Chapter Text
Radek pushed past the people swarming around the infirmary. “Anna?” he called, and then asked the nearest doctor, “Have you seen Anna?” He followed the pointed directions further in. People crossed back and forth, talking about what was going on. The last thing Radek heard was that Ronon had been shot.
Not with a stunner. Actually shot, with a—
Anna was with him when it happened. Rodney seemed almost annoyed when Radek told him he was going to the infirmary whether Rodney liked it or not.
There she was. Her shirt was missing for some reason. Her black bra hid the blood well. Red smudged along her ribcage, heaving every now and again with sobs. On her forehead, too like she’d used her stained hands to clear the hair from her eyes. She sat precariously on the edge of her chair, and rubbed at the red on her hands like trying to get paint from the creases. She looked up when he said her name again.
He couldn’t have braced himself if he tried. She jumped off her hair and threw herself into his arms, sobbing onto his shoulder. He didn’t know what to do, so he just held her. Let her cry. At least she was okay. Physically, anyway.
She mumbled incoherently, but he made out the words blood, hiding, and shot. All in Czech.
“Anna, it’s okay. You’re safe.” At least, he thought it was okay. She didn’t seem injured… except her skin was cool and clammy and she was shaking. “You’re safe now. Can we sit down?”
She nodded, but made no move toward the chairs. She didn’t even let go of him. Her grip on his jacket tightened. He was very aware of the medical personnel dodging and weaving around them, but no one seemed to care they were blocking the path.
“Or not…” he added. “Or not.”
“She shot him,” she whimpered into his jacket. He could only barely understand what she said… But from what he knew was happening on Atlantis, it seemed a reasonable guess. “Ronon. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know—my shirt—” She backed away from him suddenly, wiping her hands over the blood on her stomach. “It’s ruined.”
“We can get you another.”
He carefully directed her back to the chair. He sat beside her.
Her mind obviously wasn’t in it. “But it was the one with the Atlantis… um, the emblem,” she whimpered, motioning to the area where the emblem would have been printed on a shirt, had she been wearing one. She sniffed. She lifted her hands to cover her eyes, saw the blood on them, and sobbed again.
“Anna, Anna…” He pulled her hands away from her face before wrapping her back in his arms.
She seemed to calm some, resting her cheekbone on his shoulder. She rubbed the fabric of his sleeve in her fingers with one hand, the other gripping a handful of her hair.
“Um…” she whispered, her ragged breathing had slipped away into hiccups.
He could barely understand her mumbling half-hiccuped words into his jacket shoulder, but figured it was best if he didn’t let go of her. She seemed calmer. The next time she spoke, her voice was so soft he could only barely hear.
“I thought he was going to kill me.”
The reaction was almost involuntary. He shut his eyes and held her closer. His fingers combed through her hair, sticky with sweat and blood.
What was he supposed to say? What was he supposed to—? “You’re safe. I’ve got you.”
She started crying again, and he couldn’t have let her go if he wanted to.
This might not be the best place for her, with all this activity going on. People yelling. Hurt friends just in the next room. Other friends running around the city trying to kill each other.
It was enough to make some people crazy.
He watched her face, her tears escaping from closed eyes. Watched her breathe. She was okay.
Well, maybe not. Covered in blood, crying, her shirt ruined.
She would be okay.
“What do you say, let’s get you cleaned up?”
She nodded but didn’t move. “Is Ronon going to die?”
Radek spoke before thinking too much about it. “No, he’ll be okay. Doctor Cole is a good doctor.” Of course, though, he didn’t know. It was impossible to kill a Titan, and Ronon seemed about on the level as far as Atlantis was concerned.
But Ronon wasn’t a Titan. He wasn’t a god. He was a young man. And if stereotypes continued to serve for good rules of thumb, that meant that he probably thought he was invincible. Anna probably thought that, too. There was nothing more terrifying than seeing someone you thought was invincible severely injured.
Slowly, Anna moved to rise. Her hands left bloody smudges on his jacket. Radek knew he was going to have some very stern words for the moron that decided it would be great to just bring this bit of unknown technology onto Atlantis.
Carson would get an earful, too. Him and his stupid heart.
Radek couldn’t have cared less if Phebus never got to speak another word again, to her husband, child, or enemy. They were all dead anyway. It was no reason to put the living at risk like this. It was a stupid decision from the beginning, and that was enough to make some people crazy.
Never mind Anna stared her own mortality in the face less than an hour ago. Radek knew firsthand how traumatizing that was. Not necessarily the method, but the very—no. He had no idea what she was thinking right now. Hell, didn’t know what he was thinking. She could have been hurt…? Or… worse? He had no idea—couldn’t imagine. Of all the things that could happen on Atlantis, on Earth, anywhere, please, never that.
It was enough to make some people crazy.
#
Shaking hands, racing heart, and she nearly had a panic attack whenever Radek left her line of sight. At least… well, she thought that was what it was. What was a panic attack like? She’d never had—never seen—it—
It was fine to clear the tears from her eyes enough to watch the blood run down the drain.
“It’s not coming off,” she whispered, rubbing her thumb over the creases in her hands. Blood dried there like little riverbeds on her pale skin.
Radek came closer to look, put his hand on her shoulder.
She almost cried the moment he touched her.
He didn’t seem to notice, taking her hand in both of his and rubbing off some of the soap. Pulled the sleeve of the shirt he’d borrowed for her aside. She already tried the soap three times. He patted her hand.
“Hydrogen peroxide.”
She watched quietly as he turned to a nearby shelf full of bottles of pills and bandages. He stepped further down the aisle, only a few feet away. “No, wait,” she said, even though she knew what she was about to say was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. “Don’t go.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he said, coming back. He smiled a little, maybe to reassure her. He pointed down the shelves to a few bottles. “Just down there. Come on.” He picked up her hand, covering it completely with both of his.
Anna must have said something like okay, or yes, because he led her off a moment later. Her legs were still shaking, and all she wanted to do was lie down and cry.
Radek picked up a dark bottle with a white label and a nearby cylindrical container of cotton balls. “We haven’t seen any action on the offworld missions—thank god,” he said softly while he sopped up some peroxide with the cotton ball and started rubbing it on her hands. It worked, almost like magic. Her hands looked clean, and the cotton ball came away dark pink. “But one time Major Lorne had to kill a, uh… hm, I think it was a baboon of some kind. With wings. Anyway, he told me this trick.”
“It’s coming off.”
“Yes.”
When he finished, he put the bottle on the shelf and the cotton balls back on the counter where he’d found them. Anna watched her hands, rubbing at the creases in her palm. They were still red and sore. Her eyes probably were, too.
Radek covered her hands with his.
It was stupid, but it startled her. She jerked away, even though she realized a second too late that she really wanted to hold his hand. She tried to put together the shocked and apologetic look on Radek’s face, figure out what it meant. Or maybe that look was from her sudden tears.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to.”
“No, no, I’m sorry; I should have… said something.”
He seemed just as stunned as Anna when she started crying again. She kept mumbling apologies, even though she wasn’t sure why. He pulled her into a hug again. He tried to tell her she was okay, she was safe, but there was a strange tone to his voice. Like he wasn’t sure. Like he wasn’t sure what to say or whether she was okay and safe.
“Zelenka?”
Anna nearly jumped even though the voice was familiar, friendly, and concerned. Radek may have noticed her unreasonably jumpy response, but he turned toward the major as he approached.
“Major—you’re okay?”
“Only my pride was hurt…” Major Lorne mumbled, even though it looked like maybe a little more than his pride. He had a bandage taped to the side of his head, and a little smudge of dried blood peeked out from the bottom of it.
Anna looked away from the bandage quickly.
“Got the jump on us, but didn’t hurt any of us,” the major continued, turning his eyes to Anna. “I heard you’re something of a hero. You okay?”
Anna nodded and slowly looked back at him. “I’m okay.”
The major offered a small smile and looked back at Radek. “I’m sure the others have this in hand, Doc.”
“Yes,” Radek agreed, and looked at Anna. “Let’s go home?”
Anna didn’t know what to say, or if she could say anything even if she wanted to. Sounded like a long trip.
“So you can shower, and rest,” Radek continued, still looking concerned.
Everyone looked concerned, even Major Lorne; though, Major Lorne was the only one that seemed to be looking. “I’ll walk with you guys,” the major offered a moment later. He gave a quick glance around. “My head looks worse than it is.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Radek said.
“Yeah, probably.” Even though he sounded like he agreed, Major Lorne walked off toward the entrance to the infirmary, adding a handgun to his outfit on the way. “Let’s get you home safe.”
She managed the smallest nod. That sounded good.