Disclaimer: All characters of StarGate and StarGate Atlantis belong to their respective writers and MGM. This is a work of fan fiction. I just want to play with them for awhile.
Copyright 2009 awakethepassion
“Carson!” Susan covered her eyes and squinted, trying to see through the thickly falling snow. The wind had picked up to a low howl and its bite was bitter and cold. Shivering she tugged the hood of her parka down and pulled the strings tight. She could barely see a thing in the thickening gloom but at least it was a little bit warmer.
“Its no use, Doc!” Lorne put his hand on her shoulder and leaned close to yell in her ear. “We're not gonna find them now. Our best bet is to head back for the Jumper and wait out the storm.”
“We can't just leave them out there, Evan.” She turned around so that she could see his face.
“And what are we gonna do?” He yelled back. “End up getting lost ourselves? At least they've got a guide with them.” He put his hands on her arms. “Right now, my first priority is getting us back to the Jumper, especially you.” She didn't need to see his grin, she could hear it in his voice. “Do you think I want the Colonel coming after me if you get hurt?”
She stared at him for a second and then shook her head. “Okay! But which way do we go?”
He raised his head and looked around, trying to find anything that might look familiar. Pulling his flashlight from the pocket of his coat, he thumbed it on and flashed the beam around. “I know that there was a trail...” He stopped, shining his light on a barely discernible path winding through the trees. “There it is!”
Taking her arm, he held her close to him as he headed for the path. Under the thick stand of trees, the wind and snow wasn't so bad and they were able to go a far distance before he stopped and flashed his light around again. “Damn it!”
“What is it?” She brushed a hand across her face to wipe the snow out of her eyes and looked up at him.
“Do you remember coming this way?” He flashed the light around again. The wind was howling even louder and now there were bits of ice mixed in with the snow. He wiped his hand across the front of the flash light knocking off the sheen of ice so that the light was a little brighter.
She looked around then shook her head. “I can't tell!”
“Shit!” He cursed and tightened his grip on her arm. “I hope to hell we're not lost.”
“Well, we can't go back!” She looked over her shoulder at the way they had come. The snow was starting to fall faster and the path behind them had all but disappeared. “Maybe there's a cave around here somewhere. We can take shelter and get out of the wind at least.”
“I don't remember seeing any caves around here, Doc.” He gave her a look. “Do you?”
Glumly, she shook her head. Shivering, she curled her gloved hands deeper into the sleeves of her coat and moved closer to him. “I think we should keep moving, Evan. Its better than standing here and freezing to death anyway.”
Lorne shook his head and slipped his hand under her arm. “Come on then. And stay close to me. If we get separated...”
She smacked him on the arm. “Don't even think about that!”
“Then stay close to me and I won't.” Flashing his light on the ground, he finally managed to pick up the faint mark of the path leading through the woods. Tugging on her arm, he pulled her after him.
They walked in silence for awhile, Lorne breaking a trail through the snow so that she could follow in his footsteps. Susan kept her head down and her hand tucked into his pocket so that she could hold on to him. She knew that it was an effort for him because he was basically dragging her along but there was really nothing else they could do if they didn't want to get separated.
“Shit!”
“What the hell...Evan!” Susan stumbled when there was suddenly a loud cracking sound and Lorne went down on his knees. She grabbed at him, trying to slip her hands under his arms.
Bitterly cold water was splashing up around them and Lorne was hanging on to her with a death grip as he tried to get his feet back under him. He was already soaked to the waist and she was having a hell of a time trying to hold on to him as he slipped and slid over the icy rocks.
Wrapping her arms around his chest, she fell back and took him with her. She locked her hands together and scrambled back as much as she could even though the sharp rocks were biting into her back and thighs. She had to get him out of the water.
Breathing hard, she lay there for a few seconds trying to catch her breath. Lorne was heavier than he looked and it was an effort to roll him off of her but she found the strength somewhere. Now, she had to get him to his feet. Leaning over him, she pushed the edges of his hood back and pressed a hand to his cheek. At first she thought he was knocked out but then he opened his eyes and looked up at her. He grinned slightly even though his lips were turning blue and he was starting to shake.
“I think we're close, Doc.” He managed to stammer out. “I remember that we parked the Jumper pretty close to this creek.”
“Yeah...” She tried to return his grin. “I do too.” She raised her head and breathed a sigh of relief when she spied something looming huge and dark just a few yards ahead. “Excuse me, Evan. But I need the remote to open the door.”
“I'll do it.” He pushed her hand away and tried to unzip his parka but his hands were shaking so badly and his fingers so heavy that he couldn't grip the zipper.
“Let me.” She pushed his hands away and gripped the zipper herself. Pulling it down, she slipped her hand inside and into the pocket of his shirt and pulled out the remote. Tucking it into the pocket of her coat, she zipped him up and slipped her hands under his arms. “Do you think you can stand up?”
“I can try.” Gritting his teeth, he held on to her as he got to his knees and then slowly to his feet.
Slipping her arms around his waist, she leaned close to him. Now that his clothes were wet, it was even harder for them to move but they finally made it the last few steps. She made him lean against the side of the Jumper so that she could thumb the remote. As soon as the hatch was open, she tugged him up the ramp. With the rear hatch closed it was a lot warmer but Lorne was shivering and shaking like a leaf in the wind when she helped him down on one of the rear benches.
Shrugging out of her parka, she wrapped it around him then set to work digging through the cabinets, dragging out every spare blanket that she could find. There weren't many but at least one she could spread out on the floor and another three that she could wrap him up in.
“What are you doing?” Lorne raised his head slightly and looked up with alarm when she started to unlace his boots.
“Getting you out of these wet clothes.” She tugged off one boot and soaked sock and went to work on the other. “I need to get you dry and warm before hypothermia sets in.”
“Just give me a blanket.” He tried to scoot back when she started to unzip his parka. Weakly, he tried to push her hands away. “I'll be fine.”
“Shut up, Evan.” She undid the zipper and pulled him forward so that she could get it off of him. “I'm not going to let you sit here and freeze to death just because you're embarrassed.”
“I'm not...embarrassed.” He chattered out. “I just...”
Susan rolled her eyes. “If you're worried about Sheppard, don't be. He's a big boy and I don't think he'd like it very much if I let his favorite Major freeze to death either.” She tried to keep her words light but when she reached for the zipper on his pants, Lorne nearly slid off the bench.
“Doc...” Face red, he pushed at her hands. “Please...I can do that myself.”
“Evan...come on.” Lightly, she wrapped her fingers around his wrist. “Your fingers are so blue and stiff you can barely bend them. Let me help you. I'm not Carson but I do know a little bit.”
“You don't...” He stopped, took a deep breath and slumped back. With a resigned sigh he shook his head.
“If it makes you feel better I'll cover you up.” Snagging up one of the blankets, she laid it over him before she made him sit up. He tried to help her get his parka off and after a bit of struggling she had it off him. His shirt was next and then she helped him ease down on top of the blanket on the floor.
Spreading the blanket over him, she tucked it around his arms before she slid her hands down to undo his pants. Keeping his eyes closed, he turned his head away from her as she pulled the heavy wet material down over his hips and off his legs.
Settling down beside him, she tucked the blanket around him and started to massage his legs. He was so cold. She needed to warm him up and fast and there was really only one way to do it. Thinking quickly, she stood up and started to take off her clothes. Lorne was buried under the blankets and didn't see her but he certainly felt it when she lifted up the blanket and slipped in next to him. He stiffened and would have jumped away from her if she hadn't wrapped an arm around him to hold him still.
“Doc...” He weakly pushed at her arm. “I really...really...don't think...”
“Come on, Evan.” She nestled against his back and pulled the blankets over them. “Just relax.