activated the drone and sent it straight up to get an aerial view of the gate site. Buck was standing behind him, watching the camera footage.

Buck asked, “Is that Armstrong on the edge of the clearing?”

Lewis nodded. “Looks like it. He’s unconscious but look; he’s still breathing.” He flew the drone around in a search pattern before he said, “I can’t see anyone around the gate, and the thermal camera isn’t picking anything up but Armstrong. So, I recommend we go through on full alert.”

Buck checked his P-90 before he said, “Let’s roll out.”

They walked up the ramp after getting a nod from Walter, and they walked into the gate.

As soon as they exited on the other side, Buck snapped out orders for Eddie and the medics to check on Armstrong. He assigned SG-18 to guard them all, and ordered Selby to use the drone to see what he could find from the air while they waited for the medics. The team lead for SG-25 let Walter know as soon as they were all through, and he dialed Earth once the SGC disengaged the gate.

Buck was hovering behind the medics as he watched his boyfriend work. 

Eddie finished his assessment before he said, “He’s got several broken bones, and his left leg is shattered as far as I can tell; I can wake him up before I load him up with pain killers if you need to question him.”

Buck said, “Do it. He will hopefully know what happened to SG-3.”

Eddie used smelling salts to wake the Sergeant and held him down as he came to, before the man could sit up in a panic. He said, “Sergeant Armstrong, you’re safe. Can you tell us what happened with your team?”

The sergeant frowned in thought before he said, “I was coming back to the gate with Percat, and the Lucian Alliance ambushed us. They started shooting at us, and we tried to sprint for the gate as there wasn’t much cover. I tried to warn Davison, but they were ambushed at the same time. Near as I could tell, it was a small group from the Lucian Alliance. The group that ambushed us only had three people, but they had Goa’uld staff weapons. I couldn’t get out of the way of the shot, and while it didn’t kill me, it threw me into a tree.”

Eddie nodded. “That would explain his leg.” He stood and ordered, “Right, someone needs to put a brace on his leg to immobilize it. I want someone to stay back with him and keep him under observation. If he goes downhill, use the IDC to send him through to the mountain.”

Corporal Waters said, “I’ll stay back and manage his pain. If his situation changes, I’ll let you know first.”

Buck turned to Selby and asked, “Anything?”

Selby said, “I can’t see anything at the ruins, but there is a building past the ruins worth checking out. I only got a glimpse of it, as it’s just outside the drone’s range.”

Buck said, “Form up. Let’s go.”

SG-25 got to work getting Armstrong loaded onto the stretcher as the rest of the teams started to jog through the trees to the ruins, hoping to find a clue to the location of the missing teams.

As they were about to exit the tree line towards the ruins that were in a large clearing, Selby urgently signed. ‘Stop!’

Buck jogged over, and Selby pointed at the screen that showed approaching heat signatures from the other side of the clearing. There were five figures, and the glimpses they were getting through the trees showed that three of them were armed with staff weapons. The team lead whispered, “Lewis, can you use the drone footage to get a clear shot?”

Selby nodded. “Both myself and Hazelwood should be able to manage the shots. They are approaching from due east.”

Buck said, “Do it. I would say try to keep one alive so we can question them, but our guys can probably answer any questions we have, so go for the kill, make sure they can’t attack our men before they’re all down.”

His second in command nodded, and he found a tree with a branch at the right height so he could brace himself for the shots. Eddie leaned against the tree next to his, and he looked through his scope as he waited for the men to exit into the clearing. He whispered, “Three hostiles, two captives. It looks like Brown and Slade from SG-3.”

Hazelwood said, “I’ve got a clear shot on the guy holding Brown.”

Selby said, “I’ll have a shot on the guy holding Slade, and I should be able to get the other guy in the same shot if he doesn’t move.”

Buck said, “Hazelwood, as soon as Selby makes his shot, take yours.”

Lewis dropped his respirations as he aimed. He exhaled once he was ready and pulled the trigger. Hazelwood took his shot a split second later, and the three men dropped.

Buck said, “As soon as Selby and Hazelwood are ready, we’ll go through the trees to Brown and Slade.”

Selby said, “Go, we’ll catch up.”

Buck shook his head. “We stick together, safety in numbers. If I ever have to rescue your ass, your callsign will be changed to Cinderella.”

Selby snorted as he broke down his rifle and packed it away. He was 90% sure it was an empty threat. Buck called through to the SGC to complete their mandatory check-in as they packed up. 

As soon as they were packed up, the group moved fast through the trees, moving in the agreed formation to the other side of the clearing to where the heat signatures were coming from.

SG-21 moved past the men to let Eddie and SG-12 assess them. They were sitting up and talking, so it was a good sign.

Brown said, “SG-1 and the rest of SG-3 are in an abandoned prison-type building about four klicks to the west. They are ok, just a few injuries from the ambushes. Our captors seemed to be waiting for a leader to return to the planet.”

As Selby sent the drone off to the west to find the building and Eddie patched up their minimal wounds from their capture, Buck asked, “How many hostiles?”

Slade reported, “Five more, sir. Two are stationed outside guarding the building, and the other three are inside, guarding the prisoners. Only the outside guards have the staff weapons. The three inside just have Glock pistols.”

Buck nodded. He looked at Eddie and asked, “Are they good to continue, or do we need to leave someone here to guard them?”

Eddie said, “They’ll be fine; they just have minor bruising from the restraints.”

Slade had picked up one of the two staff weapons that were on the ground. He said, “I’m good to go, sir. I’m trained in the staff weapon.”

Buck asked, “Brown?”

Brown looked apologetic as he said, “I haven’t yet been trained in the staff, sir. But I’ll still follow you, so we don’t have to split up.”

Buck unclipped his P90 and handed it to the young marine. “Take my P90; I’m good with the staff.”

Selby muttered, “Too good.” He looked down at the screen and said, “I’ve found the building. The two guards outside are sitting by the door; they aren’t even paying attention. I’m reading ten life signs inside the building. There are five on one side, a group of two on the other, and three in between them pacing.”

Buck looked around to make sure everyone was ready before he called, “Roll out.”

They moved fast to the building, and before the two guards could react, they were shot from the tree line. Buck got them to hold as they waited to see if any of the guards inside would come out. As they waited, he asked, “Who here is good at shots in close quarters without collateral damage?”

Connors snorted. He said, “In this group, I would suggest you, me, Diaz, and Wilson. With Grouch and DePasquale for backup.”

Buck grinned. “You heard the man. Let’s go. We take them out hard and fast. Sorenson, can you contact SG-25 and check on how things are going at the gate?”

Sorenson nodded his agreement as he moved away slightly to get on the radio.

The six in the advance team ran forward to reclaim their men and women. Based on Selby’s last thermal image, they knew the three that were pacing were in the middle of the two groups, and Slade had confirmed that the two teams were being held in separate cells on either side of the building.

Buck and Eddie leaned in from either side of the main door and shot straight down the corridor to take out two of the three guards. As soon as Buck dropped down, Josh stepped over him to take the final shot.

They heard the leader of SG-3, Major Will Nicklaus yell, “Clear!”

Buck stood and stepped into the corridor, and he was happy to see that the members of both teams were relatively unharmed. He looked at Dr. Jackson and said, “Thank you for not ascending. That’s one less headache for today.”

Eddie grinned from beside him. “You’ll be happy to know, Buck and General Carter deployed Patrick and Christopher to distract General O’Neill.”

Daniel sighed. “I’m never going to live this down.”

Will said, “None of us are. They aren’t even high up in the Lucian Alliance. From what we overheard, they were foot soldiers assigned to patrol this planet to get them away from the main action. They spent most of the time arguing about who to ransom us to; the SGC or one of the warlords.”

As he worked on getting the teams out of the cells with Connors, Buck asked, “We took out three on the way here. Are there any other members on the planet, or even a ship in orbit?”

Will shook his head. “Nope, it was just the six of them. The three you met were taking Slade and Brown to the gate to dial the SGC. It turns out they don’t know any gate addresses.”

Eddie snorted in amusement. He asked, “Does anyone need medical attention?”

Vala yelled, “Eddie, darling! We’re all mostly ok. Nothing a few days rest and a cuddle with your little man won’t fix.”

Eddie grinned. “Hopefully, he and Patrick are still at the mountain when we get back.”

Buck clicked open the lock to release SG-1. He turned and asked, “Connors?”

Connors said, “Nearly got….” Click. “It. There you go. Does this mean we get to call SG-3 the princess team? Since they all needed to be rescued.”

Buck smirked at Will. “That’s the mountain rule. They all get Disney prince call signs for the next month.”

They made their way back to the gate to be met by a very relieved General O’Neill and General Carter. Jack said, “Infirmary awaits all of you. Eddie and Buck, Christopher is waiting there with Patrick.”

Chapter Text

Colorado Springs, CO - October 2016

Eventually, in 2016, Buck’s project with the F-303 was complete, and the plane was being put into production; his contract with the navy was up for negotiation, and he was trying to decide between resigning his commission and moving to a civilian position with the SGC, or finding something new when he had another visit from Morgan.

She took a seat in his desk chair as Buck and Eddie struggled to wake up. It seemed like she had a habit of making her surprise visits at some ungodly hour of the day.

Buck asked, “Morgan?”

She nodded. “’Tis me. Again…”

Buck asked, “What life-altering situation are you landing us in now?”

She hedged, “By removing you from the Buckleys, I may have created a paradox where your sister, Maddie, dies. Because your current address is classified, she will have nowhere to go if she needs an escape, as she refuses to return to her parents. Her pride will be her biggest downfall no matter what timeline you’re in.”

Buck whispered, “They aren’t good people. I can understand her not wanting to return to them. What happened in that other timeline, the one you pulled me from?”

Morgan said, “She ran to you, and she crashed into your life the day you met Eddie; it was a big day for you. When he realized she was missing, Doug attacked her old boss, Laurie, to find out where she’d gone. He then spent six months in LA stalking Maddie and the man she was getting close to. On the night of their first date, her ex-husband attacked and almost killed her and her boyfriend. You chased after your sister, and you were there to pick up the pieces.” 

Buck sighed, “Well, that sounds like a clusterfuck. I wonder if I can get her away from him sooner?”

Morgan shook her head. “You need to be careful how you handle it. The Stargate program and Colorado Springs have mental health professionals; talk to one of them about her situation and how you can help her. It may backfire on you if you don’t do it right.”

“Okay,” Buck agreed. 

Eddie was curious, so he asked, “If you hadn’t meddled when you first visited Buck, what would have happened to us, to me and Buck?”

“You mean would you still be together?” Morgan asked. “Yes, but not yet. In the other timeline, you met in LA working for the same firehouse, the 118.” She looked sadly at Eddie before she said, “Eddie and Shannon were browbeaten into marriage before Christopher was a year old. Eventually, you both grew to hate each other, and it all became one giant mess. Shannon left you both just before Christopher turned five after being made to feel inadequate for years by your parents. A few years later, you moved to LA, and you met Buck when you joined the 118 firehouse a year after him. Eventually, after pining for several years, you ended up together when Christopher forced the issue at age 13. Shannon, however, did not survive LA, and she was killed in a car accident not long after you moved there with Christopher.”

Buck looked at her, horrified. “That sounds awful. What about me?”

Morgan looked at him sadly. “You basically had your love of school, not beaten out of you, but the Buckleys went out of their way to make you feel inferior for it. You drifted around trying various jobs, ranch hand, bartender, handyman. You learned to hide your intelligence from the world, which is the biggest shame of all. You both ended up at the 118, and Buck, you and Eddie earned a reputation for being the best rescue specialist team in LA.”

Eddie said, “Damn. So we really dodged a bullet. So we need to resign and move to LA?”

Morgan nodded. “Yes. But not yet. You will be happy there, and Christopher can be beamed to the mountain for his doctor’s appointments. Eddie, you will be closer to your Abuela and Tia Pepa; they miss you dearly and will love the hell out of your husband, once they know of his existence. But it would be better if you spent time here training for your new jobs. You will be much better off joining the firehouse in Los Angeles as full members rather than probationary.”

Buck sighed, “Well, that makes the decision I have to make easier. I’ll sign up for another engineering contract; we’ll find a house with space for a large workshop so I can work on my design projects around my shifts. I wonder if I have time to get the remaining credits I’ll need for a fire science degree.”

Eddie nodded. “You should have the time for school if we swap the order around a bit. Rather than you joining first like in that other timeline, I’ll transfer first while you do your fire science degree in LA. As Morgan said, we just need to attend the academy to do our firefighter training and get the probationary period out of the way. Something I’m sure General O’Neill or General Carter can arrange for us locally.”

Buck had grabbed his phone and started looking up the fire science degrees. He said, “It looks like I just need a semester of classwork to complete my Master’s degree in fire science, thanks to the math and science degrees I already have. So if you transfer to the 118 first, I’ll take some time off to get the fire science degree, and I do some other upskill courses with the LAFD before I request a transfer.”

Morgan smirked. “There will be no try; it will happen. The SGC needs you in Los Angeles as much as Maddie does. Declassification will occur while you’re there. And for that, Shannon will be required by the SGC to manage the public relations side of it, as it’s what she’s trained for. Patrick will stay in Colorado to help with the strategic plan and the politics of it all.

She looked at Eddie. “Once you’ve actually moved to the city, talk to your Tia Pepa about needing a nurse or home health aide, Eddie; she knows a wonderful home health aide who will be a godsend for young Christopher. In that other timeline I mentioned, she was someone you both knew well, and she loved Christopher with her whole heart. She will pass the SGC background check so she can attend any doctor’s appointments while you’re both on shift.”

She gave them a serious look. “Things will be difficult as you navigate civilian life, and it will be a big adjustment for you both, but I think you’ll both enjoy it. Give ‘em hell, boys.”

She faded out of the room, and Buck shrugged. “More sleep?”

Eddie snuggled into his side and said, “Definitely. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.”

He wasn’t wrong. It was safe to say the shit had hit the fan with the announcement that they were leaving the program. O’Neill had returned to the mountain from his office at Homeworld Command to find out what was going on.

They took him into a room Buck had already cleared of any bugs. He handed over a cup of his favorite coffee to Daniel, who was Jack’s ever-present shadow. He took a seat beside Eddie and said, “We had a visit last night. It turns out Morgan’s meddling changed more than just my life, and my sister Maddie is at risk.”

Eddie said, “I have to admit, it was nice to know we would get together eventually even if she hadn’t interfered.”

Buck grinned. “Yeah, that part was cool, except for the pining, your parents being epic dicks, and Shannon dying. Those I can live without.”

O’Neill asked, “So she was chatty?”

Buck and Eddie both shook their heads in denial. Buck explained, “No, just regretful, I think. If we aren’t there to be a safe harbor for Maddie, her husband will kill her.”

Daniel muttered, “Bags not telling Rodney.”

Buck shrugged. “Neither of my dads is going to be happy. But I’ll tell them, especially if it means a visit to Atlantis to do it,” He said with a huge grin.

Eddie said, “She also said declassification would happen after we leave. She couched it in a way to explain why Patrick and Shannon wouldn’t be joining us in LA. Although I think with Shannon, she would be staying anyway; she’s got a girlfriend that she hasn’t told us about yet. Morgan said that Patrick would be staying behind to help with the planning and politics of the declassification, and Shannon to plan the public relations campaign.”

Daniel nodded. “That’s smart. Did she say when?”

Buck shook his head. “Nope. Just that we would be in LA when it happens, and you would need us to be there when it happened.” He contemplated how to word his next request before he eventually asked, “I would like to negotiate a new contract, one that enables me to do my engineering work offsite. I’ll be using the same lawyer as last time. I’ll also need help setting up a fake identity for Evan Buckley, so my sister will be able to find me.”

Daniel asked, “I thought her memories were removed?”

“No,” Buck admitted. “Morgan removed her parent’s memories, but not Maddie’s. I’ve been sending her postcards from my various vacations with cover stories and fake jobs, so she probably thinks I’ve been wandering the states since I finished high school. She doesn’t know about MIT or my doctorates.”

Jack said, “I think that sounds like a good idea. Are you going to tell people you’re married?”

Eddie and Buck both shrugged as Eddie answered, “Not until we get the lay of the land. Just because the SGC is enlightened, it doesn’t mean other places are.”

Buck said, “We’ll tell a few people, like Eddie’s family in LA and probably Maddie when she arrives. I think she’ll end up staying with us, so she’ll need to be read in so she can stay at the house. Then we won’t have to hide Christopher’s visits to the mountain for his healing sessions. But as for the firehouse, not at first. We’re both hesitant after the issues we had back in Afghanistan when we first got together. There was low-key hazing and straight-up abuse; just because we were friends, we actually kept our relationship a secret. We don’t know how they will feel about working with gay firefighters, let alone two married to each other, so we’ll assess it when we get there. If they aren’t the type to take it well, then we’ll keep it to ourselves and prank the hell out of them.”

Daniel rolled his eyes. “Trolls, the pair of you are just trolls.”

Eddie said, “We’ll be joining the firehouse in LA a year apart. Depending on what Eddie thinks after working there, we may tell the captain, but we’ll see what happens at the time. The last thing we need is to have a team we don’t trust because they don’t like that we are super gay for each other. As a firefighter, that would be dangerous.”

Jack sighed. He then looked at Buck and asked, “Why the delay?”

“I want my fire science degree first,” Buck explained. “It’ll help me explain some of my scientific knowledge, especially if I choose not to disclose my doctorates. I haven’t decided yet how to play it. I’ll also need the time to adjust to civilian life and not being in charge of the team. I plan to upskill more than the basic firefighter training; the LAFD offers courses for firefighters who want to do more than just basic firefighting, and I want to do them all: officer, driving, and the national incident management courses. Get me up to speed with where I am with my SEAL training, without having to out my military history.”

Eddie said, “You’re also thinking of doing one or two medical courses to get more than the basic EMT license.”

 Buck said, “That’s right. I’m happy to just be an advanced EMT for now. So anyway, once we are nearly done with our probationary period here in Colorado Springs, I’ll be putting in an application to a few colleges in LA that offer fire science degrees, none of them are top tier, but the coursework should keep me entertained for the semester.”

Daniel asked, “Do you sleep? I mean, the last time I talked to Sam, she said you were working on the latest upgrades to the attack fighters already.”

Eddie nodded. “He sleeps; he even spends time with the family; he’s just good at multitasking.”

Jack said, “I’ll get your resignations processed, and I’ll talk to the local fire chief about getting you both assigned to the same station as probies after your training. He’ll understand that you’ve got the training mostly, that you just need time on the ground before transferring to LA. Tell Patrick to call me about declassification. I have a feeling we’re going to need all the time we can get to plan for whatever is coming. Especially since the typical ancient level of trolling means we don’t know how the information about the SGC will get out, so we need to plan for everything. Buck, I’ll get the lawyers onto your new contract. I’ll make sure we are clear that you’ll be working remotely in a secure environment. The contract will likely state the security requirements for any workshop and the computers you’ll work on.”

Buck nodded. “I’d expect nothing less. I’m just glad Christopher will soon be old enough to keep secrets. We’ll need to be very clear on what he has to keep to himself.”

With a grin, Eddie said, “We can tell him it’s a spy game. He’ll love it, and when he’s older, he’ll understand it’s a serious game. He’s not the first kid in the SGC who knows the secret.”

-x-

When Jack arrived at the SGC, he’d asked Walter to hold off on the scheduled dial-out so he could talk to Buck. So once they were done talking and arrived back at the control room of the SGC, Jack ordered the dial-out to Midway Station. 

Eddie asked, “Do you want me to come with you?”

Buck shook his head. “Nah, I’ll be fine. I just need to let them know we’re moving; then, I can do the firmware upgrade. You get the fun job of telling Christopher.”

Eddie looked hesitant as he offered, “Swap? I think a grumpy pops-in-law will be easier to deal with than an angry five-year-old.”

With a snort, Buck said, “Not on your life, Eds.”

When Buck walked out of the wormhole onto Atlantis, he turned to Chuck and asked, “Is Dr. McKay in his lab, Staff Sergeant?”

Chuck shook his head. “He’s actually in the gym with General Sheppard. I believe they are sparring, sir.”

Buck snarked, “Is that what they’re calling it?” He grinned when he saw the grimace on the Staff Sergeant’s face. “I’ll head down there now. I actually need to speak to both of them, so it works well.”

He jogged through the city, getting nudges from the city herself with where to turn to make the trip a bit faster. He ran his hand down the wall in thanks and approached the gym doors.

The doors were open, so he was confident they were really sparring and not doing things he never wanted to see his parents doing, so he walked in and yelled, “I have news!”

John looked up when he heard his son’s voice, leaving himself open for Rodney to sweep his foot, knocking John flat on his back.

“Nice one, Pops,” Buck called as he approached the training mat. “Nice use of the distraction.”

John craned his neck to see his son from his position on the ground. He said dryly, “You said you have news?”

Buck nodded. He took off his weapons and tac vest, putting them to the side of the training mat before he walked on and sat down beside his dad. “I do. I had another visit from Morgan a few days ago.”

Rodney joined them and demanded, “What did the crazy ancient lady want?”

“A lot,” Buck said bluntly. He explained, “She told us what our lives would have been like if she hadn’t gotten involved and told me about my true parentage. Me and Eds were happy to find out we would have met even if she hadn’t meddled. It just would have been much later in our lives. I wouldn’t have lasted with the SEALs, and Eddie and Shannon would have eventually given in to his parent’s demands and got married. Eddie ended up a widow not long after he moved to LA. It sounds like it was a shit timeline, let me tell you.”

Rodney asked, “So why are you leaving?”

The younger man said, “My sister Maddie, well, she’s not my biological sister obviously, but she was the one who protected me from the worst of the Buckley’s behavior until I was eight. That’s when she left home to go to college. Anyway, in that other timeline, she ran away from her abusive husband and came to live with me. Without that safe haven, Morgan said she won’t leave him, and he will go too far and kill her.”

“Shit,” John said with a sigh. “So you’re resigning so you can eventually be there to catch her.”

Buck agreed. “I am. At Morgan’s suggestion, I talked to one of the therapists in Colorado Springs this morning. She deals mostly with domestic abuse survivors, and she said the decision to leave has to be Maddie’s. I could go in guns blazing and rescue her, but she will resent me for it and probably deny all the accusations of abuse. I have to wait until she chooses to leave.”

Rodney nodded. “That makes sense. So you’re going to move to LA and do what?”

The younger man said, “We’re both going to join the LAFD. Eddie first, then I’ll join a year later. It’s what we ended up doing in the other timeline, and I think it’s part of whatever plan Morgan has in mind. I want to get my fire science degree and some extra training first. Jack is arranging it so we can do our initial training and probation period in Colorado Springs, then we’ll move to LA. I’m not leaving the SGC, though. I’ve already talked to General O’Neill about doing my engineering work when I move.”

Rodney said, “That won’t be too hard. You’ll just need a workshop where you can add biometric locks and a retinal scanner. The SGC will let you work remotely as long as it’s secure. Talk to Ralph; he’ll negotiate on your behalf.”

“Thanks, Pops,” Buck said gratefully.

John asked, “How does Christopher feel about the move?”

Buck blushed. “He doesn’t know yet. Eddie is telling him while I’m here telling you. It will be worse in that Shannon and Patrick are staying in Colorado. Morgan dropped a hint that declassification is coming, and they’ll both be needed to prepare for it.”

John nodded. “They will. We have a lot of strategic thinkers in the SGC, but no one with Dad’s political acumen or Shannon’s knowledge of how to target the news for the best impact.”

Rodney had been thinking about what they would need to prepare for declassification; he wanted to make sure the news about Atlantis was kept classified due to the wraith threat. So he asked, “Did she say when?”

Buck shook his head. “No. Just that it would happen after we are in LA. So that gives us at least 18 months to prepare. I got the feeling it would be after we’d both joined the 118, the firehouse she said we’re destined to join, so that’s over two years away.”

John said, “The further away, the better. Did she say how declassification would happen?”

Buck laughed. “You forget, she dropped this as a hint, not a map. I doubt she would have mentioned it if it wasn’t for the fact that Grandpa and Shannon wouldn’t be joining us full time in LA, and she wanted us to be prepared for that.” He glanced at the door when he heard a noise. “I’m surprised Dave isn’t here.”

John explained, “He’s out on a trade mission with AR-1; his team are acting as guards, as the Genii have been popping up here and there.”

 Rodney snarked, “They want our weapons, the new staff weapons.”

Buck laughed. “You should let them take a few. They are coded to the members of the SGC. They have the prints of all the members of the SGC saved. So if anyone tries to use it and their fingerprints don’t match, the staff will first give a warning zap, not hard enough to hurt, but hard enough to let them know they should drop the weapon; if they keep trying, the staff is rigged to explode.”

John snarked, “Sounds like a great idea to me. The less Genii in Pegasus, the better.”

Buck said, “Eddie had the idea after one of our rescues when we found the Lucian Alliance were using our own damn guns against us. So he worked with one of the other engineers to develop the new staff. It’s a work in progress; he and I are working on something that will be close to the Goa’uld staff weapon with the same locking technology.”

Rodney asked, “Is he still reluctant to do any college classes?”

“Yeah,” Buck admitted. “And that’s fine. He works with me and the other engineers on my team pretty well; most realize that he’s smart enough to have the degrees; he just has a block when it comes to school. I suspect his parents have something to do with it, and if that’s the case, there will be no budging him.”

John said, “I talked to Shannon about it, and she said that his parents are crackers. That was about the only way to describe them. Traditional to the point of ridiculousness.”

The younger man agreed, “That’s one way of putting it. Shannon left El Paso because they wouldn’t stop harping on about how she should marry Eddie. That it’s the only way for them to be real parents to Christopher, they believe that college is for other people and not something she should have bothered with, and she was just trying to act above her station. Oh, and that as a mother, she belonged at home looking after her children.”

Rodney frowned, “There are still people that deluded out there?”

“Yep,” Buck agreed. “I mean, the last call I heard, they were trying to justify their attempt to take Christopher from the nanny. As soon as I heard them threaten to sue for custody, I called Grandpa, and he arranged for the SI plane to go pick up her and Christopher with a small security team to ensure their safe passage to Virginia Beach. I overheard quite a few calls between Eddie and his parents, and damn, they make the Buckleys look sane and normal in comparison.”

John asked, “Do they even know where you guys are? Does Eddie still speak to them?”

Buck shook his head. “Eddie hasn’t spoken to them since they threatened to sue for custody. As far as they’re concerned, they probably think he’s still in Afghanistan. They were told if they wanted to reach out and apologize, they had to do it via email, and in the last four years since we started at the SGC, they haven’t sent a single email, not even a demand to contact them.”

Rodney said, “They sound charming; they could out-asshole me by the sounds of it.”

Buck snorted. “No, they aren’t assholes; they are just bigoted and stupid and too stubborn to realize what they’ve lost. Eddie is happy to adopt you two as his parents. The rest of his family is apparently lovely, although I probably won’t get the chance to meet his Abuela or Tia until we move to LA. Eddie wants to talk to them first, ask them to keep our presence in the city a secret from the rest of the family.”

It means, though, that we can arrange for Christmas and other holidays away from the SGC, actually relaxing breaks from work. I think the last three times, maybe four, we’ve tried for a long weekend at home or a week off, we’ve been called in due to emergencies.”

John grinned. “The curse of being good at your jobs. Come on, let’s go to the hanger; I want to go check out what this upgrade of yours will do.” 

Chapter Text

Colorado Springs, CO - October 2016

Jack was right; the negotiations involved very strict rules about his workshop. He had a temporary contract to cover him while he was still in Colorado Springs with access to the mountain. But a new contract would be needed when they moved to LA, and the new house would have to be vetted by the SGC before they would sign off on the move.

Buck and Eddie were processed out of the gate teams reasonably quickly, now that Jack knew why they were leaving. Lieutenant Josh Connors got a promotion to Lieutenant Commander, and he was given command of SG-21. Connors was working with Selby, and they were going through personnel records to find suitable replacements for the two men. 

General Carter had arranged for them to spend their probation period at a station run by Captain Maynard, a former member of the SGC. The captain made sure they learned a lot about handling different types of emergencies, especially since he knew he would be going to Los Angeles after their probation year. He was instrumental in getting Eddie certified to teach rope skills when he realized the medic had been teaching rope work to others in the SGC.

This was vital for all Colorado Springs firefighters to learn since many of their call-outs were for rescues in the mountains beside the small city. 

They were near their probation graduation, and the Captain had pulled the two men into his office. He said, “I am arranging your graduation, and I wanted to ask if there were any guests you wanted to attend? Buck, I assume your family will be there?”

Buck nodded. “Yeah, Grandpa for sure, and Uncle Dave, Dad, Rodney, and Laura are coming home for it.”

Captain Maynard regarded the other man, “What about you, Eddie? I’m guessing Shannon and Christopher will be there, but what about the rest of your family?”

With a deep sigh, Eddie asked, “Can I get back to you, cap? I need to think about it. I don’t have the best relationship with my family.”

The older man nodded. “I don’t need an answer from you for a few days. So just let me know.”

Later that night, after they’d put Chris to bed with a bedtime story, Buck asked, “Do you know what you want to do?”

Shannon looked between the two men and asked, “What’s going on?”

Eddie said, “Our probation graduation is coming up, and we need to give the cap a list of guests we’ve invited. He asked about inviting my family, and as much as I would love to say no, part of me wants to give them a chance to show they’ve changed since we last spoke.”

Patrick asked, “An olive branch of sorts?”

“Yeah,” Eddie agreed. “Maybe they have changed, and Christopher can get to know my side of the family, rather than just the pictures we have on the walls.” Because as much as he hated his family for the hell they put Shannon through, he didn’t want his son to take on the feelings he had for his family. So he had photos of them all on their living room walls, and he would tell them about his parents and stories about his sisters and the fun they had growing up in El Paso. He told them about his sister’s husbands, James and Quinn, and his cousins, Stacy, Becky, and Astra. He admitted, “Christopher has been asking about them; he wants to meet his abuelo and grandma.”

Shannon whispered, “We’re gonna need popcorn for this conversation.”

Buck nodded. “All the popcorn.”

Patrick said, “While Eddie gets his laptop ready to call them, I’ll make the popcorn.”

Eddie laughed. “I’m sure it won’t be that bad. Surely they would have calmed down by now?”

Shannon muttered, “Nice of you to think so, but I’m not holding my breath.”

Eddie laughed as he left to find his laptop. He didn’t use it often as Buck’s was often easier to find. When he got back to the living room, Buck, Shannon, and Patrick were waiting with a large bowl of popcorn each.

He laughed at the three of them as he was setting up his laptop. He said, “I’m sure it won’t be that bad.”

Eddie loaded up Skype and started the call to his parents. He hoped his sisters would be visiting since it was their usual family dinner night.

Helena answered the Skype call, “Eddie?”

Eddie smiled slightly as he answered, “Yeah, it’s me, Mom. How are you?”

Helena called out, “Ramon, it’s Eddie.” She looked back at the camera and asked, “So why are you calling? You haven’t spoken to us in years.”

Ramon added, “We gave up hope that you would ever come to your senses and contact us.”

With a scowl at the three on the sofa who were trying hard to stifle their giggles, Eddie asked, “What do you mean, ‘come to my senses,’ Papa?”

Sounding like she was talking to a toddler, Helena said, “Well, clearly, you’re calling to invite us all to your wedding to Shannon.”

Shannon muttered too low for Helena to hear, “Bigamy is illegal in Colorado.”

Eddie shot her a quelling look as he said, “I’m not calling to invite you to my non-existent wedding. I said back then that Shannon and I are just good friends that are co-parenting Christopher, and I meant it. I was calling to invite you to my graduation. I’ve been working as a probationary firefighter in Colorado for the last year, and my graduation ceremony is next week.”

His father demanded, “You’ve been in Colorado for the last year?”

“The last five, actually,” Eddie admitted. “However, the project I was working for was classified above top secret, so I couldn’t have told you, even if we were on speaking terms.”

Helena spat,  “Do you even know where your son is since your so-called girlfriend stole him away in the night?”

Eddie laughed. “Wow. You seriously hate her, don’t you? And yet you still push me to marry her. I don’t understand you at all. And for the record, Christopher is up in his room, asleep.” He realized he couldn’t hear any other voices, even though he had called on their usual family dinner night, so he asked, “Where are Adriana and Sophia? Shouldn’t they be there tonight?”

Helena looked shifty as she said, “The girls were… um… invited to a sleepover, so Adriana and Sophia are taking advantage, and they are having a date night.” She looked at Ramon before she said, “They both said they don’t want to hear from you until you have a wedding invitation for them.”

“Right,” Eddie said quietly. “So let me get this straight. None of you are willing to accept me in your lives unless I marry the mother of my child, regardless of her wants in this situation?”

Shannon yelled, “And for the record, I do not want, and will not ever want to marry your son.”

Dryly, Eddie said, “Thanks, Shannon. So with that in mind, I guess we have nothing left to say to each other. When you or my sisters pull your heads from your asses and wish to apologize for your toxic behavior, you have my email address. Just know that if you send anything abusive, it will be forwarded to my lawyers.”

Ramon sneered, “And what’s to stop us coming to Colorado to find you?”

Eddie laughed. “Go ahead. It’s a big state, and honestly, I’m moving in a few weeks to my new permanent assignment. But as for this discussion, I’m done. Thankfully I have found a family who will be happy to take your place at my graduation.”

As he ended the call and shut his laptop, Buck asked, “Was it just me, or did your mom seem to hesitate when you asked where your sisters were.”

Eddie shook his head. “No, she looked shifty as fuck. I’m not sure what it means, though. I mean, you heard her, my sisters don’t want anything to do with me until I marry Shannon. I don’t understand why they are so determined to push it, even after Shannon left El Paso. It doesn’t make sense.”

Patrick said, “It certainly doesn’t seem rational. Is it a religious thing, perhaps?”

Eddie and Shannon both shrugged. Eddie hedged, “It could be, but not the one dad was raised in, that’s for sure. He couldn’t be more different from Abuela if he tried.”

Buck asked, “Maybe it’s something your mother has pushed, something she learned from her parents?”

“I don’t remember my mother’s parents,” Eddie said quietly. “They died before I was born. Either way, I think it’s fair to say the olive branch was stomped on and burnt to ashes. The ball is entirely in their court.”

-x- 

Their graduation the following week was well attended. Eddie had decided to invite Lewis, Josh, and Grouch from SG-21 in place of his family, since their former team had been there for Buck and Eddie through their transition to civilian life. The three men would be regular visitors to their home in LA whenever they had breaks.

Captain Maynard stood in front of the small crowd, mostly family and friends of those stationed with them under the captain, as they had become good friends over the year. He said, “This is one graduation I wish I wasn’t doing, because it is also a farewell. Buck and Eddie Sheppard have been fantastic probationary firefighters, learning fast and pulling off some amazing rescues around town. They have the experience and knowledge to be amazing firefighters, and I’ll be watching their careers with interest. Eddie, your ropes work is phenomenal, and you’ll be an asset to any heavy rescue team; and Buck, I know you’re taking a break to get your Fire Science Master’s degree, but I’m sure that when you go back to firefighting, you’ll be pulling off some outstanding rescues that seem like miracles in no time. I hope the two of you end up working together again; you’re a dream pairing that any captain would be proud to have working for them.”

They both chorused, “Thanks, Cap.”

Once the official ceremony was over, Buck and Eddie pulled the captain into his office, and Eddie said, “So, we wanted to tell you our plans since you plan on watching our career as you said. I start with the 118 in LA in a few weeks under Captain Bobby Nash, and our plan is for Buck to join me after a year.”

Buck explained, “I’m going to spend six months doing my fire science master’s, as I only have a few papers to complete to finish it; then I plan to spend six months at the academy doing all the advanced coursework. When I get top of the class in each course, it will hopefully allow me to choose my permanent assignment.”

Eddie then took over as he said, “We’ve decided to keep our marriage and relationship to ourselves. So I’ll be working as Eddie Diaz, and Buck as Evan Buckley, the name of his former adoptive family. Once we feel comfortable with our team, we’ll disclose our background.”

The captain said, “That’s not a stupid idea. They have a lot more personnel and many differing personalities, and I’d say at a guess, some won’t be as forward-thinking as others. We get a lot of SGC retirees, so we are a lot less accepting of bigotries as other stations.”

Eddie snorted, “At least we’re not going to Texas. They can be assholes to anyone not lily white and straight as a board.”

Captain Maynard nodded. “I’ve heard horror stories from all over the states about the backward culture in some stations around the country. Wherever you end up, I wish you both well, and feel free to get in touch if you need anything or are in town visiting. I heard Patrick say earlier that he and Shannon are staying in Colorado for a few years.”

Buck nodded. “They are; they are going to be working with Jack on a new project for the next few years. Grandpa’s hired a CEO to look after SI, and when they are done, they’ll follow us to LA.”

The captain said, “I’ll let you know if I’m ever in LA. I often travel for conferences, and occasionally they have them in the bigger cities.”

They both hugged the captain and thanked him for everything he’d taught them both before they left the station for the last time.
 
-x-

Buck and Eddie had traveled frequently to LA during their time with the Colorado Fire Department, as the house-hunting took a lot of time and energy, especially since they had such odd specifications for their new house. They needed a home that had a large open space that could be set up for restricted access, as it would Buck’s workshop. But the house itself had to suit their extended family, as both Patrick and Shannon would be visiting LA frequently to see the family. But for now, they would be remaining in the mountain to manage the declassification planning. 

Ideally, Buck had wanted something like the house in Virginia Beach, separate suites for the various members, so they weren’t on top of each other. 

Due to Christopher’s schooling, they wanted to time the move to LA to coincide with the start of the new school year. That way, there would be less disruption for him.

With a bit of help from Eddie’s Abuela, Isabel, they found the perfect house. She had given Eddie the name of a realtor she knew, and he was able to take them on tours of their top choices on their visits to the city.

The realtor didn’t quite understand just how serious Buck was about the large workshop area, that it needed to be either an oversized garage or a basement space that could be secured. Eventually, Buck had to write out the exact specifications listed in his contract, and the realtor came back to them with a few more options in the area where they were searching.

The house they settled on was similar in size to their home in Virginia, except it had a basement area that covered not just under the house and garage but under the large backyard also. It was built in the ’60s, when personal fallout shelters were popular, thanks to JFK. The basement already met a lot of the specifications laid out in the contract; they just had to get one of the approved companies to come in and fit the biometric scanners and other security features required. Buck also had a large platform elevator installed so he could get vehicles from the garage down to the workshop.

They also separated the area under the backyard from the workshop, so those in the house without workshop access could still enter, and it was kitted out as a full-sized gym, complete with a ring for sparring. It took them a while to find the gym equipment they were happy with and equipment that Christopher could use for his physical therapy.

Finally, they were ready to move to LA.

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - July 2017

The two men hit LA with a bang. They stayed with Eddie’s Abuela, Isabel, and Tia Pepa for a few days as they waited for their furniture to arrive at their new home. Eddie’s family was excited to finally meet Buck, the man who stole their nieto and sobrino’s heart. They were also excited that they had moved to LA so that they could spend time with Christopher as he grew up. They hadn’t seen him since Eddie’s last vacation to LA two years earlier.

When Buck mentioned that they were looking for a full-time nurse aide nanny type of person for Christopher over dinner, Pepa said, “One of my work friends, Howard, his wife Carla is a trained pediatric nurse. She’s a home health aide for kids. She works freelance right now.”

Isabel asked, “What about Shannon?”

Buck explained, “She’s working with my grandfather on a top-secret project for the military. They have something huge coming up that needs political and public relations planning. Grandpa stepped down as CEO, so now he only goes into the office once a week to sign anything that needs signing and approve new projects. He chose an excellent CEO to run the business for him, since none of us kids were interested. Shannon will be visiting us as often as possible, though.”

Eddie said, “Patrick’s making noises about Christopher being trained to take Sheppard Industries to new places. I had to laughsince I know our kid loves spending time in the workshop with us; I think he wants to be a rocket scientist just like his papa. At least in LA, there are more school options for smart kids.”

Buck nodded. “I want to get him assessed so that he can be placed correctly in his new school. I was thinking of talking to Dr. Lam to see if she had any contacts for that.”

Pepa said, “How about I arrange a meeting for you both and Carla. You can see if you think she’ll be a good fit. I think her current client is moving in the summer, so she’s been trying to find more work.”

Buck muttered, “Morgan was right, again.”

Eddie said, “When has she been wrong?”

Abuela smiled at the love she could see between the couple. She asked, “Do your parents know you got married?”

Eddie shook his head. “No. They haven’t stopped nagging me to marry Shannon, to do the right thing, so I didn’t want the added drama; honestly, it’s exhausting. I called them to invite you all to our firefighter graduation ceremony, and they went crazy when they found out I was still living with Shannon and we weren’t married yet.”

Buck snarked, “I think they were mostly pissed off to find out you’d been in Colorado Springs for five years, and they didn’t know.” Buck turned to the two women, and he said, “I’m sorry we didn’t invite you to the wedding, but it was held in one of the most classified places in the American military. ”

Eddie said, “Plus, many of the people who attended our wedding were high up in the military, including one of the joint chiefs.”

With a confused frown, Pepa asked, “You two had no issues with being a gay couple on base? I know DADT was overturned a while ago, but I’ve heard that the homophobia issue is still quite prevalent.”

Eddie grinned. “Not on our base. If anyone has any of the phobias, homophobia, xenophobia, basically anything that amounts to bigotry or discrimination, they tend to get transferred to some very undesirable bases, like Antarctica or Alaska. The project leader is determined to stamp it out; he’s great, and he loves Christopher.”

Buck admitted, “You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone on base who doesn’t love our kid. Oh, speaking of, I finally found out who Shannon’s girlfriend is.”

Eddie’s eyes lit up when he asked, “Who? Anyone we know?”

Buck grinned as he dropped the bombshell, “Vala.”

Eddie paled. “Dios Mio. That’s just asking for trouble, mischief, and mayhem. I thought Vala was dating Mitchell?”

“No, that was a cover,” Buck explained. “Mitchell had a stalker and they were using Vala to flush her out. They turned out to be one of the astrophysicists. She was eventually caught when she attacked Vala; she was jealous that Vala had a place on Mitchell’s team, and she thought if she disabled Vala so she couldn’t be on an active team anymore, she could take her place.”

Eddie snorted. “Wow, that’s some next-level stupidity. Vala would have put her down, hard!”

Isabel asked, “Is this Vala good for Shannon, though? And does Christopher like her?”

Eddie pulled out his phone; he had a photo of Vala and Christopher playing outside in their backyard after one of his treatments with the hand device. As he slid the phone over to his abuela, he said, “He lets her help with his physical therapy.”

Isabel looked at the photo. “She’s stunning. A good match for your Shannon. I want to meet her if she comes to visit you.”

Eddie promised. “Definitely. Does either of you want to come with us tomorrow to see the new house? The movers should arrive around lunchtime.”

Pepa said, “I need to skip it lo siento; I have work tomorrow. Mama, you should go; make sure these two haven’t gone overboard.”

Eddie said, “We kind of needed to. We had to find something of a similar size to Patrick’s house in Virginia Beach. It will be the home base for the Sheppard clan in LA.”

Buck commented, “If we hadn’t found what we needed, we would’ve bought something that would have done for a few years, then we would have built something that fit our needs. It’s what Grandpa was planning to do in Colorado Springs.”

Isabel exclaimed, “Dios, that sounds expensive!”

Buck nodded. “Probably. But my side job brings in more than enough cash to make it worth it. It’s why I needed a house that had room to build my workshop.”

Isabel was still confused; they hadn’t heard much about Buck except that he was a Navy SEAL, and that her Eddito met him while they were based in the same camp in Afghanistan. So she asked, “What exactly is your side job?”

Buck asked, “Eddie didn’t tell you?”

When the two women shook their heads. Buck glared at his husband before he said, “I’m a rocket scientist. I have two doctorates, a master’s degree, and a few other degrees. I work on classified projects for the military in my spare time, and it pays very, very well.”

Pepa said, “Wow. I was not expecting that from someone so young.”

Eddie snorted. “He went to MIT at 13. Then he graduated at 18 and joined the SEALs and kept studying during any off time.”

“So,” Pepa hesitated. “Why LA?”

Eddie said honestly, “Family. You’re both here, and we get the feeling we will be happy here. We also checked the frat regs for various fire departments around the country. The LAFD is one of the few that allow married couples to work together. The others were either in very small towns, or the vibe just wasn’t right.”

Isabel smiled. “Well, we’re glad to have you all closer.”

-x-

Pepa had talked to Carla, and she was happy to speak to the men about Christopher. They arranged to meet at their new house, now that everything was secure. Jack had already run the background check before the meeting, and she’d passed with flying colors.

Colonel Davis was waiting with them as he had an NDA for her to sign. As she would be attending appointments with Christopher, she would need to be read in on at least part of the SGC.

When she knocked on the door, Buck led her inside and invited her to take a seat on the sofa. He asked, “What did Pepa tell you about us?”

Carla said, “Nothing. She said there wasn’t much she could tell me as a lot of your history was classified.”

Eddie nodded. “That works. So for the last five years we’ve worked in one of the most secret projects within the American military complex. Buck will be continuing his work here on the project in LA remotely from the workshop we’ve had retrofitted in the basement, but we’ll both be working for the LAFD eventually.”

“Okay,” Carla said hesitantly. “So why am I here?”

Eddie said, “We have a son, Christopher. He’s six, intelligent, and he has cerebral palsy. He is undergoing experimental treatment with the unit we’ve been serving with, so you need to sign the NDA Colonel Davis has ready for you. He’ll then explain the unit, as he does it better than we can; once that’s all signed off, we’ll visit Christopher. He’s currently with Dr. Lam, Vala, his physical therapist, and Shannon, his mother.”

Carla agreed, “Sure.” She gave them an epic side-eye, and she asked, “I can still say no at the end of this?”

Eddie nodded. “Of course. The NDA will still apply, but you can say no at any time.”

She read through the NDA, and the three military men watched as her eyebrows slowly tried to climb off her forehead. She eventually signed on the last page before she snarked, “This had better be the mother and father of all secrets to make that document worth reading.”

Buck said, “I think you’ll agree it’s worth it.” He’d arranged for the George Hammond to be their ride to the mountain. There was nothing like being beamed to a spaceship to make it clear the secret was worth the NDA. He asked, “Colonel Davis is everything in order?”

When the Colonel nodded his confirmation Buck said, “Right, let’s go, if you could all come and stand by me, please.” Once they were all standing close together, Buck activated his radio and said, “Colonel Ellis, we have four ready for beaming.”

They were surrounded by white light, and the next thing Carla knew, she was standing on the bridge of what seemed to be a giant spaceship. She asked incredulously, “Are we in space?”

Buck and Eddie led her to one of the windows so she could look outside and see the Earth. She whispered, “Holy shit. Yep, I can understand the NDA. So where is Christopher? Is he here on the ship?”

Eddie shook his head. “No, we’ll be beaming into Cheyenne Mountain, and Colonel Davis will be taking your NDA to Washington to be filed. Colonel Ellis is just waiting for clearance to beam us into the infirmary.”

Once she got the surprise out of the way and she’d been read into the purpose of the Stargate program,  she learned about the work Vala was doing with Christopher to ease his CP. Christopher was enamored with the nurse, and he whispered loudly to his mom that he approved of their choice, much to the amusement of the medical staff who were assisting. 

When Vala was done with his treatment, Shannon gathered up Christopher and took him to the other end of the infirmary to hang out with one of the nurses so the rest of the adults could talk freely with Carla.

The aide gestured at the hand device Vala had just finished using on the young boy and asked, “Can this not be used by others?”

Vala shook her head. “It requires naquadah in the bloodstream to use the hand device. Something that can only happen if you’ve been snaked by either the Goa’uld or the Tok’ra. Neither is overly pleasant, and it can be likened to possession.”

Dr. Lam said, “However, there are other technologies we’ve discovered on other planets that we’ve modified for the general public. Both medical and non-medical. We just have to be careful to make sure they can be mass-produced without any alien tech being used.”

Carla asked, “So Christopher has regular appointments for treatments?”

Vala nodded. “He does. I’ve also been working on his physical therapy; it’s what I was training to do on my planet before I was taken by Qetesh.”

Carla said, “I’m in. My current contract finishes at the start of summer, so any time after that is fine for me to start.”

They spent some time arranging the start date. And Carla was given contact details for both Dr. Lam and Vala for any questions or concerns she may have with Christopher while he’s under her care.

Dr. Lam said sternly. “If he has any issues or anything that would require him to see a doctor, please call either myself or Vala. If you can’t reach either of us, get hold of Buck or Eddie, they’ll be able to get hold of someone who can help. It’s important that he’s not seen by a mundane doctor unless it’s an extreme emergency.”

“Understood,” Carla confirmed. She asked, “What’s happening with his schooling?”

Buck said, “We’re looking for a school that will assess and place him according to his intelligence rather than his age.”

She grinned. “I know just the school. Durand School caters to children with mobility issues, but they believe in placing a child in the class that suits them rather than age-appropriate, so they’ll want to do placement testing. How does he do with keeping all this a secret.”

Eddie smirked, “He’s grown up knowing that he can’t talk about our jobs to anyone unless approved by Buck or me. He’s a smart kid, and he only has to hold on for a few more years. We’ve received word that the program is due for declassification soonish; however, things like the healing won’t be released.”

Carla said, “I can understand that. Especially since it’s limited to a few people, and if I’m not mistaken, it’s exhausting for the user.”

Vala nodded. “There is an energy cost for using it; the larger the healing, the more of my energy it uses.”

Eddie said, “We should get back, we still need to sort out the contract, and Carla only had a few hours for the initial chat.”

Carla shook hands with the others in the infirmary and said, “I look forward to seeing you all again when I bring the little man in.”

Buck arranged their transport back to LA, where they sat down with Carla and the contract they had printed out waiting for her signature. It just needed the dates filled in.

Once the contract was all signed, Carla asked, “How much of this does Josephina know?”

Eddie admitted, “Nothing classified. She knows we met while I was in the Army and that we worked on a classified project, but she’s never pushed to know more.”

Carla said, “One of your cousins used to be part of a classified military project. I’m not sure which one, but she understands the nature of military projects and knows better than to ask.”

Eddie hadn’t realized he had other relatives that were in the military, but his parents had kept him pretty isolated from his LA-based relatives. He asked, “Do you know who? I haven’t heard of any other Diaz family members joining the military.”

She shook her head. “I’m not sure. I know they’ve retired, and they live in New York now. My point is, she understands about classified operations, and she won’t ask.” 

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - September 2017

When September started, Christopher was ready for his first day at Durand, he’d been put ahead a year to start with, but it was likely he would advance again before he was done at elementary school.

When word went around the LAFD that he was looking to transfer, with his —slightly modified— military history, Eddie was being pursued by several captains. They’d arranged a series of interviews on their trips to the city to speak to the team doing the alterations to their new house. 

Near the end of the interview with the captain of the 118, Bobby said, “I have to ask, you’re a qualified paramedic with years of experience in the military; why aren’t you applying for one of the paramedic roles in the LAFD?”

Eddie said, “I would prefer to be a firefighter who can step in occasionally as a paramedic when needed, rather than a paramedic who steps in occasionally to fight fires.”

Bobby tilted his head in thought before he said, “That actually makes a lot of sense. It would be good to have another medic on the shift. Especially with some of the larger calls we’ve attended over the years.” He looked down at Eddie’s resume again. He tapped a line on the document before he said, “You’ve trained with Navy SEALs?”

With a smile, Eddie agreed. “My last assignment was on a classified project. I was assigned to one of the search and rescue teams as the medic, so I was expected to keep up with the SEALs across the board. I qualified to teach rope rescues due to my experience in the field.”

Bobby asked, “Isn’t that a little unusual?”

“Yep,” Eddie agreed. “It’s an unusual project though. Part of me was sad to leave, but we needed a change, and there are much better schooling options for Christopher here in LA. He’s gifted academically, which isn’t really catered for in Colorado Springs, at least not for a child with Cerebral Palsy.”

Bobby handed over a contract. “Well, I’d be happy to have you here at the 118 as part of the A shift. I think you’d fit in well.”

Eddie said, “I’ve got one final interview tomorrow with station six, then I’ll make my decision. Is that okay?”

With a nod, Bobby said, “Absolutely. I look forward to hearing from you.”

Eddie called him the next day to accept the offer. Station Six was nice enough, but it didn’t have the same welcoming feel as the 118. He also remembered what Morgan said about him being destined for the 118. His other main concern with Station Six, they had a higher percentage of ex-military in the house, so he wasn’t confident that his marriage would be well received once they were outed. Bobby asked him about his teaching and if he wanted to take on one-on-one probies for rope rescue training. Eddie turned him down; he wanted a break for now.

-x-

On his first day at the 118, Eddie kissed Buck on his way out the door. Buck was leaving for his second week of classes for his fire science degree, and Carla had already arrived to take Christopher to school. Eddie was doing a short shift for his first day in the firehouse, and he wasn’t due to start until noon. Bobby said he would mostly be doing orientation and paperwork with maybe a few callouts depending on how quickly he could get through everything.

He arrived five minutes before he was due to start, and he jogged up the stairs to the loft. Everyone else was seated at the table, tucking into what looked like a meal of spaghetti bolognese. He cleared his throat and said, “Captain Nash?”

Bobby looked up with a smile. “Firefighter Diaz. Take a seat; you’ve arrived just in time for lunch.”

Hen asked, “We got a new probie?”

Eddie shook his head. “I’m not a probie; I’m a transfer. I’ve transferred to the LAFD from out of state.” He’d already agreed with Bobby that his last location would be kept under wraps, he’d used the excuse of his previous assignment being classified, but it was actually because he didn’t want the team putting two and two together when Buck joined them after his training.

Bobby said, “He’s here to replace Hopkins, who is retiring in a few weeks. He comes highly recommended and will be a backup paramedic for Hen and Chim.”

Chim asked, “You’re fully certified?”

Eddie nodded. “I was an Army medic for the last eight years, and my last CO sponsored my paramedic certification. He doesn’t believe in wasting the training we’re given.”

Hen grinned. “That’s cool. But why didn’t you join the LAFD as a paramedic? The pay is certainly better.”

Eddie shrugged. “As I said to the captain in my interview, I would prefer to be a firefighter who does medical calls sometimes, rather than a medic who sometimes fights fires. I’ve spent the last five years on a search and rescue team, and I enjoyed that a lot more than being stuck on medical duties all the time.”

Chim asked, “So what made you choose LA?”

“Family,” Eddie said quietly. “I have family here that I started to miss being so far away all the time. In fact, they are the only family I am close to these days.” He didn’t want to talk about Buck or Christopher, so he figured his abuela and tia were good reasons for why he moved.

Bobby said, “Well, tuck in. Once we’re finished eating, we’ll get you sorted with your uniform and locker and get that paperwork sorted.”

Eddie served himself a good-sized serving and started eating. He said, “This is awesome! The sauce is so good.”

Hen nodded. “Cap spoils us all, honestly. Whenever he has enough time, he cooks us great meals. He even occasionally offers us lessons.”

Eddie snorted, nearly inhaling a noodle wrong. After clearing his throat, he said, “Yeah, that’s not a good idea for me. I melted a pot trying to cook pasta. My family has since banned me from the kitchen.”

Bobby looked horrified as he said slowly, “You melted… a pot? Was it plastic?” When Eddie sheepishly shook his head, the captain said, “How about you stick to the coffee machine and leave the kitchen to me.”

Eddie nodded. “I can load a dishwasher and do dishes, my baking is ok too, but cooking is where it all goes terribly wrong.”

The alarm went off, and Bobby checked the details before he said, “It’s just a medical call, so I’ll leave you with Tanika, one of our firefighters; she’ll get you sorted with your uniform and your paperwork. Hopefully, this call won’t take us too long, and I can help you out with the paperwork when I get back.”

After introducing themselves, she took him down to the storeroom and got him kitted out with a full uniform. She set him up with one of the spare lockers before she explained, “The bottom locker is for your uniform and gear, the top is for your personal items. I’ll leave you to get sorted while I print out the forms you need to read and sign.”

Eddie nodded, “Thanks, Tanika.” When she had walked away, he put his uniform into the locker set aside for him, keeping a uniform out to wear. Then he went into the showers to get changed. There were better walls than glass for privacy. He had a lot of scars from his time in the Army and especially the SGC that would be hard to explain if anyone walked in and saw him.

Eventually, he was changed and set up on the tables in the loft as he went through all the required forms. Bobby returned and went through the more serious ones with him. He was used to most of them due to his time with the SGC, as many of them were similar to the liability waivers he had to sign when he had first arrived in Colorado Springs.

When they were done, Bobby asked, “Any questions?”

Eddie shook his head. “Nope. It’s all pretty straightforward.”

The captain said, “For the first few weeks, I’ll get you to shadow me, so that I can get a sense of how you work and who would be good to pair you with. Hopkins is our floater, and he pairs with anyone, but he doesn’t have the heavy rescue or rope work certifications you do. I suspect due to your military experience, we’ll have to recruit someone for you; but we’ll see how we go.”

Eddie said, “I’m pretty easygoing. I’m sure I will work well as a floater, but whatever you decide in the end works for me.”

-x-

Buck started the September semester doing the few papers he needed to complete his fire science degree. He found the classwork easy enough, but that meant he could put more time into his design projects for the SGC. Come March, he would be entering the fire academy to do his advanced firefighting training. He was planning to graduate each course at the top of his class.  

Before getting stuck into his classwork though, he asked Jack to visit the new house, both to check out the workshop modifications, and so they could plan for Maddie’s arrival in LA.

Eddie was at work when Jack arrived. For Jack, it was odd seeing Buck on his own. Usually, he and Eddie were attached at the hip when they met with him. The two men sat on a sofa in the workshop, and Jack asked, “Why aren’t we rescuing your sister? We did a deep background check, and that cretin she married has been abusing her for years.”

Buck nodded. “I found the same when I looked into her hospital records. At Morgan’s suggestion, I talked to a few domestic violence therapists in Colorado, and they all seemed to agree that I need to let Maddie know she has somewhere to land, but she has to take that first step. She has to decide to leave. If we make that decision for her, it’s more likely that she’ll resent us for taking away her choices. Even worse, she could deny everything and go back to him.”

Jack nodded sadly. “Okay, yep, that makes sense. So you’ll start sending her postcards about settling in LA. Let her know that the option is available. How do you plan to hide all this when she gets here?”

Buck said, “I can’t. We have photos of us in uniform scattered around the house, and my certificates are on the wall in the living room.”

Jack smirked, “So it’s a good thing I’ve already run the background check on her. The only reason she’d fail right now, is that asswipe she’s married to. However, you need to have a contingency plan for him. He is dangerously obsessive, from what we can tell. When you first approached about moving because of Maddie, I sent in one of our covert teams to check him out.”

Buck said, “As soon as she leaves, a covert guard needs to be put on Maddie’s boss, Laurie. I’m not sure of her last name. Morgan said in that other timeline, Doug attacked her after Maddie left, as he assumed, correctly, that Maddie would tell her where she was going. From what I could gather from Morgan and what she left unsaid, Laurie nearly died from the attack. I’ll be hiring a guard for Maddie until he’s behind bars; someone who can spot a stalker.”

Jack made a note of the name and promised, “She’ll be watched. This guy is bad news, Buck. He will follow her to LA; you can guarantee it.”  

Buck sighed. “I figured as much. She was never very happy the few times I saw her after she left home, and getting her into therapy is going to be a battle. According to her father, therapy is for the weak-minded, and seeing a therapist is admitting defeat.”

Jack said, “That’s… I don’t have words for just how stupid that is.”

The younger man agreed. “I’ll have a plan, and we can use the workshop to keep her safe as it requires biometric access. If we can get her to sign an NDA, she doesn’t need to be read in completely, but she’ll need to understand that anything she sees in the house will have to be kept a secret, and is covered by the NDA. I’ll play it by ear when she arrives. For all I know, she’ll take to the knowledge that all this exists like a duck takes to water, and she’ll be a good ally for us when declassification comes around. After all, there has to be a reason Morgan broke her non-interference pact to make sure I kept in touch with Maddie. Even if she only replied a few times to a dropbox I use for mail, due to my drifting nature. It’s not even just staying in touch with her. Morgan left her memories of me intact, and she’s asked us to be here, in LA, to be a safe landing place for her. There has to be a reason for it.”

Jack asked, “What about your workshop?”

With a shrug, Buck said, “If I warn Mads that there are explosives in my workshop, I doubt she’ll snoop. I have a weapon safe in the house; it’s locked by both a biometric scanner and a code. That will be just for myself and Eds to access. The alien weapons are stored down in the workshop in a separate safe.”

Jack asked, “Do I want to know?”

Buck shrugged and admitted, “Research… mostly. I want to see if we can replicate and reproduce the Zat and the staff weapon; they would both work well on Atlantis. They are also trying to find another one of the guns Ronon is so fond of, so I can try and replicate it.” When he saw the look of absolute want on Jack’s face, he added, “Which I guess you’ll be wanting the first one I create?”

Jack grinned. “You betcha.”

After Jack left, Buck drove to a nearby souvenir shop and bought a stack of postcards and stamps. He planned to start his letter-writing campaign in earnest with weekly postcards of life in LA.
 
-x-

On Shannon’s first visit to the house after the move, Eddie took her out for coffee. He had a proposition he wanted to discuss with her before the two of them approached Christopher and Buck.

It wasn’t unusual for them to go for coffee, but it was odd that Buck wasn’t with them, so she asked, “So, what’s going on, Eddie?”

Eddie rubbed the back of his head; he was worried that even though Shannon loved Buck like a little brother, she would still turn down his idea. He took a steadying breath and said, “I want to ask Buck to adopt Christopher, as long as Christopher agrees.”

Shannon frowned, “So you’re giving up your parental rights?”

“No, no, no,” Eddie said quickly. “I did some digging after I overheard a couple talking on a call. California allows for more than two parents to adopt children for legal purposes like custody and child support. I know the latter isn’t important for us, but it would give him that added bit of protection beyond our wills if something happens to both of us. It’ll mean that legally Buck is Christopher’s father too, and it means my parents cant try to claim custody if we are dead.”

She asked slowly, “So we’ll still legally be his parents? It just means Buck will also be listed legally as one of his parents; I like it. We both know Buck would give up his own life to protect our son, just like we would. So, we ask Christopher first, then Buck? Then what?”

Eddie said, “If they both agree, we talk to a family lawyer about how to proceed. From what I was reading, we just have to prove that all three of us act as parents in an equal fashion. I’ll also be mentioning the risk my parents pose to Christopher’s well-being, especially with the threat to try and claim custody because we refuse to marry.”

Shannon stood. “There’s no time like the present, Eddie. Let’s go talk to our boys.”

They found Patrick reading with Christopher in the den when they returned home. Eddie asked, “Where’s Buck?”

Christopher giggled. He said, “Papa was playing with my LEGO when he had a brainstorm about one of his projects, so he asked Grandpa to look after me while he went to make notes, so he didn’t forget. He should be back soon.”

Shannon and Eddie sat down on the other sofa, and Eddie said, “While he’s down there, we want to ask you a serious question, Christopher.”

“Okay,” he said with an equally serious nod. “What’s going on?”

Eddie said, “We wanted to know if you would like Buck to adopt you, so he can legally be your third parent.” He saw Christopher look worried as he looked between his Mom and Dad, so he quickly reassured him, “It doesn’t mean that one of us isn’t your parent anymore. California allows for multiple parent options; we just need to prove to the family court judge that all three of us act in a parental role to you.”

Christopher giggled as he said, “Like that’s hard.” He climbed down from the sofa he was sharing with Patrick, and he steadily walked the short gap across to give first his Mom, then his Dad, a big hug. He clambered up between then and asked, “Does Bucky know?”

Shannon shook her head. “We wanted to ask you first, kiddo. How about, when he comes up from the workshop, you can ask him to adopt you?”

Christopher squealed, “YES!”

He didn’t have to wait long before Buck was bounding up the stairs. He pulled Christopher into a hug and spun him around. “Thanks, superman. You gave me an idea that should help Pops with an issue he’s been having in Pegasus.”

When Buck stopped swinging him around, Christopher framed his face with his tiny hands, and he said, “I have a serious question for you, Buck. Maybe you should sit down first.”

Eddie pulled his husband, so he was sitting between himself and Shannon, with Christopher kneeling on his thighs, still looking the engineer in the face. None of them noticed Patrick with his phone out, recording with his phone.

When he was sure he had his papa’s full attention, Christopher asked, “Bucky, will you adopt me? Be my third legal parent?”

Buck looked to the two adults on either side of him, who nodded before he squeezed Christopher into a tight hug as he said, “Yes, baby, of course.” 

Eddie wiped a few tears from his husband’s face as he explained, “I found out California allows for more than two legal parents. So we’d like you to adopt Christopher and be his parent in more than just name. It means if something happens to any of us, he’s still protected.”

Buck nodded, “I would protect him with my life, I promise.”

Shannon kissed his cheek, “We know, Buck. You’ve been one of his parents since he was born; this just makes it legal.”

Patrick stood and said, “Congrats, guys. I’m going to go call our lawyers and get them started on the process.”

Thankfully the lawyers Patrick had retained in California had an affiliate practice that dealt with family law, so they were able to get in front of a judge within a few months with all the evidence of their co-parenting, and the adoption was made legal a few weeks into the new year.

-x-

Buck came home from picking Christopher up at school, and he found Eddie lying back on the sofa in the living room with a blooming shiner. Christopher approached his dad and demanded, “Who hit you, Daddy?”

Eddie chuckled as he pulled their son into a hug. He said, “I took an accidental bowling ball to the face.”

Buck moved in beside him, and with a choked-off laugh, he asked, “What?”

Eddie was mindful of Christopher and his smarts, so he said, “We had a call to a hoarder’s house, and the whole thing was booby-trapped. Bobby sent me up to see if we could get in through the upstairs windows. One of them had a trigger, so a bowling ball would swing down if the window was opened. I took a glancing blow to the face, but thankfully managed to grab the ladder before I fell.”

Christopher asked, “Did you get the man out, daddy?”

Eddie nodded. “We had to send Chimney in; he’s the smallest. They had a tunnel through the house made of old newspapers and magazines. The house is a huge fire risk, it’s crazy. He had to disarm four traps before he reached the guy we were called for.”

“What sort of traps?” Christopher asked. “Like a missing floor?”

Eddie shook his head, then thought better of it when his face started to hurt. “No, mijo. For one of the first ones, he had to turn an old clock to 8:13 to disarm a dart trap that would have darted him with a tranquilizer. Another was moving books in a specific order so a wall would move. They were clever, but dangerous for us as we needed to get in there to rescue him.”

Christopher got down and said, “That sounds like fun. I think I need to do more research.”

Buck said, “No practical applications without discussion, kiddo!” He turned and felt his husband’s face gently as he asked, “Do you need to get checked out or x-rays?”

“Nah,” Eddie soothed. “Hen checked me out at the scene; I don’t even have a concussion. My face is just going to look pretty for a few days. I’ve still got that arnica cream Vala recommended after the bruise I got on my thigh last week.” He kissed Buck gently and said, “I’m fine, mi corazón; it’s just bruising with a fun story to tell later. I promise.”

Buck asked, “As funny as the carwash guy?”

Eddie snickered as he thought back to the guy who got caught up in the car wash brushes when the hose got tangled in the brushes and dragged him in. It was made worse when the manager had pulled up the footage from the security cameras, and he’d watched it with Bobby and Hen after the incident. “That was hilarious. I’m not sure it was worthy of YouTube.”

Buck said, “It was absolutely worthy of YouTube. It was hilarious, and that’s why it went viral.”

Eddie said, “I’m just glad they didn’t include the rescue in the footage. It was embarrassing just how slippery that foam is.”

Buck snorted. “Did you slip?”

Eddie nodded. “I did. But I didn’t end up on my ass like some other members of the team. Pretty sure Martin ended up with a bruised tailbone with how hard he went down.”

Buck grinned. “I can’t wait to get started.”

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - November 2017

A few months into the job, Eddie had his first loss. As far as he was concerned, it was completely senseless. Channel-8 News interviewed him after it happened, as they were like sharks who could smell blood, but thanks to Shannon and her training in dealing with the media, he handled it perfectly. 

When he got home, he was pulled into a hug by his husband. Buck murmured, “Are you ok?”

Eddie shook his head. “I’m pissed off, mi corazón. I had him within reach, but he let go. He was more concerned with the people filming on the ground than the rescue.”

Buck asked, “What do you need?”

Eddie asked, “Is Chris already in bed?”

“Yeah,” Buck confirmed. “Do you need Christopher cuddles?”

Eddie shook his head. “While that would be awesome, no. I think what I need is a good hard fight. I just need to get changed. You up for it?”

Buck nodded. “Definitely. I’ll meet you down there.”

They spent a few hours sparring and play fighting so that Eddie could get the anger out of his system. Eddie pulled his husband into an absolutely filthy kiss when he’d had enough before he winked and asked, “Shower?”

-x-

Patrick, Shannon, and eventually Vala, once Shannon fessed up about their relationship, visited frequently, and John, Rodney, and Dave were able to make it home for their first Christmas in LA. 

Buck was glad he had a landing pad installed outside the garage since they had brought him a puddle jumper for him to work on. Given all the work he was doing, and how much of it had to be transported between his home and the two main SGC bases, it had been decided that it would be easier for Buck to transport his work with a jumper, and the garage had enough room to store it when he wasn’t working on it. The SGC were hopeful that he could continue the work of Dr. Radek Zalenka, using the jumper as a template to design a gate ship for Earth, something that could be used by everyone rather than just those who had the ATA gene. It was a project he was really excited about sinking his teeth into.

Rodney handed over a laptop and a couple of portable hard drives. As he watched Buck carefully lay them on a workbench, he said, “This is all of Radek’s research on the jumpers. He wanted to continue with it, but I needed him to concentrate on getting the geothermal plant back online. With the damage it’s taken over the centuries, it’s going to take him a few years to get it all up and running again, but it should give us enough power to start charging the ZPMs.”

Buck laughed. “I can see why he let the jumper project go. And hey, I can’t complain; it gives me a jumper to use for transport rather than bugging the battlecruiser captains. Do you know what timeframe Radek was working with?”

Rodney said, “He was expecting it all to take a few years; there are a lot of systems that will need to be converted, especially since we don’t want to sacrifice inside space.”

The younger man agreed. “They make great troop transports, especially for some of the more hostile planets. There were a few rescue missions we went on, where having a jumper would have been perfect.”

Rodney nodded. He said, “The hardest part, and the system I would start with, is cloaking. I know we’ve got the schematics from the Ha’taks, as well as Radek’s research; it’s just not an easy system to crack. The scientists at Area-51 have been trying to crack it for a few years now.”

Buck muttered, “Tell me Kavanaugh isn’t on that project, please.”

Rodney barked out a laugh. “He’s not. He’s still stuck on scutwork after the blackmail story came to light. The fact that he was a minor player in that whole clusterfuck is the only reason he wasn’t jailed; the perpetrators just banked on Kavanagh’s ego, blinding him to the fact he was being manipulated. The CSO of Area 51 refuses to assign him anything of importance or where lives could be at risk. No one trusts him anymore.”

“Good,” Buck said vehemently. “That guy was a douche, he has an overinflated ego, and he hated me purely because my last name is Sheppard.”

Rodney smirked. “Imagine if he found out I’m your other dad.”

They both started to giggle at the thought of the epic tantrum the scientist would throw. Buck said, “Shutting him down that day is still one of my best memories of being in the SGC. He honestly thought his one Ph.D. and his  master’s degree made him the smartest man in the mountain.”

-x-

A few months into his time at the academy, Buck was in his workshop doing some of his homework when he jumped a bit when his phone started to ring unexpectedly. He glanced at it, and not recognizing the number, he nearly put the phone down, but he decided to err on the side of caution. He answered, “Hello?”

The unfamiliar voice on the end of the phone asked, “This is Elle from Cedars-Sinai Hospital. Am I speaking to Evan Sheppard?”

Buck’s breath hitched in worry. He confirmed, “Yes, this is Evan. What happened to Eddie?”

The woman said, “Your husband was in an accident at work and was brought in by ambulance. According to the captain, the house he was evacuating exploded while he was still inside. He’s suffering from mild smoke inhalation, perforated eardrums, and he has a concussion. His doctor is running a few scans, but because of his concussion and temporary deafness, he can’t give his own consent if he needs further treatment. He also can’t remember the name of his backup contact, as he is adamant that you not come down here yourself. He said his team is here in the waiting room, and that none of them are aware he’s married; he wants to keep it that way. Which, I gather, is why they are under the impression he’s Eddie Diaz, not Sheppard.”

Buck swore to himself for a few seconds before he pulled himself together. He said, “He works professionally under his birth name of Diaz, and we would prefer his team not be told about his true last name. Can I not authorize any surgery he requires over the phone, or even via video chat?”

Elle said apologetically, “Sorry, sir. For an injury like this, it’s hospital policy to speak to the patient's advocate in person before authorizing any treatments.”

Buck scowled, “Okay. I’ll arrange for his backup contact to come in and talk to the doctors and authorize any necessary scans. Who should they ask for at the front desk?”

She said, “They can ask for me; my name’s Elle, or Dr. Lightfoot; he’s the primary care physician treating your husband.”

“Thanks,” Buck said before he hung up. 

He sprinted out of the workshop up to their office, where their important paperwork was kept. Shannon, who was home to spend some time with her son, saw him run past, and after checking that Carla was watching Christopher, she followed at a more sedate pace to see what was going on.

“Buck?” She asked as she stood in the doorway. He was going through the safe like a madman trying to find the paperwork Eddie had filled out for his LAFD insurance.

Buck looked up and said bluntly, “Eddie is in the hospital. Apparently, there was an explosion, and he was still inside the house when it went boom. I’m trying to find his insurance paperwork to see who is authorized to give approval for medical procedures.”

Shannon crouched down and started to go through the papers to help him find the paperwork. She was fairly confident it wasn’t her because they weren’t sure how often she would be in LA. She said, “I’m sure it’s you, and the backup is either Tia Pepa or Abuela. Why can’t you go?”

Buck said, “I want to go, trust me. But his team is waiting at the hospital, and he was clear that I was not to go down there.” He pulled out a folder from the cabinet. “Found it. Ok, as I suspected, his backup is Tia Pepa, so I’ll give her a call and see if she can go down there to authorize whatever he needs.”

He was going to have words with his husband once he was over the concussion. He’d promised Buck he would be careful and do everything he could to stay out of trouble until Buck could be there to cover his six.

The call to Tia Pepa was a quick one. She was off work already, so she drove to the hospital to check on her sobrino. After a quick stop at the front desk, where she could see a team of firefighters waiting off to the side, she was pretty confident this was her Eddito’s team, but she wanted to talk to him to find out why they weren’t in there with him. She asked quietly for Eddie’s room before she followed the directions to the private room they’d placed him in.

Eddie was feeling morose. His ears were still ringing from the force of the explosion, and it was going to take a few weeks before he’d be able to hear again. The doctor had given him a notebook and pen, as he didn’t want him using his phone while he had a concussion. He looked up when he saw a shadow over the bed, and he was surprised to see his Tia standing there.

He pushed the call button beside his bed and then wrote, ‘The doctor should be here soon.’ He’d realized soon after he woke up that without his hearing, he had no internal volume control, so it was easier to write things down for his end too.

She made sure he was looking at her when she asked, “What happened?”

Eddie shrugged and wrote, ‘The house we were in exploded; I was still trying to get outside when it happened. I can’t hear anything, and I have a concussion.’

Pepa pointed to the oxygen mask with a raised eyebrow, so he wrote, ‘Just a bit of smoke inhalation. Nothing to worry about.’

She sent a quick text to Buck and Shannon to reassure them that Eddie was fine, sitting up and alert.

The doctor took that moment to walk in and introduce himself to Pepa. “Hi, I’m Dr. Lightfoot; I’m Mr. Sheppard’s doctor.”

She smirked and said, “I’m Pepa; I’m this one’s tia, or aunt if you prefer the English. So what’s the verdict?”

The doctor nodded. “Mr. Sheppard was unconscious when he arrived, and he had a gash on his forehead, which we’ve sealed with glue. Because we were worried about the length of time he was unconscious, we did some CT scans.” He could see the worry on her face, so he reassured her, “He’s fine. The scans were clear of any issues, and he woke up as we were taking him back to his room. The worst of it is going to be his eardrums. Due to either the force of the explosion or the noise, he’s perforated both eardrums, so he’s got complete loss of hearing for now.”

Pepa nodded. “When can I take him home?”

The doctor looked down at his notes, and he flipped through the chart before he said, “Now, actually. As long as he has someone at home to watch out for him, he’s fine to leave. He’ll need at least two weeks off to let his ears heal, and I’ll include instructions in his discharge paperwork on what to watch for, so whoever is taking care of him can make sure he doesn’t get an inner ear infection.”

Pepa grinned. “His husband will take good care of him.”

“Let’s go get the paperwork sorted so you can take him home,” Dr. Lightfoot said. “You’ll need to run the gauntlet of his team. They wanted to wait even though we couldn’t legally release any information to them.”

Before they left the room, Pepa checked her phone and then wrote, ‘Going to get your paperwork signed so I can take you home. Shannon is trying to keep Buck distracted with Christopher, but it’s not working as he is worried about you. He needs to see with his own eyes that you’re fine.’

Eddie nodded and waved her out of the room as he checked he had everything in the personal belongings bag they had given him. He was tempted to pick up his phone to text his husband, but his head was already pounding, and the painkillers they’d given him only took the edge off. He took the time to write out a list of his injuries for Bobby, since he was sure his captain, and probably the rest of his team, were still waiting for him. The doctor had asked if he wanted them to stay with him, but he’d said no as he didn’t want them to see his chart.

Pepa came back into the room 15 minutes later, accompanied by a nurse and a wheelchair. At his disgruntled look, Pepa scowled and pointed at the wheelchair. He held his hands up in surrender and held his hand out. He’d tried to stand on his own when his tia left the room, but he got dizzy so decided to sit and wait. He held his arm out and mouthed, ‘help?’

Pepa stepped forward and held both her hands out, so her sobrino had something to use for balance. She mouthed, ‘Dizzy?’

The nurse said, “The dizzy spells should pass in a few days. They are due to the damage to his inner ear. If the dizzy spells persist, he’ll need to see his regular doctor so they can check his inner ear. The information should be with his discharge paperwork.”

Pepa confirmed, “It is; I have information about his concussion and his ears, and what to do for both of them over the next few weeks. I’m pretty sure that once we get him home, his husband will want to get their regular doctor to check him over.”

As they wheeled Eddie out of the hospital, they approached the waiting group from the 118. Eddie held up his hand and handed over the note he’d written earlier.

Bobby read over the note before he said, “The explosion perforated his eardrums; that’s why he couldn’t hear us at the scene. He said his tia is taking him home.”

Pepa said, “That’s me; I’m Josephina, his father’s sister. The doctors said he won’t be able to return to work for at least two weeks due to both his eardrums and the concussion.”

Hen asked, “Will he need help at home?”

The older woman shook her head. “Gracias, but he’ll be fine. Eddito has plenty of support at home from our family. He should be cleared to look at his screens tomorrow, so he can keep in touch with text messages until he can hear again. Thank you all for waiting.”

Bobby squeezed Eddie’s shoulder as Pepa wheeled him out to her car. The three members of the 118 followed them out so Bobby and Chim could help get him situated in the vehicle due to his dizzy spells, and Hen could then return the chair to the lobby.

Bobby handed his card over to Pepa and said, “If he needs anything at all, feel free to call.”

She took the card with a nod, and as she got in the car, she passed the card to Eddie. By the time they got back home, Eddie was about ready to sleep.

She pulled up inside the garage as she had been instructed to by Buck. There was an internal access door that would be easier for Eddie to navigate. Before she had even pulled the car to a stop, Buck barrelled through the interior door with Shannon hot on his heels.

Pepa got out of the car and said, “He’s fine; you can both stop panicking.”

Buck crouched down in front of Eddie, and he gave his questioning hand sign. They often used it in the field to question if things were okay or if an injury was serious, especially if they’d been separated and weren’t close enough to hear each other. Eddie gave the ‘okay’ sign in return with a smile.

Shannon said, “If you help him inside, I’ll dig out the whiteboard and pens that I have stashed in the workshop. They will be easier for him than pen and paper.”

Buck nodded, and he made a circular motion with his finger while looking at his husband and got a sad thumbs up in response. He reached in and helped Eddie out of the car, before he picked him up bridal style to carry him through the house.

When Buck put him down on the sofa in the living room, Christopher leaped up from where he was coloring with Carla and yelled, “Daddy! He stopped beside Buck, who had stood after getting his husband situated, and he asked, “What’s wrong with Daddy?”

Buck explained, “He had an accident at work that hurt his ears, so he can’t hear us right now. He’s also a bit sore, and he has a concussion, so be careful when you snuggle with him, okay, superman?”

Christopher cheekily saluted and carefully climbed up to snuggle in beside his dad. They’d been teaching him some of their hand signals, so he signed, ‘Okay?’

Eddie grinned and gave the ‘Okay’ sign in return. He tried to modulate his voice to a normal volume, and hoping he wasn’t too loud, he said in a raspy voice, “I’ll be fine, mijo.”

Buck suggested, “How about you sit here and make sure he doesn’t move, while I talk to Tia Pepa and check out his discharge instructions.”

Shannon had returned with the whiteboards, and she’d written, ‘Do you want me to call Vala?’

Eddie laughed and wiped down the board before he wrote, ‘I’ll be fine; it’s just temporary. If I develop an infection, then maybe.’

She nodded and handed the other pens to Christopher so he could use the whiteboard to doodle while Buck talked to Tia Pepa.

She reassured the taller man, “He’ll be fine, sobrino. He just needs a few day’s rest, and you have plenty of helpers to help him during the day while you’re at the academy.” She handed over the paperwork, as she knew it would go into their files upstairs in their shared office space. “His scans all came back clear; the concussion is just going to give him a thumping headache for a few days. The deafness is the harder one. You’ll need to watch his ears carefully to ensure he doesn’t get an infection. That could cause more permanent issues.”

Buck nodded. “Thank you for going to get him. We didn’t want to run the risk of his team seeing me.”

Pepa gave him a confused look, and she said, “But they seem so nice.”

“They are,” Buck admitted. “But they also gossip, and we’ve decided that we don’t want to disclose our marriage. It’s why I haven’t been to visit him at work.”

She cupped his cheek and muttered, “The games you both play. They’ll bite you in the ass one day.”

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - March 2018

Eddie had only been back at work for a week after his accident, and he was having fun with Hen on the Xbox. 

Hen was trying to steal his controller after he drove a fire engine the wrong way for the third time in the game, and it was turning into a proper wrestling match when they both froze when they saw Chim come up the stairs in his civilian clothes. They both looked at each other, as their shift was due to start in five minutes, and he wasn’t in uniform.

They approached the older man as he was rooting around in the fridge, and Hen asked in a gentle voice, “What’s wrong? You okay?”

Chim ignored them and walked behind the kitchen island with his drink.

Eddie asked, “What’s going on, Chim?”

Chim slammed the bottle down harder than he needed to on the counter and demanded, “I’m a good-looking guy, right?” He took a calming breath before he added, “I mean, you can do a lot worse than me? Yeah?”

Hen snorted. “Chimney, I’ve done a whole lot worse than you.”

Chim looked at Eddie imploringly, and he asked in a quiet voice, “Eddie, do you think I’d be a good father?”

Eddie wasn’t sure. He’d never seen Chim interact with the kids on their callouts, and he wasn’t sure if he’d trust the older man with Christopher. But then he remembered he’d had his own doubts about being a dad, and Hen had no issues with Chim being around her son, so he said, “Of course, Chim.”

Hen narrowed her eyes and asked, “What’s this about?”

Chim explained how he had proposed to his girlfriend, Tatiana, and rather than say yes, she’d confessed to cheating on a previous fiancé, a man Chim had never heard about before now. She’d also mentioned breaking up, so he really wasn’t sure where things stood.

Bobby had been standing off to the side stirring what smelled like a delicious chili, and he commented quietly, “It’s probably for the best.”

Eddie watched as Chim and the captain argued, and when Bobby mentioned that Chim was a different person for her, he asked Hen, “What’s Bobby talking about?”

Hen murmured, “She’s a badge and ladder bunny.” At his confused look, she explained, “She has a kink for firefighters and cops. Chim has been feeding this with elaborate stories about his work exploits, and apparently, Bobby has been making extra food for him, and he’s been passing it off as his own.”

Eddie gave her an incredulous look just as Chim exploded, “I feel real bad for your wife. I really do. It must be tough living with someone who thinks he’s right all the time.”

As Chim stormed off in anger, Hen asked, “Where are you going?”

“I need some air,” He snapped as he walked downstairs to the carpark.

Hen took the barstool beside Eddie and murmured, “Do you think he realizes he’s supposed to have started his shift five minutes ago?”

Eddie shrugged. After a glance at Bobby and the blank look on their captain’s face, he commented, “Would you want him on a call in that mood. He’s more likely to snap at the patients than help them, to be honest.”
 
Hen conceded, “You’re right.” She looked at Bobby and asked, “Are you okay, cap?”

Bobby nodded. “Yep, just trying to figure out if I need to add more paprika to this chili.”

Eddie raised his eyebrows, he knew that wasn’t it, but he also learned from the background check that had been run on the captain that his wife and kids had died several years ago, and that it was clear Bobby hadn’t shared that information with the rest of the team. So to accept the deflection, he suggested, “What about a touch of coriander? My abuela swears by it in her chili.”

Bobby smiled. “That might actually work. Thanks, Eddie.”

An hour later, Eddie heard a shout from the garage floor. He stood with Hen and approached the railing as he asked, “What’s going on?”

Bobby called, “Everyone, gear up!”

Eddie looked around in confusion, and he could see he wasn’t the only one to do so. He asked, “Bobby, we haven’t had an alarm.”

Bobby looked up at him and said, “I know, but it’s Chimney.” 

The alarms went off right then, and knowing it was one of their own, they all scrambled to get dressed into their turnout gear and into the trucks.

As they raced to the site, Eddie asked, “What do we know?”

Bobby shrugged from the driver’s seat of the ladder truck and admitted, “I don’t know much, just that Chim was in a car accident, and he’s asked for us.”

Eddie was the first out of the truck when they arrived on the scene. He ran past the captain of the 122 who had approached to update Bobby. When he saw Chim, he gasped. “Fuck.”

Bobby had managed to get Hen to hang back, but as he stood beside Eddie, he said, “You got that right. Any ideas?”

Eddie asked, “Chim, how are you doing?”

Chim glanced over at them as much as he could and said, “I’m okay, but I can’t move my neck.”

Hen had climbed into the other side of the wrecked car, and after a brief check over and chat with Chim, she reported, “He’s alert and talking, doesn’t appear to be in any pain.”

Eddie muttered, “I know the brain has no nociceptors, so it can’t feel pain, but surely he has to know what’s going on.”

Bobby dragged him away from the car and said, “I don’t think Chim has registered just what a mess he’s in right now. And that’s going to make it even harder for us to get him to the hospital.”

Eddie said, “He’s okay right now, so we get him secure and call a tow truck. We’ll do the extraction at the hospital, where he will be closer to emergency care. Maybe with the surgeon supervising.”

Bobby nodded, and he went to call in the tow truck as Eddie got to work securing Chim to the car seat, so he didn’t move or get jolted on the drive. He knew it would be important that the older paramedic knew just how precarious his situation was, so in as calm a voice as possible, he asked, “Chim, you doing ok in there?”

Chim said, “I want to know what’s going on, why you all look scared.”

Eddie pulled out his phone and filmed Chim, so his colleague could see what was going on from his point of view. As he showed him the video, Hen kept him still as Eddie reassured, “I know you’re worried, and our worry isn’t helping. We are working on getting you out of here, but for that to happen, we need to transport you to the hospital.”

Chim’s eyes widened as he asked, “Is that rebar? Holy crap, how am I not dead?”

Hen said, “You’re the luckiest and unluckiest son of a bitch on the face of the earth all at the same time.”

Eddie grinned. “She’s not wrong.” He dropped the strops and ropes he’d grabbed from the truck as he said, “Right. So Hen and I are going to secure you to the seat, and Bobby is calling a tow truck to get you to the hospital before we deal with the rebar. Okay?”

Chim took a deep breath to try and calm himself before he said, “Fine. Yep, that sounds perfect. Are you sure you know what you’re doing here, Eddie?”

Eddie smirked. “This isn’t even close to my top ten on my hairiest rescues list. You’re still breathing and still talking.”

Hen said, “I’d love to hear about some of those other rescues sometime.”

Eddie shook his head. “Sorry, Hen, as much as I’d love to share, they’re all classified. Most of them are classified beyond top secret, to be honest.” He passed a padded strap through the car to Hen and said, “Let’s get this strap around his neck before we secure his torso to the seat. It looks like the tow truck is here.”

Hen said, “I’m going to ride with him to the hospital, if you and Bobby can escort us in the truck and the ambulance.”

Eddie nodded. “Sure thing. We’ll see you there, Chim.”

They left him at the doors, as they had been trained to do, but it was hard, knowing he was one of their own. The rest of the shift was calm, which was a relief as they waited for news from the hospital.

Bobby called them together at the end of their shift and reported, “He’s made it through the surgery. As we expected, there were complications, and he’s in a medically induced coma to give his brain a chance to recover.”

At the same time, Eddie and Hen asked, “Can we visit him?”

Bobby shook his head. “Not for a few days. They’ve reached out to his next of kin, and it’s up to her when we can visit.”

Hen scowled. “Have you heard from her?”

Bobby shook his head. “I left a message, but she hasn’t got back to me yet. I’ll visit her tomorrow to make sure she’s okay.”

They visited a few days later, once they got approval from the hospital, Chim’s doctors were hoping some familiar voices might bring the paramedic out of the coma. They had stopped the drugs keeping him under the day before, but he hadn’t woken up yet. 

Bobby’s visit to Tatiana hadn’t gone well; he arrived as she was packing her things and moving out of the apartment. He wasn’t sure if she had told Chim she was leaving, but he knew it would be a blow to the paramedic for it to happen while he was in a coma.
 
The nurse warned them as they approached the room, “He’s breathing on his own, but he’s yet to wake up. You’ve got two minutes before I have to kick you all out.”

Bobby said, “Thanks. We appreciate it.”

They all got comfortable around Chim, and Eddie said, “You have to wake up, Chim.”

Hen said quietly, “He’s just being his usual stubborn self. Give him time; he’ll wake up.”

Bobby smirked as he quietly held Chim’s hand. He could feel the man give him brief squeezes as if to say he was there and listening.

Eddie thought he would try bargaining, so he offered, “How about when you’re back at work, I start teaching you some of the rope work, get you certified for some of the more hairy maneuvers.”

Hen raised her eyebrows. “No. Are you even certified to teach him that?”

Bobby grinned. “He is, actually. He was one of the trainers at his last station due to his military history. The brass has been contacting me about taking probies for a few weeks now so he can start training them. But I am holding out for now, at least until Eddie gives me the word that he’s ready to start teaching again.”

Eddie shrugged. “Not yet. I’m enjoying the break, to be honest.”
-x-

The rest of the year went reasonably smoothly. Chim took a few months to return to work with just a single scar in the center of his forehead. Aside from Tatiana breaking up with him while he was in a coma, he had no long-term side effects from the accident. 

Buck graduated with his fire science degree with honors, of course, and he’d started the fire academy in March. The hardest part of the academy for him was getting used to answering to Buckley. He hadn’t been Buckley since he’d left PA all those years ago. Thankfully, Buck wasn’t much different from Buckley, so it wasn’t too much of a stretch.

Over the year, Eddie got to know the others in the 118, and Buck had encouraged him to join them when they went out drinking. Mostly so he could troll them, especially after a few members of the squad had started to get a bit pointed with the comments about his private life and how little he shared with the team. Vala and Shannon made the most of picking him up when he was done for the night; they would drop into the bars to pick him up, usually dressed to look different each time. 

Vala had more fun with it than her girlfriend. Shannon would just walk in, find Eddie and drag him out of the bar. However, Vala would put her acting skills to full use, and she would flirt shamelessly with him first before dragging him to their car.

Near the end of Eddie’s first year, the A shift were gathered around the table eating a very greasy breakfast to try and stave off the hangovers all but Bobby was feeling. They had gone out drinking the night before, due to a very difficult call where they lost an entire family in an apartment building because they couldn’t get to them through the flames.

Chimney asked, “Eddie, how do you do it?”

“Do what?” Eddie asked. He had a feeling he was missing part of the conversation, but as far as he was concerned, there didn’t seem to be enough coffee in the world to wake him up that day.

The older man said, “Every time we go out drinking, you take a different girl home. How do you do it?”

Eddie raised an eyebrow. “Seriously? It’s not like it’s hard.”

Hen snorted at the incredulous look on Chimney’s face. “Nice one.”

Bobby said, “Now, now, Chim. If Eddie wants to take a different girl home each night, that’s up to him, as long as it doesn’t affect his work, which it hasn’t.”

Chim muttered, “I don’t get it; what does he have that I don’t.”

Hen said, “Charm.” At the same time as Bobby said, “Genetics.”

Eddie chuckled, and with a shrug, he said, “I don’t know how I do it. I don’t go out with the intention of taking a different woman home each night; it just happens.” Which is entirely accurate, since he’s never sure who’s picking him up after the drinks, nor what they’ll look like at the time. He knew Vala had been having fun dressing them up to look different each time.

Chim eventually dropped the subject, and he took up muttering whenever Eddie left the bar with one of his conquests.

Vala tried to convince Buck to dress up and pick Eddie up at the bar, just for the entertainment value, but he didn’t want to wear the amount of makeup he would need to cover his tattoos.

-x-

Buck already had a good idea where the office was for Captain Nash when it was time for his interview. Eddie was waiting outside, as Buck had arranged his interview for a day when the A shift had a day off. Eddie had recommended that they come clean to the captain, so he would be able to help them keep their cover.

They also had a contingency plan, if Bobby wouldn’t let them work together.

Buck knocked on the door and asked, “Captain Nash?”

Bobby looked up from his paperwork, and he waved Buck into the room. He looked down at the resume sitting on the edge of his desk, and he asked, “Firefighter Buckley?”

Buck nodded as he took a seat. “That’s me; you can just call me Buck, though. In fact, I’d prefer it.”

The captain nodded, and he looked down at the resume to have another read-through. “You’ve taken the last year off to do extra training after you moved to LA, and you’ve graduated top of each course you did, which has given you the pick of stations once you were ready to start working. So, I have to ask why the 118?”

Buck put on his best poker face and admitted, “I’ve heard many good things about this station. It has a reputation for having a family feel. That’s what I want.”

Bobby took him through the basic interview questions, trying to break through the mask he was wearing to find the firefighter underneath. Eventually, he’d decided he would offer the kid a job, so he said, “Well, the position is yours, if you want it.”

Buck smiled. “I do. But I need to be straight with you. And for that, I need to send a text to get my partner in here.”

Bobby frowned in confusion, but he said, “Go ahead, kid.”

Buck sent off his text, and a few minutes later, Eddie walked into the office and sat down next to Buck.

Bobby asked, “Eddie?”

Eddie chuckled. He said, “I’d like to introduce you to my husband. Evan Sheppard. He was the commander of the SEAL team I served with for the last five years.”

Bobby sat back in his chair, looking stunned. He stammered, “W- what?”

Buck said, “For reasons that shall remain classified, I have two identities. Evan Buckley, which was created specifically for our transition to civilian life, and Evan Sheppard, my actual identity.” He handed over a second resume. “This is the resume for Evan Sheppard.”

Bobby took a few minutes to read through it before he gave the kid a skeptical look and asked, “Why the hell do you want to be a firefighter with these qualifications? And why are you both telling me all this?” He looked at Eddie and said, “Wait, what’s with the parade of one-night stands if you’re married?”

Eddie laughed. “I can actually answer all of those questions.” He ticked off on his fingers as he explained, “For why he wants to be a firefighter, Buck needs to do something other than his engineering and design work. He gets bored when he’s cooped up in the workshop all day, and that can be dangerous. So the firefighting stops him from blowing shit up to see what happens.” 

He tapped two fingers across and said, “The one-night stands were all the same two girls dressing up. It was Christopher’s mother and her girlfriend; Christopher is our son. The hazing and the comments about all the girls that were hitting on me on calls annoyed me. To be honest, they acted like there was something wrong with me because I wouldn’t call the girls. None of you bothered to ask if there was someone at home, and while you didn’t say anything, you didn’t stop them either, not even when the comments from Chim and Hen were getting a bit pointed and on the edge of caustic. So like a normal person, I ranted about it at home. Shannon and Vala were trolling y’all and having way too much fun at it. Just be glad they couldn’t convince Buck to cover his tattoos with makeup.”

Bobby said, “You objected to the makeup, not the skirts?”

Buck shrugged. “I’ve dressed in drag before. But the makeup, that’s just awful to remove at the end of the day. My skin ends up all raw from scrubbing it off.”

Eddie ticked off the middle finger as he said, “As for why we are telling you. We thought full disclosure to you, and you alone was important. We have decided we are not disclosing our marriage to the firehouse, as there are a few who don’t mind lesbians, but still mouth off about the gay couples around them.”

Buck said, “We thought it would be important for you to know my history, because our former team was a search and rescue unit, and we worked in some pretty tough environments for the last five years. So there will likely be times when I can see an angle that you might not think of. And if you thought all I had was the fire science degree and drifting around the states before that, you’d dismiss me and piss me off. It will be a rough transition for me to remember that I’m not the commander after five years in charge. It’s why I took a year to study before joining Eddie.”

Eddie said, “We work well together, and most of the time, we can communicate without actually speaking to each other. Our team called it creepy.”

Bobby nodded. “How about we agree to a trial period?”

It had been awful working without his husband for the last year, so Eddie said, “As long as you understand, it’ll be for both of us. Where he goes, I go.”

Buck nodded his agreement to the statement.

Bobby agreed. “Sure. If I don’t think it’s working. I’ll work with you both to find a new firehouse.” He saw the brief smirks on both of their faces, so he asked, “Oh boy, what mischief are you two planning?”

Eddie said, “Hate at first sight?”

Buck grinned. “It worked on that mission when we had to save Goddard’s team that time. But maybe just for a few days. You mentioned Chimney is known for sticking to his first impressions, even when he’s wrong.”

Bobby nodded. “He does. It’s his biggest flaw.”

Eddie shook his head. “Second biggest. His biggest problem is his inability to read a room.”

“Oh boy,” Buck said. “I can work with that. He doesn’t have any of the phobias?”

Eddie laughed. “Hell no. Hen would slap him so hard upside the head that he’d be seeing stars.”

Bobby asked, “The phobias?”

Eddie said, “It’s what we call the bigotries: homophobia, xenophobia, etc. A member of Buck’s team before we transferred was beyond homophobic. As someone put it, he was one bad mission away from a gay-bashing. It’s why we kept our relationship a secret when we worked on the same base in Afghanistan.”

Buck said, “It’s where we met. I got shrapnel from a grenade in my arm, and Eddie was nice enough to listen to my abysmal efforts at flirting as he stitched me up.”

Eddie blushed. “They weren’t that bad.”

Bobby gestured between the two of them and commented, “Well, bad or not, they clearly worked.” He gave them both a considering look before he said, “Have your fun, just don’t take it too far. Okay?”

The couple agreed readily. “We won’t.”

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - September 2018

Eddie walked into the station on Buck's first day. His husband had gone in earlier to get his uniform all squared away. He saw Hen and Chim chatting beside one of the engines, so he walked across to join them before they would all go and get changed.

They were talking about the chaos of the last shift when Chim looked past him, and with an appreciative look on his face, he commented, "Okay. That is a beautiful man."

Hen looked over, and she nodded. "Where's the lie? And I like girls."

Eddie turned to see his husband pulling on an LAFD tee shirt that was so tight it may as well have been painted on. He put their plan into action, and with a sneer on his face, he growled, "Who the hell is that?"

With a bemused look on his face, Bobby approached them and said, "Evan Buckley, our new transfer. He prefers Buck. He's spent the last six months at the academy doing advanced training, graduating each course at the top of his class."

As he tried to make himself sound bitter, Eddie asked, "What do we need him for?"

Bobby chuckled, "He recently gained his fire science degree, something this station's been lacking ever since Coles retired. Come on, I'll introduce you."

Hen and Chim gave each other smug looks as they followed the captain. If there was one thing Eddie knew, it was that his colleagues thrived on drama. Eddie appreciated that Bobby only mentioned Buck having a fire science degree and not the fact it was a Master's degree. They'd talked about keeping Buck's intelligence on the down-low, but they weren't sure if the captain would follow their lead. He followed the group over, looking mutinous on the outside. On the inside, he was drooling at just how hot his husband looked in the LAFD uniform.

The alarms went off just after the introductions, and they were heading across town towards their first emergency. The calls on Buck's first day came in pretty fast, with a couple of fires and a small pileup with five cars involved. Buck and Eddie spent that entire first shift acting standoffish and barely speaking. When the others weren't looking, they were shooting each other amused looks, and they could see Bobby struggling at times to keep the laughter in.

They had decided that they would drive separately to and from work for the first few months. Eddie in his beloved truck, and Buck in a Jeep he bought because it reminded him of the one his sister used to own. So they drove home at the end of the first 24-hour shift, heading away from the station in different directions.

When Buck pulled into the garage, he noticed the unfamiliar car parked on their driveway. He turned to Eddie when he pulled in beside him, and once Eddie was out of the car, he asked, "Anyone you know?"

Eddie shook his head. "I've not seen it before. But I did notice it's a rental."

Buck wrapped his arm around his husband's shoulder and murmured, "Today was fun. They have no idea."

Eddie shook his head with a chuckle, and with his arm around Buck's waist, he guided them into the house. 

Carla met them in the entryway and said, "Your son is doing his homework in his room, and I put your guest in the living room. She was on the approved list. I'll just let Christopher know I'm leaving, and then I'll get out of your hair."

Eddie said, "Thanks, Carla. We'll see you tomorrow morning." He turned to Buck and said, "We should check on our guest."

Buck nodded. He commented, "I just hope it's not someone from the SGC pulling us back."

They walked through to the living room, and Buck cried, "Maddie!"

She turned and faced the men entering the living room; she hadn't heard them approaching. "Wow, Evan, you got so tall."

Buck said, "It's Buck, please. I haven't been called Evan since I left Hershey."

Maddie frowned and asked, "When was that exactly. Because for years, whenever I asked Mom and Dad about you, they acted as if they'd never heard of you."

Eddie coughed into his hand and said, "I'm just going to check on Christopher, and then I'll call Colonel Davis. I think you'll need the paperwork sooner rather than later. How about you dish up the dinner Carla left for us, and we can talk and eat."

"Thanks, dulzura." Buck gave him a quick kiss as he left the room, then he motioned for Maddie to follow him through to the kitchen.

Buck said, "There is a lot I can't tell you until you've signed some paperwork." When he saw her about to protest, he said, "I know how frustrating that is, trust me. What I can tell you is that in 2004, after Phillip and Margaret Buckley forced me to turn down an invitation to attend MIT under a full scholarship, I left Hershey."

Maddie gasped. "Are you serious?"

Buck nodded. "That house was hell after you left. I found out through ways I can't explain that the Buckley's weren't my biological parents, so I left."

Maddie nodded. "Good. I can't believe they did that. I'm so sorry I left you there alone." She looked around the room at the various certificates, and she asked, "So I'm guessing you ended up at MIT anyway?"

Buck smiled, "I did. I was there for five years before I graduated with a doctorate and was ABD in my second doctorate. I needed more in my life though, so I joined the Navy SEALs."

Eddie walked into the room with their son. He said, "He basically stayed at MIT until he was old enough to join the Navy SEALs under the civilian challenge contract."

"And you're now a firefighter?" Maddie asked. "Your carer, Carla, was telling me you were both stationed at the 118?"

Buck nodded. "Yep. I think I'm going to really enjoy it." He looked over at Eddie and Christopher and asked, "Everything okay?"

Eddie nodded as he took a seat at the table to eat, "Jack's on his way with Daniel, and Christopher wanted to say goodnight to his Papa."

Buck picked up Christopher and sat him on his lap. He said, "Maddie, this is my husband Eddie and our son Christopher. I'm not sure if you met him earlier." He leaned down and said, "Christopher, this is your Tia Maddie."

Maddie shook her head. "I only arrived about 20 minutes before you. It's nice to meet you both." She looked between Buck and Eddie and noticed just how comfortable they were with each other. She asked, "How long have you been married?"

Eddie grinned, "Four years next month. We got married as soon as it was legal."

Christopher overcame his shyness and said, "I protected the rings."

Buck commented, "The cutest little ring bearer ever."

Jack, Daniel, and Paul entered the room, and Christopher wriggled down and yelled, "Grandpa Jack!"

Jack picked him up and gave him a cuddle. He said, "Hey kiddo, how you doing? I feel like it's been ages since I last saw you."

Christopher sighed, "It's been forever!" He glanced at Paul and his briefcase as he asked, "You need to do adult stuff?"

Jack nodded. "Do you have homework to do?"

Christopher shook his head. "I finished it all, which is good because it's my bedtime. I just came down to give Papa a hug."

As Jack put him down and steadied him, Buck called out, "No trying to sneak into the workshop while we're talking, kiddo."

Christopher grinned. "The workshop won't let me. And I haven't figured out how to hack it yet. I promise I won't try today, okay?"

Eddie warned, "No loopholes either."

"Fine," Christopher said with a roll of his eyes as he left the room.

Maddie chuckled. "He reminds me of you at that age, Buck."

With a grin, Daniel said, "People get so confused when they are introduced to Christopher and his three parents. Especially with how he looks like a perfect mixture of the three of them."

Maddie asked, "Oh?"

Eddie explained, "I had him with my best friend, Shannon; then, when I introduced Shannon and Buck not long after the kid was born, she practically ordered me to adopt him as Christopher's other dad. People also struggle to work out who his biological parents are since he was raised from practically birth that Shannon is Mom, I'm Dad, and Buck is Papa. Shannon spends part of her time here and part of her time out of state working on a top-secret project."

Jack said, "That's where I come in."

Maddie said hesitantly. "Okay?"

He said, "Before I can really explain, I need you to read through and sign an NDA. It's the same one everyone else in the room has signed. Even Christopher has signed one."

She gave him a look of disbelief as she said, "He's a child."

Buck snorted. "A brilliant child who knows some very big secrets. Trust me, Mads, and sign the NDA."

"Okay," Maddie agreed. She wasn't sure why she needed to sign an NDA to stay with her brother for a few days, but she decided to trust him. Even if he apparently isn't her brother biologically, she spent his first eight years being his big sister.

When Paul handed over the extensive document, she pushed aside her plate and asked, "Does it basically say keep your mouth shut, or you'll end up in a deep dark hole never to see the light of day again?" She saw them all nod in agreement, so she turned to the pages with post-it flags and signed her name before handing the document back.

Paul said, "Thank you. Let me just go and arrange the disbelief breaker, then General O'Neill and Dr. Jackson will explain why they are here."

He left the room for a few minutes before entering again and said, "Colonel Caldwell is ready. If everyone could please come and stand beside me." He glanced at Eddie when he and Buck hesitated and looked up the stairs to where their son was sleeping, and he reassured, "Shannon and Vala arrived while I was outside making my call. They said they would stay with him while we are busy."

Buck nodded. When they were all gathered, Paul activated his radio and said, "Six to beam up, Colonel Caldwell."

Maddie jumped in fright when she was surrounded by a bright light, and she blinked as she realized they had been beamed like a sci-fi show. She asked, "What the hell?"

Buck turned her, so she was facing the windows, so she could see the earth below them. He said, "This is why we needed you to sign the NDA. We know some big, beautiful secrets. And some of the projects I work on in the house are part of this project."

Maddie blinked at the view, then back at her little brother. She was stunned, and she asked, "So the reason you were vague about why you left home is because of all this?"

Buck nodded. "My conception was a bit unusual."

Jack snorted. "That's one way of putting it. I still say it's because your dad was touching things willy-nilly, and that's how he activated one of the crazy machines Janus built."

Eddie said, "Buck is a pod baby, so he wasn't born, he was created. The machine John activated works on love, at least as far as they can find out. They are still researching. So Buck is the only person on planet earth who biologically has two dads."

Maddie grinned. "That's really cool. I'm guessing one's super smart and one's super crazy?"

Daniel nodded. "That about sums it up. Buck is an interesting combination of the two of them. I don't know any other academics who use C4 as a fidget toy."

Maddie asked, "Can I see something you've worked on?"

Buck looked over at the colonel and asked, "Are the F-303s onboard?"

Colonel Caldwell nodded. "Your experimental craft is also on board. Mitchell was doing some testing for you. It's down in hangar bay four."

As they walked down to the hangar, Buck said, "The F-303 is one of our attack aircraft. They are designed to be speedy and agile, good against the Death Gliders the Lucian Alliance use." At her questioning glance, he explained, "Space pirates, they are more mercenary than organized, but they are a problem."

Maddie nodded. "It's unreal to find out that there are other worlds out there, that the Stargate Project is fighting a war that no one is aware of. I mean, how many times has earth nearly been invaded?"

Eddie said, "Six, I think, since we joined the program."

Jack snarked, "I've lost count. So what's new on this model, Buckaroo?"

Buck commented, "Just a change in the outer hull to try and give it more maneuverability. And a small change to the engine, so the mechanics stop swearing at me."

The general asked, "Has your dad taken one for a fly yet?"

Buck shook his head. "Not yet. I think there are three being built now for Atlantis, so he'll nab one of those for himself."

Maddie asked, "Do you fly?"

Buck shook his head. "Only the Puddle Jumpers, they fly by thought, which is a trip. I haven't had time to learn to fly actual planes. Not with all the other stuff I have going on."

They entered the hangar, and several types of small aircraft were in the bay. Buck led the small group over to one that had equipment laid out beside it. He said, "This is the F-303, I designed the engine and the outer hull, and my team designed the rest. They are fabricated and assembled at Area 51."

She asked, "Can I touch it?"

"Yeah, Mads," Buck said with a grin. "Go ahead. The metal on the outside, Paglanyx, is not actually found on earth, and it's warm to the touch. It stays that temperature no matter what, which is great for the aerodynamics."

Maddie frowned, she didn't remember many of her physics lessons, but she knew that would make it hard to work with the metal, so she asked, "How do you form the metal if it doesn't change when you heat it?"

Buck said, "The planet we source the Paglanyx from has a solution we can soak it in. It alters the metal so we can alter its shape and reform it, then it's dipped in another solution to change the properties, so it holds its shape and heat. It's pretty awesome. It means the metal stays at a constant temperature, even in space."

Eddie said, "One of the engineers used an off-cut to make a warming stone for his pet snake. The snake adores it."

Jack said, "We should head back; we still have more to discuss."

As they walked back to the bridge, Maddie whispered, "This is so surreal."

Buck nodded. "Yeah, but it's so cool."

Eventually, they were settled back in the living room. Buck and Eddie had split off when they arrived, to give Christopher a cuddle and a chapter of his current book before he went to bed.

When they came back downstairs, Eddie and Buck had Shannon and Vala with them. After the introductions, Jack said, "So, I'm not known for my tact, so I'm just going to come out and say it. After you left, your husband, Doug, approached your ex-boss, Laurie, and attempted to threaten and beat her to get your location. He was being followed by one of our covert teams from the time you left, so he was arrested as soon as he attempted to throw the first punch."

Maddie gasped. "Is Laurie okay?"

Jack nodded. "She was a bit shaken, but she's fine. We've let her know you're fine and that you're safe with your brother. He's being charged with spousal abuse, and assault and battery. He's going away for a while, Maddie. With the charges he is facing, he will struggle to get bail."

Maddie sagged in her seat and whispered, "It's over?"

Shannon and Vala moved to sit on either side of her and pulled her into a hug. Vala said, "It's really over, darling. He won't get close enough to hurt you again."

Maddie looked at Jack and asked, "Why do all this? Why now?"

Jack was about to speak, but Buck held his hand up and said, "Let me." At Jack's nod, he said, "We received a warning from the woman who placed me with the Buckleys. But after talking to a few people, they made it clear the decision to leave had to be yours. If we had arrested him before you were ready, you would have resented the fuck out of me and everyone else. Both for taking away both your choices and your husband. So I talked to Jack, and we made a plan. I started the postcard campaign to let you know you had a safe place to land. As soon as you made the decision to head to LA, Doug was put under active surveillance to make sure he didn't follow you."

Eddie said, "If he had, he would have been in for a rude awakening."

Maddie asked. "What do you mean?"

Shannon said, "Buck here is very protective of those he considers his. And he definitely considers you his, even if you're not blood-related. The second Doug threatened you or tried anything on you, Buck and Eddie would put him down, hard."

Buck shrugged. "Why suffer threats?" He wanted to change the subject, so he said, "There is a room here for you if you want it. Once you've had a chance to come down from high alert, we can discuss what you want to do next. We've also hired a former colleague of mine who now works in personal security. He's unobtrusive and will keep you safe."

"Thank you," Maddie said gratefully. "It'll be nice to just exist for a while without having to watch my every move."

Shannon said, "How about we show her up to her room?"

Buck nodded. "Thanks, Shan." He looked at his sister and said, "I will probably be in the workshop tomorrow with Eddie, as we are working on a project in our off time."

Shannon said, "I'll point out the entrance on the way up to your room. Is Max coming over tomorrow for the introduction?"

Buck nodded in confirmation as he sent Max a text to confirm his arrival first thing in the morning.

-x-

When Maddie came into the workshop the next day, Buck noted that she looked much less stressed than when she arrived. He asked, "How are you feeling?"

Maddie grinned. "I feel free, actually." She looked over the puddle jumper sitting in the center of the workshop and asked, "So what's this?"

Buck said, "This is a puddle jumper. It's designed to go through the Stargate. Especially useful for the gates that are in space."

Maddie asked, "Is it supposed to talk to me?"

Eddie snorted. "Technically, no. But it would answer quite a few questions."

"Like why I ended up with the Buckleys," Buck snarked. "I wonder how strong her expression of the ATA gene is?"

Maddie asked, "That's the gene that lets you use the ancient equipment, right?"

Eddie nodded. He picked up a small device from the table he was sitting at and passed it to her. He said, "This is a children's toy; it's like a Rubik's cube, sort of. Just think 'on' at it to activate it."

She looked at it and scrunched up her nose as she thought, 'on.' She grinned when it activated, and she started to play with the lights to try and solve it. She said, "This is fun."

Buck nodded. "The ancients excel in creating interesting inventions, like the one that created me. They've also created some terrifying things in their time."

Maddie frowned and asked, "Like what?"

Eddie said, "The wraith, they were a genetics experiment by the ancients. They are basically psychopaths that look like Marilyn Manson, and they feed on humans. They eventually chased the ancients out of the Pegasus Galaxy."

Buck snarked, "The things they created to try and defeat the wraith before they left just caused more issues."

Maddie said, "That sounds terrifying. And you dealt with that while you were with the SGC?"

Both men shook their heads. Buck said, "No; we were based in the Milky Way Galaxy. So we dealt with the Lucian Alliance; basically mercenary space pirates."

She laughed. "I can't believe that's actually a thing."

Eddie said, "Vala was a space pirate, not part of the Lucien Alliance, but she was good enough to steal one of our battlecruisers."

Maddie's jaw dropped, "But she seems so sweet."

Buck and Eddie both laughed. Buck said, "She is sweet, until she's not. When she told you that Doug wouldn't hurt you again last night; it's because she'll kill him before he gets close; Shannon will probably be her alibi."

She gestured to the puddle jumper and asked, "So can I ask about the project you're working on?"

Buck pushed back his chair and said, "The puddle jumpers can only be flown by those with a strong expression of the ATA gene. Which is rare within the Stargate Program. So I'm working on a version that can be flown by everyone so we can install a fleet of them at the mountain, and dad would like to have more on Atlantis for the teams that don't have gene carriers."

When the workshop door opened, they all looked over and watched as an average unassuming man walked in with Shannon.

Buck grinned. "Max, it's good to see you."

The man, Max, smiled. "It's been a while, Sheppard." He looked over at Maddie and asked, "So this is your sister that I've heard all about?"

She held her hand out, "I'm Maddie Buckley. I hear you're my guard until the asshole I married is permanently behind bars."

Max nodded. "That's the plan. Buck said you're a nurse, which is why he requested me specifically. I was a nurse before joining the Marines, and I keep my registration current."

She really wasn't sure she could go back to nursing. The only reason she'd kept with it was because Doug refused to accept her wish to change careers. His idea of perfect was being the head surgeon at his hospital with his nurse wife by his side. So Maddie said, "I'm not… I don't want to be a nurse anymore. I don't know what I want to do, but it's not nursing."

Eddie suggested, "I have an idea. The 911 dispatch is always looking for operators, especially medically trained operators who can take the difficult calls. It's still helping people, but not as frantic as a busy emergency room."

Max said, "That's not a bad idea. They would love a nurse with your experience."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - September 2018

As they jumped out of the trucks at the small house in the suburbs, Bobby explained, "The victim has shot a practice grenade into his leg. We need to assess him before we take him to the hospital." He remembered reading on Buck's resume that he had explosives experience, so he said, "Eddie, Buck, you're with me."

Hen and Chim gave each other weird looks, wondering why the captain would want the two newbies who had been poking each other with barbs all day. Eddie made sense as he was a military medic, but they didn't understand why he took Buck as well. They eventually shrugged and worked on getting the ambulance ready for transport.

They walked through the house, calling out for the patient, until they heard a muffled voice yell, "I'm back here."

When the three men entered the small workshop, he said, "Oh, thank god."

Bobby asked, "What's your name, sir?"

The man replied, "Charlie."

"All right," Bobby said in a calming tone. "Can you tell us what happened?"

Charlie explained, "Damn grenade went off while I was taking it apart. I was cleaning it."

As Eddie crouched to check the wound, Buck asked, "What kind of grenade?"

The patient said, "A mike-mike. It's a practice round for an M grenade launcher. I picked it up at a flea market in Brea." He took a sharp intake of breath as Eddie lifted the rag he was using to put pressure on the wound. "My screwdriver must have touched the propelling charge. I…"

Eddie gave Buck a wide-eyed look. He said, "There is a lot of shrapnel in here, and it looks like the femoral artery has been nicked. But Buck, it's not a practice round. It's got a gold cap, practice rounds have blue caps. Fuck."

Buck moved to stand behind Eddie so he could get a look at the grenade. "Shit, that's a high explosive round; it's designed to penetrate armor and do a lot of damage. Bobby, you need to call in the bomb squad. I can't remove it safely without the right tools."

Bobby stepped out of the room and made the call as Buck and Eddie explained the situation to Charlie. Eddie packed the wound as best he could before he said, "We need to step out and speak to the bomb squad. Due to the proximity fuse, we can't move you until the round is out of your leg."

Charlie nodded. "I'll be fine, do what you need to do."

When they left the house, Bobby called them both over to speak to the head of the Bomb Squad. He said, "This is Jessie; he's in charge of this operation." Bobby looked over to make sure Hen and Chim were out of hearing range before he said, "This is Buck and Eddie. Both are ex-military, but Buck is our explosives expert."

Jessie tilted his head as he asked, "Cadman's protege, Buck?"

Buck smirked. "Yep. Now here's the problem. The others on my team don't know I was a SEAL; so we are playing up the dumb frat boy trying to be a firefighter. They know Eddie is ex-military, and they think we are trying to outdo each other."

Jessie asked, "I thought Cadman said you married a guy called Eddie."

Eddie laughed. "Yeah, me… but the rest of the station doesn't know that. They spent the first nine months pushing me into using the numbers I received from people on calls, without actually asking if I had a girlfriend or boyfriend at home. So they earned the trolling."

 Jessie said, "Well, if you're both happy to go in, we can kit you up and send you in. Our only other option is to call in someone from Pendleton, and that's at least an hour's wait, which if the guy has a femoral bleed, he doesn't have that much time to wait. Eddie can carry the tools as if he's doing the extraction. And Buck can carry the paramedic kit. Come on."

Buck said, "Call in Pendleton; I'll do the extraction, then they can come and pick up the round with their robots. They'll probably want to assess the rest of his collection."

Jessie agreed, so he sorted them out with the bomb disposal protection gear and the kit they would need to extract the grenade safely. Well, as safe as he could make it. Then he made the call to his counterparts at Pendleton and let them know of the situation.

Because it was expected, in front of the others, before they walked in, Bobby approached Buck within earshot of Hen and Chim and said, "It's only your second day on the job; you don't have to do this."

Buck smirked, and with a glance at Hen and Chim, who were doing a shit job of acting like they weren't listening, he said, "I'll be fine, Cap. You think I'm going to let the Army boy have all the fun?"

Eddie said, "You wanted us to bond, Cap. We might end up real close."

They chuckled at the joke as they walked through the house. They had a gurney with them that they parked outside the workshop door. They would carry the patient to the gurney once they were done.

Buck saw Charlie give their gear a worried look, but he said, "Charlie, I've been dealing with explosives since I was 14. We'll get that out of your leg and you into the ambulance." He looked around the workroom. "It's likely the bomb disposal guys will get an expert from Pendleton to go through the rest of your collection to make sure you don't have any more live rounds waiting to surprise you."

Charlie nodded. "Considering I got most of this from fairs and other collectors, that would be a good idea."

Eddie said, "I'd like to use a sedative, so you don't flinch while we remove the round from your leg. Once it's out, we'll pack the wound and get you to the hospital."

"Sure," Charlie agreed. "Whatever you need. I feel so stupid."

Buck reassured, "It's not stupid. You were sold a practice round, and information on the cap colors is something usually only the armorers or the explosives experts know about."

Once the sedative had taken effect and Charlie had passed out, Buck said, "Are you ready?"

Eddie placed his hand around the patient's leg above the wound so he could put pressure on the artery until they could pack the wound. "Ready."

Buck worked on pulling the grenade out gently. He had an ammunition box open and ready to contain the grenade sitting on the worktable beside Charlie, so it was within reach. "Okay, can you move your hand just slightly higher? The muscle is too tight around the grenade."

As he finally worked the round out of the thigh, he said, "Given the age of the grenade, it has a shitty version of the proximity sensor. So as soon as the round is in the box, seal the lid, and we'll get Charlie out of here. The guys from Pendleton can deal with the rest."

Eddie waited with his hand on the box lid, so as soon as the shell was placed in the padding, he shut the box and flicked the catch. Buck picked up Charlie in a bridal carry to get him to the gurney, where Eddie packed his leg with dressings to try and staunch the bleeding from the shrapnel. 

Eddie said, "That'll do until he's in the ambulance with Hen and Chim. You want to do the whole bonding thing out there, beside the ambulance?"

Buck smirked. "Hell yes. As hot as it is to wind you up, even if it's fake, it's going to be more fun to mess with them if they think we're BFFs."

They walked out with the gurney and passed Charlie to Hen and Chim for transport to the hospital. They stood outside the ambulance, and Eddie said, "Brother, you're a badass under pressure."

Buck grinned when he saw Chim trying to hide that he was listening in from the Ambulance door. He asked in a quiet voice, "Me?"

Eddie chuckled, and he said honestly, "Hell yeah. You can have my back any day."

Buck retorted, "Or you could have mine."

Bobby walked over and commented, "Nice work, fellas. I'm glad you both made it out of there in one piece."

Buck snarked, "The guy's a professional cap; I was never really worried."

Hen poked her head out the door and said, "We're ready for transport, Bobby."

Bobby sent them off to the hospital, then he sent Buck and Eddie to the Bomb Squad to hand back the equipment.

As Buck was taking off the specialized jacket, he asked, "So how do you know Laura?"

Jesse said, "I was in the marines with her, and we've stayed in touch. I retired from the marines just after she left for MIT. She kept me entertained with some of your exploits. I still can't believe you blew up that professor's car because he wouldn't let you test out."

Bobby had approached without any of them hearing him, and he exclaimed, "You did what?"

Buck shrugged. "He was being a dick about it, and I didn't blow up his car; I blew up his tires. Laura had been teaching me about C4 ratios to get the best bang for my buck."

Eddie asked, "Is that the incident where you had to give yourself stitches?"

"Yeah," Buck said with a huge grin. "Laura hates needles."

Bobby asked, "Do I want to know how old you were at the time?"

Buck shook his head. "No. But for the record, I was 15. I'd been at MIT for two years when it happened."

Eddie asked, "Isn't Laura coming for Christmas? I think Dave mentioned something about them both having the same leave this year."

Jesse asked, "Dave? Do you mean Commander Sheppard? She said she was working with him again on the project she'd been sucked into. That was literally all she could tell me though."

Buck and Eddie both laughed. Eddie said, "Classified projects are a bitch when you're on the outside."

Bobby muttered, "You got that right."

Buck ignored his captain's muttering and said, "Yeah. She and Uncle Dave work on the same base as my dad, John Sheppard. They are all trying to get time off for Christmas this year, since last year was so much fun. It was good to have the whole family in one place."

The group all turned when they heard a shout. "DIAZ!" 

Eddie grinned as he saw who was approaching.

Buck asked, "Is that Bailey?"

Master Sergeant Giles Bailey boomed, "It sure is, Lieutenant Sheppard." He pulled them both into tight hugs. "It's been a while since I last saw the two of you. Six years ago, when you two, Connors, Selby, and Grouch disappeared into that deep dark project. So you both resigned?"

Eddie nodded. "Yeah. Wow. That was so long ago now. When we resigned, Buck was a commander, and I was a staff sergeant."

"Wow, that's great!" The master sergeant looked them both over before he asked, "So is the rumor that you two got married true?"

Buck nodded. "It is. We were one of the first to get married in Colorado once gay marriage was legal." He knew he couldn't tell the whole truth about the wedding and the fact that one of the joint chiefs attended, so he said, "We just had a small wedding with our team and family attending."

Bobby said, "You're both fortunate Hen and Chim left the scene with Charlie. They would flip out at this information."

Buck could see the apologetic look on the master sergeant's face, so he reassured, "It's fine, Bailey."

Eddie made the introductions and then asked, "So I thought you planned to stay in the sandpit."

Bailey shrugged. "I got an offer I couldn't refuse from my old CO. He wanted me to train the newbies at Pendleton. So here I am. Side jobs like this are about exciting as it gets these days. So what happened? The call from Jesse said the guy had a grenade in his leg?"

"Yep," Eddie confirmed. "He thinks his screwdriver activated the propellant charge as he was cleaning it. He thought it was a training grenade. But Buck checked it over and said it was a live round. He removed the round, and it's currently in his workshop, secured in an ammo box on the counter."

Buck said, "We decided to leave it there, since the proximity sensors on grenades that old can be a bit finicky. Charlie also has a workshop full of ammunition from the Vietnam War that he bought at similar fairs that will need to be checked over."

Bailey grimaced, "It's still covered in blood?"

Buck nodded. "Well yeah. It was literally inside his leg, and we couldn't wait for you guys, since it had nicked his femoral artery. Charlie is on his way to the hospital with the rest of our team."

Bailey turned to the fire captain and asked, "Are you guys okay to stick around for a bit so Sheppard and Diaz can take us through to the workshop?"

Bobby said, "It's Buckley and Diaz, at least if the rest of our team appears. I'll let dispatch know we are still dealing with the explosives so they can take the three of us and the engine offline."

Bailey nodded. "Thanks. Okay, you two, come and get suited up, then we can go and look at what's going on."

As they walked over to the equipment trucks the marines had brought with them, Buck murmured to Bobby. "It's okay; the Marine's equipment is top of the line. As long as it's put on correctly, you could be standing beside the grenade when it goes off, and the suit absorbs 99% of the blast."

Bobby nodded. "Good to know. Is there somewhere I can watch the cam footage? I'd like to know you're both safe while you're in the house."

A woman spoke up beside him; she was wearing sergeants stripes. "I'm Sergeant Fairhurst. I can show you to our observation area. All four of the men going inside will have cams, and we'll have footage and audio from each."

The suits they were wearing were products of the SGC, currently only available to the military, as they took a while to make them. But they were slowly rolling them out to bomb squads around the country. Buck and Eddie went in with the master sergeant and a marine corporal to assess the workshop. 

Buck pointed out the ammo box and said, "I'm not sure how the robot will do getting in here. It's pretty cramped."

Bailey said, "We have a robot that should manage it okay." He glanced around the room, scanning with both his body cam and the hand-held camera he was operating. He commented, "I can see a few other rounds that will be a problem. The house will have to be sealed off until we can check with the owner that this is his entire collection."

Buck said, "Bobby should be able to find out what hospital he was taken to. You may need to guard the house in the meantime."

Bobby had already radioed through to Hen and got the hospital details from her. Sergeant Fairhurst said, "Thank you, Captain Nash. We'll ensure his collection is safe until he is released from the hospital."

They had been called to another job as they were packing up, and both Jesse and Bailey had handed over their numbers so the four of them could stay in touch.

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - September 2018

The first time the others on the shift got a front-row seat to just how well they worked together, was a few weeks later when a 7.1 earthquake hit LA.

Eddie was worried about Christopher. He knew their son was in school, but the phones were down, and with others in the cab, he couldn't activate his SGC comms to get someone to check on him. 

Buck asked, "You look worried; who are you trying to reach?"

Knowing it was part of the game, he said, "My son, he's seven."

Buck enthused, "You have a son? That's cool; I love kids."

"I love this one," Eddie said as he handed over his phone so Buck could see the networks were down. Buck quickly typed out a message to say they'll check in with the SGC as soon as they are alone.

Hen asked, "Does he live with you? He could come with you to the barbecues at Athena's."

Eddie nodded. "He does most of the time. I have shared custody with his mom, Shannon, and he has an aide who looks after him while I am at work."

Chim asked, "Why?"

In a cold tone that didn't inspire further questions, Eddie said, "He has Cerebral Palsy, so he needs more help than most kids." 

The 118 was dispatched to the Hollywood Palms Hotel; it had partially collapsed in the earthquake and was listing at a 45-degree angle. When they arrived, the crew followed Bobby when he checked in with the scene commander, Battalion Chief Miranda Williams. She explained that the car park had pancaked and an unknown number of people were still trapped inside the building. 

A police officer ran up to Bobby as they were still assessing the scene and said, "Follow me; you gotta see this."

They followed him around the side of the building, and he pointed to one of the penthouse floors where a man seemed to be trapped against the window. Bobby gave him a cursory look and noticed he was trapped by the furniture that had fallen behind him. He turned and found Buck and Eddie nudging each other as they looked up at the building. 

Eddie asked, "Buck, you think he's on the 11th floor?"

Buck pointed at a window, and he said, "Yeah. We could take the ladder to that fourth-floor window and climb up from there."

Bobby said, "Head on up. We'll be going in to search the ground floor. Stay in contact, and check-in with us regularly."

They sprinted to the truck to get ropes and cutting equipment as Martin worked to get the ladder into position for them. They checked each other's harnesses, and once satisfied, they made their way up the ladder and into the building.

As soon as they were out of sight of the ground, they put their earpieces in and connected their comms. The Daedalus was in orbit, and Colonel Caldwell asked, "Are you two okay? We heard you had a doozy quake down there."

Buck said, "Yeah, 7.1 according to dispatch. We're currently okay. We're in the Hollywood Palms on a rescue. A dude in the penthouse is trapped by the furniture against the window. We aren't sure about the rest of our family in town. Any chance someone could check on Christopher, Maddie, and the others at home? The cellphone networks are down."

The colonel asked, "Who is authorized to pick up Christopher?"

Eddie said, "From Colorado? Patrick, Shannon, Vala, Mitchell, and Davis."

Caldwell said, "I just got word, Buck, your sister is okay, she's at work, and their building is strengthened. We'll let you know if anything changes."

Buck gratefully said, "Thanks." He could see Eddie still looked worried, so he reassured, "Christopher should be okay since the schools all got upgraded after the Northridge quake, but it would be good to get confirmation."

Colonel Caldwell said, "General Carter is sending Vala to pick him up. She wants to know if your workshop is rated for the aftershocks or if they should head to the mountain."

Buck said, "It should be okay, but maybe head to the mountain anyway, just in case there is another bigger shake later. We'll pick him up once the main danger period has passed. Can someone message Carla Price and let her know Christopher is safe in Colorado?"

Eddie said, "Our place should be okay, as long as the elevator to the basement workshop hasn't broken in the shake, but I'd be happier if he was out of the state."  

As they climbed the internal stairwells, Buck said, "What I wouldn't give for one of dad's life signs detectors from Atlantis. They would be so useful for first responders."

Eddie agreed, he knew the SAR teams had access to thermal cameras, but the life signs detector worked much more reliably. "Is it something you can pick apart and modify for those without the ATA gene?"

"Dr. Z is already working on it," Buck stated. "He doesn't have the gene and wants something he can use, rather than having to rely on the light switches... or Miko."

Eddie laughed. "Miko would kill him if he called her a light switch."

They reached the 11th floor of the hotel, and they could hear the yelling from one of the rooms. They let Caldwell know they had reached the 11th floor and had to take out their comms, and he let them know Vala was already on the way to the school to get their son. As soon as she had him at the house, they would be beamed to Colorado for a quick checkup.

Eddie used the saw to break through the door, as the electronic locks were no longer working. As soon as he moved aside, Buck kicked in the door, and they moved in. Eddie called out, "LAFD, anyone in here."

As Buck assessed the scene, Eddie reassured the two people they found in the room that they were here to help them. However, they seemed more interested in bickering with each other.

Buck said to his partner, "You're lighter, so I'm going to anchor the ropes while you make your way down to secure the guy stuck to the window. It's not going to cope with all that weight, so get him secure first, then work on clearing the furniture from behind him, so at least if the window gives way, he'll have a chance. I'll send a rope down to the girl, haul her out and get her to wait in the hallway."

Eddie nodded. "Pass me the ropes. I'll secure him to the pillar down there. Less stress on you. Once you've got the girl safe, we can work on getting him secure."

Buck said, "It'll be a slow haul getting them back to the ground. I'll update the captain while you get him secured." 

Eddie slid down to where the man was pinned. He assessed how he was trapped, then he said, "I'm going to slip a harness on you. It's important that you don't move and just let me work around you. Okay?"

The man said sarcastically, "Sure. It's not like I'm going anywhere."

Eddie ignored the snark, and refrained from commenting that he could end up going down if he didn't listen. He rigged up a quick triple bowline harness and leaned in, and slid the rope under the man's feet, getting him to lift them slightly. The man was in a bathrobe, so part of Eddie hoped that he was at least wearing something under it. Eddie slid the two loops up the man's legs, then secured the other over the shoulder closest to him.

While Eddie was working on securing the man, Buck updated Bobby to let him know their status. Once done, he tied a second rope to himself and threw the other end to the woman grasping one of the pillars. He was wondering how he was going to keep the couple separated as they made their way out of the hotel so they didn't drive him and Eddie insane on the way out.

Buck called out, "Eddie, when you've secured him to the pillar, can you check her rope?"

"Roger," Eddie confirmed. He was using the pillar she'd been braced on to secure the gentleman so he wouldn't go far if the window gave way. As he approached the woman, he asked, "Can I get your names?"

She said, "I'm Ali, and that fat pig is Harlow; he's my boss."

Eddie grimaced at the disgust in her voice. He said, "I'm Eddie, and up there is my partner, Buck. Let's get him secure, then I can check your ropes."

Eddie tied off the rope that would hopefully keep Harlow safe before he checked the rope tied around Ali's waist. He quickly undid the knot and retied it with one that would be more secure. He said, "That's better. Buck, she's good to go."

Harlow called out, "Help! The glass is cracking!"

Buck said, "I've got her, Eds. Be ready to pull him across as soon as the weight shifts. It's going to be a matter of timing."

Eddie said, "Sir, when the time is right, I'll pull you sideways. It may hurt a bit, but it's better than falling out the window."

"Whatever," Harlow yelled. "Please just get me outta here."

As Buck had Ali halfway to the door, the floor started shaking. He yelled, "Aftershock! Everyone hold tight, Eds, be ready; that glass won't hold."

As everything shook around him, Eddie slid down, so he was braced on the outer wall with the rope to Harlow in his gloved hands. He was watching carefully so he could time his moves perfectly. He heard a scream and a thud, but he didn't move his attention as he was sure Buck had it all in hand.

When Ali slipped with the floor wobbling, he called out, "Stay there until everything settles. I trust Eddie's knots." He watched as she held onto the rope with a white-knuckled grip, and her attention shifted to Harlow. He was starting to panic as the window pane was giving way.

As soon as the window pane shattered, removing the pressure holding Harlow in place, Eddie tugged sharply to pull him sideways, out of the way of the falling furniture. The man landed with a thump, and he was just watching as everything that had been stacked up behind him fell out the window.

Eddie called out, "Harlow?"

The man held up a hand to indicate he heard. He said quietly with his southern drawl, "I'm fine; I'm just processing. That could have been me."

Eddie said, "Don't think about the what-ifs. Come on, make your way to the pillar as Buck works on getting Ali safe in the corridor. Then we'll get you out of here."

They worked on getting the two of them out of the building, and they even picked up an injured hotel staff member, Batari, on their way out. They had a close call in the elevator shaft when the elevator's brakes failed, and the car fell to the ground. The biggest problem they had, was Ali flirting hardcore with Buck. At least until Harlow said, "For someone so disgusted with me for cheating on my wife, you sure seem happy to try and break these two up."

She demanded, "What do you mean?"

He replied, "They're married, and they have been for some time if I'm reading it correctly."

Eddie and Buck snorted. Eddie said, "What makes you say that?"

Harlow said, "It's the body language. You're too comfortable together to be just partners. You communicate without saying a single word, which takes years to build up that level of trust. Also, I might have seen your boy here at some of those business functions with Patrick Sheppard, and the rumor on the grapevine said his grandson got married the day gay marriage became legal."

Buck whispered, "Shit. I knew I recognized your face. I just couldn't remember where from."

Batari asked, "You're hiding it, your marriage?"

Buck nodded. "We are. While our shift at the firehouse is very pro-LGBT, others in the house and the wider LAFD are not so supportive. So, for now, while we prove ourselves, we are keeping our relationship private."

Ali asked, "How long have you been together?"

Eddie said, "Seven years now. So, Harlow, what else do the rumors say? Patrick never tells us much of what's said about Buck here."

Ali frowned as she recalled an article she'd read in one of her business magazines. She asked, "Wait, I thought all the Sheppard heirs were military."

Buck said, "I was in the Navy until a couple of years ago. I retired after leading a SEAL team for five years. I needed a change."

Harlow chuckled, "One of the biggest rumors is that his grandson is a literal rocket scientist. That one, I believe, as I have seen a few of your research papers. And most of those came out while you were still active duty."

Buck agreed. "They did. I have excellent time management skills. Now, I need to know if y'all will keep our secret."

Harlow said, "It's the least we can do for the people that literally saved our lives."

Buck held up a hand as the radio activated. They heard their captain as he asked, "This is Captain Nash. I need a headcount."

Eddie activated his radio and replied, "Ladder responding. Diaz and Buckley, we're good, Cap."

They listened as the others checked in. Then they heard Bobby again. "This is Captain Nash. Henrietta Wilson, do you copy?"

Ali asked quietly, "Is she a friend of yours?"

They both nodded. And Eddie said, "Let's keep moving; the sooner we can hand you guys off to the medics, the sooner we can head in and search for Hen."

The three they had rescued each said a grateful thank you when they were passed on to the medics. And Buck and Eddie took off running for the scene commander when they heard the word to evacuate come over the radio.

Buck did some fast-talking, and they had a small group willing to enter the building, as dangerous as it was, to rescue Hen. They know that if Bobby and Chim had defied the evacuation order and stayed in the car park, they thought there was a good chance they knew where she was.

Hen was glad to see them, and the little girl she had found, Kat, was happy to be reunited with her parents. 

When they got back to the station, Eddie's truck was blocked in by debris, so knowing he had to make it sound good, in front of the others, Buck offered, "I'll give you a ride. The Jeep is pretty sturdy, and it should get across town to your kid's school, no problems."

As Buck drove them home, Eddie called Shannon. As soon as she answered, she said, "I've got Christopher here. He's okay; he thought the earthquake was fun. He's just as crazy as you two."

Eddie had put the phone on speaker, so Buck could hear as well as he said, "We'll pick him up in a few days. Over the next few days, we'll be busy with the search and rescue efforts."

She asked, "You two were in the Hollywood Palms, weren't you?"

Buck snorted. "Of course. We pulled off an incredible rescue, one of Grandpa's old business associates. Got him out safe and sound, well mostly sound; he was bruised to hell and back after having an entire hotel room worth of furniture land on his back."

Shannon said, "That sounds like an interesting story. Let me know when it's safe for us all to come home; General Carter said she'd have us all beamed to LA once it's safe."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - October 2018

Maddie came into the kitchen after her shift to find her little brother. He was sitting at the table with Eddie and Christopher, helping the young boy with a school assignment. 

She announced, "I'm moving out."

Buck asked, "Why? I thought you liked it here?"

"I do," Maddie assured. "But it's at the opposite end of the city to dispatch, and the commute is hell. I've found a place closer to work that will let me install an upgraded security system. I was talking to Max about security options, and he offered to help me choose a good system, and he said he'll install it for me. I was going to ask one of your workmates, but I still haven't actually met them yet. And I don't think I want to until your secret is out." When she saw the offended look on Buck's face, she hurriedly said, "I thought it would deflect attention from your intelligence. Especially if I needed help choosing a good system and installing it."

Eddie said, "She has a point. You mentioned the other day that Chimney has been getting suspicious about your intelligence for a while now. Hen just shrugs it off as random Wikipedia spirals; Chim hasn't been as easily distracted. After that apartment fire last week, he made a comment, and I mentioned your fire science degree, and he said it didn't explain how you knew where the flashpoint would be. Especially since it was a really unusual fire."

Buck mumbled, "It doesn't mean Maddie has to move out."

Maddie pulled her brother into a hug, and she reassured him, I'm not leaving LA; I'm just finding my own place. One where I can have a wine night or two with my workmates without having to get a background check run. I feel bad that we have most of them at Josh's place since Max and I live here, and Linda lives with her elderly mom. We even found a complex that had a second apartment for Max to live in while he's protecting me. Look, Doug has been out on bail for a while, and we haven't seen him. But even if he does show up, I trust Max to protect me."

Christopher asked, "You'll still come over for family dinners?"

"Of course," Maddie confirmed. "I wouldn't miss them, well, unless I have work. But we are pretty good at scheduling them around all of our work schedules." She looked at Buck and Eddie, "Are you good to help me move? My things have arrived from PA, and they are in storage. Most of the furniture should fit in my new apartment."

Eddie nodded. "Just let us know when. We'll hire a truck to move everything."

 -x-

"911, what's your emergency?"

"This is Taylor Kelly with your morning traffic update, and we are going down!"

-x-

When they arrived at the scene, there was a helicopter balanced precariously on some bleachers, and the rotor wash was flicking debris everywhere. Buck and Eddie peaked around the corner of the fire truck, and Eddie murmured, "The pilot's out cold, but it looks like the passenger is moving."

Buck said, "Hopefully, they don't move far. This rescue is going to be hairy as it is. Can you disable the helo if we remove the pilot?"

Eddie nodded. "Yeah. This model was covered in training before I left for the sandbox. It's easy, push the collective all the way down, then turn off the ignition switch. I got this, Buck." He glanced back and saw Bobby was listening. He nudged Buck so he would see their captain.

Bobby asked, "We got a plan?"

Buck nodded. "I'll go in and remove the passenger. You two will need to replace the weight of her and the pilot so we don't cause dynamic rollover. I would suggest Martin and Tanika follow us with a backboard, so they can take the pilot and get him to Hen and Chim for assessment when you pull him out."

Bobby looked around the helicopter as if he were doing his own assessment, then he faced the rest of the crew, and he repeated the orders from Buck as if they were his own. Once everyone nodded in confirmation, he yelled, "Visors down, let's go."

They ran behind the bleachers and got the doors of the helicopter opened. Buck worked on the passenger, a very scared-looking redhead, while Bobby and Eddie worked on getting the pilot out to where Martin and Tanika were waiting with a backboard.

As Buck lifted the redhead, the helicopter started to move.

Eddie yelled over the rotor noise, "Cap, stand on the skids; we need to keep it balanced."

Buck waited until Bobby had moved to stand on the skid before he asked, "We good, cap?"

Bobby confirmed. "Go, get her to Hen. We'll be right behind you with the pilot."

Buck leaned in and said, "Put your arms around my neck, and we'll get you out of here." As soon as she was ready, he lifted her out and walked back along the bleachers so he could carry her to the ambulance, where Hen and Chim were waiting."

Buck stepped back as Hen started her assessment, and he heard the change in pitch as the helicopter finally started to wind down, so he knew his husband had finally shut down the aircraft. He saw Martin and Tanika move around the corner with the gurney and called, "Chim, incoming!"

He jogged back to Eddie to see if he needed help completing the shutdown. He was curious as to what brought the helicopter down.

When he walked up the bleachers, he saw Eddie examining the dash as Bobby looked on from the doorway. He approached and asked, "Anything?"

Eddie shrugged. "Nothing obvious. How's the reporter?"

Buck said, "Nothing serious. Hen's just checking her over now to make sure. Probably just shock, to be honest."

Eddie smirked, "You know, you could try a bit of harmless flirting with her. It would deflect attention away from the two of us being closer than we look."

Buck sighed, "Fine. At least I know who she is. I heard her traffic reports as I drove to the academy each morning. However, you get to call Colonel Davis if this backfires."

Bobby asked, "How would it backfire?"

"If she starts hanging around the firehouse," Buck suggested. "Or worse, brings a camera crew."

Eddie nodded. "Agreed, you know Paul likes me. I keep you out of trouble, so there is less paperwork. It's up to you, though."

Buck sighed, "It's not a bad idea. I can just see it backfiring with her being a reporter." He gave his husband a faux hard look and said, "You owe me one, Diaz."

He could hear Eddie and Bobby both chuckled as he walked away. He decided he would play up the himbo impression the others already had of him. He saw Hen removing the oxygen mask as he joined the small group. Buck asked the reporter, "Hey, do me a favor? Uh, say, On the 405, speeds are under five miles an hour, making your commute a rough one.'"

Hen muttered, "Seriously?"

With a nod, Buck tried to sound nervous and excited as he said, "I know that voice. It's, um, it's Taylor Kelly reporting, right? Skywitness News Eight?"

Taylor smiled softly, and she agreed, "That's me."

He wanted to kick himself, but he had to sell it as nerves, so he said, "It's weird to hear that voice come out of a face. Um, you have helped me beat traffic in this city more times than you will ever know."

Taylor gave him a once over and said, "Thank you." She glanced over at the helicopter and said, "Oh. You might want to catch an Uber tomorrow."

-x-

A few days later, Buck was cleaning the battalion truck when he saw Taylor Kelly walk through the garage between the fire trucks with a cameraman behind her. Buck glared over at Eddie, who was working out in the gym. When he caught his husband's eye, he gave him a 'told you so' expression before he turned to watch Bobby approach the pair. 

Buck waited until they were done arguing before he approached. Again, he tried to sound like a nervous fan. "Taylor Kelly? What are you doing here?"

She looked him up and down and then, with a smile, said, "You can just call me Taylor. How was your drive-in? Did you miss me?"

Eddie saw her assess his husband from head to foot. So he stood from the weights bench and called, "Hey, how're you feeling? Any side effects after the crash?"

Taylor turned and gave him a huge smile as she said, "I'm great. Thanks to all of you, which is why I'm here." She saw others approaching, so she went into her spiel. "You guys were so amazing. I want to do a story on this firehouse and on the heroes who work here."

Chim snapped his gum before he said, "Yeah, but you do traffic."

Not to be discouraged, she agreed, "I do, but I'm not quite ready to get back in the sky. So I thought I would try my hand at telling a story from the ground."

Hen dropped down from the back of the ambulance where she'd been watching quietly, and she snarked, "And use your newfound fame to put your face in front of the camera."

Taylor grinned. "That too."

Hen finally smiled, and she said, "Smart girl."

Taylor gushed, "I can't wait to interview all of you. I want to know why you chose this job, the crazy things you've seen, what it's like to face death."

When she was busy talking to Chim and Hen about Chimney's nickname, Buck murmured, "Jealous much?"

Eddie scowled and angrily whispered, "She was looking at you like she wanted to climb you like a tree. I didn't like it."

With a minuscule shrug, Buck said, "It was your idea to flirt. I'm going to see if Bobby needs help preparing lunch."

Neither of them noticed Taylor watching them as Chim and Hen bickered in front of the camera.

At lunch, Bobby announced, "Taylor and Bret will be following us around for a week or so, documenting the 118. HQ thinks it will be good for getting people to sign up, so each of you will be interviewed individually."

Buck nudged Eddie and whispered, "Don't forget, you agreed to call Davis. He'll need to be warned, just in case something comes up."

Eddie nodded. "Fine."

Hen asked, "What's fine?"

Thinking quickly, Buck said, "I'm taking his kid to the zoo this weekend since he has a shift. I was just reminding Eddie, and he's annoyed because he's rostered on, and there is an event at the zoo on Saturday."

Eddie knew he had to say something, so with a pout, he said, "They do private lemur feedings on the weekends, and I love lemurs."

Taylor said, "I'd like to get started with the interviews after lunch, if that's okay?"

Hen asked, "What does that involve exactly? Just a few questions, nothing too invasive?"

"Not at all," Taylor reassured. "Just a few questions to know why you became a firefighter, what you like about the job, and maybe some stories about your craziest calls."

Hen nodded. "Okay, that sounds fair. I guess since I've already finished lunch, I'll volunteer to go first. You okay interviewing me while I restock the ambulance?"

Taylor agreed, "Sure. That actually sounds pretty perfect." She stood and gestured for Bret, her cameraman, to follow her and Hen down to the garage.

Eddie pulled out his phone and started sending messages to Colonel Davis as soon as she was gone. He was pretty sure nothing would come up, but he knew it was important to warn the SGC.

Bobby came and sat beside him after Buck had left to do the rest of his chores. He whispered, "Sorry, I tried to stop it, but the Chief was adamant."

Eddie shrugged. "It should be fine, I've let the powers that be know, so they're aware. They'll probably monitor her to make sure nothing gets said that shouldn't. How's Athena?"

"She's good," Bobby said with a soft smile. "I'm taking her out on a date tonight. Michael has the kids."

Eddie said, "That sounds great." He stood and said, "I should head down and get my chores done before Buck comes looking for me, or worse, Taylor tries to get her hooks into Buck."

They had a few calls where they were being shadowed by the reporter and her trusty cameraman, including an insect-eating competition that resulted in one of the competitors choking on a cricket.

At the end of the shift, as they were getting changed, Buck and Eddie saw the reporter arguing with her cameraman. They shrugged it off and followed their usual leaving routine. Neither of them paid the reporter any attention as they got into their cars and drove off in different directions.  

Buck was waiting by the open garage door for Eddie when he noticed his husband had a tail. He waited for Eddie's truck to pull in behind his Jeep, then he stood there staring at the reporter with his arms crossed. Buck could see the indecision on her face as she debated pulling in behind Eddie on the driveway.

Eddie came out and asked, "What's wrong."

Buck just gestured with his head to where Taylor had found some courage and was pulling into the drive to park in front of the two of them. As she got out of the car, Buck asked, "Why did you follow Eddie home? Don't you think that's a bit inappropriate?"

She got out of the car and asked, "Did you know you two watch each other constantly. Lots of little casual touches. It makes the reporter inside itch like crazy. Especially when the others reassured me that you were just really good friends."

Eddie said in a deadpan tone, "You're a traffic reporter."

Taylor smirked, "A traffic reporter with the training, brains, and instinct of an investigative reporter. You might be fooling those you work with, but not me." She froze when she heard the click of a safety being flicked off and a hard feminine voice behind her asking, "What do you want me to do, Commander?"

After a glance at Eddie, who just shrugged, Buck suggested, "We could take her inside and question her. Find out what she's figured out and what it will take to keep her quiet." He looked past the reporter and asked, "Vala, who's home?"

Vala said, "Shannon and Patrick are both home for a few days. Christopher is already in bed; he had a busy day with Patrick in the workshop."

Eddie said, "Taylor, you can either come inside and talk, or we can have you arrested. It's your choice."

Taylor looked between the two men and noticed they were quite different from the men she'd seen at the station, especially in how they held themselves and their confidence, so she said, "I just want to talk, that's all."

Buck nodded. "Follow me." He led the small group into the house into the living room. He gestured for everyone to take a seat before he said, "I need to go call Paul. Pray he lets us deal with this ourselves because god knows the general hates to be interrupted on date night." He stormed out of the room to make the call.

Taylor looked worried as she said, "I just wanted to know why you're hiding your relationship from your colleagues, not all of your colleagues since it's clear Captain Nash knows, but most of them are in the dark."

Eddie said, "They are, but that's really our choice to make, not one that can be forced to satisfy the viewing public."

Shannon entered the room and sat down beside her girlfriend. She whispered, "I love seeing you in thigh holsters." 

Eddie dropped his head into his hands and said, "Shannon, we're trying to be serious here. Buck is calling Paul since I screwed up and didn't notice I was being followed."

Taylor said, "That's not actually on you. My dad is a cop in San Diego, and he taught me how to follow suspects without being noticed. I got really good at it."

Eddie shrugged. "That doesn't matter. I let my guard down and led you right to our front door."

Buck came back into the living room and sat in Eddie's lap. "It's not your fault. What she said is true; it all came out in her background check. She's actually a trained cop; she just gave it up in her first year to be a reporter for some strange reason."

Taylor admitted, "I thought I could do more as a reporter, once I climbed the ranks."

Shannon asked, "So she actually passed the background check?"

"Uh-huh," Buck confirmed. "At least the basic one I ran while I was talking to Paul. He's running the higher-level colonoscopy check now. Her cameraman, on the other hand, he's a hot mess and definitely can't be trusted. Paul is pretty sure he's working for two different stations, but they aren't 100% sure."

Taylor said, "He's freelance. But anything he films with us is supposed to be exclusive according to his contract. Why all the secrecy?"

Eddie said, "I started at the 118 about 9 months before Buck. During that time, I got to know the team, and while we're all friends and fairly close-knit, the teasing can get out of hand. Thanks to Shannon and Vala and their penchant for dressing up, it firmed their opinions of me being a manwhore. They think most nights I went out drinking with them, I went home with a different girl. When in fact, it was just Shannon and Vala taking turns being sober drivers, and dressing up differently each time. I never even flirted with them. Hell, they only just found out a few weeks ago that I have a son."

Shannon laughed. "I would usually walk in, grab his hand, and drag him out of the club."

Buck said, "They even tried to get me to dress up, but I hate the makeup I'd need to cover my tattoos. It takes forever to scrub it off."

Taylor grinned, "Well, that explains the flirting. So Buck and Eddie are obviously together, but for how long?"

Buck said, "Over seven years. We've been married since 2014, ever since it was legal to do so. We were one of the first couples to get married under the new laws legalizing gay marriage."

Taylor's jaw dropped. "Wow, that's incredible. Are there photos?"

Buck said, "Yes, but they are currently classified due to the location and guest list. If you wanted to see them, you'd have to sign a long and complicated NDA."

Buck suggested, "How about you get the story about the 118 finished first, then we can talk about the NDA. And if it's okay with you, I'm going to keep up with the bad flirting, because watching the reactions of the rest of the house is just too funny to stop now."

Eddie tried to hide his laugh on Buck's shoulder. "It's hard not to snort when Hen rolls her eyes at the faux nerves, or when Chim nearly swallows his gum at the innuendos. I mean, you're using flirting I've seen kids at Christopher's school use."

Buck snorted. "Where do you think I got the ideas? I don't want it to look real. That's just for you, dulzura."

Vala made gagging noises. "Oh my god, for the love of all things kitten, just stop. You've been married for years; the honeymoon period should be over by now. Even Jack and Daniel aren't this sappy."

Buck muttered, "That's because Jack's old."

Vala nodded. "You have a point. You know, Taylor could help us with your trolling, especially if you fake date."

Taylor said, "I'm good with that. It would help me get some of my colleagues off my back. Some of them constantly try to set me up with a friend of my cousin's sister's nephew, or whoever. It's exhausting." She gave the boys a serious look. "You need to watch out for Bret, he's sneaky, and if you indulge in any PDA at the station, he will see it and sell it to the highest bidder. Especially if he works out what I worked out, Dr. Sheppard. I'll do what I can to get the interviews done as fast as possible, then Bret won't be an issue as he'll be assigned to someone else. He doesn't often work on puff pieces, as he called it."

Buck smirked, "You, Ms. Kelly, or should I say, Ms. Underwood, are too smart for my own good. I guess we have a pact of mutually assured destruction."

Eddie laughed. "As dramatic as that is, it's not entirely wrong."

Taylor asked, "So are you really Eddie Diaz, or are you Eddie Sheppard?"

The older man confirmed, "Sheppard, but professionally I use Diaz. It stops curious people from digging deeper. So how did you know about Buck being Dr. Sheppard?"

Taylor said, "I wrote a freelance article for a tech magazine. In my research, I found a rare photo of Buck while he was at MIT. That birthmark is distinctive. I left the photo out of the article, instead concentrating on his papers and achievements."

Buck said, "Thank you. I thought I had avoided the cameras at MIT. It looks like I missed one."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - October 2018

Taylor had finished all but one of her interviews over the week she was at the station. She'd spent the time between trying to corner Bobby by filming random scenes in the station and on calls.

She was up in the loft where a large amount of baked goods were sitting, watching the various firefighters tuck into the brownies that had been dropped off earlier. She set Bret to filming and approached Buck, who was standing to the side, not eating. She asked, "You don't partake?"

Buck shook his head, and seeing that she didn't have her microphone with her, he murmured, "I am wary of anything that I didn't see being cooked. Eddie too, that's why he's down in the gym."

Chim called out, "Buckaroo, we have brownies; come have some."

Thinking quickly, Buck shook his head. "And let Eddie win, no thanks. I'm not breaking my diet for baked goods, no matter how good they taste."

Hen asked, "What do you mean, let Eddie win?"

"We see the same personal trainer," Buck explained. "He's challenged us to a small friendly competition to see who can gain the most muscle in three months. This comes with a strict diet and exercise regime. I refuse to lose, so no baked goods for me."

Hen sighed. "Seriously. These are delicious brownies; you could share one."

Buck shook his head. "No thanks. Feel free to share mine with Chim. I'm going to let Eddie know there are brownies. See if I can tempt him into cheating on his diet."

When a call came in half an hour later, Bobby said, "I'm sitting this one out to get some paperwork done. Since it's a medical call."

Taylor smiled and said, "Then it sounds like a good time to get our interview done then, captain?"

"Fine," Bobby agreed with a grimace. It was clear to everyone the interview made him uncomfortable. He walked up to the loft to make a start on the paperwork. 

Taylor and Bret waited downstairs, Bret filming the team of four leaving in the ambulance and the fire engine. Even though it was only the single recorded victim, things could change quickly. They got some footage of the other members of the station doing chores they'd been assigned by the captain. Everyday activities like cleaning and polishing the ladder truck and checking over the gear bags, but good footage for background video during voiceovers.

When they decided they had enough footage, they went upstairs to interview the captain. She took a seat on the other side of the table. When he finally looked up, she said, "Captain Nash, I know you don't think very highly of me. I also know that you've been avoiding me. But I want you to know, I only have one goal here; to tell a story, a true story, about your station."

Bobby gave her a glassy-eyed look; it was the first sign that something wasn't right. He slurred, "You can have a true story. There's truth around us all the time. There's truth right here on this napkin."

She stood and glared at Bret, who kept filming with an unapologetic shrug. She looked over the balcony railing and saw that the behavior of the other firefighters wasn't right, so with an apology, she stole Bobby's phone and called 911; as she used her own phone to text a warning to Buck and Eddie that things were not right at the station.

"911, what's your emergency?"

Taylor said urgently, "This is Taylor Kelly. I'm at the 118 firehouse filming for Channel Eight News, and the firefighters here are acting out of it. I think they've been drugged."

"Taylor, this is Maddie," The dispatcher said, grateful she'd met the reporter on one of her visits to the house earlier in the week. "Buck's sister. Can you explain the symptoms?"

Taylor looked at Bobby and said, "I noticed it first in Captain Nash. He's glassy-eyed, like he's not really here, you know what I mean. He's slurring, and there is no way in hell he would pass a field sobriety test. I checked the other firefighters, and they are in a similar state. A couple are fine, and they seem to be working to keep their colleagues corralled inside the station. We could really use some help here."

Maddie confirmed. "I've dispatched a few RA units to check on the firefighters, but they are a while away, as the local stations are busy with a huge pile-up on the 405. What about the crew that are out?"

Taylor said, "That's Buck, Eddie, Hen, and Chimney. They're on a medical call." She heard her phone beep, so she checked it. "Okay. Buck and Eddie are fine, they have Athena with them, and they are bringing Hen and Chim here as soon as a replacement crew arrives to deal with the lady with a stiletto heel through her cheek. Ewww. I didn't need to know that Buckaroo."

Maddie chuckled. "He's used to giving detailed reports. You get used to it. So the 136, the 133, and the 42 are sending RA units your way. I've also arranged for a nurse from the local hospital to head to the station to do blood draws. They'll test what the firefighters were dosed with. I've also taken the 118 offline, so they won't get any more calls until a replacement crew arrives. What a mess." 

Taylor looked up and saw Bobby moving with purpose to the door that went up to the roof. She said, "Shit, I gotta put you down for a sec; Captain Nash is heading for the roof."

She ran and blocked the door. Wanting to distract the captain from his obvious target, she said, "Captain Nash. I have to ask you more questions. Remember you promised me an interview?"

Bobby nodded stiltedly. "But I have to go to the roof; she's waiting for me up there."

Thinking quickly, Taylor led him back to the table where the phones had been abandoned. She asked, "How about you tell me about how you became a firefighter?" She glared at Bret to try and get him to stop filming, but he just glared right back and walked downstairs to get more footage.

She did her best to keep Bobby talking and to try and stop him from getting onto the roof. She kept Buck updated, but he was busy with Eddie trying to contain Hen and Chim at a toddler beauty pageant.

-x-

When they arrived at the call, Buck could see something wasn't quite right with Hen and Chim, so he asked, "Eddie, can you check on the patient, see what's going on, while I keep an eye on these guys?"

Eddie took one look at his colleagues and said, "Yep. You can definitely have double trouble. I'll take a stiletto in the face any day over all that."

When Buck approached Chim, the older man loudly whispered, "They look like tiny people; why are they so tiny, Buckaroo?"

Hen said, "Woah, Buck. You're huge."

Buck called, sounding slightly panicked, "Athena! I really need you over here."

When Athena had sent off the crazy lady who stabbed the other mother with her shoe, she walked over and asked, 
"What the hell is wrong with those two?"

Buck handed over his phone, so she could read the conversation with Taylor, and he said, "Taylor thinks the station was drugged. Bobby is trying to get onto the roof; these two think the pageant girls are midgets. It's crazy."

Hen walked over to them and said, "'Thena? Oh 'Thena, you smell like love."

Athena thumbed her radio and said, "Dispatch, we need a replacement RA unit at this location. I need to send the 118 to be checked out."

Maddie said, "Dispatch here, Sergeant Grant. A unit is already on the way to take over. I've already routed several RA units to the 118 to check the rest of the firefighters and a nurse to do blood draws so we can find out what they were dosed with. If you could help Firefighters Buckley and Diaz get the rest of the crew back to the station once the replacements arrive."

Eddie thumbed his radio, "Dispatch, the patient is ready for transport. She'll need monitoring though, due to the injury; something I would need either Hen or Chim to be sober for."

While Eddie was talking, Athena asked one of the other officers for a few pairs of cuffs, and she cuffed Hen and Chim so they couldn't do any harm to themselves or others.

Chim was backing away from the toddlers and said, "They're teeny tiny; it's creepy."

Athena said, "How about I take one of the other officers and get these two comfortable in the back of my squad car. I'll follow you both back to the station and help you keep an eye on the others as we figure out what the hell they were all dosed with."

Buck nodded. "Sounds good. I can hear sirens, so hopefully, that's our backup. As soon as they've got everything under control, we'll head for the 118. Taylor's texts are starting to worry me."

Athena nodded. "Me too, Buck, me too."

-x-

Taylor sighed in relief when she saw Buck, Eddie, and Athena heading into the station. They had arrived at the same time as the other station RA units had started to filter in, so they parked outside the garage. Buck grabbed Bret's arm on the way through the garage, and he frog marched the cameraman upstairs as Eddie and Athena dropped Hen and Chim off with the other medics. They all wanted to check on Bobby, and Buck wanted to see what Bret had recorded.

Bobby was glad to see his girlfriend, and Athena guided the captain downstairs to be checked out with the rest of the house. Meanwhile, Buck had removed the camera from Bret's grasp and placed it on the table in front of him.

Bret stood and yelled, "Hey, you can't do that."

Eddie pushed him back down into his seat and said, "He actually can. You see, we heard from Taylor that you refused to stop filming while Taylor was left with Beal and Tanika, the only other firefighters who weren't drugged, to try and wrangle everyone else."

Buck said, "So we are keeping this safe, so it can be reviewed by the LAFD lawyers."

Taylor added, "The network signed a very clear contract with the LAFD. And right now, I don't trust you, and I think you'll try to delete the footage you shot this afternoon, as it shows you ignoring requests for help."

Buck snarked, "Or worse, you'll sell the footage to someone like TMZ since you appear to be a wannabe paparazzi." He could see the smug look on the cameraman's face when he mentioned TMZ, so he was pretty sure something had already been sent. So he said, "Are you aware the station has internal security cameras? It wouldn't be hard to get footage of you filming while being asked for help. Hell, you were probably laughing at the actions of my team after they were drugged. You could have been the one that drugged them, for all I know, just so you could get some scandalous footage. So if anything appears on TMZ, or any other publication or station, I. Will. Ruin. You."

Bret nodded. "Okay, okay. I sent some preliminary footage to TMZ to get them interested. I'll let them know it's no longer available, as long as you promise the footage from the station's cameras will not be used in any way."

Athena had approached out of sight of the cameraman and had been listening in. With her voice dripping in scorn, she said, "You're resorting to blackmail now?"

Bret spun around to yell at the new voice, until he noticed the police uniform. He hedged, "Of course not, ma'am. Just looking for a bit of quid pro quo, you know."

Athena gave him a stern look and said, "No. I don't know. What I know is that you were filming after being asked to help keep the drugged firefighters safe. And I also know you left Taylor in the loft alone to deal with the captain, a man who is a good foot taller than her. We're just lucky he didn't injure her in trying to get to the roof. Even now, he's had to be cuffed to a gurney to stop him trying."

Buck asked, "Will you put the camera into evidence?"

Athena nodded. "And the security camera footage from the station. We'll also be talking to Channel Eight News about his behavior." She turned to Taylor and said, "Thank you for keeping them safe and for calling for reinforcements so quickly. It's appreciated."

Bret said, "I'm going to head back to the station. Without my camera, I am pretty useless here. You joining me, Taylor?"

She shook her head. "No. I think I will stay here and ensure everyone's okay first."

Once he was gone, Buck grinned. "That was handled beautifully, Taylor."

Taylor blushed and said, "That felt like my training taking over. I've been wracking my brain trying to figure out what could have caused just some station members to be drugged. And based on who isn't drugged downstairs. I think it was the brownies. Everyone else ate at least one slice of the brownies. You and Eddie both skipped them, so did Tanika, due to a chocolate allergy, and boy does that suck, and Beal was too slow and missed out; everything else was either tasted by Beal or Tanika."

Athena asked, "Brownies?"

Buck said, "Baked goods get dropped off all the time. I don't eat them due to my strict workout diet."

Eddie added, "Same. I'm going to win this one, Buck."

"Boys, I don't want to know what measuring contest you're doing this month," Athena said with a poorly hidden grimace. "Do you mean y'all eat food that's brought in without having it checked out?"

Taylor nodded. "Chim said it happens all the time, goods brought in by grateful people. Either for rescuing them or someone they know." She pointed at the table full of empty containers. "The brownies were in the glass tray. I covered it in saran wrap, just in case someone wanted to test the crumbs."

Athena nodded. "Good idea. I'll make sure everything here gets bagged and tested thoroughly, just to be on the safe side."

One of the officers came up the stairs and said, "They're releasing everyone, as long as they have someone at home to watch them. We've got hold of most of their families. It's just Firefighter Han that doesn't seem to have a local next of kin."

Athena said, "We'll take care of it, Officer Williams. Thank you." 

The officer moved to go down the stairs, but he stepped to the side to let Karen past. She demanded, "What happened? They are high as kites."

Eddie said, "We suspect it was drugged brownies. Someone dropped them off, and they were gone in just a few minutes. Only Buck, Tanika, Beal, and myself were spared."

Karen said, "Well, I'm used to dealing with Hen and Chim when they're drunk off their gourds, so I'll take them both. They usually pass out on the sofa after crying their eyes out at the Hallmark channel. If they get out of hand, I'll get our neighbors to come over and help me out." 

Athena said, "That just leaves Bobby. I still have a few hours left on my shift, but I think my place will be safest for him. His apartment is too high off the ground, and I'm worried about his obsession about getting onto the roof."

Buck offered, "We can look after him, if you don't mind us at your place. I can bring Christopher when I pick him up from school."

Karen nodded. "Do you mind taking Denny as well? I would prefer he didn't see Hen like this. Athena is approved to pick Denny up from school."

Eddie frowned. "You don't want him seeing Hen like this, but you don't mind him seeing Bobby?"

Karen laughed. "He won't see Bobby. Those three boys will hide in Harry's room playing on their switches." She gave him a significant look and commented, "After all, it was your son who had them declare war on a capitalist raccoon."

Eddie looked sheepish. "Oops." He suggested, "How about I take Bobby to Athena's. Buck can meet us there after he picks up Christopher from school."

Athena asked, "Why can't Buck take Bobby, and you pick up Christopher?"

Buck explained, "I have an appointment I can't get out of. Eddie promised I could pick up Christopher from school, so I would have an excuse to leave on time."

"Okay," Athena nodded. She turned to the reporter and said, "Taylor, you're welcome to join us."

With a smile, Taylor said, "Thank you. I'd like that, I think. It would be good to get to know you all without the camera making everyone nervous."

Buck offered, "I can give you a ride home if you like. I know your cameraman took the network van back to the station."

"Thanks," Taylor said with a huff. "I'll call the station on the way to let them know what happened."

Athena said, "I'll see you all in a few hours with Harry and Denny."

-x-

When Buck and Taylor arrived home, they found Patrick waiting for them. He asked, "Can we chat, Ms. Kelly?"

Taylor nodded nervously. She knew who the man was by reputation alone.

Buck murmured, "I can stay if you want. I already know what he wants to talk to you about. And it's nothing bad, I promise."

She looked at him and asked, "Then I'd like you to stay."

They got settled in the living room, and Patrick said, "I've spent the last week looking into you, Ms. Kelly."

Taylor chuckled, "I can't see why you would, sir. I'm just a traffic reporter."

"Ha," Patrick snorted. "You might be a traffic reporter now, but you've got brains, instinct, and a drive to be the best. I've been reading through your articles while you've been flitting around the 118, and I'm impressed. Even the one you did on my grandson for that tech magazine was insightful, honest, and very well written. Each article is crafted carefully based on the publication's target market, and even the area it's published in."

Taylor shrugged. "Reading an audience is important; if you can't cater to the audience, they're not going to read what you wrote."

Patrick said, "When I stepped down as CEO of Sheppard Industries, I went to work for one of the most secretive government agencies. With that in mind, I'd like to offer you a job. Our project needs an experienced media liaison. Someone who can absorb what our project is about and predict how the public will react and produce press statements to help calm them but also inform them to some degree."

She looked at Buck, who was sitting back relaxing. She asked him, "You're read in on the project?" 

Buck confirmed, "I am. Eddie is too. Our family has been involved with the project for, what, a decade?"

Patrick admitted, "More, your dad and pops first got involved in 2004; the rest of us followed in 2012. I can't give you more information until you sign a long and complicated NDA."

She nodded hesitantly. "Can I think about it? I get the feeling once I hear what this is about, I can't unhear it."

Buck laughed. "You definitely can't unhear it. Why don't we go to Athena's and help Eddie and the kids wrangle Bobby? Then when you're ready, we can meet back here and go over everything."

She suggested, "How about we meet to discuss everything and sign everything after I finish the story about the 118."

Patrick nodded. "That sounds good. He looked at Buck and said, "Shannon and Vala will be here tonight, and they are staying for a few days. Jonas is bringing the puddle jumper they were talking about, for that firmware upgrade you wanted to test."

"Okay," Buck agreed. "Grandpa, will you be back tomorrow?"

With a nod, Patrick confirmed. "I'll be staying for a week or so this time. I'll bring the files with the bulk of our plans for Taylor to start reading through. We've got contingencies planned for most events now."

Buck grinned. "Cool. Taylor, are you ready to go?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Let's go wrangle your captain."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - October 2018

Athena was quick to open the door when they arrived. Christopher squeezed past her to find his dad as the police sergeant demanded, "What took you so long?"

Thinking quickly, Buck said, "The appointment took longer than I expected. It's all sorted now though. What's going on? You look frazzled."

Athena said, "It's been an interesting hour. So far, he's been hunting for the raindrops he lost, hiding from the dragon in the fridge that eats all his cupcakes, and my personal favorite, wondering why Harry and Denny aren't floating on the cotton candy clouds like he is."

Buck snorted. "Wow, so he's still tripping. Do they know what it was yet?"

Athena said, "Not yet; they are still running the blood tests. They should have the preliminary results soon though. The crime lab gathered all the plates that were on the table, so they could test all the leftovers and crumbs. The text does say they have eliminated the cameraman as a suspect, but not as a horrible human being. The footage from the security cameras is damning, to say the least. They aren't charging him, but I believe the footage will be sent to the network with a please explain."

Taylor said, "We were given very specific rules from the LAFD around filming at the station. Anything that risked the safety of the station, the firefighters, or the public had to be reported immediately. And while I reported it, he did nothing to help. Our bosses aren't going to be impressed with that, nor his attempt at blackmail. I've already told my boss I'm never working with him again."

Buck commented, "It took several takes to finish my interview because he kept moving the camera to focus on something else. He always seemed more interested in filming people as they weren't aware."

As they walked outside, Athena warned, "He is super clingy right now. Be prepared to be hugged by an octopus. Both of you."

Buck laughed when he saw Eddie struggling to escape Bobby's grip. "Need some help there, Eds?"

Christopher had sat on one of the recliners and said, "Bobby's like a koala crossed with an octopus, and someone made him a people."

When she saw Buck look at her with a raised eyebrow, Athena said, "He's been like this since they got here; Eddie's been doing what he can to reduce the morose mood shifts. Michael is coming over after work to help us."

Buck asked, "Where are the kids? I half expected Harry and Denny to be out here laughing at him."

"Daddy said they were," Christopher confirmed with a grin. 

Eddie said, "They got bored, and I think they're hiding in Harry's room. 

Christopher stood and got his crutches settled. He said, "I'm going to join them; we'll be playing Animal Crossing in Harry's room." Buck gave him a hug as he walked past him to get inside.

Athena could see Bobby looking around for her, so she said, "I'm going back to Bobby before he wanders off… again. He's swinging between cuddly and maudlin. He barely talks about his first family, and he's going to be gutted that he's said so much today."

Taylor waited a minute until Athena was out of earshot, and she whispered, "Doesn't Bobby know your secret?"

Buck nodded. He murmured, "We'll need your help to distract him if he starts to talk about it. I trust Athena, but her best friend is Hen. And Hen's really close to Chim, who is notoriously bad at secrets."

"Sure," She said, trying to sound confident. "I can do that."

As Buck entered the backyard, Bobby yelled, "Buckaroo!" He ran over and latched on like an overgrown koala, and Buck was glad for his weight training as he walked him across to one of the large sofas to sit down.

Eddie snarked, "Tag, you're it." As he moved with Taylor to sit with Athena.

After about half an hour of trying to distract Bobby from oversharing about his first family, the one he barely talked about. Bobby asked Buck, "Why aren't you sitting with your husband?"

Buck hoped Athena hadn't heard as he said, "Because he's talking to Taylor as you use me as your own personal cuddle toy."

He looked up at Eddie, who looked frozen as Athena beside him asked, "Husband?"

Before Buck could stop him, Bobby said, "It's so cool, 'Thena. They are fooling everyone. It's why they are one of the best firefighters I have."

Buck laughed and said, "Bobby, there's two of us though."

"Exactly," Bobby said with an exaggerated nod before he stood and made his way back to his girlfriend. He whisper-shouted, "They've been married for years, 'Thena."

She gave them both stink eye and said, "Isn't that interesting."

Taylor chuckled, "There was no way he was keeping this secret, not as drugged as he is. And the worst part is, he's going to feel so bad about it tomorrow."

Eddie said sadly, "Not just for that." He knew after the plane crash about Bobby's addiction and his recovery. And he knew this would be a setback. "We knew it would be a possibility though. It's why I'm glad Karen took Hen and Chim home. I trust Athena to keep our secret the way Bobby has."

Athena asked, "So what exactly is your secret if you don't mind me asking."

Buck snuggled into Eddie on his recliner and said, "Eddie is my husband, and he has been for four years now. We got married as soon as gay marriage was legal in the state of Colorado."

Taylor said, "What he's not saying is that they've been together for seven years; since they met in Afghanistan. The way Eddie tells it, he was patching Buck up after an incident with a grenade, and Buck spent the entire time his arm was being stitched trying out all the bad flirting lines on him. Three weeks later, they started dating."

Athena asked, "In a war zone?"

"Uh huh," Buck confirmed. "When you know, you just know."

Athena asked, "So why does your marriage not come up on your background check, Buck?"

Eddie snorted. "Because Evan Buckley is a fake identity, set up to hide his military experience. For reasons that are classified, it was decided that Buck needed a different identity for the civilian world. So Evan Buckley was created, or should I say recreated, by his former unit with a different background. Evan Buckley barely graduated high school, drifted around the states for a few years before signing up to the fire academy."

She pulled out her work phone and asked, "So, what is your actual name?"

Buck asked, "You swear on your life you will not tell anyone not already in this room?"

She nodded solemnly. "I swear, Buck. I won't tell a soul. I just like to be sure those in my family are safe."

"Fine," Buck conceded. "My actual name is Evan Aiden Sheppard. Two Ps."

They all watched nervously as Athena ran the background check, even Bobby, who was starting to come back to himself. Buck said, "A lot of it will be redacted, but you'll get the gist of it."

She nodded. "Yep. There is a lot of information that is classified here. But Buck, this says you have two doctorates from MIT and a few other degrees. And your grandfather is Patrick Sheppard of Sheppard Industries. Boy, why in the hell are you a firefighter?"

Buck sighed. "I get bored when I am in my workshop all day, so the firefighting keeps me entertained, so I can concentrate more on my projects. It's why I was a Navy SEAL for so many years."

Eddie said, "He led his own SEAL team for five years before we both resigned. I was assigned as their team medic." 

Athena asked, "Why are you keeping it a secret?"

Eddie and Buck both shrugged. Eddie said, "When I started at the 118, I overheard some comments that led me to believe that while couples like Hen and Karen are supported, male/male couples aren't seen in the same light. When I told Shannon, Christopher's Mom, she and her girlfriend decided to prank the fuck out of the firehouse."

Athena asked, "How exactly?"

Buck giggled as he said, "All those one-night stands that picked up Eds and took him home? That was either Shannon or Vala picking him up as his designated driver."

Athena said, "But the girls you went home with always looked different. It can't have been the same two."

Eddie said, "Vala is an expert in undercover, and she's been teaching Shannon how to stay hidden in plain sight. They thought it was fun; they even tried to get Buck involved before he joined the station."

Athena's phone vibrated in her hand, she had a text from the lead investigator, and the blood tests had shown the 118 had been drugged with LSD. There was not much they could do but keep Bobby hydrated and safe as they came down.

Athena sent a message to Karen, and Eddie sent a message out over the 118 group chat so the other firefighters would receive the news.

A few days later, Athena and Bobby had discovered that the LSD brownies weren't a malicious act but a misguided old lady trying to give the station members some clarity as thanks for saving one of her customers.

-x-

Taylor and a new cameraman had come back to the 118 the next day to record the interviews she was missing, and to get some more busy work footage. She told Bobby that Bret had been fired for inappropriate conduct during the drugging incident, and she passed on a sincere apology from the station that he'd been that way during the filming process.  

Once they had all the footage, Taylor caught Buck outside by his Jeep, and she said, "I'll meet you at your place later on tonight. I'd like to sign that thing we discussed."

Buck grinned. "I'm glad to hear it. I agree with Grandpa; you'll be perfect for the job."

She met him and Eddie a few hours later at their place, and after being directed to park her car in the garage, she followed them inside to the living room. This time the room contained a few extra people, two of whom were in Air Force Blues, if she remembered correctly.

She took a seat and said, "I'm ready to sign if you still want me."

Buck introduced her, "Taylor Kelly, you've already met my Grandpa; this is General Jack O'Neill, two Ls, Lieutenant Colonel Paul Davis, Dr. Daniel Jackson, Shannon Morgan, and Vala Mal Doran." As he said each name, they waved so she would know who was who.

Colonel Davis put a large document in front of her and said, "This is our standard NDA. It boils down to if you spill the beans, you'd be put in a deep dark oubliette, never to see the light of day again. Our prisons make Gitmo look like a holiday camp. Take your time to read it before you sign it. We're happy to wait."

As she made her way through the document, the others found things to do; Jack and Daniel both pulled out their kindles, and Paul got his laptop out and was busy checking over paperwork for the general. Shannon and Vala were talking quietly, as Patrick was making notes on his own laptop. Buck and Eddie had their heads together over a tablet as they reviewed the latest design changes on the puddle jumper.
 
Eventually, Taylor had signed the NDA in all the places it was required, and she slid it back across the coffee table to Colonel Davis to check over.

Jack said, "As Buckaroo said, I'm General Jack O'Neill, and I am the director of Homeworld Security."

She narrowed her eyes and commented, "That's an interesting distinction, General."

Taylor said, "I'm just a reporter, a traffic reporter at that; what could you possibly need me for?"

Jack said, "We've been planning for a forced declassification of a secret military project, and we have a lot of plans in place, depending on how we get outed, but we need someone to help us with the media side of things. Crafting press release timelines, what stories to publish, and what information to keep hidden under the classified banner."

Taylor asked, "Would I have to quit my job at Channel Eight?"

Jack shook his head. "That's up to you. I can say that when this project comes to light, you'll be front and center for the Stargate Project. You'll be the only reporter who knows all the accurate information."

Buck said, "The main stipulation is that nothing would be aired without approval. I work for the project in my off hours, so it's doable. Most of the planning could be done via zoom, since the main planning office is based in Colorado. But Grandpa and Shannon are here most weeks for a few days, so you could coordinate with them. I can add a desk to the workshop for you to use when you're doing declassification work."

She asked, "So what exactly is the Stargate Project."

Daniel spent the next hour blowing her mind three ways from Sunday. He used videos and photos to show her the existence of aliens and how close Earth has come to being invaded by alien species. He apologized for not having the usual disbelief breaker, but none of the battle cruisers were in orbit around Earth. 

Taylor eventually asked, "So we have no idea how this will come out to the public, just that it's coming, and we need to prepare?"

Buck nodded. "The ascended ancients have a non-interference guideline. I would say rule, but Morgan broke it a few times because of me, so it's more of a guideline."

She turned to him with a look of confusion. "Wait, what?"

Buck said, "I was not conceived the normal way. My dad, General John Sheppard, touched an ancient invention;  this particular invention reacted to both his strong expression of the ATA gene and his epic love for my pops, and I was created."

Shannon snorted. "In a pod."

Buck ignored her as he continued, "Morgan LeFay then used another of Janus' inventions to hide me in time with the Buckley's. In 2004 she realized that was a huge mistake, and she helped me find my way to Grandpa."

Taylor grinned at Shannon and asked, "Seriously, you were created in a pod?"

Jack laughed. "He was, and in that timeline, before Morgan meddled, DADT was still in effect, so both of his fathers would have been prosecuted for Buck's creation. Even if they didn't actually intend for it to happen. After she helped Buck find his way to Patrick, she came and tortured me with endless nagging, until I convinced the president to repeal DADT. She found it abhorrent that people were being prosecuted for who they loved."

Patrick said, "So I've set up a laptop for you. It's got access to all the shared documents we have on declassification. We have plans for all the different ways we think declassification could happen. The one thing I want to get from you is details on the cameras you would need for news reports, and a request for you to train Vala in how to operate it."

She looked over at Vala, who looked a bit surprised at the request. So she asked, "Why?"

Jack answered, "One of the most explosive ways declassification could happen would be an attack by the Lucian Alliance. It's unlikely that they would get to Earth undetected, but if it happens and they attack, we'll want you to report on the attack. We'd like Vala with you for your protection."

Taylor sized up the other woman; she looked tall and statuesque but not particularly strong.

Vala could see her confusion, so she explained, "I am not from Earth. I came to the attention of the SGC when I stole one of the spaceships. I am a space pirate and an expert in hand-to-hand combat as well as most weapons."

Shannon said, "She's currently only lightly armed today; just the three knives hidden away."

Taylor looked her up and down, trying to find the hidden weapons at a glance. Vala was wearing very tight leather pants with knee-high boots and a tight black t-shirt. "Where? Actually, I don't want to know. I'll get the specifications for the cameras to you soon, General. I'll see if I can get one of the freelance camera operators to give Vala a few lessons. It's not actually too difficult to pick up." 

-x-

When Taylor's piece on the 118 was aired, the station loved it. They came across as ordinary people doing extraordinary things every day. It was very much a puff piece but done beautifully. True to her word, everything from the time they were drugged was kept out of the report.

After being read in fully to the program, Taylor decided to keep working at Channel Eight. She felt it would be the best place for her when the news broke about declassification. She was working most nights with Shannon and Patrick on the declassification planning.

A few weeks after the dosing of the 118, Maddie was at work on a fairly average day when she gasped in shock while she was on a call. Maddie sent a quick message to Max when she was sure she saw her ex-husband, Doug, walk through the dispatch floor as she tried to deal with the call she was on quickly and efficiently.

Max was between calls, and he nodded at her to confirm he got the message as he took himself offline and waved Sue over. 

As soon as she was standing beside him, he said, "Maddie is sure she just saw her ex-husband here. Can you do a headcount against who is swiped into the building? I need to know if I have to get her out of here."

The dispatch manager glanced at Maddie before she asked, "How sure."

Max said, "No one working here has even a passing resemblance to Doug. So unless you have visitors that are wearing the same shirts as the dispatch team, she's sure."

Sue pulled up her tablet, reviewed the list of dispatchers currently signed into the building via the swipe system, and matched them up with who she could see at the desks. She said, "I have three logged in that I can't account for, Linda, Claudette, and Sean."

A voice from the next desk said, "Linda went to the bathroom about five minutes ago."

Sue said, "Okay, I'll send a text to the other two and get them to confirm their location." She murmured so only Max could hear, "You're armed?"

He nodded slightly in confirmation but didn't indicate exactly how armed he was. He didn't want to worry the dispatch manager. He pointed at Linda, who was walking back to her desk, so they only had Sean and Claudette to account for.

Sue looked down at her phone after it vibrated, then said, "Sean is at home. It looks like he forgot to swipe out when he left. Sean was with Josh when he left, so I think he walked out with him and forgot to swipe his card through the reader. That just leaves Claudette, and I've checked the roster; she's not rostered on today."

Max got a glimpse of someone he hadn't seen before in a gray shirt, skirting around the edge of the call center, but he didn't get a clear enough look to confirm if it was Doug. As he reached under his shirt to flick the safety off one of his hidden guns, he asked quietly, "Can you message someone and ask them to do a welfare check on her?"

 Sue nodded and sent a text to Elaine Maynard to alert her of a possible infiltration. She asked her to do the welfare check on Claudette and to send a team who could be discrete to the call center.

Max stood and said, "I'm going to move to the desk beside Maddie's. Let me know if you hear back about the welfare check."

Before he stood, Sue whispered fiercely, "Don't hold back. If that bastard is here and he tries anything, end him."

He quietly packed up the few items on his desk and swapped with the desk beside Maddie's. Sue sent him a message once he was set up through the internal chat system to let him know there was no sign of Claudette at home. She let him know she had altered the call priority so that Maddie would only take the urgent medical calls, and he'd been taken offline so he could fake being on a call while watching the rest of the call center.

Max caught sight of the man as he skulked around the dispatch floor. It was clear Doug had done his research as he was wearing a grey shirt; something that identified him as part of the dispatch IT team, so he could wander around without looking out of place. The bodyguard sent a quick message to Sue to confirm that he'd sighted Doug, and he pulled his gun out of the holster in the small of his back and held it under his desk while he messaged with Sue using his left hand.

He kept an eye on Maddie; she was busy on a call with a young girl trapped in a fire. While she was waiting for a response from Bobby, the captain running the fire, he whispered, "Are you okay?"

She nodded as she looked around and noticed the floor was emptier than expected. She murmured, "It's him?"

"Yeah," Max confirmed. "Sue said she's rerouted calls to the Valley dispatch center, and she's slowly evacuating people." She had Terry, their main IT guy, leading people into the server room, as it was one of the few areas in dispatch that was limited to just the IT staff and Sue.

Max was watching as Doug slowly made his way around the dispatch center, so he was behind them. He kept his eyes on his monitor, but he angled one of them so he could watch Doug in the reflection. He whispered, "I've got you covered, Maddie. You just concentrate on Jessica."

Max had patched into her call, and Maddie was talking to Jessica to keep the young girl calm as the rescuers were close.

He listened with half an ear as Maddie switched between the call with Jessica and the teams from the 118 and the 133, as she tried to guide them to the bathroom Jessica was hiding in. The young girl was hiding in the bathroom of her apartment on the fifth floor of the apartment building. She'd buried herself under wet towels in the tub to try and give the firefighters more time.

The bodyguard saw the moment Doug realized they were on to him, and he braced, ready to defend Maddie. Doug created a distraction as he approached by shooting Terry in the leg as the guy was evacuating two of the other dispatchers.

Max and Maddie ignored Buck and Eddie as they demanded to know if they had just heard shot's fired over the dispatch radio. As soon as Doug had approached, Max stood and pointed his gun at Maddie's ex as Doug held a gun to Maddie's head. The deranged man didn't seem to notice Max as he ordered, "Maddie, hang up."

Maddie trusted her bodyguard to do his job, so she ignored her ex-husband and kept managing the call.

Doug growled, "Maddie, you know better than to ignore me. I'm here to take you home, where you belong. You had no right to leave." She kept ignoring him, so he yelled, "LISTEN TO ME!"

Max chuckled. "She knows better than to listen to the ramblings of a deranged idiot. You need to put the gun down, Douglas, or I'll put you down, hard."

Doug sneered at the guard as he said, "I'm not listening to her boy toy; if she knows what's good for her, she'll listen and get off the damn call!"

Max laughed, he was at least 10 years older than Maddie, and his salt and pepper hair said he was anything other than a boy toy. He got closer to Doug and said, "You need to drop the gun, Doug. The police are on their way to arrest you for jumping bail, and they have questions for you on the whereabouts of Claudette Collins."

"Who?" He could recall the system using the name to welcome him when he swiped into the building, so he said, "Oh, her. She's not important." Doug fixed his attention back on Maddie, who'd finally ended the call after the firefighters had found the girl and got her to safety. He demanded, "Pack your things; you're coming with me."

Maddie laughed. "Wow, Dr. Johanssen was right. You really are off your rocker. I'm not going with you; I'm not leaving LA. I'm happy away from your abusive ass, and I'm also confident Max will kill you if you try and pull that trigger. He's charged with my defense; his entire job here is to protect me from you." She glanced down at Terry and checked that he was okay before she demanded, "Why are you here, Doug? You don't like women who speak back, and trust me, my therapist has taught me how to find my voice." She grinned at Max and added, "She's going to have a field day when we discuss this."

Max commented, "I can just picture it, 'So Maddie, what happened this week?' Well, Dr. Johanssen, my ex-husband somehow got into dispatch, held me at gunpoint, shot my coworker, and demanded that I come home. So just another Tuesday."

Maddie laughed. "Sounds about right. She's going to have a lot to unpack. Are you ready to give up yet, Doug?"

The bodyguard said, "I would recommend it. The LAPD are on their way up. You should seriously accept defeat and surrender now."

Ignoring the guard again, Doug scowled. "You have to come home, Maddie, you're my wife, and you promised to obey. You're mine, and I refuse to grant you a divorce."

He stepped closer to Maddie with his gun raised. But when she stood her ground, he hissed, "If I can't have you, no one can."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - October 2018

Maddie dropped to the ground, just how Max had trained her, as Doug's finger started squeezing the trigger. 

She heard the shot hit one of her monitors. Maddie was thanking Max's daily training as it was second nature for her now to pull the gun she had holstered on the small of her back as she dropped. She lay on her back and shot up at her ex-husband as Max shot at him to disarm him.

Maddie shot at her estranged husband a few times until Max gently pulled the gun out of her hands and pulled her back away from the man lying on the floor.

Max yelled, "It's clear, he's disarmed, and they both need the paramedics." 

Maddie glanced up at her monitors, and quiet enough so only Max could hear, she muttered, "Bastard took a screenshot."

Max tried to smother a giggle as he assessed the floor. Terry was being helped by a couple of other former nurses, so he moved to help Doug, who was bleeding profusely.

Sue and Linda both rushed over, and as Max stemmed the bleeding from Doug's chest, Sue pulled Maddie off the floor so she could get a closer look at her arm, which was bleeding sluggishly. 

Doug had taken two shots center mass and one shot in the arm, and it seemed that the second shot her ex-husband took, as Maddie dropped to the floor, had hit her in the arm.

Three LAPD officers and the paramedics arrived on the floor simultaneously. They got busy interviewing the staff members as Max and Linda helped get Maddie patched up in the breakroom.

Max crouched down in front of her and asked, "How you doing, kiddo?"

She snorted. "Still not a kid, Max. You're only 11 years older than me. I'm doing okay, considering."

Linda muttered, "Considering your damn ex tried to kill you, you mean?"

"Yeah, that," Maddie admitted. She said with a sigh, "He is a persistent bastard. I think I'll only need a few stitches, if that. The bullet only grazed my arm. How's Terry?"

Max said, "He's already on the way to the hospital, but the paramedics didn't look worried, so I'm sure he'll be fine." As he watched the paramedics lift Doug onto the gurney, Max noticed that the frantic attempts to save the man's life had stopped; they had disconnected the leads and covered him with a sheet. He muttered under his breath in a sing-song tone, "Ding, dong, Doug is dead."

Maddie gasped when she heard him and whispered, "Oh, I guess that means he was a persistent bastard."

Sue came over with an officer and said, "I've got Officer Williams here; he needs to interview the two of you about today's events. Linda, Officer Palmerston is waiting over by Josh to do your interview."

Max shook his head, "Sorry, but not without our lawyers. We're quite happy to do the interview at the station after I get Maddie checked out at the hospital. We just need to know which one, so we can let our lawyers know where to meet us."

Once they got the details out of the way, the officer escorted them to his cruiser so he could take them to the station via the hospital for their interview. Max had sent a text to Buck to let him know what station they were going to so he could meet them there with the lawyer.

As soon as Maddie saw her little brother outside the station, she ran into his arms as he hugged her tightly. He whispered, "He can't get to you now."

Eventually, when she pulled away, Max said, "Our lawyers are waiting inside. I've already told them what happened, and they've been given access to the security footage so they can view it with us before the interview. Buck, are you coming? Or do you have to get back to work?"

After getting a brief nod from his sister, Buck confirmed, "I'm coming. Bobby gave me the afternoon off after we heard the shots fired over the radio. He and Eddie are both expecting regular updates."

Officer Williams had been waiting off to the side. He'd met the taller firefighter at a few scenes and knew he was close with Sergeant Grant. He asked, "Did you want me to call Sergeant Grant? I know she likes to be informed when you're in the station."

Buck shook his head. "It's okay. I'm just here as support for Maddie."

The officer commented, "Should I ask about Max?"

With a shrug, Buck said, "He's a former Marine I served with years ago. When I found out he was in personal security, I hired him to be Maddie's bodyguard when I was informed that Doug was granted bail. I didn't trust the bastard to stay in Boston."

Officer Williams checked his notes, and with a frown, he asked, "Doesn't Max work at dispatch?"

Buck nodded. "Yep. When Maddie got the job there, they applied together. After negotiating with the management, they were rostered onto the same shifts so he could do double duty. He's a trained nurse, so he could take medical 911 calls while also being there to protect Mads."

The officer led him to a chair where the firefighter could wait. As he walked away, he noticed Buck was already busy on his phone with his thumbs flying across the keypad.

Ralph, one of the lawyers the Sheppard family kept on retainer, came out and sat with Buck. He said, "She's fine. We've watched the security footage a few times, just to get a handle on it, and it's clear that Doug shot first and was lining up to take a second shot. The evasion training you made her do helped, I think. As soon as he touched the trigger, she dropped, rolled to face him, and shot back before he could take a second shot. If she hadn't moved as fast as she did, the shot would have been a head shot."

Buck slumped in his chair. "Fuck." He turned to give the lawyer a serious look as he asked, "He was trying to kill her? What the hell?"

Ralph whispered, "According to Max, his last words were, 'If I can't have her, no one can.' Because, as you said, he's a possessive abusive asshole. I mean, he honestly expected her to just capitulate and follow him back to Boston like a devoted kowtowed wife. What an idiot."

The firefighter glanced back at the interview room door and asked, "Will they be okay? Are they charging them with anything?"

Ralph shook his head. "No, they should both be fine. It was a clear case of self-defense, he'd shot one of the dispatchers, and they have another that's missing. He was using a stolen swipe card; that's how he got into dispatch."

Buck asked, "I heard someone mention he was in a dispatch uniform?"

"No," Ralph denied. "Right color shirt, but no logo. I think he figured out that the grey shirts are for the IT guys, either by watching or talking to someone who works in the building."

Buck asked, "Like this missing dispatcher?"

Officer Williams said, "She's free to go. I think it's best if she's not alone for a few days, and I recommended that she have a couple of sessions with her therapist before she returns to work."

Ralph said, "She's already scheduled an emergency session with Dr. Johanssen." The doctor was a department therapist, but she also had experience in trauma and long-term abuse counseling.

Buck asked, "How long do you expect it to take to get her gun back to her? I doubt she will be comfortable being out and about without it for a while."

The officer said, "Honestly, I can't give you a time frame, sorry."

Maddie came out looking exhausted with one of the lawyers by her side, and having heard the tail end of the conversation, she said, "I'll just borrow one from your gun safe at home. I know you have a couple that fit into my holster, Evan. It's fine."

Officer Williams said, "I don't want to know. I'll call you if I have any further questions."

When Max came out with his lawyer, they all left the precinct.

A few days later, Ralph called to confirm there would be no charges for Doug's death. It was officially declared to be self-defense. He also heard that they had found Claudette Collins dead in the trunk of her car. The police investigating her disappearance had found footage of her being approached in the car park the night before as she was leaving. The lawyer said sadly, "The stupid thing is, the footage shows that the security guards for the building offered to escort her to her car because it was so late, but she turned them down."

Maddie said, "I've talked to Sue. Max will stick around for a few weeks while I process what happened. She's implementing changes to protect us. More vigilance around the uniform, pointing out people who are strangers, and a clearer system for visitors so it's obvious if someone is a guest. This was a huge wake-up call."  

-x-

The declassification team had planned for every eventuality, but they were gutted when in late November, the breaking news was reporting several Goa'uld Al'kesh bombers and hundreds of death gliders in the air above San Francisco.

Taylor was in the Sheppard's workshop when news came through, so she grabbed her camera gear and Vala, who she had been training to run the camera, and the two of them were beamed to San Francisco to start the first of many planned reports. Dr. Daniel Jackson was with Patrick in Washington, feeding Taylor important information about the various ships as she reported live on the attack. 

Buck and Eddie ensured Carla, Shannon, and Christopher were safe and instructed them to hole up in the workshop if the gliders split off to attack other cities. Shannon reported that once she knew Carla and Christopher were safe, she would be beaming to Washington to join Patrick.

They took the puddle jumper and flew to Antarctica, thankfully a short journey in the cloaked ship. Jack O'Neill was busy with the Joint Chiefs, so it was up to Buck, as the second strongest ATA gene carrier on Earth, to use the ancient chair in the Antarctica outpost to defend the planet.

Eddie had received medical training specifically for this situation. He ensured he grabbed the supplies from the jumper before they got in the elevator to head down to the underground base. As the elevator descended, he demanded, "How the fuck did the Lucian Alliance get this close?"

Buck shrugged. "I don't know. As far as I remember, only Apophis had cloaking on his Ha'taks, and they were all supposed to be destroyed. They shouldn't have been able to get this close, or this coordinated. For the number of gliders in that video you showed me, that's a couple of Ha'taks at least."

Eddie asked, "Who is likely to be called in to take your place if the attack lasts longer than six hours?"

Buck shrugged again. "No one currently assigned to the SGC has a strong expression of the gene, at least not strong enough to make the chair dance like me and Dad. They'll probably get dad or Lorne through the gate on a jumper." He gave his husband a hard kiss before he said, "If it gets to four hours without an update, start making calls to get answers. The base has a skeleton crew, so you'll need to make the calls to Colonel Davis or Grandpa first, get them to throw their weight around."

Eddie nodded. "No matter what happens, you're not staying in the chair for longer than six hours. I'm not risking your health. Okay?"

Buck cupped his cheek and said, "I won't, dulzura. We should have enough drones here in the outpost to contain the attack to one city, so we'll do what we can to take them all out quickly before they do too much damage to San Francisco."

When the elevator finally arrived on the right level, they found a small contingent waiting for them. The Major currently running the base said, "Welcome, Commander Sheppard. General O'Neill warned us you were coming. Follow me, and I'll take you to the chair."

They followed the Major through the base to the chair room. Buck took a seat and let Eddie hook him up to the various machines that would monitor his vitals, and let him insert the IV for the fluids he would need.

Buck asked, "Is there a full complement of drones?"

The major nodded. "The last shipment arrived a few months back from Atlantis, now that they have the construction towers open again."

Eddie said, "You're good to go. At four hours, I'll start making calls if we haven't heard anything, at six hours, I'll cut the connection regardless. Colonel Davis confirmed SG-21 will be arriving soon to be our guard detail while you're in the chair. Just in case they try to ring down to the outpost."

Buck nodded, pushed his hand into the gel pads, and sunk into the command chair.

He projected the battle of San Francisco above his head, so those in the room could see it. The chair took all the footage from around the city to create a bird's eye view; this would help Buck choose his targets for the most efficiency.

There was a couple of squadrons of F-303s attacking the Al'kesh Bombers and Death Gliders, and the Daedalus, George Hammond, and the newest ship in the fleet, Ares, were attacking the two Ha'taks they could see in space. As the drones launched, Buck sent the drones after the Al'kesh Bombers, as they could do more damage than the payload on the F-303s; that way, the more maneuverable F-303s could go after the Death Gliders. He asked, "Eds, can you send a message to whoever is coordinating the squadrons, tell them to concentrate on the gliders? I'm sending the drones after the bombers."

"On it," He confirmed. Eddie had a laptop open with several group chats from the Pentagon updating him on the status of the situation in San Francisco. All the branches with ground troops had been sent in to get the civilians evacuated, mainly through the subway systems, to keep them off the streets. And the Air Force and Navy sent in all available fighter jets to assist the F-303s with taking down the gliders.

They were making headway, but the gliders just kept on coming. The drones were doing a great job taking down the Al'kesh Bombers, but the gliders were going in to attack the civilians still on the streets or in buildings. Civilians that were still recording and streaming live.

Colonel Evan Lorne arrived with SG-21 shortly after Buck was settled in the chair. He sent out the SEALs to take over guard duty from those usually assigned to the outpost, as most of the declassification plans were still classified. He asked, "How's it going? They sent me straight here without a debrief. They just said they needed either me or General Sheppard for the control chair, and to bring a puddle jumper because the ships that could do any beaming were busy."

Eddie gestured at the bird's eye view still displayed on the projection. He explained, "It looks like the Lucian Alliance has gone after San Francisco. We aren't sure why, since they haven't demanded anything, they just attacked. There are at least two Ha'taks in space which is why the Daedalus, Ares, and the George Hammond are busy. They obviously have cloaking, so there could be more, but there is no evidence of it, yet."

"Well fuck," Evan said as he took a seat on the floor beside Eddie. He looked up at Buck and checked the vitals on the machines. He asked, "How's Buck doing?"

Eddie said, "He's doing okay. He's using the drones to take out the Al'kesh Bombers, but it's slow work, especially since the Air Force and Navy have sent their fighter jets to join the party. He's being careful to avoid taking down their slower jets. I'm just hoping the Alliance doesn't have enough troops for a ground attack. I'm not sure how the military would handle that."

Evan laughed. "They would not take it well, that's for sure. How the hell did they get this close to earth without being spotted?"

The younger man said, "Buck thinks they might have one of Apophis' Ha'taks, or maybe just the cloaking technology he had. We won't know for sure unless we can take one of the ships. What I don't get though, I thought the Lucian Alliance was a bunch of warlords who didn't work together and only had a single Ha'tak each. So what's so important that they are collaborating now?"

Evan admitted, "You have a point." He checked the stream from the Pentagon and noticed they were asking similar questions. "Buck, how you doing, kiddo?"

"Busy," Buck bit out, sounding a lot like his pops. "It feels like for every bomber I destroy, another two take its place. They have to run out soon, surely."

Evan said, "The George Hammond said the ships are only coming from the two Ha'taks. They are monitoring to make sure there aren't more out there. Just let me know when you need a break, I've been sent here so we can tag team until the battle is over."

Eddie smiled, "One Ha'tak is dealt with. The Ares took it out, just the other one to go, and the Daedalus is reporting that they are close to neutralizing it."

Buck asked, "Can someone direct ground troops to Fisherman's Wharf and Nob Hill? It seems to be where the gliders are concentrating their last-ditch attacks."

 Evan sent off a message to General O'Neill as he said, "Got it. I've sent a message, and hopefully, the troops can get there fast through the damage to the city."

"Thanks," Buck said before he checked his reserve stock. "I'm almost out of drones, so it will be up to the F-303s and the various fighter jets to finish the remaining gliders."

Eddie asked, "No more Al'kesh bombers?"

Buck confirmed, "Nope, I just took out the last one." After a few minutes, he returned the chair to a sitting position as he said, "I used my last lot of drones to take out a few gliders."

Evan said, "We have another supply run of drones already loaded on the Apollo and on its way back to Earth. It should arrive in a week."

Eddie said, "Hopefully, they don't have another Ha'tak waiting until we run out of drones or planes. How are the F-303s coping?"

Buck smirked, "They are doing awesome, Eds, just like I knew they would. Only a few have been shot down; they are more agile than the gliders by a long shot."

Eddie snarked, "And I'm guessing you've already seen improvements you want to make for the next model?"

"Hell yes!" Buck agreed. "I've already seen several areas I want to work on. Aerodynamics and the way the pilots are protected are the main two improvements I want to make so far."

Evan pulled his godson into a hug once Eddie had disconnected him from the monitoring equipment and IV. He murmured, "It's good to see you again, kiddo." He knew there were uninformed ears around, so he said, "Your dad and Rodney wanted to come, but they were at an important meeting with one of the larger trade communities they couldn't miss. They'll be heading for the mountain as soon as they are done."

Eddie said, "Taylor just sent a message to the group chat. It looks like the battle in San Francisco is done; she's now reporting on the clean-up. Most of the gliders disintegrated, but a few are intact and on the ground."

Evan said, "General O'Neill will probably be calling Thor to see if the Asgard can come in and help beam out the biggest bits of wreckage and get it to Area-51; so it won't end up in civilian hands."

Eddie confirmed, "They already have the troops from the mountain keeping people away from the larger ships that crashed, so they won't be pillaged for the tech. According to the last message, the Daedalus and the Ares are taking point on getting our troops into the city. The George Hammond is taking point on guard duty as they have better long-range sensors."

Buck asked, "What about us?"

Eddie shook his head. "I got a private message from Davis; he wants us to return to work at the 118. People are going to be freaking out, so first responders will be essential to keep the peace. Patrick has already kicked off the declassification process, and he is now talking to the president. He's got O'Neill, Jackson, and Shannon with him. He's asked that we send Colonel Lorne and SG-21 to San Francisco in their puddle jumper; they are going to be helping with the clean-up."

Selby asked, "Are they sending my drones to San Francisco? I understand they want me and the other drone operators to help with aerial monitoring."

Eddie sent off the question to Davis and got a quick reply. He relayed, "They are; each gate team will have a drone and drone operator with them to assist with finding survivors. They are using the new ones that were fabricated on Atlantis with the new longer-lasting power supply. So you should be good to keep them flying for a few hours at a time. He said Lorne's jumper has the chargers and extra batteries."

Buck said, "We have an early shift tomorrow; we should get moving."

The major in charge of the outpost saluted and said, "Commander, we have someone ready to take over who can read the long-range sensors in the control chair. You're free to leave."

Buck returned the salute gratefully, and Eddie guided him to the elevator so they could fly home.

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - October 2018

As the men entered the house, Christopher cried out, "Daddy, Papa! Uncle Dave and Aunty Laura are here."

Eddie picked up his son, hugged him tightly, and carried him into the living room to find Dave and Laura. As they got settled in the living room, he asked, "Are you okay, mijo?"

Christopher nodded. "I watched the attack on the news." He turned to Buck, who had taken the seat beside them, and asked, "Were you there?"

Buck asked, "Do you remember me talking about the chair in Antarctica? I was down there with your dad directing the drones." At his son's confused look, he said, "The squid things that were attacking the bigger ships. They are flown by remote from that control chair."

Laura explained, "He was glued to the TV watching the broadcast. Dave sent Carla home when we got here, as she was concerned about how her husband would take the news of the alien invasion. We tried to distract Christopher, but he was fixated."

Christopher asked, "Can I tell people now?" 

Buck winced. He knew that would be a touchy subject, as they didn't want people to know Christopher had awareness of the SGC. "Not yet, kiddo. Did you see the end of the broadcast, the news about the protests? They'll be looking for anyone related to the SGC, so we have to keep it quiet for now. Maybe one day, once things calm down, you can tell people you know members of the Stargate program, but for now, it stays a secret."

Eddie said, "The fun part for the SGC is going to be explaining how the aliens stole humans from earth thousands of years ago and used them to seed other planets in the universe, so a lot of those from other planets are still human, they just live elsewhere." He looked around but couldn't see anyone else around. So he asked, "Where is everyone else?"

Laura reported, "Patrick is still in Washington with General O'Neill. They are with the president briefing him on their declassification plans. Shannon is in Colorado Springs getting General Carter and Colonel Mitchell ready for the press conference. Vala is with Taylor Kelly in San Francisco; they're still reporting on the clean-up for CNN. O'Neill has sent us here to coordinate the gate teams monitoring the west coast; we'll be working out of the base in El Segundo. Mitchell and Jonas are supervising the teams monitoring the East Coast."

Dave said, "I may send someone to the LA 911 dispatch center to get a bird's-eye view on how things are going. Who should I talk to there?"

Eddie said, "Sue Blevins, she runs the dispatch center. She's been there for years, so if shit's not right, she'll probably see the pattern and point it out to your guys. If she's not there, look for Maddie, she could probably use the distraction. I know she's still finding it hard to be at work right now."

Buck agreed, "Sue's got a sixth sense when it comes to calls and patterns. Maddie is in awe of her."

Eddie said, "I'm going to hit the hay, we have an early shift tomorrow, and with what happened in San Fran, it's probably going to be chaos."

"Ditto," Buck said in agreement. "I'm exhausted. Laura, you're on breakfast duty. I've been craving your Belgian waffles for months."

She mock saluted her former charge as Buck followed his husband to the suite at the back of the house.

-x-

Buck and Eddie arrived at the 118 an hour before their shift was due to start, and they found a very frazzled Bobby in the garage. When the captain saw them both, he asked, "Do you know what the hell happened yesterday?"

Buck nodded, and to try and deflect from what Bobby was really asking, he said, "We saw the news; the president himself said the attack was over."

Bobby dragged him to his office and waited for Eddie to follow them before he shut the door. He demanded, "You know more than that though?"

Buck and Eddie both nodded. Buck said, "We know what's going on, but we can't say more until certain press conferences happen later today. I can confirm the attack appears to be a one-off. As far as we can tell, there are no more ships waiting in orbit to attack other cities."

Bobby sagged back in his chair. "Well, that's comforting." He fixed the two men with a stern look. "So there will be announcements today?"

Buck nodded. "There should be one this morning at the start of our shift, once it's signed off by the president."

The captain hesitantly asked, "Were either of you involved in yesterday's battle?"

Eddie looked outside to ensure no one was within listening distance before he nodded. "We both were. I monitored Buck as he used the drones to take out the big bombers."

"Drones?" Bobby asked. "I don't remember seeing any drones."

Buck grinned. "That's because they look like squids. They are weird, but they work and have a wicked payload. They are good for taking out the bombers."

Bobby asked, "And the other planes, the new ones?"

Eddie said, "They are the F-303 fighter planes. The program we were in has several squadrons of them." He glanced at his husband as if asking for permission, and when he saw the minuscule nod, he said, "They are actually Buck's design. He was the lead engineer for the F-303 project, and he's already thought of several improvements based on yesterday's battle."

After picking his jaw up off the floor, Bobby asked, "So what can we expect today? C shift said it was pretty chaotic overnight."

Buck shrugged. He said dryly, "People are stupid, so epic levels of Darwinism? Seriously though, people are going to try and leave the cities, so idiots in cars. Then there is the looting and hoarding of toilet paper; since, apparently, that's a hot commodity during an alien invasion. That is probably more Athena's wheelhouse though."

Bobby snorted. "Yep, she's been swearing at me all morning via text already. She was called in early because of the chaos. Captain Maynard assigned her to the looting calls since she has a good command of crazy situations."

Buck said, "I've already had a text from Maddie; the 911 dispatch center is going crazy. From people reporting their neighbors are aliens to the fist fights over the last toilet rolls."

"I'm just glad the military is dealing with the clean-up in San Francisco," Bobby said. "With the volume of calls coming in, I doubt we'd be able to spare the manpower."

Buck muttered, "Just be glad they didn't assign protection to me. They threatened to have SG-21, our old team, shadow me while the announcements were made. But I managed to put them off."

Bobby said, "Honestly, that would have raised more questions. Especially with those in the station that are particularly nosy. So I'm glad you were able to put them off."

Eddie nodded. "They worked with us for years and know both of us well. So they would be unable to resist prodding at how little PDA we show at work. They're used to Buck sitting in my lap during debriefings, and when he's working on his laptop, we are often cuddled up on the sofa in his lab."

Bobby admitted, "I'm surprised no one has said anything about the minimal PDA you do indulge in."

Eddie laughed. "They do, we just shrug it off as bros being bros, so they get bored with the prodding. I'm pretty sure the fact we sit close and get on like a house on fire is why Chim and Hen have that bet going between them."

Buck asked, "How late is C Shift likely to be? The first press conference should be right at the start of our shift. I think it would be a good idea for us to watch it before we take calls. If we can alleviate some of the fear on the team, it should help us keep the general public calm."

Eddie said, "As long as the team has accurate information. The last thing we need is the gossips spreading misinformation. That shit spreads like wildfire."

Bobby nodded. "Okay. How about you two go down and get changed? Let me know if you hear anyone spreading gossip or something you know is not true. You have the advantage of knowing what's coming, for the most part."

As Buck and Eddie stood to leave, Buck said, "The hard part for us is that we know the program inside and out, but we don't know what parts are being declassified, so we'll be sticking to only what we see on the news."

As they arrived in the locker room, Hen and Chim were already getting changed with a few others from the A shift. Chim looked up and asked, "Did you see the news last night?"

They both nodded. Eddie said, "It's crazy, right? Taylor did a good job on the reports we saw."

Hen said, "She was right there on one of the rooftops, and she barely showed any fear. Some of those ships got so close to her."

Chim noticed Buck was getting dressed in a hurry, so he asked, "What's the rush, Buckaroo?"

Buck said, "I heard on the radio that they were doing a press conference on CNN to explain what happened yesterday. I don't want to miss it."

They all started to hurry with that announcement. With the C shift still being out on a call, they would be able to watch the start of the press conference and get more info about what actually happened.

Bobby was waiting in the loft with a pile of breakfast sandwiches ready for everyone. He had extras for the C shift crew, as he knew from dispatch that they had been busy all night. As everyone crowded around the table, he said, "They just announced the press conference; it's starting in five minutes. Before it starts, I want to make some things clear."

When he was sure everyone was paying attention, he said, "The general public is going to be looking to us for guidance, maybe not as much as the police and the military, but we are still first responders; so, it's important that we give the right message. So, with that in mind, Chief Alonzo has asked that we only repeat what we've heard from official channels; via either press conferences or articles published on reputable news sites like CNN. There will be a lot of misinformation, and the last thing we need is word spreading that they got the information from a representative of the LAFD."

Chim asked, "What if they ask something and we aren't sure of the answer?"

Bobby said, "Be honest and tell them that. Tell them we know only what's been released via public channels and refer them to news sites like CNN." He noticed Buck mouthed website, so he added, "Or whatever website the government sets up to pass on information. It's going to be a chaotic day. The dispatch center is flooded with calls, with only about 40% of them being genuine incidents requiring first responder's attention."

Hen said, "I saw a few accidents on my way in. I'm willing to bet that's why Martin is late."

Bobby confirmed. "It is. He called me about fifteen minutes ago to report that he's stuck behind a pile-up on the 405. He said C shift is actually on site helping clear the accident scene, so he will follow the truck to the station when they get the scene cleared."

They heard the announcement that the press conference was about to begin. So Buck turned up the TV, and everyone crowded around the sofas to listen in. 

Buck took note of his Grandpa and Shannon standing at the back of the stage with General Carter, Colonel Mitchell, Dr. Daniel Jackson, and surprisingly, his dad. General O'Neill was standing at the rostrum, waiting for quiet. He was pretty sure Taylor, with Vala acting as her bodyguard, was in the audience to ask specific questions at the right time.

Jack cleared his throat and said, "I'm Major General Jack O'Neill, and I'm the Director of Homeworld Security. And I'm here to tell you about the Stargate Program." He waited for the noise from the journalists to quiet down before he confirmed, "Yes, Homeworld, it's a bit the same and a lot different than Homeland Security. But we do have the same purpose. As most of you would have seen yesterday, San Francisco was attacked by an alien mercenary group called the Lucian Alliance. We believe yesterday's attack was testing our defenses, and we took them by surprise."

Timing her question perfectly, Taylor called out, "Was this the first attack on earth by aliens?"

Jack shook his head. "No. We've had several other attempts over the last 15 years, some more successful than others, but this was certainly the most public. We already have measures in place to try and prevent another attack of this magnitude. We have our deep space warships patrolling and scanning for alien vessels. And our F-303 fighters will be doing regular flights over our major cities, scanning for issues. One of our allies, the Asgard, have removed the alien crafts from the streets where they crashed. The military will coordinate with the Stargate Program on the rest of the clean-up."

He looked behind him and gestured for Daniel to join him. He said, "This is Dr. Daniel Jackson; he is going to talk briefly," he gave his scientist a stern look to make a point, "about the Stargate Program."

Buck looked away from the TV as he heard the trucks enter the garage. He stood and said, "I'm going to go and check the trucks and see what needs to be restocked before the alarms go off."

Bobby nodded. "Sounds good, Buck. Eddie, why don't you join him."

They sprinted down the stairs, and Buck said, "I'll take the truck; you take the ambulance since you know where to find everything."

Eddie nodded and ran for the ambulance, hoping to catch the C shift paramedics inside. 

As they jumped out, the more senior paramedic, Appleby, said, "Double stock everything. It's fucking nuts out there."

Eddie asked, "What sort of calls did you have?"

She said, "Mostly pile-ups with people trying to leave the city, and we were called to a few looting call-outs when the police needed people patched up before being taken into lockup."

The other paramedic muttered, "At this rate, they are going to run out of room. Is the press conference still on upstairs?"

Eddie nodded. "Some doctor is explaining the Stargate thingy. Bobby sent us down to restock since he didn't think it would be long before we would be called out."

Appleby said, "It won't be. The lieutenant had to call dispatch to get us meal breaks and a sleep break. They're building a schedule for meal breaks and sleep breaks for all the stations, so no one ends up dead on their feet and making mistakes. We'll likely all get a fair bit of overtime until things calm down. Hopefully, that won't take long."

Eddie pondered, "I wonder if all the large cities are going through the same chaos or if it's just west coast cities." He took the note from Appleby that detailed all the supplies they used. She had also noted what she thought they would need extras of.

Appleby suggested, "Grab one of the spare med kits and load it up with the spare supplies, maybe a few of them, and store them on the truck."

"Got it," Eddie said with a grin. He said, "You guys should head upstairs. Bobby made extra breakfast sandwiches for you guys; they're on the table."

He watched them both run for the stairs after getting out of their turnout gear, then he called, "Buck? I'll need your help restocking; it's a long list."

Buck was waiting for him in the store room, and he pulled him into a quick kiss before he took the list and started pulling supplies off the shelves. He said, "I overheard Appleby mention the extra med kits, so I already grabbed them. Let's get moving; I'm pretty sure the alarms will go off soon."

He was right; the others from the A shift came down and helped check the trucks over. As soon as they confirmed they were ready, the first call came in for a multi-car pile-up not far from the location of the last one.  

Bobby sighed over the radio. "Apparently, someone was done waiting in the queue of traffic leaving the city, and they tried to do a u-turn to the other lanes. Even though there is a cement barrier between them. There are three cars with people trapped inside, including the guy who caused it all. I want Chim, Hen, and Eddie on triage. I'll work with Buck, Martin with Tanika, and Thompson with Beal. Stick together and stay safe."

They all jumped out at the accident scene. Athena was already on site, and Bobby approached to get an update on the situation.

She yawned and said, "It's been a madhouse. This clown isn't even the worst of it. Not even close."

Bobby gave her a quick kiss and said, "Come on, Buck, let's go see who needs help."

Eddie called them over to the car he was assessing. He said, "They're all okay, but we'll need the jaws to get the driver out; he's fine, we just can't get the door open to get him out, and the passenger side of the car is too crumpled to get him out through the window."

Buck ran to the truck to get the jaws so they could pry the car open, and for the next 24 hours, they were on the go almost constantly. The traffic queues out of the city were long, and tempers were getting frayed.

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - November 2018

It took a few weeks and several press conferences for things to settle down again after the world learned that aliens existed. The SGC also did a tour with the F-303 squadron doing flying displays, so the public could see what was already in place to protect them.

Things at the 118 settled down, and they returned to their regular shifts and the regular LA level of crazy calls. Their current call was to rescue a woman, Lola, who was currently going viral as she stood on a highway sign demanding for her husband to 'See' her.

Lola screamed, "Ever since those damn aliens attacked, he doesn't see me. I was a mother for 18 years, then our kid left for school just before the invasion of San Francisco. Now he's obsessed with the aliens. He hasn't spoken to me in weeks. I just want him to see me. Is that too much to ask?"

Athena tried to negotiate with her, but she was inconsolable and irrational. When the crew brought out the airbag, Lola pulled a gun out of the pocket of her dressing gown, and she shot through it. When Buck was lowered to the platform she was standing on, as she pulled out the gun, she turned it on him.

Buck had been warned by Bobby that Norman was on the way; he was being brought to the scene on the back of a police motorcycle. But in the meantime, he had to work on getting Lola off the sign, so traffic could return to normal.

He knew Eddie would be chomping at the bit to disarm her, but he was stuck waiting on the bridge, watching as this crazy woman held his husband at gunpoint.

Athena warned Lola, "You now have every firearm in the Greater Los Angeles area pointed at you. If you continue to threaten that man, they will fire. Do you understand?"

Lola said quietly, "I don't want to hurt anybody. I just can't handle being ignored anymore."

Buck said, "I know exactly what you mean."

She gave him a look that radiated disbelief. She gestured at his body with the gun and said derisively, "Oh, come on. Yes, I'm sure you get ignored all the time."

Buck said, "You have a Norman; I had a Philip and Margaret. Parents that ignored my existence unless I was needed to make them look like the perfect parents and community leaders. I would spend days at home with no one speaking to me; they barely even remembered to dish out a meal for me most days. So trust me when I say I understand being ignored. Eventually, it hits you; you're alone, and the only person who can change that is you."

He was praying that no one other than Eddie could hear what he was saying. He could see the police motorbike speeding towards them with a civilian on the back. He pointed at the bike so she could see it and said, "Unlike me, it looks like you get a happy ending with Norman."

Lola watched the bike approaching and asked, "What happened with your parents?"

Buck grinned. "I discovered I was adopted and left them in the dust. My second attempt at a happy childhood was much more successful. Don't waste your second chance with Norman, and maybe next time, try couples therapy."

Lola nodded, and she concentrated on Norman, who was using a megaphone to apologize for making her feel ignored. Eventually, she dropped the hand holding the gun, and Buck was able to move forward to disarm her. After a quick flick of his fingers to engage the safety, he passed the gun up to his partner on the bridge. 

He worked with Eddie to get her on the bridge so the paramedic could check her out before Athena approached to arrest her. 

Buck stood back with Eddie as she was reuniting with her husband. Bobby approached and asked, "What did you tell her? She seemed to calm down a lot after you talked to her."

Buck shrugged and admitted, "I told her about my childhood, where I spent the majority of the time being ignored by the people who called themselves my parents."

Eddie said, "You have excellent parents now. They even adopted me and mine after my parents proved themselves to be intolerable."

Bobby said, "You also both have a family in the 118. I know Athena is ready to adopt you both into her family." He saw the disbelief on Buck's face and said, "Yes, even you, Buck. She's not immune to those puppy dog eyes you use with ruthless efficiency. It's why she's so insistent that the both of you join us at the firefam dinners at her place."

Buck frowned. "I thought that was just because she knows we're together?"

"No," Bobby hurried to confirm. "At least, I don't think so. She just knows that you're both trying to keep it a secret and wants to give you a way to be together without having to out yourselves to everyone else."

Eddie said, "Hen calls us a package deal. That you won't find one of us without the other. Apparently, we're her brotp, whatever that means."

Bobby laughed loudly. "That one I do know. It's from the fanfictions she reads on her kindle; it means Bro True Pairing. Like platonic soulmates. And I can agree; she and Chim totally believe that what you two have is platonic."

Buck snarked, "Yep, so platonic when we nearly broke the new bed last night."

Bobby stuck his fingers in his ears and said, "I really don't want to know."

-x-

A few weeks before Christmas, the boys were taking Christopher to see Santa. They were pretty sure it would be the last year the young boy would want to do the whole Christmas tradition.

As they sat back on the bench seat on the edge of the fountain, Eddie said, "I offered to wait in line with him, but he said his discussion with Santa is private." He called out to Christopher to get a shot of him waiting on his phone. 

Buck snuggled in beside him and said, "I really admire our kid. He always wants to do everything on his own." He gave his husband a squeeze before he asked, "Are you going to tell me why you're so wound up?"

Eddie sighed, "This dinner tonight at Abuela's. I have a feeling it's not a normal dinner; she was less flexible about the timing of it than usual."

"That's weird," Buck admitted. "She's usually willing to work around our schedules."

Eddie admitted, "She arranged this around our schedule, which she got from Shannon. She made sure she arranged this dinner on a night we both have off. It's why it feels like a setup."

Buck shrugged before he pointed, "Hey, our kid's about to meet Santa. As for the dinner, I think we just have to go and hope it's not your parents."

Eddie paled, "Oh god, what if it's my parents."

Buck stood with his phone and started taking photos of Christopher talking to Santa. He said, "Given her language the last time she spoke to your dad, I doubt it's them. Now get your butt off that bench; our kid's coming."

Eddie raced over and picked up Christopher into a hug. He asked, "How did it go, mijo?"

Christopher grinned. "It went great, Daddy."

Buck asked, "So what did you ask for?"

Christopher poked his tongue out at Buck before he said, "I can't tell you, Papa. It's a secret, but Santa said he would work on it."

Eddie said, "Come on, mijo, we need to get to your bisabuela's for dinner."

As they were walking away, Buck watched. He had no idea the elf that had helped Christopher had moved in beside him. She said, "You have an adorable son."

He grinned and replied. "Thanks. He surprises us every day. You didn't happen to catch what he asked for?"

She shook her head. "No, he was whispering, something about it being a secret."

Buck said, "Thanks. I guess we'll have to resort to bribery to get it out of him." As he started to move away to catch up to his family, he said, "Have a nice night, Ms. Elf."

He caught up easily to Eddie and Christopher with his long legs. He wrapped his arm around Eddie's waist as he said, "Come on, slowpokes, we should get to your abuela's and face the music."

Christopher muttered, "I knew it was suspicious. Especially since Mom and Vala are meeting us there. They said they would wait outside for us."

They pulled up outside Isabel's and noticed extra cars parked on the side of the road. There was a space left for them on the driveway though. Eddie said, "I don't recognize any of the other cars. What the hell is going on."

Buck shrugged. "The sooner we go in, the sooner we'll find out." He pointed at the front steps. "Shan and Vala are waiting for us."

Eddie muttered, "It's not fair when you logic at me."

Christopher said, "I want to go in, Daddy. I want to show Bisabuela the photos you both took of me with Santa."

Buck helped Christopher out of the backseat, got him steady with his crutches, and watched as he raced for his Mom and Vala for hugs. Buck then walked to the driver's door and said, "Come on, husband mine. Let's go see what's going on."

They followed their son into the house as he told Shannon about his visit with Santa. Christopher said, "Daddy and Papa got lots of photos on their phones."

She looked up with a glint in her eye as she said, "Isabel said she is waiting for you in the backyard. I wouldn't keep her waiting. We'll bring Christopher through in a few minutes."

Buck dragged a reluctant Eddie through the house and pushed him out the back door into the yard. They both looked up when they heard cries of "Eddie!" being yelled from several people waiting with Isabel and Pepa.

Eddie braced himself as his two older sisters, and their husbands barrelled into him for hugs. Adriana said, "You dick, we've been trying to find you for years."

Sophia said, "We've missed you, hermano. I can't believe what our parents did to all of us. Abuela and Tia Pepa have been filling us in on everything we missed. We haven't spoken to them in years. If they weren't harassing us about Stacy and how we aren't fit to parent her, they wouldn't stop harping on at all of us about how you're unfit parents, since you refuse to get married to Shannon."

Eddie snorted. "I am married, though. And boy, will that piss them off when they find out. I tried to invite you all to my firefighter graduation in Colorado Springs. They went crazy when they discovered that I was still living with Shannon, and we still weren't married." He gestured to Buck and said, "This is Buck; he's my husband and Christopher's third parent."

They all looked at Buck, who was standing behind Eddie in silent support. He waved his fingers and said, "Hi?"

James, Adriana's husband, said, "Damn Eddie, you did good."

Adriana smacked him with the back of her hand across his chest and muttered, "Down, boy." She turned to her brother and said, "So it's clear, thanks to our parents, that we've missed a lot. Where's Christopher?"

Eddie gestured back at the house and said, "He's inside with Shan and Vala telling them about his visit with Santa. They couldn't join us this year because they had an appointment they couldn't get out of."

Sophia asked, "Vala?"

Buck explained, "She's Shannon's girlfriend. They've been dating for a few years now. They are still based in Colorado Springs, but they spend all their free time with us so they can see Christopher."

Quinn, Sophia's husband, asked, "So where have you all been living? We tried to find Shannon after we had a huge fight with Helena and Ramon over Stacy, but she was gone. We did see her on TV last month at the Stargate press conferences. That's partly what pushed us into visiting, to be honest."

James said, "When we picked up the last of our boxes before we moved, Ramon was there to scowl in disapproval, and he told us that Shannon had left El Paso and had moved in with her Sugar Daddy."

Eddie nearly fell over laughing. He wheezed, "Dios Mio. We have to tell Patrick he's a sugar daddy."

Buck shook his head. "God no, he'd be horrified. Grandpa was happy to help since we were both stuck in Afghanistan. Shannon needed to get away from Ramon and Helena."

They heard the tapping noise from Christopher's crutches, and Eddie turned to pick him up so he could introduce him to his tías y tíos. "Guys, this is Christopher, our son."

Christopher grinned. "Hi." He looked at Quinn and asked, "Do you still work at the El Paso Zoo?"

Quinn smiled softly. "No, I now work for the San Diego Zoo. I'm the head carnivore keeper there. Do you know what that means?"

Christopher nodded. "It means you take care of all the big predators like the lions and other big cats. Is it fun?"

"Yeah, kid," Quinn said with a grin. "It's lots of fun. Hard work, though. Is that what you want to do when you grow up?"

Christopher shook his head. "Nope. I want to be a rocket scientist like my papa, or maybe I'll go into business with Grandpa. I haven't decided yet."

Adriana asked, "Rocket scientist?"

Isabel suggested, "Why don't we all sit so you can catch up on the last seven years? I've ordered dinner in, so no one has to cook. It'll give us more time to reconnect as a family." She saw Shannon and Vala waiting behind the group, so she said, "Nietas, come talk to an old woman about what you've been up to. It's been a few months since I last saw you both."

Vala still found it amusing that Eddie's grandmother called her a granddaughter, but she was happy to be adopted as a member of the extended Diaz family. She sat down, with Shannon in her lap, as they talked to Isabel about the non-classified part of their antics in Colorado Springs. They sent Christopher off to play with his cousins on the other side of the yard.

Sophia fixed her brother with a stubborn look as she said, "So the last thing we heard from you was that you were deploying to the Middle East. We were home for a few of the video calls you did with Papa and Mami, we asked them for your contact details, but they said you preferred all contact go through them and wouldn't hand them over. After Shannon left, and before we packed up and moved to San Diego, we asked again, but they said you'd changed your email and phone number, and they no longer had them."

Buck said, "Lying bastards. I heard Eddie specifically telling your parents to pass the contact information on. I think it was one of the first calls that you both missed. I should have realized and got Grandpa to find you and pass on the details. They were entirely too invested in forcing Eddie and Shannon to marry, even though neither of them was interested in a loveless marriage. Honestly, the only number that changed was Shannon's after they wouldn't stop harassing her when she moved."

Eddie said, "It wouldn't be loveless, just not what either of us wanted. We are still best friends, and we love each other dearly; we just don't have the capacity to fall in love with each other."

Sophia asked, "What do you mean?"

Shannon said, "We are both homoromantic bisexuals. That means we're interested in sex from either gender, but we are only interested in the whole romance and love side of things from our own gender. So for me, that's Vala, and for Eddie, that's Buck. We both adopted Buck into our family when Christopher was born, and it was him who offered up the move to Virginia Beach if we needed to get away."

Buck could see the confusion, and a little bit of anger on the faces of the Diaz sisters, so he explained, "Most of the calls you had with Eddie for the last few months were done in my office. It gave him more privacy than his tent or the medical tent. I was often sitting back, reading or studying, while he talked. So while I wasn't paying 100% of my attention to the calls, I was still there and overheard things that worried me. Your parents were always much better behaved when you two were on the calls. That's for sure."

Adriana asked, "Eddie? Why did Shannon leave all of a sudden? When we went to see her to let her know we were moving, all we found were a bunch of moving company guys packing the house."

Eddie snorted. "Mom and Dad tried to take Christopher from the nanny while Shannon was at work, they didn't ask either of us for permission, and they wouldn't leave until she threatened to call the police on them. It was the last straw for both of us. Shannon was exhausted from a sleepless night, worried they would try again to take our son. I called Mom and Dad to let them know it was out of line, and they threatened to sue for custody. Buck could see I was losing it, so he contacted his Grandfather, Patrick, and he sent his private jet to pick them up from El Paso. Patrick also arranged a moving company to pack and ship the rest of our things. When Shannon and Christopher arrived in Virginia, he was waiting for them at the airport. He settled them in Buck's suite and arranged for their housekeeper to help Shannon with Christopher. Honestly, Patrick spoils our son rotten."

Sophia started to swear in some really colorful Spanish before she said in English, "If the moving guys were there the next day, they tried to take Christopher within hours after I told them to fuck off when they tried to take Stacy from us. We spent the rest of the day with our lawyer and on the phone with Adriana and James, trying to sort out the next steps."

Quinn said, "We were on our way to see if Shannon and Chris wanted to move with us, but she beat us to it."

Adriana added as she glanced at Shannon, "We also wanted to get any contact info from you since we didn't have your phone number for some reason."

Shannon said from her seat beside Abuela, "I didn't give it to you directly because I was told they'd given it to you."  

Wanting a subject change, as she was over discussing her brother and his ridiculous wife, Pepa asked, "Is Patrick going to be home for Christmas this year? I know he was sad to miss Christopher's first Christmas in LA last year."

Buck nodded. "Yeah, now that the declassification is mostly taken care of, he's stepping back from the heavy lifting. He's still working with General O'Neill on the parts that may be released later, but for now, they are happy with where things are at. I think he's talking about moving HQ to LA."

Shannon said quietly, "He's been grooming me to take over as CEO since you three boys have refused point-blank. He would like Christopher to eventually take the helm, but he understands if Chris wants to follow in your footsteps, Buck."

Adriana asked, "What boys? What HQ? I'm so confused. I thought you were firefighters; that's what we saw on that news report."

Eddie sighed; he'd lumped his sisters in with his parents since they seemed to support them on the calls. So they didn't know about Buck. He looked over as Buck grasped his hand. His husband murmured, "It's up to you how much you tell them, dulzura. But I think it's clear they aren't as supportive of your parents as you were told."

Sophia demanded, "What the fuck did they tell you, Eddie?"

Shannon said, "They told me to just do my duty and marry Eddie like the six of you wanted. To stop shaming your family and dragging our son down with us."

Sophia said darkly. "Bastards. I can't believe them." She glanced at Christopher and watched as he stood with his crutches for support, telling a story to his cousins. She said, "Can I ask why he needs crutches?"

Eddie explained, "He has cerebral palsy. He was diagnosed not long after we moved to Colorado Springs."

Sophia said, "Damn. Do not tell our parents. They will try and claim him, saying it's your fault for him being broken or some other ableist bullshit. My daughter has APD, an auditory processing disorder. They said she was just lazy and should live with them so she can have the parenting we're clearly not giving her. That's why they threatened to sue us for custody."

Buck whistled. "Wow! We're definitely not telling them about Christopher's CP."

She shrugged. "She actually does ok now. We found her a school in San Diego that is a huge help. She has an aide to help her with her school work, and they give her as much as they can in written form, so she's got the information the teacher is talking about. We also all learned ASL to communicate with her." She huffed in frustration. "I haven't spoken to Mom since she dropped that bombshell. Now, will you tell us what you were talking about with this Patrick, the boys, and HQ talk?"

Eddie laughed. "Never change, Soph. In order, Patrick is Buck's grandpa, Patrick Sheppard; he owns Sheppard Industries. So when Shannon left El Paso, it was to move into their house in Virginia Beach, and she transferred to the Sheppard Industries HQ."

Sopha exclaimed, "He was with Shannon in those press conferences. I should have realized."

James asked, "You worked for the SI office in El Paso, didn't you?"

"Yep," Shannon confirmed. "Buck arranged it so I could transfer to the HQ in Norfolk so we could get away from El Paso. Patrick was fantastic; he dotes on Christopher so much."

Eddie said, "The boys are Buck, his dad John Sheppard, and his uncle Dave Sheppard. John and Dave are based almost permanently off-world. And Buck has zero interest in running a tech giant, he prefers tinkering with his designs. And as you've probably guessed, the HQ is for Sheppard Industries. It's currently run by a CEO, Nick Dervish, whom Patrick hired when he started working on the declassification project. Nick wants to retire in the next year."

Quinn asked, "Wasn't John Sheppard in those press conferences too, after that thing in San Fran? He's a general or something like that with the Air Force."

Buck nodded. "Yep. That's my dad. Pops is in the Stargate program too. Technically most of my family are."

Vala said, "Even us. I'm not actually from Earth, although I am human. I was taken in by the SGC after a rescue mission. I split my time there between occasional work as a physical therapist, and the rest of my time is spent as part of SG-1, the premiere gate team."

Buck coughed into his hand as he muttered, "Surreeee."

At the confused looks from his whole family, Eddie explained, "We had to rescue Vala's team after they were captured on a mission. I still don't know how, considering the people who held them captive were assigned to the planet they were on because they were epic screwups. At the time, Buck was the commander of SG-21, and I was the team medic."

Vala shrugged. "They had staff weapons. Those things pack a punch."

Isabel said, "Now that everything's settled, you'll stay in touch with each other, mis nietos y nietas. Got it."

Adriana said, "It should be easier; we are all living in San Diego now. After the ultimatum about Stacy and her APD, we all got the hell out of dodge. And we've been trying to find you ever since. It wasn't until we were watching the news and saw the puff piece on a day in the life of a firehouse that we recognized you, Eddie. So we asked Abuela what her plans were for Christmas, and when she said she was having Christmas dinner with you guys, we planned to come here and ambush you."

Eddie said, "I'm sorry, I never actually meant to cut you guys out, I just couldn't face it if you sided with them and helped them steal my son."

James, the calm antithesis to Eddie's fiery sister, said, "We get it, we do." He put a hand on his wife's arm to calm her. "I've noticed that Helena and Ramon certainly spin things to get what they want. They tried a few times before we left El Paso to pit Adriana and Sophia against each other to try and get what they wanted. They just hadn't counted on how close they are. It's why we found houses on the same small street when we moved to San Diego."

Buck asked, "Just out of curiosity, when did you last speak to your parents?"

Adriana said, "A few weeks after we tried to find Shannon. And that was just briefly as we packed the last of our things."

Eddie exploded. "Those lying bastards. When I called them to invite you all to my firefighter graduation a few years ago, they told me that you all would never forgive me for not marrying Shannon and keeping their nephew from them."

Buck pulled his husband into his lap and murmured, "Let's just be thankful your sisters are stubborn, and you've got them back in your life again, in all our lives."

Eddie turned to his sisters and asked, "How long are you in town? Can you stay for a few days?"

The two women looked at each other before Adriana said, "We were planning to get a hotel room so we could stick around for a few days."

Eddie said, "We have a few spare rooms at our place, so you're welcome to stay with us."

Buck said, "My workshop is still off-limits, it requires fingerprint and retina scans to get in, but only the two of us have access right now. Christopher's access was turned off after he went out of his way to blow up his last experiment."

Christopher yelled, "At least I didn't use your C4."

James said, "I think we'll definitely take you up on the offer. Do you have room for the kids?"

Buck nodded. "Yep. The house we bought is pretty big; you guys can use Dad and Dave's suites. They won't mind."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - December 2018

Christmas wound up being a big blended family affair. Both John and Dave came home from Atlantis with their partners. Dave had decided to finally introduce his long-time girlfriend, Miko Kusanagi, a computer scientist based on Atlantis. They had brought Evan Lorne and Laura Cadman with them to celebrate with the family.

They had wanted to surprise the boys at work, until Patrick reminded them that they were not out at work as either a couple or part of the Stargate program. So they waited at home for Buck and Eddie to finish their last 24-hour shift before they had a few days off. They were lucky that their rostered days off fell over Christmas Day and Boxing Day this year. 

Their shift had been exhausting; they had dealt with a multi-car pile-up that had more wounded than they had paramedics. Even Eddie had been pulled into paramedic duty while Buck worked with Bobby and Martin to free the victims from the various vehicles. 

Athena talked to Bobby while waiting for the paramedics to assess the patients. She explained, "It looks like the SUV had missed their offramp and cut across the lanes. There was a car hidden behind the semi that hit them broadside, knocking them into other vehicles. It's a mess."

Buck was at the truck getting the jaws ready, as it was clear that a few of the passengers would need to be forcibly extracted from the crumpled metal.

Eddie waved him over and said, "The door is stuck, and she's pinned by the steering wheel."

Buck nodded. He leaned in to get a look at the steering wheel as Eddie reassured the woman who was trapped. He eventually pulled away and said, "I'll get started with the jaws. Can you let Bobby know we'll need the saw for the steering wheel? The position of her legs makes the jaws impossible."

The woman whimpered, so Buck said, "We won't bring the saw near your legs; it's just to make the steering column a bit more flexible. Trust us, we've been doing the rescuing thing for years."

She nodded and said, "I'll be ok. Just do what you need to do."

They found a towel in the backseat that they got her to hold over her head to protect her from sparks, then they got to work with the jaws to force the door open. Once that was done, Eddie squeezed in to check her lower legs while they waited for Bobby to send the saw. He wanted to ensure nothing was impaired by the damage the steering wheel had done.

When Martin arrived with the saw, Eddie said, "Liz, we're going to saw into the top of the steering column. Are you ready?"

She nodded and pulled the towel up again, so it covered her face, and she covered her ears to block out the noise of the saw. 

They got to work quickly, and they were able to take off the steering wheel and free Liz's legs. She had a broken femur, but so far, it hadn't affected the femoral artery, so they quickly got her out of the car and into the ambulance. 

By the time the 118 was finished at the scene, their shift was over, and they were all beyond exhausted. As the team changed in the locker room, Bobby asked, "So, anyone's plans fall through? Athena said anyone free tomorrow is welcome to turn up at hers for Christmas dinner."

Buck shook his head, "Not me; my parents are in town for Christmas. It's going to be an interesting few days off."

Bobby looked at Buck's partner, and because it was expected, he asked, "Eddie?"

Eddie denied, "Not me, sorry, Cap. My sisters and I have dinner planned with Abuela this year."

With a frown, Hen asked, "I didn't think you were talking to your family."

"I wasn't," Eddie confirmed. He could see the others look confused, so he explained, "It turns out my parents are lying liars that lie, and they told me my sisters were ashamed of me for not marrying Shannon. Said I was dragging Christopher down, and they wanted nothing to do with me until I pulled my head out of my ass and made an honest woman of her. It was a nightmare, honestly. It turns out my sisters haven't talked to them for the last seven years for them pulling similar shit on them. So, they ambushed me at Abuela's a few weeks ago after seeing me on that news report about the 118, the one Taylor Kelly did. They're all heading back to LA for a big family dinner."

He wasn't lying; they were having a big dinner at their place for the combined Diaz and Sheppard families. Eddie was curious, so he asked, "What about you guys? Do you have a family dinner planned?"

Hen said, "We're just going to Athena's the same as every year. Her parents are in town, so it should be entertaining. We were going to have a family dinner with my mom, but with the attack a few months back, she's not willing to travel to the west coast." She sighed, "Also, Karen is having a hard time at work. The Stargate thingy has thrown everything at her work into disarray. They are talking about downsizing, and she's trying to fight it. She's working on a proposal based on one of their scientists' work," she got a look on her face like she was trying to remember, "a Dr. Sheppard, I think. The same name as one of the generals at the first press conference. She wants to work on the power supply he theorized in this paper."

Buck gulped; he knew exactly what paper Hen was talking about. The work was still in the theoretical stage, but Dr. Z was working on it back at Atlantis.

Eddie asked, "What happens if they say no? Isn't she one of their senior engineers?"

Hen nodded. "She is, but she's pretty sure they'll let her go if they downsize, as her project is for a manned mission to Mars. Something that is now apparently a moot point since we've already been there and done that."

"Damn," Eddie said in commiseration. He was one of those who had been there and done that; most of the SGC had used Mars and other local planets for training at one time or another. "Well, I hope her proposal goes well. I'm sorry, but I need to jet. Buck is dropping me off at Abuela's, where my sisters are waiting for me with Christopher." He gave Hen a kiss on the cheek and said, "Try and enjoy Christmas; leave the stress for the new year."

Chimney said, "I'll be there, Bobby. It's a bit too soon for me to have something as serious as Christmas dinner with my new girlfriend, and she has a big family dinner to attend."

Buck asked, "Anyone we know?"

Chimney shook his head. "I doubt it. I met her at the karaoke bar a few weeks back. And I know you lot are allergic to good music."

"Sure," Buck drawled.

Eddie raised an eyebrow and asked, "On what planet is karaoke good music?"

With a rattle of his keys, Buck said, "Come on, Eddie, before your sisters storm the station. Your abuela was saying they are persistent. And I need to get home before Pops rewires the kitchen."

Eddie picked up his duffle, and with a wave, he followed Buck out of the station house.

-x-

As they parked in the garage, Eddie noticed his father-in-law leaning against the wall waiting for them. He snarked, "Well, that shows your habit of leaning on things just so is totally a genetic thing."

Buck jumped out of his jeep and asked, "What's up, Dad?"

John shook his head. "Nothing. I just haven't seen you in ages." He looked between the two of them and noticed the lethargy they were trying to hide. "Rough shift?"

Eddie huffed. "People are idiots. Honestly."

As he pulled his duffle out of the back of the jeep, Buck explained, "Our last call was a six-car pile-up; some guy missed his offramp and pulled across four lanes of traffic rather than take the next one. We had to cut several people out of their cars; it was a mess."

The younger man pulled his dad into a hug and murmured, "We'll be fine. We actually got some sleep overnight which is rare this close to Christmas. Pops inside?"

John nodded. "He banished me from the kitchen. Apparently, I don't know how to cook a decent ham. I left him debating the perfect glaze recipe with Shannon and Vala. Dad, Dave, Laura, Maddie, and Miko are eating popcorn."

Buck looked at his husband and said, "Sounds like a good time to take a nap."

Eddie blinked before he gave him a speaking look and said, "Bok bok."

John laughed and ran into the house before he could get dragged into the argument.

Eddie quickly ran after him, aiming for where he could hear his son laughing at the argument in the kitchen. He picked him up and spun around to face Buck, holding his son in front of him as he said, "Save me, Christopher, your Papa is mad at me."

Christopher giggled as he asked, "Did you make the bok bok noise again?"

Buck grinned. "He did. That means he gets tackled to remind him I'm not a chicken. Now put Christopher down, Eddie. We agreed, no using women or children as shields."

Shannon snuck in from the side door and removed Christopher from Eddie's arms. As soon as Eddie was child-free, Buck started to chase him.

Christopher yelled, "Run, Daddy, run!"

Eddie grinned and ran for the backyard; if he was going to be tackled, he wanted a somewhat soft landing. 

Buck's long legs gave him the advantage, but Eddie did manage to make it to the grass before he was tackled by his behemoth of a husband.

Buck flipped his husband over as he pinned him to the ground, and he murmured, "Why do you always run?"

After he checked to make sure they were still alone, Eddie lifted his hips slightly and said, "Because maybe I like being caught?"

Buck grinned. "You're just all sorts of trouble, husband mine. Whatever shall I do with you?"

With a coy look, Eddie suggested, "You could flip me over your shoulder and take me to your bedroom to have your wicked way with me?"

Buck snorted. "Really, Eds?"

Eddie nodded. "Or we could just lay back here and watch the clouds as everyone inside deals with the chaos of Christmas dinner."

Buck rolled off his husband and lay down beside him in the grass. He interlaced their fingers as he whispered, "I like the idea of a nap out here under the clouds. I'm just glad we're in LA and not Colorado. Lying in the sun sounds far better than lying in the snow and freezing our butts off."

They napped outside in the sun; it was relaxing for both of them as they dozed and relaxed after an exhausting shift. Eventually, Christopher was sent outside to fetch them for Christmas dinner. And being the mischievous offspring of three brilliant people, he decided the best way to do this was to flop down over them to wake them up.

Buck sat up with a shout as Christopher's knee dug into his ribs, and he pulled the boy into a tight hug, and Eddie laughed as he tickled his wayward son. 

Christopher was giggling as he was being tickled and hugged by his dads, and between giggles, he said, "Dinner's ready. Mom said you have to come in to eat."

Buck cuddled him tighter as he asked, "Five more minutes?"

The boy cried, "No, we have to wait until after dinner before we can open presents, so no delaying dinner."

From the back door, Shannon yelled, "Don't make me get out the hose, Sheppard!"

Buck rolled to his feet, still cuddling Christopher before he reached out to drag Eddie up too. "Come on, husband, we have been summoned.

They weren't sure how, but Patrick had managed to get hold of a table big enough to fit the entire combined Sheppard/Diaz clans. Dinner was chaotic, with people playing musical chairs as they moved around the table to chat as they ate.

Buck leaned into his husband as they ate dessert and said, "Best Christmas ever."

Eddie agreed, "It's nice to have everyone together in one place, even if we had to work last night."

From his dad's lap, Christopher asked, "Was it busy?"

Eddie nodded. "Just silly calls, though. People doing dumb things like cutting across four lanes off the highway without looking because they missed the offramp."

Buck said, "You forgot the Santa wannabe who fell off his roof. And the kid trapped on a ledge after his girlfriend tried to hide him from her parents."

Eddie nodded. "That's right. That poor kid was terrified, especially when she couldn't get the window to open again. She ended up calling 911 when he couldn't move, he was terrified of heights, and she lived on the fifth floor of her building."

The younger man said, "Your daddy went down with the ropes and got him to safety; the kid was very happy to be on the ground after the rescue."

"The best part, though," Eddie said. "Her parents already knew he was there and were waiting to be introduced to him. So he was invited up for Christmas dinner."

Adriana had joined them at the start of the story, and she groaned, "I am not looking forward to the dating stage with the twins. They're already a handful with sleepovers and the like. Especially when they join forces with Stacy."

Buck asked, "They egg each other on?"

She nodded. "Like you wouldn't believe. They are all born mischief-makers. Hell, the kids at school already call Becca and Astra Fred and George or the Weasley twins. They are great believers in pranks, much like you two."

"Like us," Buck asked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Adriana smirked as she explained, "They target most of their pranks toward the school bullies, and they are smart enough to do it without getting caught."

From behind Eddie, Sophia said, "It doesn't help that they all speak in their own version of sign language, so they can coordinate without anyone realizing. It's like their own version of triplet speak."

Buck asked, "Just how close in age are they?"

Sophia said, "They are eight months apart in age, but they are in the same grade at school. So everyone just assumes they are triplets. Which is stupid, since they don't even have the same last names."

Buck said simply, "People see what they want to see. I mean, we're proof of that at the 118. They saw Eddie being picked up by girls after a night out, so they painted him with the manwhore brush. They see me horsing around with Eddie and having fun on the job, so they have decided I'm just a dumb fratboy."

Eddie snorted. "That day I reminded Chim that you had a fire science degree was funny. He looked at me like I was speaking a foreign language."

The younger man commented, "It's like you said in my interview with Bobby, Chim holds on to first impressions, even if they are proven wrong. It's his worst trait. He sees me as a dumb kid; that's all he ever sees."

Adriana said, "He sounds charming. Rather you than me."

With a wicked grin on his face as he had the best idea, Buck suggested, "You should visit when we are at work tomorrow. Check out the firehouse and meet the crew. You just have to pretend you don't know me."

Adriana laughed. "We can do that. We just have to convince the girls to be in on the prank."

Christopher said, "They already know; we were talking about it before, how no one at dad and papa's work knows they are married."

Eddie said, "Our captain and his girlfriend know about us, but that's it. The rest of the team just think we're friends."

Buck laughed as he explained, "Athena only found out after the house was dosed with LSD. We were Bobby sitting, since he couldn't be trusted on his own, and he blurted it out to her while he was high as a kite. She took it rather well and helps us deflect attention at the firefam dinners."

Sophia asked incredulously, "What do you mean dosed with LSD?"

Eddie shrugged. "We are given baked goods all the time from grateful people. One was so grateful she added LSD to her brownies to give the station clarity. She thought we would enjoy it. However, I'm not sure that those who were dosed agree."

Buck laughed, "Chim definitely didn't. We went out on a call while he and Hen were high, and it was to a toddler beauty pageant, and Chim freaked out at the tiny people. He thought they were all shrunken women and that he was next."

Eddie said, "Athena helped get them out of there once backup paramedics arrived. I'm just glad I was a certified paramedic, so I could treat the woman with a stiletto in her face. Pageant moms are insane, she had a stiletto heel literally embedded in her face, and she was on the phone with her plastic surgeon trying to book an appointment. She could barely speak, and she was running the risk of paralysis with how many nerve clusters are in the face."

Adriana said, "I'm not sure I want to know, but why did she have a stiletto in her face?"

The younger man laughed as he said, "Apparently, the mom that did it was pissy that the other woman had dressed her girl in the same dress as her own daughter. It's a cardinal sin of toddler pageants. She accused her of spying on her nanny cam; it was a mess."

Buck gave Eddie a quick kiss before he said, "I need to talk to Laura about Jessie. I keep forgetting to tell her he's in town."

He jogged over to Laura, who was sitting back watching the chaos of the blended families. He asked, "What ya doin'?"

She grinned and said, "Just enjoying the atmosphere. I know you remember how stressed I always was after Christmases at home. It was always so stiff and formal; it's why I never took you home with me, even though my parents kept wanting to meet the kid I was paid to watch."

Buck shrugged as he got comfortable beside her. "You know us Sheppards; we will be formal when we're dead." He gave her a pensive look as he said, "So, I met a friend of yours a few months back."

Laura turned to face him, and with a frown, she asked, "Here in LA? But aside from you guys, I don't know anyone here."

Buck explained, "We had a call where a guy had shot a grenade into his thigh. The bomb squad captain recognized my name and called me your protege. He even knew I was married to Eddie."

Laura scowled. "That bastard. He said he was a bomb squad captain, but he didn't say he moved to take the promotion. We are talking about Jessie, right?"

"Uh-huh," Buck agreed. "Thanks to you, though, he trusted us with his equipment so we could do the extraction before the patient bled out."

Cadman asked, "How the hell did he get a grenade in his leg?"

Buck rolled his eyes and said, "He thought it was a practice round, so he was cleaning it without any safety equipment. I let the Pendleton Bomb Disposal team deal with the rest of his collection. God only knows what else he had lying around in his workshop. He'd been buying up on Vietnam-era weapons and shells at local fairs."

Laura looked horrified. "That stuff is dodgy at the best of times, let alone just lying around in some workshops. Even practice rounds can be dangerous, as he learned."

Buck snorted. "What he shot into his leg was not a practice round. It was a high explosive round, so we couldn't even transport him out of his tiny workshop to do the extraction. I'm just glad the bomb squad was one of those that got the new armor from the SGC."

She'd overheard Buck's conversation earlier, so she asked, "Can I sneak in on this trip to see you at work?"

Buck shook his head. "Sorry, no, I don't want anyone who might be recognized as part of the SGC at work. Eventually, we'll feel comfortable enough to tell them about our time in the SGC, but not yet. Probably not anytime soon."

Laura said, "As soon as I'm allowed, I'll be there with bells on. I want to see what you do. Any chance of a ride-along when you are out?"

Buck shrugged. "I can always ask. Bobby is pretty easygoing, and I'm sure he won't mind. Especially if he learns that you're the reason we were able to save Charlie's leg."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - December 2018

Eddie and Buck were on the sofa in the loft of the station when Eddie got a text warning him that the Diaz sisters were incoming. Eddie nudged his husband and whispered, "They're here."

Buck grinned, and knowing that Hen was standing in the kitchen, he said, "Your sisters are here? I have to meet them!"

Eddie laughed. "Come on, they said they are just parking outside."

They'd talked to the girls and Christopher last night about the station visit, and they all understood that they couldn't give away that Eddie and Buck were married. Although the station knew by now that Eddie and Buck were friends and that the younger firefighter had met Christopher, the three of them had regular movie nights. So they'd primed him to ask if Buck was still coming over on Friday for their movie night.

They both jogged down the stairs, and Eddie crouched to pull Christopher into a hug, but Christopher dodged him deftly to head for Buck, and instead, Eddie got dogpiled by the three girls who screamed Uncle Eddie in his ear.

Adriana took photos of the four of them on the ground as the members of the 118 approached the group.

Buck held Christopher in his arms, and he approached the sisters and their husbands. He held his hand out to Sophia and said, "Hi, I'm Buck."

Sophia had her back to the 118 crew, so she winked as she shook his hand before she said, "I'm Sophia, and this is Adriana, her husband James, and my husband, Quinn."

Eddie stood and noticed that the rest of the firefam had approached, so he said, "Guys, these are Adriana, Sophia, James, and Quinn. My sisters and their husbands. Troubles, this is my captain Bobby, our paramedics, Hen and Chimney, and you've just met Buck; he's my partner in the field."

Bobby snarked, "They are each other's impulse control. I was hoping that Buck would temper Eddie's wild streak, but he just enables it."

Adriana snorted. "Good luck with that; our Eddie's always been a hell-raiser."

They spent an hour at the station getting a tour while they waited for the alarm to go. The kids had fun climbing all over the engine, and Hen surprised them when she started signing with Stacy when she noticed she was using ASL to talk.

Eddie said, "I didn't know you knew ASL, Hen."

She shrugged and explained, "I learned it in high school. One of my friends was deaf, so we all learned it so we could translate for her since the school didn't provide an aide or a translator."

Eddie said, "That would have come in handy after that explosion last year, but I only started learning it a few weeks ago."

Hen nodded absently as she watched the girls sign something she didn't recognize. She asked, "That's not ASL?"

Adriana shook her head. "The twins and Stacy have their own signing language they use between the three of them. They've made up their own signing language over time and often use it to confuse their teachers. It gives them a measure of privacy since signing isn't easy to hide."

Hen smiled. "That's true. It's not like you can whisper in ASL or any other signing language." She gave Eddie a sly look before she commented, "If they're anything like Eddie, I bet they use it for epic mischief."

Adriana laughed. "That they do. They've declared war on the school bullies and have basically started a prank war. And they are going out of their ways to get the bullies to stop picking on the other kids."

Chim laughed, "Noble pranking, I like it. Is it working?"

Eddie had to walk away from the group before he could burst out laughing at the man's obliviousness.

Buck joined him at the bottom of the stairs and whispered, "What was that about? Chim looks like he's enjoying whatever Adriana and Sophia are telling him."

Eddie murmured, "They are talking about how the girls prank the bullies at their school, and he thinks it's hilarious. He has no idea we're doing the same thing to him."

Christopher joined the men and climbed into Buck's lap, where he was sitting on the stairs, and he just let their quiet conversation drift over him. When the young boy saw Hen walking towards them, when she was close enough to hear them, he sat up and asked, "Bucky? Are you still coming for movie night tomorrow night?"

Buck nodded. "Sure am. It's your turn to choose this week; what are we watching?"

The young boy had a look of concentration on his face before he said, "Ralph Breaks the Internet. My cousins like to watch it because it has the comfy princesses."

Buck grinned. "It's pretty cool. Which outfit did you like best?"

Christopher said, "Snow White. I liked how she had the poison apple design on her t-shirt."

Hen said, "That's one of the best princess t-shirts, although I liked Belle's BFF T-shirt I saw."

Christopher giggled. "Beast friends forever. It's cool." Just as he was about to say something else, the station alarm's started to go off. He climbed off Buck as the man began to stand. When Buck pulled him into a hug, he whispered, "I'll see you at home Papa."

Eddie's sisters both moved, standing with the kids so they could see the firefighters getting ready to go out on the trucks.

-x-

Once things had settled down after Christmas, Bobby and Athena hosted yet another fire fam dinner to celebrate New Year's Eve. They had announced their engagement on the firefam group chat. 

Eddie's sisters and their families had gone home a few days earlier; they had a block party to attend for New Year's Eve, and Maddie hadn't been introduced to the firefam yet. So it was just Buck, Eddie, and Christopher driving to Athena's.

At least, that was the assumption.

Buck was sitting back talking to Athena while Eddie was chatting with Hen and Karen about the issues Karen was having with JPL. 

Buck looked up when he heard Chim enter the house after May let him and his date in, and when he saw his sister, he asked, "Mads?"

"Buck?" Maddie looked between him and Chim a few times before she asked her boyfriend, "You work with Buck, Howie?"

"Yep," Chim confirmed as he led her to one of the outdoor sofas. "He's never mentioned a sister before or any siblings."

Hen said, "To be fair, he's not mentioned much about his family or any of his past. He's a pretty private person."

Maddie nodded. "He is, we both are, to be honest. I mean, I didn't tell Howie I had a brother either."

Chim said, "You mentioned having a family thing for Christmas, but then I remembered you mentioned your parents were nightmares you wouldn't inflict on others, so I didn't push."

Buck nodded. "They are nightmares, and I was glad to see the back of them when I left home." He didn't want to explain more, so he asked, "How did you meet?"

Maddie said, "I met him at a karaoke bar a few months ago, not long after that mess with Doug. I needed to get out of the house, and you know how much I love karaoke."

Buck shuddered. "I still have nightmares of all the SingStar you put me through."

With a frown, Chim said, "But she sings really well; how is that nightmare material?"

Maddie was laughing so hard she could barely talk as she remembered all the complaints about her song choices back then. She eventually stopped laughing long enough to say, "Buck hates my taste in music."

The younger man covered his ears dramatically before he whined, "Her favorite was Singstar Country. It was awful; my ears have only just recovered."

"Don't be so dramatic, Evan," Maddie said with a laugh. "You joined in sometimes."

Buck muttered, "Not on SingStar Country. The Pop one wasn't too bad." He looked at Chim and said, "If you hurt her, they'll never find your body."

Eddie knew that was because Buck would stick him in their jumper and fly him to another planet for body disposal, but Chim didn't need to know he was deadly serious.

As he rubbed the back of his neck in nervousness, he asked, "Should you be saying that in front of a cop?"

Athena snorted. "I'd be his alibi. Maddie's been through too much in her life to put up with shit from anyone."

Hen laughed at the shocked look on her friend's face. "Chim, you look like this is a surprise. We all know Athena is protective of those in the firefam. That includes our partners. That you're dating Buck's sister is a surprise, but it means a double dose of protection from our favorite police sergeant."

The rest of the night was uneventful, and a few days later, Maddie came around for a family dinner. She asked, "You're ok with me dating one of your workmates?"

Buck shrugged. "It's up to you, really. You've heard the stories we've told about Chim while you were living here, so you know what you're getting into now."

"Yeah," she said hesitantly before admitting, "He's been in therapy since the rebar thing. He realized his relationship with Tatiana was pretty toxic, and he's been seeing a therapist beyond what was required to return to work."

Eddie nodded. "It was pretty bad. He was using stories about other people's rescues to make himself sound good, and he was passing off cap's cooking as his own. Tatiana wasn't much better though. She was a badge and ladder groupie, in it for the excitement, not the reality. Hell, she dumped him and moved out while he was still in a coma."

Maddie said, "He saw her a few months ago after a hospital check-up; just before we met, actually. He admitted they were both in that relationship for the wrong reasons. It gave him some closure around the whole thing. Although, he was horrendously drunk at the time. I must have looked like a friendly face, but he was spilling his guts to me, no matter how much I tried to stop him."

Knowing his colleague as well as he did, Eddie admitted, "There is no stopping a drunk and sad Chim from spilling his guts; it's why usually Hen sticks to him like glue when he's drinking after a bad shift."

Maddie shrugged. "At least I knew what I was getting into. We met up for coffee a few days later, and he explained why he'd been at the bar that night. The coffee turned into lunch, lunch turned into dinners a few times over the next few weeks, and well…."

Buck said, "As long as you're happy, I'm happy. We know he can be a bit caustic, but he's gotten better over the last few months, so maybe the therapy is helping. But I was serious, if he hurts you, they won't find his body… At least not until the moon is colonized."

-x-

A few weeks after the party, Eddie pulled his husband into the workshop after they'd tucked Christopher into bed and read him a chapter of Percy Jackson. He said, "You need to start the ball rolling on getting Karen here. With some help from one of Miko's friends, I've been looking into her career at JPL, and she's brilliant."

Buck asked, "I thought she was putting in a pitch to the SGC based on one of my papers?"

Eddie shook his head. "Nope. Karen said they turned her down, and she's expecting them to downsize when they go back to work after the winter break. She's already putting feelers out for jobs."

Buck asked, "Do you have the info Miko's friend found?"

Eddie slid his laptop over to Buck so he could read through Karen's resume and research papers from JPL. She'd even dug up the classified documents. He was surprised by the pitch documents she'd included in the files she sent and the confidential downsizing plan.

Buck snarked, "I shouldn't ask just who Miko's friend is, should I?"

The older man laughed, he knew the hacker that Miko had contacted was more a black hat than a white hat hacker, but she did favors occasionally for her childhood friend. He admitted, "You don't want to know. Look, after talking to Karen at the New Year's Eve party, I was worried that something hinky was going on at JPL. And I was right. Miko's friend said the original pitch document Karen created was buried deep in one of the servers; it took her a while to find it. It wasn't close to finished, but what was there was good. What JPL is planning to submit, it's a one-way trip to rejection. They don't understand the naquadah theory at all, not the way Karen seems to."

Buck had been reading through the pitch JPL was planning to submit, and he was shaking his head at just how poorly researched the new pitch document was. He said, "So if you read Karen's original document when you don't really understand it, this new pitch would look fine. She left out the important parts, the research, and information that showed she knew the subject material as well as any good scientist that was outside of the SGC. If they go ahead and submit this document as it stands, Travis will probably blacklist them, to be honest. Especially if I let him know they are using Karen's research after letting her go."

Eddie promised, "If you don't tell him, I will. This is bullshit. According to the downsizing doc, she's already on the list for downsizing, and her formal meeting is next week. There is nothing she can do to save her job. She's one of their smartest engineers, but it looks like there is nepotism with one of the other project leads. Well, our hacker said it's either nepotism or blackmail. Looking at her Mars documentation, she's perfect for the jumper project."

As Buck was reading through the budget, part of him was thinking that they might want to warn JPL that their systems were vulnerable, but the other part wondered how the hell they expected to launch a manned mission to Mars with such a lopsided budget. It looked like most of the budget was going into materials; at least, that's how it looked on paper. He spun the laptop around and asked, "That's not right, is it?"

Eddie shook his head. "The hacker has already sent in an anonymous tip to NASA that they might want to look into misappropriated funds at the management level of JPL. She promised me and Miko she'd done it in a way so that Karen wasn't at all implicated. In fact, let me pull up her email, I think she used a different project to highlight the oddity with the funding."

Buck said, "I'll get the ball rolling on a contract offer. It'll probably take a few days to go through all the checks, especially with how busy Travis is right now. Hopefully, the fact that we know her already, and you've done the bulk of the background checks, so that should speed up the process. I'll send Travis an email in the morning. I want to spend some more time with these research papers. If I pitch it right, I should be able to get her on board, so she's only out of work for a few weeks, max." He gave his husband a quick kiss. "Thanks for pulling in the research for me. She's going to be great to have in the workshop."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - January 2019

Karen hung up her phone with a grin. She turned to her wife, who was drying the dishes, and whispered, "I have a job interview tomorrow."

Hen pulled her into a hug and said, "That's great. Who with?"

Karen shrugged. "It's with the military. I'm being picked up by Colonel Davis tomorrow. He's got NDAs for me to sign before I get more details. Honestly, I probably won't be able to share much."

Hen put away the dish she was drying and asked, "I didn't think the military had any local labs."

With a shrug, Karen admitted, "I didn't either, but I guess I'll get more details tomorrow. The only other real option for me, since all the other labs are either downsizing or shutting down, is teaching. Caltech is interested, but I would rather be designing than teaching, ya know what I mean?" 

Hen nodded. "I know. You're a good teacher, but it would be wasting your skills. Do you know anything about the job at all?"

Karen shook her head. "Just that it's local and highly classified. He warned me that the NDA takes over an hour to read."

"Wow," Hen said in awe. "That sounds way more classified than anything you worked on at JPL. I hope it's something good. This whole Stargate thing seems to have changed everything."

Karen nodded. "Some for the good, some for the not so good. I get why JPL is downsizing, but I don't get it at the same time. The SGC program has made an offer for the various NASA labs like JPL to submit development proposals. I offered to write one based on a few papers one of their lead engineers released. But they turned me down."

Hen had finally finished the dishes; she put away the drying rack and then pulled her wife into a hug. "I am sure that whatever they want you to do, you will rock at it."

-x-

Karen answered the door and ushered Colonel Davis in. After he introduced himself, she asked, "Would you like a coffee?"

Paul placed his briefcase on the chair beside him before he said, "Actually, that would be perfect. I feel like I've been on the go all day."

She set their fancy coffee maker to make two coffees as she placed the sugar bowl and creamer on the table. 

Once she had finished making the coffees, the colonel pulled the NDA out of the briefcase, put it on the table, and slid the massive document across to her. He said, "This is our standard non-disclosure agreement. While large portions of the program have been declassified since the attack in San Francisco last year, much of it still remains a secret."

Karen asked, "So this is for the Stargate Program? I wasn't sure when we spoke last night."

"Yes," Paul confirmed. "One of our lead engineers works remotely from a workshop here in LA. He's been working alone for nearly two years but needs help with his current project. He's getting help from the scientists at Area-51 and the mountain, but he needs more."

She nodded and started reading through the paperwork in front of her. When she noticed the colonel had finished his coffee while she was still reading, she said, "Feel free to help yourself to more coffee; the machine is pretty easy to use."

Eventually, she signed and initialed in all the places marked with a post-it flag and slid it back across to the Air Force Colonel.

He checked it all over before putting it in his briefcase. He said, "Now, I'd like to take you across town to the lab where you'll be working if you accept the job. I have to mention, though. The NDA covers not just what you're working on, but where you'll be working, and who you'll be working with."

Karen nodded. "I also noticed the document mentioned that the workshop I'll be working on is a specialist one attached to a residence, so anyone I meet at the residence is also covered by the NDA. I understand, and I'm available for the rest of the day. My wife's best friend is taking our son after school for a sleepover, as we weren't sure how long this interview process would last."

They got into the town car Paul was using and were driven across to one of the nicer parts of LA. As they got out of the car, Paul said, "You'll have access to the garage once you sign on; there is an internal access door for the workshop. For today we're using the front door."

"Okay," Karen said as she followed him to the front door. She was not expecting Eddie to answer the door, the same Eddie she had met a few times at fire fam gatherings at Bobby and Athena's.

Eddie saw the stunned look on Karen's face but didn't react. Instead, he said, "Hi guys, Buck's down in the workshop already. He had a brainstorm this morning while making breakfast. Something about the power supply, you know how he gets. Colonel Davis, are you staying?"

Paul shook his head. "I'll leave the reveal to you both, I need to get back to Washington."

Eddie walked through to the workshop access door, with Karen following silently behind him. He used his retinal scan to let them in. He called out, "Cariño, Karen's here."

Buck looked up from the computer he was working on. "Oh. Shit, can you get coffees sorted for us, Eds? I just need to finish this final calculation and set the simulator running."

Karen said, "No rush, Buck. I'll admit I'm a bit confused, though."

Eddie chuckled. "Yep, that we did expect. Follow me, and I'll try to explain what I can while I sort out the coffees. From the last dinner at Athena's, I remember you like your coffee with sugar and creamer but not strong enough to melt titanium."

Buck snarked, "It's not that strong, dulzura."

Karen looked at how comfortable the two men were with each other, more comfortable than they looked at the last barbecue. So she commented, "You two moved fast, considering you're living together? Or is there something I'm missing here?"

Eddie said, "Technically, he did move fast. We were dating within three weeks of meeting each other."

Karen nodded. "That is fast. But I still get the feeling I'm missing something."

Buck set the simulation running and projected it on the large screen at the back of the workshop so he could monitor it as he went through things with Karen. He stood and approached and held his hand out to Karen; when she shook it with a look of confusion, he said, "Hi, I'm Dr. Evan Sheppard. I'm the lead engineer for the puddle jumper project."

Karen raised her eyebrows as she asked with a tone of incredulity, "You're Dr. Evan Sheppard? But you work with my wife; I was sure your last name was Buckley."

Buck nodded. "Yep, that's the name I work under with the LAFD. I've worked for the Stargate Program since 2012. I was the lead engineer for the F-303s, as well as leading a gate team of Navy SEALs that were used for search and rescue missions. My husband was our team medic. We didn't want anyone to find that information or get suspicious about our move to LA, so Evan Buckley was created with a non-military background."

Eddie waved from his seat at one of the workbenches where he was tapping away on a laptop. "I'm Eddie Sheppard, but I use Diaz professionally."

Karen asked, "So you knew each other before you joined the 118?"

They both nodded. Buck said, "We were going to tell them about our marriage and work history, but the barbs at Eddie when he joined before me, well, they were a bit pointed and sharp, so we decided trolling them for the hazing would be more fun."

Karen grinned. "I can see why you would do that. Don't get me wrong, I love my wife, but she can sometimes take things a bit far."

Buck nodded. "Just a bit. Hen and Chim aren't the worst, but there are some in the firehouse who spend a lot of time slut shaming Eddie just because the girls who picked him up when I was busy liked to dress up and look different each time."

Karen looked between the two men, and eventually, she asked, "So the job offer is a real one?"

Buck nodded. "Very much so. So part of the Stargate Program that has been kept classified is Atlantis. It's a city ship that used to be on Earth, but it was flown to the Pegasus Galaxy and abandoned there tens of thousands of years ago by the ancients. In 2004 an expedition left to explore Atlantis, and they inadvertently woke up a hibernating race called the Wraith. They are a product of experiments by the ancients, and they feed on humans. So my dads are the current leaders of Atlantis, General John Sheppard is the military leader, and my other dad Dr. Rodney McKay is the Chief Scientist out there."

Karen held her hand up to stop the torrent of words. "So is General Sheppard your dad, or is Dr. McKay? Because you seem to be like both of them from what little I've seen of the three of you."

Eddie said, "That's because he is. His birth was not like everyone else's; he was conceived on Atlantis when his dad, John Sheppard, touched an invention of an ancient named Janus. From what we can gather from the limited notes they've found in the database and from chats with another ancient, Morgan LeFay, the device worked on love. Because John loved Rodney, Buck was created in a pod and is genetically both of theirs. In that timeline, DADT was very strict and would have resulted in Buck being taken for experimentation by gods only know who, and John and Rodney would have been imprisoned. So Morgan used another of Janus' machines to send Buck back a few years, and she placed him with the Buckleys who had just lost a son to leukemia."

Karen said, "That sounds amazing. So the project you want me for is from Atlantis?"

Buck nodded. "The ancients coded everything to a specific gene. The ATA gene. Something my dad and I have in spades."

Eddie added, "And something I don't have at all. Most people don't, to be honest."

Buck stood and walked over to the ship she hadn't noticed on the far edge of the workshop. He said, "This is a Puddle Jumper. It's a ship the ancients designed for going through the Stargate. Unfortunately, they can only be flown by pilots with the ATA gene. I can fly one, but just for basic transport, not with my dad's finesse. So I am trying to design a ship that looks and works the same, but without the gene requirement or the ancient tech. Most important is that it still fits through the Stargate."

Eddie said, "And he's doing all of this around his firefighter schedule."

Karen said, "You're crazy. That schedule is bad enough without adding a full engineering workload on top of it."

As he tinkered with something on the bench, Buck shrugged. "I multitask. When I'm being given shit for not paying attention while in the truck, most of the time, I am working on design issues or calculations in my head or on my tablet. The only time I'm really paying attention is while we are out on a call."

Karen said, "Well, I'm definitely interested. I suggested that JPL pitch to do some work for the SGC based on some of your research papers. They turned me down and went through with the downsizing anyway."

Buck admitted, "They actually tried to submit the pitch you had started. Until it came out that the pitch was actually your idea, and they'd let you go before putting in a half-assed, badly researched completed pitch document. They'd taken what you'd started and finished it without understanding the technology at all. It was terrible. It only took a few questions to figure out that they had never heard of me before you mentioned my name. After your talk at Athena's new year's party, Eddie did some digging, and he found out you were spearheading a mission to Mars."

Karen nodded. "Yes. I was working on a manned exploratory mission to the surface."

Buck said, "Let's get you through all the paperwork, that is, if you think you can work for me."

Karen snorted. "As if I would turn down the chance to work for my favorite rocket scientist. I've been following your research for years, Buck. Years!"

Eddie said, "And that's just the stuff he's been able to make public."

Buck said, "Let's go sit down and get through the paperwork then, and we need to talk about what you can and can't say about your work."

They spent about an hour going through the sign-on paperwork, the hours of work which would be standard hours for Karen, and Buck would continue to work around his own schedule. Once that was sorted, he said, "I know you'll need to tell Hen things about your work, or she'll get curious. So it's fine to tell her that you work for Dr. Sheppard and the Stargate Program. You can even tell her you're working on the puddle jumper project. Just no specifics."

Eddie said, "So, since Christopher is with Shannon today, and you said Denny is with Athena, how about we take a trip? It should only take a few hours."

Karen asked, "Where?"

Buck grinned. "You'll see."

They all piled into the puddle jumper, Eddie prodded Karen to take the co-pilot seat. He said, "I don't have the gene, so the seat is just good for the view, something I've seen several times now. I'm just coming to see your reaction when we get to our destination."

When they had flown out into space, Buck turned the jumper, so they were facing Earth.

Karen gasped. She said with awe in her voice, "I never thought I would see this for myself." She was tempted to take a photo to show Hen later, and she even pulled out her phone before she changed her mind.

Eddie suggested, "Buck, why don't you turn us around and open the back hatch so she can get a photo without the windows in the way?" He explained to Karen, "The type of glass they use blocks most cameras, even without the flash."

Buck did as he suggested, and Eddie even got a photo of Karen in the back hatch with earth in the background. Eventually, he said, "I need to close the hatch if we are going to have enough time for the round trip before dinner."

They sat back down, and Karen asked, "So the jumpers are fully space-capable?"

Buck nodded. "Water too. In the Milky Way, all the gates are land-based, but in Pegasus, there are many space gates above planets that wouldn't support a ground-based entry. Some are mostly volcanoes, or there is one planet almost entirely made up of ice. So they use the jumpers for those gates. It makes designing the replacement difficult. As anything we fabricate out in Atlantis is generally locked down to gene carriers."

Karen asked, "There isn't a way to alter us, so we have the gene?"

Eddie said, "There is a gene therapy available, but it only works to activate the gene in those who have it, but it's not activated. If you don't have it, there isn't a way to give it to those who don't have any form of the gene, yet. The scientists are still researching a way to do it."

Karen looked across the dash, but she couldn't see anything that indicated the speed, let alone controls. So she asked, "Buck, you're flying by thought?"

Buck nodded. "Yep. Most ancient tech has a mental component, either to turn it on or to use it. Even the doors are operated on Atlantis with a thought; it's crazy."

She looked around outside the main window and realized where they were going. She said with a squeak, "You're taking me to Mars?"

"Yeah," Buck confirmed. He could hear Eddie laughing in the backseat at the squeak. "The shields on the jumpers are really robust and extend out a bit from the external hull. So we'll actually be able to walk outside without specialized suits. You can share the photos with your family, as long as you don't show us in them. I'm going to try and land us in a position on the surface, so it will be obvious you're on Mars."

Karen grinned. "This is so cool. How fast are we traveling? It's hard to tell."

Buck said, "At full speed, the puddle jumpers fly at 17,000 Km/sec, they aren't the fastest ship in the SGC, but they are still pretty quick. The Battlecruisers have sub-light engines capable of hyperspace travel, thanks to the Asgard." At her confused look, he clarified, "They look like the Roswell greys. Highly advanced species."

Eddie muttered, "Except for the fact they cloned their dicks off. How is that advanced."

She tried hard to withhold her snort but couldn't contain it. Gasping, she asked, "Seriously, they cloned off their dicks?"

Buck nodded. "Essentially, yeah. They reproduce by cloning." He focused on the dash for a few minutes before he said," Okay, we're on the approach. We've got time for you to look around for around 15 minutes before we need to head back. I've tried to pick an interesting spot. As much as red rock can look interesting."

 Karen said, "I just spent the last five years developing probes and working on how to send a manned mission here. So I'll admit I'm curious, even if it's boring." As they walked out the back hatch she asked, "Tell me about the weirdest planet you went to?"

Eddie said, "Most of the planets we went to; honestly, they looked like Canada. Similar trees, similar animals, everything really. Weirdest for me, though, was the Ice Planet, so freaking cold."

Buck said, "P84-37M for me. The purple trees looked freaky, and the bears with wings. So much nope. That was one of the planets we had to rescue SG-14 from when Kavanagh was on the team. Before he was bounced to Area-51 because he wouldn't follow gate team orders."

 Karen bent down to feel the harsh rocks on the ground. She asked, "Volcanic rock?"

Buck shrugged. "That's basalt, like what you find on earth but with less graphite. A lot of the minerals on Mars are the same as on Earth; they just have a slightly different makeup. But there are no real special features, not like some of the ores we have found on other planets. You'll love the metal we use for the skin of our F fighter squadrons."

She grinned. "I get the feeling I'm in for one hell of a learning curve with this job."

"Yep," Buck confirmed. "It's going to be fun, though. Lots of new tech for you to learn and adapt to." He gestured to the rock in her hand. "Do you want to take some of those back? To the layperson, they look just like normal volcanic rock, if a bit redder than most, but you and your family will know what they are. We can take photos of you picking it up since Hen is a born skeptic."

Karen passed her phone to Buck, then spent ten minutes looking for a few good rocks to keep in the house. She grinned as she picked up three fist-sized rocks, two were flat on one side, and with a bit of modification in the workshop, they would make excellent bookends for the bookshelf.

She looked around in awe before she asked, "Does the shield extend the artificial gravity outside the jumper as well?"

Buck nodded. "It extends all the environmental controls outside, even the temperature. Although I did try to choose a location close to summer temperatures at home."

Karen asked, "Have you been on the moon?"

Eddie laughed. "We have. And we took suits so we could actually walk on the surface. The gravity is fun to play with. Most of the planets that have stargates are very similar to earth in a lot of ways, environmental, gravity, the works. Planets like the ice planet are rare."

Buck said, "Well, they did steal humans from earth to seed the other planets, so it makes sense they would put them on planets they would easily adapt to."

Karen raised an eyebrow and snarked, "They sound charming. Locking their technology so only specific people can use it, stealing humans, large groups of humans by the sounds of it. Creating human eating wraiths amongst other crazy experiments."

Buck shrugged. "I exist thanks to one of those crazy experiments. So… I'm not sad about it. We should head back so we're in time for dinner."

They flew back, discussing start dates and how the work schedule would go with Buck working such crazy hours. 

-x-

When Karen got home with her contracts and new rocks, Hen was waiting for her with dinner on the table.

Hen asked, "Well? How did it go?"

Karen grinned. "Well, I start Monday. I'll be working with Dr. Sheppard on a project for the Stargate Program."

Hen jumped up and hugged her wife. "That's amazing, babe. He's the guy you've been raving about for years, right?"

Karen nodded. "He writes the most amazing research papers. He really gets into it, ya know."

Hen asked, "And the rocks you put on the bookshelf?"

She tried hard to act nonchalant, but by the look on Hen's face, she failed by a long shot when she said, "Oh, he took me up in the puddle jumper on a quick flight to Mars. He said it was hardly fair that declassification of the Stargate project took Mars away from me."

Hen asked in a deadpan tone, "Dr. Sheppard took you to Mars... this afternoon?"

Karen pulled out her phone and slid it across to Hen. "He took pictures for me, and I got a few of Earth from the rear hatch."

Hen swiped through the photos and asked, "You're serious, aren't you? How? You said the trip to Mars would take months."

As she took over dishing up dinner, Karen confirmed, "With the technology available to us at the time, it would have. The Puddle Jumper is different; it's built by a race called the ancients. We were traveling at 17,000 Km/sec, which is insane. It has shields that can be extended, so we could walk outside the ship on the surface of Mars. Hen, I walked on Mars!"

"That's so cool, babe," Hen enthused. "So, what does your new job involve?"

Karen picked up her phone and swiped to a photo of the puddle jumper on the planet's surface. She explained, "This is the Puddle Jumper; it's designed to be able to fly through the Stargate and was created by the ancients. Because they are, well, Dr. Sheppard calls them a giant bag of dicks --and it's fitting, so because they are dicks-- they locked down all their technology to those with a specific gene marker. It's found in maybe 0.0001% of the human population. So I'll be helping to design a gate ship that can be flown by all the other pilots in the Stargate program."

Hen asked, "It's a project already in progress?"

"Yeah," Karen confirmed. "But Dr. Sheppard has a day job that takes up a lot of time, so I'll basically be doing calculations and design work when he's busy, and then we'll work together on new components when he's around. When we get closer to the build phase, he'll probably bring more engineers in to help, but for now, it's just the two of us. His husband helps out occasionally; he's there to ensure we don't make the mechanics hate us."

Hen nodded. "I've heard the guys at work swearing at some of the maintenance they have to do on the ladder truck. Apparently, whoever designed the truck, has his head stuck so far up his ass he can taste what he had for breakfast."

Karen asked, "According to who?"

"Eddie," Hen confirmed. "He was trying to check the oil, which requires going under the truck, which even I know is stupid. Bobby is still trying to get one of the other stations to swap trucks with us."

Hen asked, "So, do we get to meet Dr. Sheppard?"

Karen shook her head. "Not any time soon. His father is a big deal in the SGC, so they are keeping his identity under wraps. I had to sign an NDA just to meet him. It's crazy. As soon as it's possible, I'm sure you'll meet him and his family. As far as I know, the declassification of the Stargate program is ongoing, so he may be outed later."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - January 2019

Hen bounced into the station the following day; when Chim asked her what had her so happy, she admitted, "Karen got a job offer yesterday. A really good one."

Eddie asked, "Where?"

"The Stargate Program." Hen said with a huge smile. "They called her out of the blue and offered her a local contract. She hadn't applied with them because most of their research is done in remote research labs. She came home from the interview last night so excited; it was nice to see."

Eddie smiled. "That's fantastic, Hen. Do you know what she'll be doing?"

"Not really," Hen admitted. "Most of what she does goes over my head, but she mentioned a new ship design. Taking an alien ship and designing an earth version of it with earth technology."

Buck smiled. He thought that was an excellent way to explain it to those unfamiliar with the SGC. So he said, "That sounds like a great job for a rocket scientist. I hope she enjoys it."

Bobby asked, "Did she get an offer from Caltech? I remember reading that they were reaching out to some of the displaced scientists that JPL let go."

"She did, actually," Hen confirmed. "They are ramping up their astrophysics and aeronautical engineering programs. Most colleges are now that everyone knows just how behind NASA has fallen in the space race."

Buck was aware, as he'd received invitations to teach from several of them. He said, "I wonder if the SGC will send any of their scientists to guest lecture. Those would be fun to attend."

Chim asked, "Fun?"

The younger man nodded. "Yeah, I like learning, and I'm sure those scientists have a lot of knowledge they can now release. You heard those generals in the press conferences; they said they've explored hundreds of planets. The things they must have learned would be huge." He turned to Hen and said, "We know from the lunar explorations of Mars that other planets can have vastly different makeups. So imagine all the different things they've found on those planets. Maybe Karen will even get to visit them."

Hen said, "She did mention a visit to Mars, but I'm not entirely sure how they could have done that in an afternoon."

-x-

"911. What's your emergency?"

"Sh-shark! Shark! A man's been attacked by a shark."

"What beach are you on, Ma'am?"

"We're not on the beach! We're on the freeway!"

-x-

Buck and Eddie looked at each other when they arrived at the scene, and they saw a man struggling with his arm trapped inside the mouth of a large tiger shark. Eddie murmured to his husband as Bobby called out orders, "This has got to top our weirdest calls."

Buck nodded. "Shark attack on the freeway trumps peaceful bears with wings."

Eddie ran off to get the jaws, as the others laughed when they realized Chim misinterpreted the order, and he left the two paramedics to get set up.

Bobby stood with Buck as there wasn't much the two of them could do until the biologist, Diego, was free from the shark's jaws. He asked the engineer, "Do you think we can rescue the shark?"

Buck had been assessing the scene and what the aquarium had on the truck that had tipped over. He eventually said, "We can if we use the netting to suspend it from the ladder truck. The ladder should support the weight of the shark over a shortish distance without breaking. It depends on whether the ladder can support it for the ten-mile trip to the nearest marina."

One of the scientists overheard their quiet conversation, and he added quietly, "At her last weigh-in, she was 1247lb. Will your ladder support that?"

Bobby shrugged. "It should do, as long as the shark doesn't move around too much."

Buck suggested, "If we can secure her tail to the front winch, and she doesn't struggle too much, it should support her for the ten-mile trip. I'll do an inspection on the ladder when we get back to base."

Bobby nodded. "I'll keep the others busy and assign you and Eddie to clean the trucks, so you have an excuse to inspect the ladder."

Buck grinned at him and said, "Perfect."

Eddie jogged over from the truck after he stowed away the jaws. He reported, "Hen and Chim have Diego on the way to the hospital." He glanced at the shark, where they were pumping the last of the water for her. "How are we getting this lovely lady to the ocean?"

Buck said, "We're going to do that thing we did when we helped with that relocation."

"The one with the..." Eddie cut off at the look from his husband. "What about the tail? Our relocation didn't have a tail."

Buck pointed and said, "We can use that webbing to suspend the shark from the ladder, and that should mean we can get her to the ocean as long as we secure a rope around her tail to prevent her from spinning."

Eddie clapped. "Let's get to it."

Bobby ran to the engine to drive it into position as Buck and Eddie, with help from the aquarium staff, got the webbing around the shark, and hooked it up to the ladder, so she was suspended from the front of the ladder truck. 

Eddie took a quick series of photos as Buck secured her tail to the front of the truck. Then they both jumped into the back, and Bobby followed the aquarium 4x4 to the marina.

Bobby got to work untying the tail when they got to the marina, as Buck ran to the ladder controls. Eddie followed the aquarium staff, who had their phones out to record the release for their missing friend, Diego.

He quickly sent a photo of the shark suspended from the front of the truck to their SGC group chat, as they enjoyed seeing some of the crazier calls the 118 dealt with. Then he held his phone, so he could film the release. He knew their son would get a kick out of it.

It took the shark a few minutes to get her bearings. She'd initially sunk down so they couldn't see her through the murky water before she started swimming for the open ocean, her fin high in the water. Buck and Bobby were jumping around on the ramp, excited that their plan worked.

As they drove back to the firehouse, it was just the three of them in the ladder truck, so Bobby said, "That was a great idea, Buck. Is that similar to what you did with your last team?"

Buck replied, "Somewhat; we often had crazier situations, so we needed crazier ideas to get our teams out of trouble."

When they got back to the station, as promised, Bobby assigned them to clean the ladder truck. Martin questioned it, as the ladder truck had been cleaned only that morning; Bobby said, "I want the saltwater washed off since we drove it down the ramp to release the shark."

Martin had been man behind, so he wasn't aware of the call details, so he asked, "Shark?"

Eddie laughed, "It was a crazy call, man. A shark attack on the freeway. Since the truck had flipped, we had to get the shark to the ocean. It won't take us long to clean the truck. You can help if you want?"

Martin laughed. "Nope, I'm on inventory duty again."

As they watched him nearly run to get away, Buck laughed. "Damn, he runs fast when he wants to avoid washing the trucks."

Eddie said, "I'll get started while you do your inspection. The last thing we need is the ladder failing since it's usually us climbing it."

Unfortunately, the ladder had taken damage from carrying the shark to the marina. Buck stood on top of the truck and caught Bobby's eye as the captain observed them from the loft. He waved the captain over, and when he and Eddie climbed up to join him, he pointed out a large crack in the middle ladder. He said, "I'm not even sure if this was caused by carrying the shark or a microfracture made worse by the shark's weight, but it will need an urgent repair. The rest of the ladder will need a more thorough inspection before we can use it again."

Bobby sighed and said, "Shit, this is going to be fun to explain to the brass. Sorry Chief, the ladder was damaged when we hooked on a tiger shark for a trip to the ocean."

Buck snorted as he said, "That's nothing. Could you imagine his reply? Why on earth were you transporting a shark, Captain Nash? Oh, because it attacked someone on the freeway, sir."

The three of them collapsed into peals of laughter at the thought of the various reactions of the fire chief to the news. Bobby eventually collected himself by the time Hen and Chim had returned, and he said, "I'll head up to call in the maintenance request; hopefully, we can get another ladder truck to use in the meantime."

Hen looked up at the three laughing men and asked, "What's so funny?"

Bobby climbed down and explained, "We were just imagining the phone call to the chief to explain why the ladder truck needs a repair on the ladder."

Buck was still trying to breathe through his laughter, so Eddie pulled up the photos he'd taken with his phone and showed Hen as he explained, "We used the ladder truck to get the shark to the marina before she died. But when Buck was checking that we'd rinsed any saltwater off the roof, he found a crack in the ladder, one that takes the ladder truck offline for urgent repairs."

Bobby walked back to the truck with a roll of red tape and threw it up to Eddie, who was still on the roof. He asked the army medic, "Can you two check the rest of the ladder and mark around any cracks with the tape. You know the drill."

They got to work checking the ladder, and they found another couple of cracks that could potentially be a problem and marked around them all with the bright tape. Eventually, they jogged up to the loft where Bobby was filling out the paperwork for the repair. Buck slid the clipboard over so he could mark the approximate locations of the cracks on the diagram, along with a recommendation that the ladder be checked for microfractures.

When he slid the clipboard back to Bobby, the older man said, "Hopefully, they won't keep the truck for long. Can you two take Martin and Tanika downstairs so you can start stripping out the truck? The loan truck should be here in about an hour. I'll get dinner started while you're downstairs."

-x-

Bobby came out of his office with a frustrated expression on his face. He called out, "Everyone, gather up in the garage." When he did a headcount and confirmed everyone was gathered together, he said, "The Computer Aided Dispatch is down, so they are in tactical emergency mode, and they've requested that we're all out and about while they manage things at their end. So gear up; we're going to be playing most of today by ear."

Most of the calls at the start of the shift had been minor. But that all changed when Eddie got a call from Shannon, who was at home on a rare day off. She'd been texting the boys and Maddie over the day, so she knew about the issues with dispatch; as soon as he answered, she ordered, "You need to get crews over to Doheny Park; the whole neighborhood's on fire; it looks like maybe a gas leak the way flames are coming out of the ground. But Eddie, there aren't any fire crews there."

Eddie activated his headset and said, "Cap, Doheny Park is going up in flames. Shannon said it's all over the news, and there aren't any crews there yet."

Bobby quickly relayed the details to dispatch as they sped to the small cul-de-sac. When they arrived, Bobby was immediately on the radio when they found absolute chaos on their arrival, "Dispatch, this is Captain Nash. We're at Doheny Park, there are multiple residential structure fires, send everything you can."

The dispatcher, not one Eddie or Buck recognized, said, "We're trying to find you additional resources, but you might be on your own for the next 15 to 20 minutes."

The cul-de-sac's single hydrant had been taken out by a crashing car, and their water supplies were low from the previous calls, so it was going to take a miracle to put the fires out.

Eddie and Buck were drawn to a man at the end of the cul-de-sac as he looked up at his house in absolute horror. When he turned and spotted the fire trucks, he started yelling for help. Bobby steered the truck to the end of the cul-de-sac, and barked orders to the crew as they jumped out of the trucks. Buck and Eddie were sent to the man yelling for help to see what they could do for him. 

When they approached, the man implored, "My son, you've got to help my son. He's trapped upstairs."

Buck asked, "Where? Do you know what room?" He could see the U-Haul hooked up behind the SUV, so he wasn't hopeful that the father could direct them. He was proven correct when the father said he hadn't seen him; he just knew the last time he'd seen his son was through one of the upstairs windows.

Eddie yelled, "Buck, I see him! Upstairs window, we'll need the ladder."

Buck sprinted for the ladder truck as Eddie kept an eye on the child. Martin acted as a spotter for Buck as Eddie went up the ladder to retrieve the kid. 

On the ground, Bobby had been frantically trying to get help from dispatch when Chim said, "I've got an idea. Tommy is still at the 217; I'll give him a call and see if he can help."

Bobby nodded his agreement. "Do it."

After a few minutes, Chim confirmed, "Air support is on the way, Tommy's not sure how long it will take, but they are taking off as we speak."

Bobby smiled slightly as he said, "Good, the gas company is sending someone urgently to shut down the area; they are looking into what the hell happened."

Buck heard Bobby's warning over the radio that air support was on the way to douse the fires as he was operating the ladder. He watched as Eddie climbed into the house via the closest window to the end of the ladder. The boy, Alex, had disappeared from the window as they were getting the truck in place, so Eddie was going to have to hunt for him as the fire raged with no signs of abating.

Eddie was searching through the upper level of the house, the lack of furniture making it easier to search; he just had to contend with the thick smoke. He called out several times, "Alex, call out, buddy. Alex!"

He found the kid hiding in the bathroom, squeezed in between the toilet and the tile wall. He crouched down and tried to coax Alex out of his hiding place, but the kid was too afraid to move.

From the controls at the back of the loaner ladder truck they were still using, Buck screamed for Eddie as the whole front side of the house exploded. 

Just as Eddie reported that he was pinned, Hen radioed to say that the gas was off and all the other neighbors were present and accounted for.

Buck yelled over the roar of the flames, "I can help him, take up an extinguisher and clear a path."

Chim shook his head, "We need to take cover. They sent in a C-130 tanker, and it's almost here. Tommy warned us to take cover."

Bobby radioed to Eddie to take cover as the firefighters quickly got the civilians under the trucks as they waited for the plane to dump its load.

Eddie cursed his captain as he looked around the bathroom that was disintegrating right before his eyes. He noticed a claw-footed tub at the edge of the small room, so he picked up the unconscious boy from the floor and climbed into the bathtub, hoping it would offer protection from the flames as he pulled his jacket so it would cover them both.

Outside was organized chaos as Bobby and Buck quickly checked to see if everyone was taking shelter as they could see the approaching C-130 tanker. Buck said, "We have to move; the tanker is about to open the doors."

They scrambled under the closest truck and watched from a safe vantage point as the entire neighborhood was doused in a metric fuckton of water. Buck yelled, "Chim, this has to be one of your better ideas!"

Chim had his phone out, texting the success and sending a huge thank you to Tommy.

As soon as the water stopped falling, Buck scrambled out from under the truck, ran to the house where Eddie was trapped, and yelled, "Eddie! Eddie! Where are you?"

Eddie walked out the front door with Alex in his arms. The boy was still out cold, but his pulse was strong, and he was still breathing ok, which Eddie reported to Hen as he placed the kid gently on the gurney.

As Hen assessed the boy, Buck pulled Eddie into a hug and whispered fiercely, "Don't do that to me, Eds. I thought I lost you when the house exploded."

Eddie murmured, “I’m fine, cariño. It was close, but as I promised you, I did everything I could to come back to you."

Hen came over after she'd passed the boy to one of the other paramedic teams parked closer to the cul-de-sac exit. She asked, "Are you ok, Eddie? Do we need to check you over?"

Eddie reassured, "I'm ok, Hen. I wasn't in the house for long, and I wasn't caught by anything when the ceiling collapsed; I just ended up trapped by the flames."

Bobby said, "Pack it up, guys; we're headed back to the station now that the CAD is back up."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - April 2019

Bobby had been sent home from his shift after the serial package bomber targeted their house. Athena's ex-husband, Micheal, was dropping the kids off after school when their son, Harry, had noticed a parcel on the front stoop for his mom. He was about to reach for it to pick it up when Micheal yelled at him to stay back.

When Bobby got home a few hours later, he ran inside and asked, "'Thena?"

She pulled him into a reassuring hug and said, "We're fine. They confirmed it's the same bomber that's targeted all the others." She gestured at the man she was talking to, "This is Agent Boyd. He's overseeing the bomber case."

Bobby gave him a nod before he focused on his fiance and asked, "Others? I only heard about the lawyer, and there was word of another, but I didn't hear about who was targeted."

Athena said, "It was an insurance adjuster, and earlier today, there was a judge hit, Judge Clemmons."

Bobby frowned, "I know that name."

Athena nodded. "We worked together on that arson case about three years back."

He tried to think back and nodded slowly. "It was our first case together, the restaurant."

Athena confirmed, "Guillermo's."

Bobby said, "It's the only time I've had to testify since I moved to LA. The owner was… let me think.. Victor, Victor Costas. He got six years; he should still be in prison."

Agent Boyd said, "He was released early, on account of, he's dead. He passed about three months ago… Cancer."

Bobby said, "I remember the son; he was furious about his father's arrest. I remember he blamed me for it."

Athena nodded. "He did. The kid was pissed about the court case and the arson being discovered, something he seemed to blame you for."

Agent Boyd said, "We have agents bringing in Mrs. Costas for an interview. Hopefully, she can give us some insight or a location on her son."

Athena asked, "You haven't found him yet?"

"No," The agent confirmed. "We have a BOLO out for him and his car, but no luck yet."

-x-

When they heard dispatch asking if they could patch Bobby through, Buck looked over at Martin in the passenger seat of the truck in confusion, as he drove the ladder truck to the accident scene. He asked, "Why is Bobby contacting us by dispatch?" He would have asked Chim, but he was behind them in the engine as Hen and Eddie brought up the rear in the ambulance.

Martin shrugged and opened his mouth, but they heard a deafening explosion before he could answer. For Buck, the next thing he knew, he was pinned under the truck by his leg, and there was a kid with a suicide vest walking around the front of the truck.

Eddie looked on in horror as the ladder truck exploded in front of them. Due to Bobby's absence, Chim was acting as interim captain, and Eddie had been assigned to work with Hen in the ambulance. He muttered, "What the fuck?"

They got out of the ambulance and started to approach the firefighters on the ground, but Chim prevented them from walking around the engine he was crouched behind. He whispered harshly, "There is a suicide bomber walking around. Stay back here and hope the FBI, who are on their way, can do something."

Eddie snarled, "Why can't we do something."

Chim said, "Have a look; the little bastard has a deadman's switch. So anything we do will set it off. We can't sneak in behind him, because he is pacing and watching all directions."

Hen asked, "What does he want?"

With a shrug, Chim said, "I don't know. He just seems to be muttering to himself right now. Dispatch said the FBI and SWAT are on their way in. I'm keeping them updated."

Eddie leaned around the corner to assess the scene; he could see three other firefighters on the ground aside from Buck. He turned to Chim and asked, "How many were on the ladder truck?"

Chim listed, "Buck was driving, Martin, Thompson, Jones, Lopez, and Garrett."

Eddie said, "I can see Martin, Lopez, and I am pretty sure that's Thompson. Buck is pinned, awake but pinned, and he looks out of it, so there is a possible head injury. So Garrett and Jones are unaccounted for."

From behind them, Jones said, "I'm here. I was still in the truck when it tipped. I waited until the bomber was distracted and legged it. Garrett got out too, but he's still behind the ladder truck. His ankle is either badly sprained or busted, so he can't run. He's hunkered down at the other end of the ladder truck, hoping he will stay out of sight of the little bastard. The kid is cracked. He wants Bobby and sounded pissed to find out Buck was driving."

"Shit," Chim swore. "Dispatch, where are we at with help? We've got injured firefighters in the street."

Eddie's heart sank as he heard the response that they were to stand fast and wait. When he noticed the news vans and the helicopters, he pulled out his phone and set up a group text. He added Colonel Davis, General O'Neill, General Carter, and Vala. He sent a message telling them to check the news.

He quickly declined the call from the general almost as soon as it started, and sent a second message saying he couldn't talk as he was surrounded by his team, but they needed to plan to extract Buck before surgery. He used his phone to take a few photos so the team back at the SGC knew what they were dealing with.

Jack sent a reply to tell him. 'We're getting things ready here at the mountain. Keep us updated, and we'll extract when he gets to the hospital. Are you ok?'

Eddie grinned as he answered. 'I'm fine. I was in the ambulance since we are down a captain. Bobby had a family emergency.'

He looked up to see what was going on. The kid was yelling out, "I want the captain." Eddie glanced up at Chim, and he could see the indecision on the paramedic's face. He stood and murmured, "Don't do it. He wants Bobby, not you."

Chim demanded, "You want me to leave our guys out there? Alone?"

Eddie hissed, "Of course not, Captain. But there are others out there trained to deal with guys like that kid." He pointed to the other side of the barricade. "See that guy over there with the helmet on. He's the head of the bomb squad; we met him last year when we pulled the grenade out of that guy's leg. He'll already have a plan in place to deal with the situation. If you walk into the middle of it, you could get in the way of their plans. What's the scene commander telling you to do?"

 "Stand fast," Chim said with a note of unhappiness in his voice. "But how can I when they are out there, literally bleeding in the street."

Eddie said, "Because they know what they are doing." He glanced up when he saw movement. "Oh fuck."

Hen leaned around them and asked, "What the fuck is Bobby doing?"

Eddie said darkly, "Exactly what I just talked Chim out of doing. He keeps looking at Athena, so hopefully, he has a plan."

The plan was realized when Athena escorted a woman through the barricade. She got the kid's attention, and as soon as he was distracted, Bobby overpowered him and got his hand over the deadman's switch in the kid's hand. The SWAT teams ran in as soon as the struggle began, and they quickly had the kid under control and escorted him through the barricade.

Chim ordered, "Hen, Eddie, check on Buck; I'll triage the others and get one of the other RA units to make sure Garrett gets his ankle seen too."

Eddie ran to his husband and saw he was looking more out of it; he leaned down and said, "Buck, come on, wake up."

Buck stirred and slurred, "Eds?"

Eddie nodded. "I'm here, Buck. Hen is here too; we need to check you over and figure out how to free you from the truck."

"Hurts," Buck slurred. "Make it stop?"

Hen said, "I've given you some morphine, but it might not be enough with that injury. They'll have something stronger once we get you to the hospital, Buck."

Buck turned to Eddie and asked, "Davis?"

Eddie said, "I let him know. Jack said he'll be waiting at the hospital for you as soon as I let him know which one."

"Good," Buck sighed.

Bobby called in all the first responders and got them placed around the truck to try and lift the ladder truck off Buck's leg. 

On their first attempt, they barely lifted the truck an inch, and Eddie felt like he was going crazy listening to his husband scream in agony. He felt his phone vibrate, but he was too busy trying to keep Buck calm to check the message. He stood and asked, "Is there anything we can use for leverage?"

Bobby shook his head. "Nothing easily accessible." He knew they didn't have long if they wanted to save Buck's leg. So he said, "Come on, we'll try again. Eddie, be ready to move him if we can get the truck high enough."

The captain looked to see if everyone was braced. And he noticed even more of the first responders had gathered to try and lift the truck; even Garrett was braced between Jones and Chim, so there was no weight on his bad leg as he prepared to lift. Bobby called out, "3, 2, 1." Then they all started lifting.

As soon as the truck started shifting as they tried to lift it, Buck began to scream as his leg shifted. The large group of first responders got the truck lifted higher than earlier, but still not high enough to dislodge Buck's leg.

Chim thumbed on his radio and was about to yell for more people, until Hen got his attention and pointed at the barricades. Barricades that were moving as people flooded through.

As the people surrounded the truck, Bobby yelled, "Get a hand in where you can." When he was sure as many people as could fit were ready, he called, "On the count of three, one, two… THREE!"

Eddie wouldn't forget Buck's screams in a hurry; they were heartwrenching as the truck shifted around on his leg. This time though, with all the people lifting, Buck's leg was finally freed enough for him to drag his husband free. As he was dragging the younger man, he murmured, "Just hang on, Buck."

He worked with Hen, Chim, and what looked like a navy medic that had run over from the closest ambulance to get Buck on the backboard. The three medics from the 118 handed Buck off to the military medics in the ambulance, and Eddie looked up when Bobby said, "Diaz, you're with us."

Chim asked, "Cap?"

Bobby held up his phone and said, "I've got orders that Eddie has to come with us, as he's Buck's medical proxy."

Eddie jumped into the back of the ambulance with Bobby, as they shut the doors, he looked up at their driver in surprise and asked, "Grouch?"

Grouch looked back with a grin as he said, "You think we're leaving the commander to the mercy of the local hospitals? Dr. Lam is already taking over one of the suites at Cedars-Sinai, and General Carter and Vala are being brought in to deal with the healing."

Bobby said, "Colonel Davis said they're already at Cedars; we just need us to get Buck there as soon as possible; they've already got painkillers ready for him."

Eddie was worried about Buck as he hadn't said a word since they got into the ambulance, not even when he heard Grouch speak from the front seat. He murmured, "Still with us, Buck?"

Buck nodded stiltedly. "Hurts."

Bobby looked over the monitoring equipment the petty officer had placed on Buck when they got him onboard and saw that Buck's vitals were strong despite the injuries.

The medic asked, "Commander?" When Buck looked toward him, he said, "Do you want something now to take the edge off, or do you want to wait until you're at Cedars? It's up to you."

Buck squeezed Eddie's hand before he answered the petty officer, "Wait."

Eddie said, "He's got a high pain tolerance, and we aren't far from the hospital." At Bobby's questioning look, he explained, "The first time we met, I put twenty stitches in his forearm without painkillers or a local, and he told me about the time he put stitches in his own thigh."

Buck tried to laugh, but it came out as more of a sob. "Head hurts, leg hurts, ribs hurt. Lil' fuck'r."

"Yeah," Bobby said with a huff. "He really is. We got him, though, and he's going to go away for a long time. He killed a few people with his bombs, including a judge."

Eddie laughed and said, "The tuna bomb was a nice interlude. That poor girl thought she was going to get in trouble for letting the bomb squad blow up her lunch."

Buck whispered, "Tuna sucks."

They pulled up outside the hospital, and the rest of SG-21 was already waiting to escort Buck and Dr. Lam inside. Dr. Lam took one look at his leg, which was covered in gauze where the blood was still leaking through, and ordered, "Follow me; we've got one of the suites set up for privacy. Colonel Davis is already working with Chief Alonzo to keep Buck's name out of the press."

Bobby said, "That shouldn't be too hard, as the bombing is part of an ongoing investigation."

As they walked to the room, Eddie said, "Thank fuck for that. The scrape on his forehead is over his birthmark, which will hopefully keep the truly nosy reporters from finding out and publishing his name anyway."

Connors opened the room to the operating theatre and let them roll Buck in on the gurney. The three members of SG-21 that used to work with the two men, with help from Bobby and Eddie, got Buck switched to the hospital bed as Dr. Lam brought over the portable x-ray machine and the ancient medical scanner to start her examination as one of her underlings got Buck hooked up to an IV with painkillers and a mild sedative.

 Vala glanced at the x-ray of Buck's lower leg and grimaced. She said, "That's going to take hours to fix," she pointed at the results from the ancient scanner, "the vascular damage you can see there can't be left like that."

Dr. Lam commented, "If it was up to the doctors here, he would be losing that leg. The damage is extensive. Vala, are you sure you can do it in a single session?"

Vala nodded. "I can if Sam, sorry General Carter does the other injuries so I can concentrate on the repairs on his leg. I'm glad I carbo-loaded in the mountain before we beamed over."

Eddie stood to get a look at the x-rays, and after a thorough examination of the scans, he asked, "Is it fixable? That looks minced."

Vala said, "I'll repair the bone, and vascular damage today, which will just leave the bruising, which I'll repair in a few days once I've slept off the major healing." 

Dr. Lam pointed at the scan from the ancient device as she explained, "General Carter is going to concentrate on his ribs and the head injury. Everything else is minor and will repair itself."

Sam asked, "Will the rest of your team want to visit him?"

Bobby nodded. "They will; it's a habit we've gotten into over the years if any of us are injured. Chim was the last major injury; when he got the rebar through his skull." He looked down at the two women's hands as he saw the devices they were wearing. "You mentioned you'll be doing the surgery? But I don't see any equipment."

Vala held up her hand so Bobby could see the hand device properly as Eddie explained, "The device on their hands is a Goa'uld hand device. It is used as a weapon by the system lords, but in the hands of people like General Carter and Vala, it can be used to heal even major injuries. It's what they've been using on Christopher to help with his CP as he grows."

Dr. Lam approached as the two women got started with the healing. She asked, "What paperwork will he need for the LAFD brass?"

Bobby detailed the various forms he would need for Buck's file before he said, "Cedars should have all the paperwork on their systems, you just need to fill it out and submit it, and it will automatically be sent to HQ. I take it you'll detail out the injuries and a prolonged recovery time? You'll need to add a requirement for recertification in there, if it's not automatic."

Eddie said, "At least a few months, he needs time to finish up the jumper project. He and Karen are so close to finishing."

Bobby asked, "Karen? Hen's Karen? That's her new job?"

"Yeah," Eddie admitted. "She started in January. It was a bit of a shock for her when Colonel Davis brought her to the house for her interview, and I answered the door."

Bobby snorted. "I can just imagine. She's pretty easy going, but that would have thrown her a bit. It does explain the last few barbecues where Buck and Karen have been sitting back and having some pretty strong, but quiet debates."

Buck was coming around from the sedative and said, "They weren't debates; they were design meetings that looked like nerd debates to keep everyone away. If anyone got close, we would start arguing about Batman vs. Superman or Iron Man vs. Captain America."

Eddie asked, "How are you feeling, cariño?"

Buck grumbled as he looked up at the lightboxes where the x-rays were still on display, "My head's stopped pounding. My leg is spasming something wicked, which I would expect based on those scans."

General O'Neill was beamed into the operating theatre with Patrick by his side. They introduced themselves to the fire captain before Jack reassured them, "The rest of your crew will be fine. The worst off was Martin. He has a broken arm from landing on the road after the explosion, but it was a clean break."

With a grateful smile, Eddie said, "Thank you, sir. How's Garrett? Jone's reported that he had a messed up ankle?"

"Just badly sprained," Jack reassured. "He'll be fine after a bit of PT."

Patrick had made his way to Eddie's side and asked, "How are you doing, Buckaroo?"

Buck said, "Better than when I got here, Grandpa." He was glad Patrick had hitched a ride with Jack; it was nice to have him here to support him and Eddie through the healing.

Sam explained, "He had a serious concussion from the explosion, a few broken ribs, and obviously the crush injury to his leg. I've healed the concussion, although I left the contusions on his face since the rest of his team from the 118 will be visiting. I've also fixed up his ribs."

Buck asked, "What about the press? What's being released about me?"

Jack said, "Nothing. Chief Alonzo has released a statement saying that as the bombing is the subject of an ongoing investigation, no details about the firefighters involved will be released. He's already authorized your sick leave, and he said to contact him to schedule your recertification."

Buck grimaced as his leg spasmed again, before he said, "Good. We need the time to finish off our current projects." He poked Eddie in the side and said, "Show Bobby the photos you took of Karen's first flight."

Eddie pulled out his phone and showed his captain the photos he took of Karen as she was looking out of the shield over the surface of Mars. "She was gutted when her project at JPL was shut down after the SGC was declassified. So we flew her to Mars when she signed her contract so she could see it for herself."

Bobby grinned. "That explains the new bookends she has. She said they were from Mars, but Athena thought she was just kidding."

Eddie shook his head. "Nope. She picked those up and I used one of the tools in our workshop to shave the sides to make them into the perfect bookends. Next time you're at their place, pick them up, the rocks she chose are actually quite light compared to rocks you'd find on earth."

Jack crouched in front of Sam where she was sitting; she looked exhausted. He asked, "How are you doing? Do you need anything?"

Sam shook her head. "Just rest. As soon as we got Eddie's text, I took Vala down to the mess to carbo-load, but someone should organize something for Vala for when she's finished. She's going to be famished."

Bobby said, "I've already arranged something filling for all of us. My wife, Athena, is bringing it in soon. She's just waiting for clearance to enter the hospital before she places the order."

Jack said, "They've got the hospital on lockdown since several of the bomber's victims are here. They want to be sure he was working alone before they allow visitors. I'll get her put on the clearance list so she can enter the hospital."

Buck looked confused as he asked, "Can't she just use her ID to enter?"

Jack shook his head. "Maybe if the bomb hadn't been placed on your ladder truck, but we have no idea how someone got access, and Freddie isn't talking. Because we can't rule out someone with ID helping the little bastard, they've locked down visiting to named people only."

Bobby said quietly, "Athena was one of his intended victims. He was targeting those he saw as complicit in his father's death. His last target was me, hence the bomb on the ladder truck. I'm normally driving it. The package for Athena was delivered to our home, and her son Harry nearly picked it up. We were lucky Michael, his dad, stopped him in time."

Patrick asked, "And you were complicit; how exactly?"

Bobby said, "I was part of the investigation into the arson of his father's restaurant. Together with Athena, I discovered that Victor Costas had set the fire himself, to claim the insurance. He died of cancer three months ago. His son, Freddie, blames us for his death and the fact that he wasn't released on compassionate grounds before he died." 

Jack said, "Then it's still not your fault. The little bastard somehow got explosives onto the ladder truck, and this is the result. That's entirely on him."

Eddie said, "There were a few other minor injuries, but Buck was definitely the worst off. Chim was the acting captain, but he's not rated to drive the trucks, so he was the passenger in the triple, and I was with Hen in the ambulance as the only other paramedic on our shift."

Jack said, "We'll make sure he's charged for targeting first responders. That's the last thing you guys need to be stressed about."

Eddie said, "I'm just glad Michael acted so quickly." When he saw the look of confusion on Jack's face, he explained, "Harry is one of Christopher's best friends. Harry, Christopher, and Hen and Karen's son Denny are thick as thieves."

Buck asked, "Did I hear someone say I'll need to do recertification? It's all still a bit muddled."

Bobby said, "Because of the nature of the injury, and because your miraculous healing is classified, you'll need to recertify as if your leg was healed by surgery and extensive PT. I honestly can't see that being a problem for you; if anything, you'll probably come back bigger and fitter."

Eddie snickered. "He will spend his thinking time in our gym at home. So yeah, you're probably not wrong." He glanced at Buck, who was wincing again, and he commented, "Honestly, it will probably be hardest for Karen, keeping Buck's recovery a secret from her wife."

Bobby said, "She'll be fine. Karen isn't the type to gossip like Hen and Chim. You mentioned an NDA I'd need to sign to access your workshop?"

Jack said, "The one you and your wife signed just after the battle of San Francisco with Colonel Davis is enough. Just don't touch things in there if you aren't sure what they are; Buck usually has explosives he's experimenting with. I'm assuming you'll want to check on Buck to make sure he's not burning himself out on the jumper project?"

 Bobby nodded. "Definitely. I might not have worked with him for long, but I know when he gets lost in a spiral, he forgets to take care of himself."

Eddie snorted. "I always keep an eye on him, we all take care of him when he lets us, but I'm sure he'll appreciate your cooking when he's deep into the project."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - April 2019

A few days after the bombing, Buck walked into his workshop when he got home from his forced stay in the hospital. A few steps in, he was stopped in his tracks by an armful of sobbing Karen.

He hugged her tight and asked, "What's going on?"

She said, "Hen said they were keeping you in the hospital so they could do more surgeries to save your leg."

Buck laughed. "Wow, chinese whispers in full effect. That's not it at all, as evidenced by my release, and when Bobby stops in later, we can let him know so he can correct the rumors."

He pulled back and rolled up the leg of his BDU pants. He said, "Look, it's good as new, just a little bit of scarring where the breaks were really bad."

She pushed him down into a chair so she could get a good look at his leg. She asked, "How bad was it really? It looked like you were in agony on the news."

Buck laughed. "The medical term they used was minced. If I had gone to a normal hospital, amputation would have been the only option. I was just lucky both Vala and General Carter were in the mountain. General Carter worked on my head injury and the other minor injuries I got in the explosion as Vala concentrated on rebuilding my leg. I have copies of the x-rays on my phone."

Karen laughed. "Later. Right now, I want to know the plan, since, as far as I know, you are supposed to be recovering for the next three months. Hen even heard something about a private rehab clinic."

Buck facepalmed. "Shit, sorry. I completely spaced and forgot to email you. Dr. Lam kept me prisoner for three days in the hospital while we waited for the swelling to go down. The only reason I escaped is because Vala came back and healed the last of the bruising. It was pretty horrific, but the night of the bombing, she concentrated on just healing the bones and muscle damage, making sure the blood vessels were all repaired correctly. The rehab clinic story was an option, but we decided it would be too complicated, especially since I'll still be in LA. We'll be using a fake cast when I am out of the house, and in three months, I'll do the recertification testing and go back to work once the jumper project is finished."

Karen nodded. "So, what's the plan? I know you, Buck; you already have a plan and three backup plans."

Buck said, "We've got three months to finalize the design and get production started before I have to recertify for work. After a month of final design plans, we can head to Area-51 to set up the production lines."

Karen said, "I'll be able to supervise the production line once you're back at work. Colonel Mitchell said he'd find me an ATA-positive pilot who we can borrow. I just hope he finds one with an engineering degree, so they don't get bored."

Buck asked, "Has Pops sent over the new drone requirements for Atlantis? I was thinking we could bang that out while I am home too. Eddie will still be working, since no one knows we live together, let alone that we're married."

Karen nodded. "He sent over that and some other projects that we could work on around your busy schedule. Does he know?"

Buck shrugged. "I haven't told him, either of them, actually. I will eventually, but it's not urgent since Vala and General Carter healed me, and there are no lasting side effects. There's no need to worry them."

She laughed because she knew that was going to backfire on him spectacularly. "Just let me know when you tell them, so I can get out of the blast radius."

"It won't be that bad," Buck tried to deny. "So let's sit down and plan the next few months. I want to have the first jumpers off the production line before I return to work."

Karen looked down at her planning document and said, "It's doable; the last part of the project is the power, well, fitting the power into the remaining part of the engine bay, so we don't have to sacrifice room for the internal seating."

They spent a few hours planning out the next few months. They knew schedules would be pushed to the limit. It would probably involve a few late nights as they got closer to the production process, but they thought it would be worth it to take advantage of Buck's time off.

When Eddie and Bobby arrived with Athena at the end of their shift, they found Buck and Karen arguing over a schematic.

Bobby and Athena looked around at the cluttered benches and the work tables as Eddie made his way over to the two engineers. He gave Buck a quick kiss before he asked, "How's it going?"

Buck looked up from the schematics after he was done making a change to the equation they were working on and said, "We are trying to figure out the power requirements. Anything interesting happen at work?"

Eddie shrugged. "We had a few reporters sniffing around, but Chief Alonzo sent out guidelines just after the bombing with what we can and can't say to the press. So everyone gave them a wide berth."

Bobby said, "We're getting a heavy rescue floater to cover you until you're cleared to come back to work. They start in a few days. Apparently, they're waiting for a position to open at the 146. So what have you two been up to?"

Karen said, "We've got the next three months planned out. A month of solid work finalizing all the plans, then two months at Area 51 supervising the production to clear up any issues from the production line."

Athena said, "I can't believe you've managed to hide this from Hen since the start of the year. I can't wait to see the look on her face when she eventually finds out that your Dr. Sheppard and her Buck are the same person."

Bobby said, "Never mind her; what about Chim? He still acts like Buck is a dumb frat boy. He just can't let go of that first impression."

Eddie commented, "I just don't get where he got that first impression, he gives me more respect, and I was the one acting like a dumb frat boy."

Bobby said, "You were introduced as former military; that automatically puts you in a different category to him. Even though Buck was introduced with the information that he'd spent six months at the academy doing all the advanced courses, he's actually more qualified than Chim; he's a fully qualified driver engineer, and he sat and aced the lieutenants' exam, yet Chim still acts like he's in it for a lark."

Athena asked, "And he gets away with that?"

Buck said, "I don't argue with brick walls; there's no point."

She asked, "But isn't he dating your sister? How does she feel about that?"

Eddie snorted. "She doesn't know."

The younger man said, "She's happy with him; I'm not ruining that. Honestly, I could care less what he thinks of me, and I rarely have to work with him in the field since he's a paramedic."

Bobby said, "Where I can, I pair you up with either Eddie or one of the other firefighters who won't go out of their way to piss you off with their lack of filter. It's a captain's job to use their resources effectively."

Athena had found the project wall, where they had photos of previously completed projects in action. She asked, "What's all this?"

Buck said, "They are our completed projects since we joined the SGC. The photos on the right are projects we've contributed to, and on the left are projects we've led."

Confused, she looked at him and asked, "I thought Karen only just joined you in February. But I remember seeing the fighter plane in San Francisco last year."

Buck laughed. "When I say we, I mean Eds and me; he works on the projects with me. He has since not long after we got together. He has an instinctive knowledge of mechanics and electronics and how to make changes to the designs, so the mechanics don't attempt homicide after maintenance."

Athena tapped one of the newer, smaller drones they released shortly after the declassification. She asked, "What are these for?"

Eddie said, "The SGC search and rescue teams use them on rescue missions. They are equipped with high-powered video and thermal cameras. The operator can switch between them. They can focus on people from a mile in the air, making them practically invisible to those on the ground. We're still trying to miniaturize the cloaking tech from the puddle jumper for the drones."

Buck said, "We're also working on a version that will be available to the fire departments around the country for assessing buildings for people stuck inside. Buck is working with some of the scientists in Cheyenne Mountain to create a thermal camera that can recognize the difference between fire heat and body heat. But the working model we have now will work on building collapses. We're getting it ready for a few fire departments around the country to beta test it for us."

Athena said, "That could also be useful for the SWAT teams, especially with that sort of range. From what I've seen, thermal cameras can detect body heat through most building materials, so SWAT could use the drones to figure out where people are inside, especially if they can do it from multiple angles, it will let them build a map of perp locations."

Eddie said, "We'll mention it to the CSO at the mountain. It's up to him what gets released and to who. I'm sure we can put a case forward for one of our earlier models to be released to police departments. We'll let you know. We've got a test version of our current model. Want to give it a fly?"

Athena commented, "I thought this was a no-fly zone for drones?"

Buck laughed. "This house and my workshop are why this is a no-fly zone. It's zoned as a classified military lab, so a square mile around us is a no-fly zone without a special license. Good luck to any civilians getting one."

Karen said, "Take it for a fly; it's a blast. The camera on it is amazing, and the battery is naquadah, so it lasts for hours in the air. You could probably fly it all the way to your place without running out of power or being spotted."

"Seriously," Bobby asked incredulously. "What about the ones being released to the fire departments? Surely they would have something we can charge in the station without any special equipment."

Eddie tapped one of the photos. "This is one of our earlier models with the thermal cameras. The battery is still pretty good, lasts about an hour in the air, and I think they are being supplied with three or four batteries, and they'll charge overnight. The screen on it works with tactical gloves, and I've tested the gloves we wear at work."

Bobby said, "Something like that would have been so helpful after the earthquake; in fact, so many of our jobs would be easier if we had a better idea where we could find people."

Eddie nodded. "That's what we were thinking. The fun part is getting the thermal camera's algorithm to recognize the fire and remove it from the imaging. Thankfully the scientists and engineers that Buck works with are just as smart as him, and together they'll figure out a solution."

Buck said, "We're also working on a drone with explosive sniffers that may work for finding roadside bombs and IEDs. The fun part is creating a drone that can sniff out what an explosives dog would find, but also have thermal cameras for the bombs that would register, and listening devices that can register the frequency of electronic detonators, and then packing that into a very small drone or robot. We are still figuring out what would work best."

Athena asked, "How much of the equipment we use today has come from the SGC labs?"

Buck turned to Bobby and asked, "Do you remember the gear we wore when we pulled the grenade out of that guy's leg? That was all developed by the SGC and was released to the bomb squads around the country through one of our shell companies. Some of the equipment used by the SAR teams is from the same company, but not much used by frontline police or fire, yet."

Karen said, "There is more in the pipeline though. I saw an email about upgraded turnout coats, the same weight but double the fire retardant. I'm hoping that the 118 gets to test those when they are ready."

Buck knew it had to be nearly dinner time, so he checked his watch and said, "Karen, don't you have a date night with Hen tonight?"

"Shit," She stood and started to pack up her table. "Thanks, Buck. She'd kill me if I was late again."

Buck stilled her hands and said, "Leave it; I'll pack up before we go up for dinner. Head home, so your wife doesn't kill me."

Athena said, "She'll understand. Have fun on your date."

As the two newbies were exploring, Eddie asked, "How's your leg doing? Any residual pain?"

"Nah," Buck reassured. "I'm all good, not even a twinge from being on it all day. We got a good plan for the next few months. Once I return to work, Karen is going to borrow one of the SGC pilots to fly her to Area 51 to supervise the final leg of the production setup."

He asked, "Have you emailed your parents about your injury yet?"

Buck shook his head. "Nope, and I don't plan to at this point. I'm fine, everything's healed, and it would just worry them when there is nothing to worry about."

Eddie sighed, "That's going to backfire on you. You know that, right?"

Athena asked, "How?"

Eddie said, "Well, his parents are a crazy Air Force pilot and the smartest man in two galaxies. They only learned about Buck six years ago, so they are protective."

Athena gave Buck a look of pure disbelief, and she said, "Boy, you're going to be dead when they find out."

"If," Buck said with determination, " If they find out. I don't plan on them ever finding out, so there is nothing to worry about."

Eddie said, "It's your funeral. Now Bobby brought in leftovers from lunch, he made mac'n'cheese, well, not leftovers, but he made extra for us to cook here. We put it in before we came downstairs. Shannon will take it out of the oven when it's ready. Bobby made enough for all of us to share."

Buck asked Bobby, "Are you and Athena staying for dinner?"

Eddie yelled from the door, "They are. Now get a wriggle on; Shannon said it's ready, and Christopher is hungry."

Buck escorted everyone out of his workshop, and they made their way through the house to the dining room. Buck pulled his grandpa into a hug when he saw the older man had come home with Shannon. He asked, "Why didn't you come down and say hi?"

Patrick laughed. "I did. You and Karen were so into your planning you didn't even hear the door ping as it opened. I decided to leave you both to it. I figured you'd find your way back upstairs eventually."

Buck said, "Shit, sorry, it was my first day back in the workshop after the bombing. We spent today planning out my three months of rehab. We want to complete a few projects and get the puddle jumpers into production while I'm on medical leave. Tomorrow I get to catch up on my emails; I'm really not looking forward to that."

Athena asked, "How bad can it be?"

Eddie said, "While he was in the hospital, I got 30ish emails a day with updates on projects, and that's just for the ones I'm involved in. Buck is part of a lot more projects, as well as leading several, so he will have a metric fuck tonne of emails to wade through. He also gets most of the senior engineer emails that he has to filter through in case he can provide insight where someone else is stuck."

Buck shrugged. "Karen filters through most of those now; she's just as smart as the rest of us. She's just getting used to the SGC tech she hasn't worked with before. She's been picking it up so quick though, which has been awesome for me. Without her, the puddle jumpers would have been at least another year, maybe two, before they were ready for production."

Bobby asked, "Different tech? How do you mean?"

As they ate, Buck asked, "Do you remember the F303s, the small attack planes we used in San Francisco against the Death Gliders?"

Bobby nodded. "The ones you designed, right?"

"Yeah," Buck confirmed. "So the metal on the hull, paglanyx, it's not from earth, and we don't have anything that comes close to it. It's unique in that it doesn't change temperature, no matter what you throw at it. You can fly it in extreme heat or extreme cold, and nothing changes. The metal doesn't expand or contract. It did mean some major changes to the production line, as it had to be treated with chemicals to form the panels we needed, but it means that it can be made space capable without being huge and unwieldy like the space shuttle."

Christopher said, "Grandpa John loves to fly them; he said they're more nimble than anything else currently flown by the US Military, and he's flown everything."

Patrick said, "I think the only reason John accepted the leadership role he has, is because he can still go into the field and still fly, since the base is still pretty small."

They spent the rest of the meal talking about their plans for Buck's rehab, and Bobby's plan to get floaters in to cover him. Buck told them of the rumors about his rehab and his leg, and Bobby promised to set the record straight.

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - April 2019

The Diaz family would not stand for him missing family dinners; if it was good enough for Christopher to arrive on crutches, it was good enough for Buck. So it was one night a week when he left the house, complete with a fake cast and crutches, to enjoy Abuela's cooking. Shannon and Vala were both in town the week after his accident. Vala refused to miss a night of good Mexican cuisine, so they'd tagged along for dinner. Patrick was in Washington, or he would have been there too.

As it was the first family dinner after the bombing, Sophia and Adriana had driven up with their families, so they could check on Buck too.

As they were tucking into the enchiladas, Isabel asked, "How long does the cast stay on for, Buck?"

It had been a while since Buck had to be treated by the regular medical system, and he struggled to remember how long it usually took for a broken bone to heal. He swallowed his current bite of food as a way to delay answering. His husband came to the rescue and tapped six times on his thigh, so Buck said, "I have another check-up in two weeks. But we think the cast will be on for at least six weeks. It all depends on how the healing is going."

Pepa asked, "How bad was it?"

Eddie snorted in remembrance of both Dr. Lam and Vala's description. He said, "It was bad. The doctor said Buck was lucky to keep his leg." If he'd gone to a regular hospital, with the damage that was done, they wouldn't have been able to save it. He wondered to himself if the bombing had happened in the previous timeline or if things had changed. He made a mental note to ask Morgan if she showed up again.

They all turned when they heard a knock on the door. Isabel scowled. Her friends knew the Diaz family dinner night was sacred, and everyone else she knew was present at the meal.

Buck said, "It's not Grandpa. He doesn't knock anymore when he's running late for family dinner."

Pepa stood and said, "I'll go scare them away." They watched as she stomped down the hall to the front door.

Eddie said, "I wonder if they will run screaming, she looks pretty angry."

She was, and they didn't. She came back to the table followed closely by Ramon and Helena Diaz. Two people who couldn't be less welcome.

Shannon's eyes widened in shock, and she whispered to Vala, "Oh shit. We need popcorn, stat."

Isabel stood and asked, "Ramon? What are you doing here?"

Ramon said, "I came to check on my son after I had to find out from CNN that he was living in LA. Something I should have found out from you or Josephina."

Helena glared at her daughters and said, "Or either of you. Honestly, I can't believe you'd keep your brother hidden from us."

Sophia snorted. "Why would we tell you after all you did to keep us apart. I mean, Eddie made it pretty clear he didn't ever want to see you."

Ramon snapped, "How dare you speak to your mother like that."

Adriana frowned and snarked, "Perhaps if she acted like our mother, she might get more respect. I mean, she demanded that Sophia hand over her child because, now, how did you put it, because she's broken and clearly needs a firm hand. Fuck that."

Before Ramon or Helena could reply, Vala suggested, "How about I take the kids back to our place. That way, y'all can either clear the air or declare war without collateral damage."

As she was getting the kids all packed away, James offered, "How about me and Quinn come with you? We can help you kid wrangle, and it means Adri and Soph will be less likely to censor themselves for our sakes."

Shannon gave Vala a kiss in appreciation. As much as she wanted to run away with the spouses, she knew she needed to be there to support Eddie and Buck. She murmured, "Thanks, love. We'll see you all at home when this is sorted out. If Bobby shows up, you know the shit has hit the fan."

Eddie and his sisters took the time to clear the table. So they could all talk freely without the food getting in the way. They put the leftovers into Tupperware containers, as they knew full well that their abuela would not let them leave without them.

As Christopher was leaving, with Vala walking beside him to make sure he got outside ok, the young boy turned to his grandparents and said, "I wanted to meet you before we left Colorado. I even asked Santa for a visit from you for Christmas. After hearing what you said about Stacy, I'm no longer interested. You'll be the type of people who think I'm broken and need to be coddled just because I have CP, so, no thanks." He held his head high and followed his cousins and tíos out the door. Just before they walked out the door, Christopher turned back and looking at his Dad, he said, "Maybe it's time I take on the Sheppard name too, Daddy."

Once the kids had left with Vala, James, and Quinn, despite the protests of Ramon and Helena, Isabel suggested, "How about we move this party into the living room. Then Buck can put his leg up and be more comfortable."

Buck said, "I'll be ok, Abuela; we don't have to move." In all honesty, he was fine, it was just a heavy cast, and it was digging in a bit at the ankle. He suspected it was done on purpose to make the cast more believable.

Ramon demanded, "Who are you, and why are you even here? This is a Diaz family dinner. You couldn't even be bothered to get up and help clear the table."

Every other Diaz in the room chorused, "He's family."

Isabel pointed at the remaining seats at the table and demanded, "Sit, both of you." 

As they sat down, Pepa said, "If you'd bothered to look, you would've noticed the cast on our Evanito's leg, as it was crushed under the ladder truck a week ago, as you saw from the same news story your son was in."

Sophia muttered, "It's not even the first time he's been on TV because of his job at the 118. We found him due to a story that was done featuring their station six months ago. Since we didn't have his contact details and he made every effort to stay hidden from us all, thanks to you lying your asses off and poisoning him against us, we contacted Abuela to reunite with them."

Isabel put her hands on her hips as she faced off with her son after he'd sat down, and she said sternly, "You have no right to choose who is and isn't invited to family dinner night. You lost that right when you tried to steal your grandchildren." At their shocked looks, she said, "Yes, I know all about you trying to take Christopher from the nanny while Eddie was deployed."

Shannon muttered, "I'm just glad I had an escape option."

Ramon sneered, "Yes, running away to your sugar daddy with our grandchild seems so responsible."

Adriana demanded, "Why the hell would she stay? You both put her through hell." She turned to Buck and said earnestly, "Thank you for offering her an escape option. I wish we could have done more to protect her back then."

Shannon shrugged. "You did your best. You had your own issues going on at the time; you all did. And your parents were gatekeeping your contact with your brother; I don't know what they hoped to achieve by using lies to separate y'all, but it failed."

Helena demanded, "What lies?"

Sophia ticked off on her fingers, "Telling us that he only had time to make one Skype call a week, and he said that would be easier to do with you." She ticked another finger. "The lies you told Eddie about us being ashamed of him and Shannon." She ticked yet another. "And finally, the lies you told us about Eddie not wanting to speak to us. I wonder if anything you've said over the last ten years is true."

Adriana muttered, "I wonder if anything they've told us is true."

Shannon gave Ramon and Helena an assessing look, and she asked, "Why are you really here? You've had Eddie's email address this whole time. He even reached out a few years ago, at the request of our son, and invited you to his firefighter graduation. You both seemed more interested in yelling at him because we still aren't married."

Eddie admonished, "Bigamy is illegal, Shan. Even in Colorado."

Ramon said angrily, "We want to see our grandson. You have no right to keep him from us."

Eddie snorted. "We have every right. In fact, the only ones who can decide if you are allowed to see our kid are the three of us."

Helena asked, "Three?"

Shannon said, "Myself, Eddie, and Buck, you know, Christopher's actual parents. We are the only ones with the legal right to decide who has contact with Christopher. Just like Adriana and James can decide for the twins, and Sophia and Quinn are the only ones who can decide for Stacy, as you found out when you tried to demand custody."

Helena scoffed. "A child can't have three parents."

Buck smiled smugly. "They can in California. I was over the moon when Christopher asked me to adopt him not long after we all moved here; I even cried."

Shannon nodded. "He really did cry, just a few tears, but it was sweet."

Ramon turned to Shannon and sneered, "You married this stranger; you allow him near our grandson?"

Eddie laughed. How could he not, with his father jumping to all the wrong conclusions? He eventually said, "No, Ramon. I married him; I proudly married him as soon as it was legal to do so; we were the first in line when the office opened when the legislation went through. Shannon officiated it for us, and Christopher was our ring bearer. If you hadn't been trying for the oscar award for worst parents, you probably would have been invited."

Shannon sneered, "And for the record, he's been there for Christopher since he was born. He supports him in every way, encourages his learning, and has been there for both myself and Eddie when you put us through hell. Buck and his family are our safe place.

Adriana was over their appalling behavior. "It's safe to say none of us actually want to speak to you. I'm still pissed that your actions meant that me and Sophia missed our baby brother's wedding. I doubt we'll ever forgive you for that. Sure, you raised us, but we all learned how to be good parents from external sources."

Eddie nodded. "Seeing how Shannon's parents raised her was a big influence on me. I thought maybe they were different from most parents, that they were an aberration. But then I met Patrick and saw how he was with Dave and Buck, and I realized that what worked for you wouldn't work for me. At all. I vowed to be better for my son."

Buck said, "And you are; you're a rockstar dad for our kid."

Pepa said, "You all are. You have all raised loving, caring children who have everyone wrapped around their little fingers. However, if anything ever happens to Christopher, we all know there will be an army of people hunting him down and looking for revenge."

Buck laughed. "Maybe not an army, but certainly a platoon of Navy SEALs, Army Rangers, Marine Force Recon, and that's not including the others in the mountain."

Shannon whispered, "Laura would bring all the fun toys. Especially if anything happened to harm Christopher."

Buck gave the Diaz parents a hard look. He'd been there back in Afghanistan as they put Eddie and Shannon through the wringer when he first got together with Eddie all those years ago. He asked, "Everyone else has asked, so I guess it's my turn. What was your point in coming here? I mean, it's clear you only knew Eddie was here due to the bombing. He's not going to give up his son to you. Shannon leaving El Paso to escape your gaslighting should have been a good indicator of that."

Helena said, "We just want to see our grandchildren. Isn't that what all grandparents want?"

"Sure, you betcha," Buck agreed. He gave them an angry look as he said, "Except most grandparents don't threaten to sue for custody when they think their kids aren't good enough parents. They don't browbeat their children into marriage just to satisfy their own beliefs. And they don't spend six months gaslighting the mother of their grandson to the point where she actually believed that she was a bad mom."

Eddie said, "We cured her of that, by the way. I mean, you had her believing that it was her fault that Christopher has CP. Thanks to you both nagging and harassing her during her entire pregnancy, she was doing everything wrong. I'm just glad the unit we were assigned to understands the importance of family and that family isn't just blood. They have worked wonders with Christopher and his treatments."

Pepa said, "I think you should both go back to El Paso. Don't return until you're both ready to apologize, and mean it, for what you put these kids through."

Sophia said darkly, "Don't bother with me; I don't accept. You told me my daughter was lazy and needed a firm hand, that my parenting was obviously lacking and that you could do a far better job. So you can take any apology and shove it where the sun don't shine."

Helena asked, "We could always sue for custody of Christopher. You're obviously in a very dangerous job; he should have the stability that we can provide."

Buck laughed. "Try it. The entertainment value of it would be worth it."

Ramon sneered, "Are you going to stop us? You're just some gold-digging gringo. You obviously married our Eddie for the prestige of being a military spouse."

They were shocked when everyone at the table laughed.

Adriana said, "He is military; Buck is a Navy SEAL. Even though they are both in the reserves, I believe he's a Commander. I'm pretty sure they're even on medals, not that you'd know since they both keep them locked away in a safe."

Eddie said, "Also, my husband is a world-renowned rocket scientist. One of the smartest men on the planet. He has two doctorates and five master's degrees, which does not include the other qualifications he has and is still working on."

Shannon laughed as she said, "And his grandfather is Patrick Sheppard, owner of Sheppard Industries. He's the one who hired me one of the best family lawyers, and encouraged me to give my lawyer copies of every abusive voicemail you've left for me."

Sophia said, "So, please try. I agree with Buck; the entertainment value would almost make it worth it. I have a new popcorn recipe I want to try."

When Ramon and Helena stood, clearly to leave, Isabel said quietly, "Don't contact us until you can apologize to your children for being deplorable examples of parenting. I did not raise you to be this way, Ramon, and I don't trust you around mis nietos y nietas."

Pepa crossed her arms, and with a smirk, she said, "I think you'll find LAX is still open for flights back to El Paso."

Eddie warned, "If you try to take our children again, we will press charges of attempted kidnapping, and if you get the smart idea to try tonight, please know that on top of being Shannon's girlfriend, Vala is a certified bodyguard, and she would protect Christopher and his cousins with her life."

Ramon scoffed. "The gringa who took our grandchildren out of the house, you think she's a match for me?"

Buck laughed. "She teaches combat training to Navy SEALs. She won't hold back if you're a threat to any of those kids."

Helena said, "You'll regret this."

Adriana shook her head. As the eldest, she wanted to get her point across to the parents they would probably never see again. "We haven't regretted leaving El Paso, nor have we regretted cutting you out of our children's lives; they have Abuela, Tía Pepa, and Patrick, who are based in LA. All of them have stepped in as grandparents beside Buck's parents and our husband's parents."

Buck said, "Don't forget Bobby and Athena. They are also willing to be grandparents to those four kids." He turned to face the Diaz parents. "They will thrive without your toxic ableist bullshit in their lives."

Helena followed her husband out of the house and slammed the door behind her. 

Buck said, "I'm going to call Athena and ask her to go and wait at our place, just in case."

Abuela watched him use his crutches to get into the living room before she said, "Ramon was such a sweet boy growing up. I don't know where I went wrong."

Pepa said, "You didn't, Mama; his attitude is entirely on that woman. He started to change when they got together, and he's only gotten worse over the years."

Shannon said, "Honestly, they were both as bad as each other before I left El Paso. I thought it was just me, that they thought I wasn't good enough for their son, yet they constantly nagged us about getting married so we could be proper parents to Christopher."

Adriana pulled her into a sideways hug and admitted, "It wasn't you; it was never you. It wasn't until I saw a therapist after we moved to San Diego that I realized they thrived on control. They controlled our contact with Eddie while he was deployed. Even our contact with you was controlled; we had to look your address up in the phonebook when we were trying to find you. Dr. Addison called it gatekeeping."

Sophia said, "They were clever about it, though; none of us noticed until it was too late."

Isabel said, "How about we all head to Eddie's so we can see the kids and let them know we are all ok."

Buck hobbled back into the room and said, "Athena and Bobby are already at the house. Vala apparently called them as Quinn drove them home to let them know there might be trouble."

They gathered up the various Tupperware containers of leftovers and drove back to the Sheppard house, where Vala met them at the door. She guided everyone to the living room before she herded Buck and Eddie into the workshop so they could talk privately.

She said, "I called Athena and Bobby to help kid wrangle. Harry and May are with Michael tonight, so they were free to come over and help James and Quinn. I then went back to Abuela's as I knew from the way they were acting you'd all kick Ramon and Helena out. I wanted to make sure they didn't wait around and follow you all back here."

Buck asked, "Did you place one of our trackers?"

With a smirk, Vala said, "Of course. What do you take me for, Commander? The car is theirs, not a rental, so it looks like they drove here. I used the new tracker with the naquadah battery, so it should last for decades before it stops broadcasting."

Eddie said, "Good. That means we can set up some geofences in the tracking; one around our place and another covering LA in general. I don't trust them. They gave in too easily, so I'm sure they will come back to try again at some stage."

Buck shrugged. "Let them try. As I said earlier, the entertainment value will be worth it. If they kidnap any of those kids, hell will rain down upon them."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - May 2019

The SGC had assigned two of its investigators to assist the LAPD and the ATF in the investigation into the bombing of the ladder truck. Jack had waved it away as 'first responders shouldn't be bombed,' and the investigators helped speed things along with some of the technology they brought to the party.

In the end, it came down to one of the mechanics at the workshop where the ladder truck had been repaired. Freddie had approached him with a story about a birthday surprise for one of the firefighters who was a close family friend. So the mechanic had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker and had given them unfettered access to the ladder truck before it was returned to the 118.

Freddie had placed a small explosive charge under the truck, small enough to stay hidden through most inspections but large enough to lift the truck onto its side. The kid then listened over the scanner for the right callout, one that would take the truck close enough to him to be detonated.

Once the report was out, Jack sent Colonel Davis to see Bobby at the station with an offer. Buck and Karen had created units that could be mounted in the roof of a fire station that worked like their explosives detecting drones. 

Dressed in his civilian clothes, so as not to raise suspicion, Paul Davis took the box he was carrying through to Bobby's office and took a seat when directed. He placed the box on the floor beside him and took a small pile of paperwork from the top before he said, "The investigation into how the bomb got onto the ladder truck has concluded. The explosive charge was placed while the truck was being repaired after the…" He looked down to read from his notes before he asked, "Shark incident?"

Bobby chuckled. "Yeah. We rescued a large tiger shark from the freeway when the truck transporting it tipped over. It was just a short trip to the marina, and it should have been fine, but the weight of the shark added micro-fractures to the ladder itself, so after the various tests, they had to replace the entire ladder unit on top of the truck. When we picked up the truck, the head mechanic asked that we don't rig up large objects from the ladder in the future. Not that it matters since the whole truck was a write-off after the bomb."

Paul looked down at the photos Bobby had pulled up on his phone of the shark suspended from the front of the ladder truck and Buck helping release her into the ocean. He commented, "Wow, okay, that is huge; no wonder it stressed the ladder."

Bobby shrugged. "According to Buck, it shouldn't have, and I trust his engineering skills and knowledge over anyone else. So how did Freddie get access to our truck?"

"Bribery," Paul said bluntly. "Well, a bit of bribery and a bit of a sob story about missing a birthday and wanting to surprise someone. Apparently, the mechanic is a sucker for a sob story. It's being dealt with quietly, the mechanic has been warned officially about allowing people to mess with official vehicles, and he'll be supervised for the next year when he does any work on LAFD vehicles."

Bobby asked, "And the box?"

The colonel said, "A condition for Buck's return to work. He and Karen have modified their IED sniffing drone to work in a large building." He opened the box and lifted out a grey metal unit the size of a cereal box and a second slightly smaller unit with lights on the front. He tapped the first unit as he explained, "This needs to be mounted on the roof, and the other box on the wall somewhere visible. There are installation instructions in the box for the fire department electrician or building manager. It will sniff out 99% of known explosive compounds, and it's been designed to disregard the smells generated by firefighting, smoke, ash, and the like. There are sensors that will need to be installed around the garage, near the doors, and in the locker rooms, but as I said, there are instructions."

Bobby asked, "Is there a way we can test it? It'll give the team peace of mind that what happened with Freddie won't happen again, at least not easily."

Paul offered, "I can bring in a test kit of different explosive compounds, so you can all see how it works. We are putting one together so that stations can test the units once installed. You'll be testing yours for the LAFD, but Chief Alonzo has been informed that the installation is required for Buck's return."

Bobby nodded. "I think it will put our minds at ease. I know it's been in the back of everyone's minds that a kid like Freddie was able to bomb the truck. Something that technically shouldn't be possible."

Paul nodded. "Understandable. Well, you're free to release the investigation findings to your team; a public statement will be released by the LAFD in a few days. If you give me a call when the unit is installed, I'll bring the test kit so you can all test it and make sure it'll detect most things. The lights will indicate what's been detected, and it should pick up anything attached to the vehicles used, in case something is placed while you're out on a call. Buck and Karen should be able to tell you more, should you have questions."

Bobby asked, "It's designed just for fire stations? Or is it just ideal for us due to the open plan nature of firehouses?"

Paul said, "As far as I know, it's mostly for the firehouses because of the open-plan system. They are working on something for other public buildings, but it's a lower priority than other projects on their list."

A few weeks later, the system was fully installed, and they were ready to do the test phase. Something everyone had turned up for as they were all nervous about another explosive being placed on the truck, even though Freddie had been denied bail.

Colonel Davis was waiting outside with Laura Cadman, and they were standing in front of a table that Bobby had arranged to be brought outside. They had placed several large pelican-style cases containing various explosive compounds on it. 

Bobby had also invited the families of the 118 members to give them peace of mind after the bombing. As it was a few weeks before his recertification testing, Buck was there, standing between Eddie and Karen. He knew the system would work, but it would seem out of place if he wasn't there to see the demonstration.

Paul cleared his throat when everyone was gathered, and once everyone was paying attention, he said, "I'm Colonel Paul Davis, and I am here as part of the SGC. With me is one of our explosives experts, Major Laura Cadman. We're here to demonstrate the new explosives detection system that was recently installed in your firehouse."

Laura pointed at a large screen that was set up beside the table as she said, "This will display the same data as the indicator panel inside, so it's easier for everyone to see what will happen inside without y'all crowded around a small box." She gestured at the various cases and said, "We've brought the most common explosives used domestically and a few used overseas by paramilitary organizations."

Bobby had been instructed that he needed to put forward a question about the system before the major started the demonstration, so he asked, "Major Cadman," he ignored the snickers from Buck and Eddie at the formal address. "For those of us not part of the SGC, can you please explain how the system works?"

Laura smiled. "Sure, Captain Nash. So there is a controller and main sniffer, if you will, in the ceiling of the garage, and it's linked wirelessly to several sensors placed in key positions around the firehouse. These sensors will pick up the scent of various explosive compounds, and, if tripped, will light up on the detection board with the type of explosive and the closest sensor. For example, if someone puts C4 under the ladder truck at a scene, and you drive back unaware it's there, when you drive through the doors, the sensor on the doors will smell the C4, and the detection board will indicate 'C4' and 'Doors.' This means there is likely C4 on one of the trucks, and you'll need to call in the bomb squad to find and remove it safely."

She pulled out one of the remote control buggies from under the table; they had a tray on top for holding the explosive scent. She had a floor map that would take the buggy around the various sensors, so they could all see how the system worked. Using C4 as the subject of the tour, she drove the buggy past the various sensors so they could see how the system would only detect if there was something actually within sniffing distance and that once it was removed, the board would update. 

She explained how reports on substances detected would automatically be emailed to the captain, and once the system was in place at the other LAFD firehouses, they would have a central email added to get notifications from all the firehouses.

Once the demonstration was done, and the military team was packing up, Buck was fielding questions from the members of the 118 about his recovery. Eventually, Chim asked, "When are you coming back to work?"

Buck said, "I'm still on track to do my recertification in a few weeks. I'm working with my rehab team to make sure I'm fully healed before I return to work. We don't want to rush things." 

Meanwhile, he was thinking he was nearly ready to hand things over to Karen to oversee, once they stole one of the pilots from the mountain who could fly Karen to Nevada each day. She'd received the ATA gene therapy, and she was one of the few that it worked on, so she was learning how to fly their jumper, but like himself, it wasn't as intuitive for her.

Hen asked, "So what else have you been doing with your time off? You can't be spending all your time at the rehab center." She looked at his increased bulk before she commented, "Or maybe you have; you're definitely bigger than the last time we saw you."

Eddie commented, "Lots of time in the gym."

Buck snarked, "What? It's relaxing for me. So what have I missed, any interesting gossip?"

Hen and Chim filled him in on everything that had happened in the 118 since the bombing. Including the news that Stratton from C shift was finally pregnant, and O'Sullivan got married in Vegas to his new girlfriend."

Buck asked, "Why go all the way to Vegas? California has no wait time on marriages."

Chim shrugged. "Maybe they were already in Vegas having a weekend away? Who knows, he's not telling. He said he wasn't going to tell us, but he forgot to take his ring off when he came back to work."

"Which, of course, you or maybe Hen noticed immediately," Buck said with a laugh. "The poor guy wouldn't have known what hit him."

Eddie said, "Bobby misses you. Well, he misses having my handbrake around. Apparently, you're the only one who can keep me from taking risks."

From the side, Tanika said, "Well, we all know you're crazy, Eddie. And I don't know why he's calling Buck your handbrake; he's the one often egging you on."

Eventually, Bobby had to call a halt to the proceedings; they'd only been given a few hours offline for testing and demonstration purposes. 

Before she left, Laura looked around to make sure no one was in earshot before she murmured, "Thanks for looking after Buck and Eddie. They mean a lot to me, especially Buck."

Bobby asked quietly, "Oh? You've known them for a while?"

She nodded. "I went to MIT with Buck as his mandated nanny. I used the time to get my own master's degree."

The captain whispered, "And let me guess, you're the one that helped him blow up his professor's car?"

Laura smirked as she disputed, "It wasn't the whole car; we just blew up the tires. And the guy deserved it. He was a complete douche to the baby students. He didn't like MIT's policy on taking younger students, and he refused point-blank to let Buck test out, even though he could have taught the class."

Buck approached the pair and said, "How about you two catch up back at ours tonight? Bobby and Athena have been invited over for dinner."

Bobby grinned. "Sounds good, Buck. Need me to come over early to help with prep?"

"Nah," the younger man said with a smile. "We're just going to have a barbecue. I did most of the prep last night. Grandpa and Shannon are both looking forward to seeing you and Athena again."

Laura whispered, "Dave too. He came back with me for this trip."

When he saw the other members of the firefam approaching, Buck said, "Thanks for the demonstration, Major Cadman. It put my mind at ease about returning to work."

Laura held in her smirk as she said, "You're very welcome, Mr. Buckley. Right, we need to head to our next appointment. Thank you again, Captain Nash, for giving us free rein of your firehouse to demonstrate the SGC's latest product for first responders."

She left with Paul after they'd packed up the car they'd borrowed from Patrick for the demonstration.

-x-

Later that night, as the two men stood by the barbecue, Bobby asked, "So you're still on track to return at the end of July?"

"That's the plan," Buck confirmed. "We've got the first few jumpers going through production now, and we'll iron out any issues before we start the full production run. The test pilots are doing their first flights over the next few days. Dr. Lam said I just need to say the word, and she'll arrange for the paperwork so I can go through recertification testing."

Bobby asked, "And therapy? You did get blown up, and I know you're a big tough Navy SEAL, but being bombed at work can't be easy to go through, even with the near-instant healing."

Buck said, "My therapist is happy with my recovery; there were a few nightmares early on, mostly that others got caught or killed in the bomb. But therapy has helped. What about you? How's your therapy going? I might have gotten blown up, but he was aiming for you."

Bobby admitted, "It was difficult accepting I needed therapy, but it's been good. The one your Dr. Lam recommended is great. They helped me understand that even though I wasn't there, the bombing still affected me."

Buck pulled the older man into a sideways hug and said, "That's great, Bobby. I know the therapists the SGC refers people to have heard crazier things than the average therapist, so they are used to thinking outside the box for how to help people. Even that shark attack on the freeway was child's play compared to what they've heard."

The captain grimaced as he asked, "That bad?"

Eddie approached the pair and said, "One of our hairiest rescues was Kodiak-sized bears with wings that refused to allow SG-14 to leave until they'd fixed the damage they'd done to the trees in the clearing they were in. We were sent in to rescue them when they missed a couple of check-in calls."

Buck shuddered, "They were huge and sentient, if not sapient. They were peaceful, but imposing and freaking huge. The trees on that planet were so bizarre. Purple, teal, and neon orange leaves on trees with white trunks. The grass was an odd color too. They let us past so we could check on the missing team, but none of us could leave until the damage was repaired."

"Kavanagh," Eddie said with a sneer. "He was a scientist that thought he was the smartest man on the planet. He fully believed he was always right."

Buck laughed. "I had fun schooling him in exactly how he wasn't the smartest man on the planet. For fuck's sake, he only has one Ph.D. One!"

Bobby asked, "He thought he was smart with just one? Loads of people have a Ph.D. Did he at least have other degrees?"

Eddie explained, "Just a master's, and it wasn't far removed from his Ph.D., so it barely counts in the scheme of things. Most of Buck's degrees are across various scientific disciplines, engineering, physics, fire science, chemistry, and even math."

As he flipped the last steak, the older man asked, "Did you do any more classwork while you were off?"

Buck shook his head. "I ran out of time. We were flat-out trying to get as many projects out while Karen had my undivided attention. The explosives sniffer for the firehouse was an extra project, one we could squeeze in over a few days. It's basically just a modified version of our sniffer drone."

Bobby said gratefully, "Well, the peace of mind is immeasurable. There are some in the firehouse who seem like they are constantly on high alert. It's left people a bit snappy and irritable. I look forward to seeing people change."

Chapter Text

Chapter 35
Los Angeles, CA - July 2019

Buck walked into the firehouse and grinned when he saw the banner that had been set up on the far wall of the garage. 'Buck - 1, Idiot Bombers - 0'

He grinned at the team standing behind it at the loft railing and called, "I love it, guys. Thank you!"

Bobby said, "Get changed and get up here, Buckley. Handover waits for no man. Not even one who was bombed."

Hen socked her captain on the arm and said, "Too soon, Bobby. Too soon." She looked down at Buck and ordered, "Get changed, kid; we got cake that needs eating before the calls start."

Eddie pushed his husband into the locker room to get changed. As they buttoned their shirts, he said, "I'm glad you're here to have my back again. The floaters are just not the same."

Buck said, "I thought you were doing okay?"

Eddie nudged the younger man's shoulder as he reassured him, "I was fine, cariño. I just prefer to have you on my six, I know you, and I know you can read me like a book. I don't have to have frustrating conversations in the middle of a burning house to talk through a rescue."

"The downside of our history," Buck admitted. "We literally have no history, so to most of these guys, we are still brand new fresh-off-the-boat firefighters."

Bobby poked his head through the door and said, "Your history is redacted, but your experience is obvious to anyone who watches you both in rescue situations and fires."

Buck reassured the captain, "It's fine, Bobby. It was one of the risks of redacting our history, and we knew that coming into the job." He saw Chimney hovering outside the locker room, so he chose his next words carefully. "Maybe one day we can give a bit of history, at least for our smaller firefam."

Bobby followed his gaze before he nodded. "Sounds good, Buck. Let's head up; we have some paperwork for you to sign after we've had cake."

Thankfully, as far as Buck was concerned, the cake was a standard cake with 'Welcome Back Buck' iced on top. Eddie had told him all about when Chim returned to work, that Hen had his head made in cake form with rebar-colored Twizzlers through the skull piece, so he was grateful to have a simple cake.

Chim commented, "We were thinking of something elaborate, but we only had a few days' notice of your return, so we just went for something simple."

Buck laughed. "Well, I heard all about your cake. A head with Twizzlers through it sounds partly elaborate and partly terrifying."

Chim shrugged. "It was real tasty though, red velvet cake."

Bobby cleared his throat to get everyone's attention before he handed out chore duties for the shift. Buck and Eddie were assigned to the ladder truck inspection and inventory, and Hen and Chim were assigned to inventory the ambulance. The others were assigned to various cleaning duties around the station.

They only got ten minutes of peace to start their chores before the alarms went off.

Bobby called, "It's a five-alarm fire in a factory; we'll be assisting the 153 and the 122. The 153 are taking the lead on this one."

Chim muttered, "Thank fuck for that."

As they drove to the scene, Buck asked, "What's wrong with the 122?"

Over the radio, Hen explained, "Some of the former more chauvinistic members of the 118 followed the former lieutenant when he was promoted to captain of the 122. Some are still there, and they hold a grudge against Bobby because he refused to let the assholes get away with it as Gerrard did."

Eddie asked, "They are still chauvinists?"

Chim shrugged. "Some are okay; since Bobby read them the riot act, they got with the program. Plus, Hen laid into them about six months after she started at the 118; it was a beautiful sight."

Buck shrugged, "If they pull anything, I have no qualms in reporting that shit; it has no place on a call."

Chim muttered, "Just avoid Deluca if you can. He was transferred later after a suspension for being insubordinate to Bobby. Part of me thinks he's still pissed off that Bobby got the captaincy of the 118 over him, even though he had time in the station."

Eddie reassured, "We'll keep an eye out. And fingers crossed the IC knows better than to pair the former 118 members with the current 118 members."

Bobby shrugged. He knew that the captain of the 153 was a good woman, but she wasn't one to listen to station gossip, so she probably wouldn't realize. He resolved to run interference as best he could.

The captain of the 153, Janet Reese, gathered them all when they arrived, the 153 and the 122 were already hoses up, trying to get the fire under control, and he wanted the 118 to go in to search for the missing office employees. He said, "Six people are missing, all based in the upper-level offices. The foreman said the fire started in an offcuts pile on the west side of the building, so I want to send you up on the ladder to the windows on the east side. I've already got a ladder set up, as I have two teams on the roof venting."

Bobby said, "Diaz, Buckley, I want you to go in to find the office staff. Martin and Tenika, I want you two on the ladder ready to receive patients, and Wilson and Han, I want you two helping on the ground with triage. The rest of you, help with the hoses."

Captain Reese asked, "You're sending in your probies? Why not send in firefighters with actual experience."

Bobby fixed her with a serious look as he said firmly, "I am sending in the best firefighters for the job, Captain Reese."

She shook her head and returned to the incident board as she muttered, "On your head be it."

Eddie said, "Don't let her get to you, cap. At least you can stay out of her way by operating the ladder. We'll keep in touch to let you know what's going on."

The team got geared up to head into the upper level, as Bobby jumped up to the controls to get the ladder into position. Eddie took the lead as they climbed, and when they reached the top, Martin said, "We'll wait for you on the ladder; I don't like the look of the floor, how it's warping already."

Buck promised, "We'll be as fast as we can, warn us if it warps any worse, and we'll look for an alternate exit. The smoke is already pretty bad, and I'm pretty sure the fire isn't going to be tamed anytime soon, based on the color. Hopefully, the venting they are doing on the roof pulls some of the smoke away from the offices."

They ran into the building, calling out as they went, doing a sweep of all the offices. "Eddie," Buck yelled, "Over here, we've got two here hiding in a storage closet."

Eddie ran over, his husband had found a man and a woman sheltering in the storage closet, and they had used a wet towel to block the smoke from coming in under the door.

Buck said, "Marge and Diego said that there should be four more people who work in the offices at the end of the hallway. They didn't see them when they tried to leave the building when the alarm went off. The fire took out the stairs before they could get out."

Eddie asked, "What about the fire exit?"

Diego said, "We tried it, but it was jammed. I even tried using a crowbar on it, but the door is wedged firmly. I think the outer wall of the building warped and jammed it."

Eddie said, "Let's get you two out of here, then we'll go find the others." He wasn't sure if Buck had mentioned the body they'd already found in the first office, and he wasn't going to bring it up.

Buck led the way to the ladder, with Eddie following the two office workers to ensure they got there safely. 

Once they'd handed them off to Martin and Tanika, Eddie said, "Diego gave us a possible location for the last four, so we're going to check that out first before we do a sweep of the rest of the offices."

Over the radio, Captain Reese ordered, "Just five more minutes; the building is close to collapsing at this end."

Buck turned and ran back into the building with Eddie on his heels; they ran straight for the office Diego directed them to, calling out as they ran. They heard thumping, and as they got closer, they could hear coughing. 

Eddie had taken the towel Diego and Marge had been using to block the door, as it was still wet, so when they came across the pair hiding under a desk, he handed over the towel and ordered them to breathe through it.

Buck was still searching the room, and Eddie tapped him when one of the men he'd found pointed to one of the other desks. The man dropped the towel and said, "Evie is under the other desk, but she stopped responding a few minutes ago."

Seeing that Eddie had the two men under control, he checked under the other desk and found an unconscious woman. He checked her pulse and found it was slow, but still there. He dragged her across to Eddie to check her out, then commented, "Diego said there should be a fourth person in the offices at this end of the hallway. Do you know where the other person should be?"

One of the men dropped the towel and rasped, "Across the hall is the HR manager, Margo. We had a look for her but didn't see her. We thought she'd gotten out before the fire took out the stairs."

To his husband, Buck said, "You keep these three here; I'll go do a sweep of the office just to make sure she isn't hiding in there."

Eddie nodded, and as Buck ran across the hallway, he reported over the radio, "Three victims found, one unconscious, two semi-mobile. Buckley is checking the other office to see if the last reported victim is there.

Buck's heart sank; he found a woman unconscious in the office he'd been directed to, tucked away under the large wooden desk, but when he checked for a pulse, there wasn't one. He reported the body and its location to Bobby before he ran back to Eddie to help the three survivors out of the building.

When he got back, Eddie already had the unconscious woman over his shoulder and was guiding the other two men on either side of him, with their hands holding onto his turnout coat, so they didn't get lost in the smoke.

The older man they'd found was starting to cough from the smoke, so Buck hoisted him onto his shoulder in a fireman's carry and led the way back to the ladder. The five of them made steady progress, and they managed to get out as the incident commander was starting to yell at them to evacuate.

When they reached the ladder, Eddie crouched down slightly, so the man Buck was carrying could hear him, and he said, "Buck is going to carry you down the ladder; we don't have time to get a backboard or stretcher up here for you as the building is about to blow. No matter what, you can't struggle, okay?"

The man nodded and closed his eyes, so he wouldn't have to see just how high the ladder was off the ground.

Tanika was already halfway down the ladder with the able-bodied survivor; Eddie went next with the unconscious woman, so he could get her to Hen and Chim, who were waiting with a couple of gurneys at the bottom of the ladder. Then Buck went last with the older gentleman, with Martin behind him, ready to steady them if the man started to struggle.

When they got their patients handed off, Bobby said, "Nice work, boys."

Eddie said, "You might want to mention in the incident report that the fire escape was useless. The outside of the building warped in the fire. It sounded like it jammed the door shut."

The captain nodded. "Make sure you add it to your reports, and I'll send it up the chain. For now, the IC wants you all on the hoses. The building is a lost cause, but she wants to try and stop it from spreading.

They spent another few hours putting out the fire before they were dismissed back to the firehouse. After they'd showered, Bobby pulled Buck and Eddie aside and said, "Just so you're aware, I'm going to add a note to my report about Captain Reese questioning my orders to you two at the scene. She's supposed to give us general assignments and trust that we know our team well enough to send the right firefighters for the job."

Buck said, "Feel free to mention that I object to being called probie, since I am more qualified than all the other firefighters currently under her command."

Bobby asked curiously, "What do you mean?"

The younger man explained, "She was one of the captains trying to woo me when I finished my gap year. I did all the advanced courses offered by the LAFD, including the officer courses. I also have a degree in fire science. One of the reasons I turned her down was because I would be more qualified than all the other firefighters in her station, but she wouldn't give me the seniority that would go with it because I'd only just finished my probation year. As far as she was concerned, taking the gap year so soon after graduating my probation period, it should have bumped me back down to probie." Buck looked down at his hands before he said, "Look, I've dealt with sour grapes like this through most of my career. Because of my doctorates, I advanced quickly through the ranks in the SEALs, which is weird since I barely used the degrees. Apparently, it made my unit look good. But yeah, many in the ranks didn't appreciate my meteoric rise."

Bobby said, "I bet there weren't. I understand Eddie was also advanced through the ranks a bit faster as part of your unit."

Buck wriggled his hand in a so-so motion. "Not as fast. I mean, I retired as a Commander. My uncle took three years longer to get to the same rank. If I had stayed in, I would have been promoted again. I wasn't interested, though. It's harder here because so much of my history is classified. But that's the other reason I wanted to speak to you. My parents are going to be picking up the new ships for Atlantis, and I think they're planning on including me in the press conferences. Karen, too, I think, if we can talk her into it."

The captain asked, "Will you tell the team first?"

Buck nodded. "That's my plan, I won't know more until it happens, and that's still a few months away. Shannon is working with the SGC to formulate a press plan; she's their PR Manager."

Bobby asked, "Please keep me updated, so I can plan accordingly. We'll probably arrange for you to take a few weeks off after the first press conference, at least until the initial attention dies down."

The younger man could see the worry on his captain's face, so he reassured, "They aren't going to mention that I'm a firefighter with the LAFD. We are still deciding if I keep Buckley for work or if I update my uniform to say Sheppard. I'll keep you updated on that as well."

Chapter Text

Los Angeles, CA - August 2019

The fire fam were gathered in the Grant-Nash backyard after a very long shift. Buck had been back at work for a few weeks now, and the smaller team wanted to celebrate with him while they finally had a free day where they were all off at the same time. 

Buck and Eddie looked up in shock when they heard a bellow from inside the house. "Dr. Evan Aiden Sheppard, how could you not tell us you were blown up."

Buck and Eddie looked at each other in a panic before they saw Buck's fathers walking outside. Rodney looked pissed off, and John walked out behind him, looking like he was trying not to laugh. John grabbed his partner's shoulder and directed him toward the seats where Buck and Eddie were sitting. Patrick, Laura, Dave, Shannon, and Vala were behind him, carrying coolers with meats and salads.

John had a feeling this was going to be embarrassing for all of them, but there was not much he could do to stop Hurricane Rodney. He'd been ropeable ever since he found out about the bombing that had injured his son from Dr. Lam.

When he reached the middle of the yard, Rodney said, "Well? What do you have to say for yourself?"

Buck tried to hide behind Eddie as he said, "Sorry?"

Rodney scowled and said, "It's no use hiding behind Eddie; I'm pissed off with him too."

Eddie asked indignantly, "What did I do?"

Rodney roared, "Neither of you bothered to tell us that Buck was injured. Neither of you told us a bomber was targeting your captain. We had to find out from Caroline, who thought we knew."

Buck hung his head. "Sorry, Pops, but it slipped my mind."

Hen asked, "What's going on?"

Knowing the jig was up, Buck turned to his fire fam, who, aside from Maddie, Karen, Athena, and Bobby, all looked confused. So he said, "Guys, I'd like to introduce my parents, Brigadier General John Sheppard and Dr. Rodney McKay, Ph.D., Ph.D. Behind them are my Grandpa, Patrick Sheppard, my Uncle Commander Dave Sheppard, a good family friend, Major Laura Cadman, Christopher's mother, Shannon Morgan, and Shannon's girlfriend, Vala Mal Doran. Everyone, this is the fire fam."

Hen gave Buck a hard look and asked, "You're Dr. Evan Sheppard?"

Buck nodded. "I am. Sorry I didn't tell you before now."

Chim asked, "Why is that important?"

Hen snorted. She asked her best friend, "Do you remember me telling you about Karen's new job? The one she got after being let go from JPL when the Mars mission was scrapped?"

Chim nodded. "The one you were singing raptures about for three weeks straight?"

"Yep," Karen confirmed. "So, I work with Dr. Evan Sheppard, Ph.D., Ph.D. Your Buckaroo is a rocket scientist, one of the best on the planet. He's been writing revolutionary papers for the last twelve years."

Chim asked, "Wouldn't that mean you started the research when you were, like, 16 or something?"

Maddie chucked, "He went to MIT when he turned 13. I don't know all the details, but he was raised with my family until my parents forced him to turn down a full ride to MIT when he was only 12 years old. My parents are obsessed with appearances, and having a kid go to college at 13 isn't normal."

Eddie noticed his husband was uncomfortable with the conversation, so he explained, "Buck ran away at 13 and found his biological grandfather and uncle, and they supported him with his schooling. When he got bored with MIT, he joined the Navy SEALs. Eventually leading his own team."

Chim asked, "So why are you telling us now?"

Buck muttered, "Technically, I didn't."

Karen explained, "We've got some press conferences coming up where the SGC will be announcing their latest aircraft, the jumpers. I just didn't realize they were going to make the announcement quite so explosively. By this point, Rodney and John had taken a seat beside Buck and Eddie, and Karen looked at Rodney and asked, "So how did it fly?"

Rodney and John both grinned. Rodney said, "It flies like a dream; you guys did a great job on the new jumpers. We'll be taking the first five back our base."

Michael said, "Sorry to interrupt, but I'm confused. You called both of them dad, but who is your actual biological Dad, McKay or Sheppard? Because, in all honesty, you look like you could be either of theirs."

Eddie and Buck, in unison, said, "Both."

When the entire table looked at them in confusion, Buck took pity on them and said, "Do you remember the attack in San Francisco that outed the Stargate Program? Well, there are parts of the program that are still classified, and one of those programs involves a lot of alien tech."

Chim said, "So you can't tell us much?."

Buck said, "Part of the explanation will come out in the press conferences. The base that my dads co-lead has a lot of alien devices that can be activated with just a thought by those with a specific gene, something my dad, John, has in spades. The way it was explained to me is he touched a thing, and because he was in love with my pops, it activated, and I was created in a special pod. However, DADT was still in effect at the time, so one of the aliens used another machine to hide me with the Buckleys. So biologically, John and Rodney are both my parents."

Hen sighed, "That's so cool."

John said, "It took us a few years to find the device I activated, and we are still researching how it works, if it requires the gene to use it, or just to initialize it. We have a few couples on our base waiting to test it. Two gay couples and one hetero couple that can't naturally have children. We are hoping if we can narrow down how it works, we can either replicate it, or find a way to transport the device to Earth."

With tears in her eyes, Hen said, "We've been trying to have a baby by IVF, but it's just so hard and heartbreaking."

John nodded. "One of the couples went through three rounds of IVF before they gave up and transferred to our expedition. They said it was invasive and just so stressful." 

Karen said, "We're already on the waiting list to try the machine once the couples have tested it. That's why I put a stop to the IVF."

As Hen tackled her wife into a bone-breaking hug, Chim asked, "So Buck was a Navy SEAL? And he's a rocket scientist? And a firefighter? How?"

Eddie laughed. "Yep. Do you remember the F-303 fighters that were instrumental in the Battle over San Fran? They were Buck's design; he did that while leading our gate team. We were one of the more successful teams with search and rescue missions."

Buck kissed his cheek and said, "My champion."

Hen frowned as she tried to recall something she remembered hearing from her wife. She looked between Buck and Eddie before she eventually asked her wife, "Didn't you mention that Dr. Sheppard has a husband who helps you in his workshop." She noticed Eddie grin and put two and two together; she scowled as she said, "No fucking way. You two flew her to Mars in an afternoon?"

Eddie laughed. "Yep. I like to poke holes in their projects, so the SGC mechanics don't plot their deaths. I would be most upset if one actually succeeded. And for the record, the trip to Mars was fun."

Chim asked, "So how does the fact they're clearly married affect our bet?"

Michael shrugged. He looked at the boys and asked, "When did you get together? Or married?"

Karen grinned, "Or both. Both is good. I still haven't heard the story. Buck and Eddie said I could wait to hear it with everyone else."

Buck said, "We got together in 2011 and married in October 2014. We were first in line to get our marriage license as soon as it was legal. Shannon even got ordained so she could marry us."

Shannon said, "It was so much fun."

Hen said, "Since they met and got married before we ever met them, our bet is invalid. Since we were betting on something that already happened."

Rodney asked, "They were betting on you?"

Eddie nodded. "Hen and Chim bet on everything, and I mean literally everything."

Rodney asked, "Like?"

Hen said, "How long we'll be stuck at a scene when someone high as a kite is threatening to jump. The current record is six hours, and that one ended because the homeowner pushed him off the roof when he got sick of waiting for police negotiators."

Chim added, "A popular one is who will be given the most phone numbers when we attend a call at a strip club." He let that sink in before he said, "I always bet on Buck."

May looked between the two men on the outdoor sofa in contemplation before she asked, "Wait a second, if you've been married since 2014, what's with all the one-night stands I've heard about?"

Shannon spat out her drink, as she hadn't been expecting the question, which had everyone staring at her in shock.

Vala took pity on her and the boys and said, "That was actually me and my girlfriend doing our duties as designated drivers." She looked at Rodney and asked, "That's the right term here?"

Rodney nodded. "It is. I've heard the stories, and I agree, you're both trolls."

Shannon was still giggling as she said, "We decided to have some fun since the comments from some of those in the firehouse seemed a bit barbed. We didn't expect to hear that the comments to get worse. They're lucky Buck didn't blow up their cars."

Bobby asked, "Worse?"

Eddie said, "Not from our shift. Apparently, B shift got wind of the apparent one-night stands and didn't hold back on the slut shaming. It's one of the reasons why we decided to keep our marriage a secret when Buck joined the 118."

Shannon noticed the kids were missing and asked, "Where's Christopher?"

Athena said, "They are in Harry's room playing on their Switches. They got bored with the adult talk and must have missed your arrival... since you arrived inside our house."

John said, "Sorry, trying to stop Rodney on a tear is like trying to stop a hurricane with an umbrella. Utterly pointless. He had us all beamed over from the house, because driving was too slow."

Chim looked at Laura and asked, "Didn't you do the demonstration of the new explosives detector at the firehouse?"

She nodded. "I did. Buck and Karen would have been better, but they weren't making it public that it was their design, so I got picked as one of the SGC's best explosives experts."

Hen asked her wife, "This is based on that drone you were talking about?"

Karen nodded. "We basically took the sniffers out and modified the sensors so they would work in an indoor environment. Eddie had mentioned that several people in the firehouse seemed nervous about getting in the trucks before calls. So we thought it would give everyone peace of mind."

As he was going through the coolers to see what Buck and Eddie's family had brought with them, Bobby said, "The change was obvious. Especially since Colonel Davis left us the larger screen which we've mounted in the loft. Now, who wants to help me with the grill?"

Patrick said, "I'll help. It'll make sure neither of my sons gets near it. They both inherited their mother's ability to cook, or should I say lack of ability. Thankfully Buck takes more after Rodney when it comes to cooking."

Bobby said, "Buck is great in the kitchen; he often helps me with the team meals at the firehouse. His husband, on the other hand, is still banned from using anything but the coffee maker after he killed one of my favorite pots… for the second time."

Eddie interrupted from his seat beside Rodney, "The second time was a total accident, Bobby. I had no idea the soup would turn into glue if I wasn't paying attention."

Buck muttered, "It was a waste of Abuela's caldo de queso."

Rodney snorted. "No wonder it hardened to glue, being a cheesy soup. I agree with Buck; that's a total waste. Isabel does amazing soups; I'm still trying to get her pozole recipe from her. There is a sort of chicken that we can get that would taste amazing in a pozole."

Dave asked, "The one from Planet Kid or the ones we found on the new alpha site?"

The scientist said, "The ones from the new alpha site, they are slightly more gamey in taste, and they would do well in a soup. Plus, the bones would work well in the broth."

Bobby asked, "Wouldn't chicken bones be too small?"

Dave shook his head. "We call them nearly chicken because they taste like chicken. But the ones on the new alpha site are… well…."

Rodney interrupted, "Velociraptor sized. Just less claws, and they have feathers. The Athosians have a breeding program going."

Hen asked, "You farm giant dinosaur looking chickens?"

"We do," Rodney confirmed. "We actually farm a lot of alien animals and grow native vegetables on various planets. It's cheaper and easier than arranging extra supply runs for fresh food from Earth since the base we run is so far away. We just supplement what we can get hold of and get creative with the recipes. Because the expedition is multinational, we get some interesting meals in the mess, and we are encouraged to beg, borrow, and bribe to get new recipes to try."

John snarked, "The fun part is figuring out how to cook what we discover, especially if there are no natives to learn from. Many of the planets we encounter are decimated, so we've found some planets have an abundance of animals that are basically a domesticated food supply that has gone wild again. The Athosians are great at adapting; they are the allies we work closest with on the base. We have biologists and other scientists who go in with them to figure out how to use what we find."

Chim said pragmatically, "I guess it would be like a regular person going bush, you use what you can find, and then you don't have to carry as much in with you."

With a nod, John admitted, "That's really what it boiled down to. When the expedition first left, it was a one-way trip, and we all signed on knowing this. It was a year before we had enough power to dial Earth again. So we had to survive with what we could fit through the Stargate in 38 minutes. And that was everything, scientists and their supplies, military and their supplies, literally everything we would need to survive for at least a year."

Rodney said, "All we knew was that the gate we were going to was in a different galaxy; it was up to us to figure out where and make contact before the Daedalus could come and resupply us." 

Christopher came in and cheered when he saw the new arrivals. "Grandpas! He beelined straight for Patrick, so he could get his usual cuddle in. Patrick had been in Washington for the past few weeks, working on a communications supply contract for SI with the SGC. Something that would expand to the regular military if things went well.

Harry and Denny followed him slowly, and Athena made the introductions with help from Buck and Eddie. 

Christopher said, "This is my family; some are blood family, some are found family, but they're all ours."

Patrick laughed. "Never change, kiddo, never change."

The young boy asked, "So why is everyone here?"

Rodney sniped, "Because your Papa forgot to tell his parents that he was blown up."

Christopher giggled. "Daddy told him to tell you, and he said he'd do it later. I guess he forgot."

With a sigh, Buck said, "Sorry, Pops, Dad. I just didn't think it was a big deal after Vala and General Carter healed me. General O'Neill got them to Cedars-Sinai and had an OR reserved when Eddie started texting him from the scene."

Hen asked, "So you didn't need all that medical time off?"

Buck shrugged. "Technically, no. But the healing that Vala can do is classified, and there is no way I could have returned to work once I was released from the hospital without revealing what she and General Carter can do. They are the only two that can do it."

Vala explained, "The healing we can do requires a special device that was appropriated from an alien race. They use it to harm, and we use it to heal. It also requires that the one using it have a particular chemical in their blood, something only two of us on Earth have."

Buck said, "It's also exhausting. After healing my leg, Vala slept for 16 hours and ate her weight in pasta before and after the healing. If I had gone to the regular surgeons, my leg would have been amputated; it was buggered."

Eddie passed Hen his phone with a photo of the x-ray loaded so she and Chim could check it out. He said, "Dr. Lam said it was basically minced."

Rodney said, "We have healing pods on our base that do something similar, but for now, they only work on those that have the gene I was talking about before. We have a team looking into how they work and seeing if it's something that can be expanded on or reproduced, but it won't be a quick process."

Hen asked, "How much of what the first responders use has come from the SGC?"

Buck said, "Most of what we've released through shell companies has gone to the military or police, to be honest. Although, do you remember that call when I first started, where we pulled the grenade out of that guy's leg? The gear the bomb squad were wearing, and the containers are all from the SGC."

Hen asked, "Did Eddie do the removal?"

Eddie snorted. "No. I left that to Buck, who actually has explosives training, thanks to the five years he spent at MIT with Laura."

From across the yard where she'd been talking quietly with Karen, Michael, and May, Laura yelled, "We didn't blow up his car! It was just the tires."

Athena laughed. "I heard about that."

Buck snarked, "At least I didn't build a nuclear bomb in the sixth grade."

Maddie snarked back, "Not for lack of trying, Evan. I might have left town with Doug, but I still heard the rumors from my old school friends about strange happenings and the fact that the bullies were all scared shitless of you."

John watched the group tell their own stories about the chaotic mess that was Evan Sheppard, and he leaned over to his partner and whispered, "This is our family; it's been a hard road to get here. But it's ours."

Rodney looked around at the gathered group that had grown to love his son as much as he and John did and said, "It's been worth it, though."

John pulled his son into a sideways hug as he agreed, "Definitely worth it."

FIN