SGA fanfic: He Makes An Impression
Sep. 7th, 2008 09:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
eliyesTitle: He Makes An Impression
Summary: Set before SG-1 went home after the events in "The Pegasus Project"; Rodney and Daniel discuss someone who seems to have quite a habit of making bad first impressions.
"How's that working out for you?" Daniel asked in one of those leading tones he had. Rodney frowned but didn't look up from the console. He often felt that he'd have an easier time communicating with Daniel if he had more practice doing it. Fortunately, communicating with people was one of the anthropologist's specialties, something which Rodney grudgingly admitted the soft sciences were at least useful for -- but only because so many people were too illogical to communicate sensibly.
"Lorne?" he asked. "Pretty good, I suppose. He's not as paranoid and anal-retentive as Bates, at least."
Daniel's only response was significant silence. Rodney slid a glance at him, just in case -- but no, he didn't seem absorbed enough in the translation work Elizabeth had given him to account for it. Rodney thought for a moment while he finished repairing a section of sub-conduits leading to the malfunctioning equipment.
"You don't like him?" he finally concluded.
"Well," Daniel said, then stopped. "...No, not really. You could say he made a bad first impression on me. Frankly, I wouldn't have thought..." He trailed off, frowning intensely at the laptop with a sudden burst of typing, and Rodney took advantage of his distraction to remove the next panel and inspect the damage behind it.
"What did he do?" he asked when he judged Daniel had done whatever he was doing.
"Do?"
"Lorne."
"Oh. He --" Daniel sighed. "Look, Rodney, as much as you -- I'm aware of your attitude towards the soft sciences, but we do employ the scientific method in archaeology. I'd gotten the importance of our analytic approach through to the SGC administration well enough that there were protocols in place, standing orders about what to do when an archaeological site or artifacts were discovered. Orders that you'd expect the military contingent to follow, but Lorne -- his team were doing a survey for a possible naquadah mine, and they found archaeological materials and just packed them in crates, when they knew full well they specifically were not supposed to remove them from context. It --" He stopped and removed his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose. "If they had contacted me immediately like they were supposed to, there's a very good chance that they wouldn't have nearly caused a war by desecrating an Unas holy site. Chaka and I were able to negotiate a peace treaty, but not before lives were needlessly lost on both sides."
"Huh," Rodney said, sitting back to watch the other man put his glasses back on.
"I'm glad he seems to be working out better here, but --" Daniel waved a hand.
"Actually, my first impression of Lorne was that he was a grade A jerk." Daniel snorted at Rodney's frank admission. "No, really! Our first real interaction was on this horribly over-irradiated planet where we suspected Ford was hunting Wraith --"
"This was after he was --"
"Yes, yes, of course it was." He waved away the interruption impatiently. "Sheppard and Teyla went one way and stuck me with Lorne. And then they went missing, and he'd already degenerated to insulting me in a vaguely threatening way."
"Sounds lovely."
"Yes, well. He's improved since then."
Daniel raised his eyebrows eloquently, and Rodney sighed.
"Look, I'm something of an expert at getting off on the wrong foot -- and you should be, too, at this point; I've read your mission reports, Jackson --"
"Rodney."
Rodney stopped talking with a huff.
Daniel set the laptop down and spread his hands.
"Listen, if he's changed -- well, good. Maybe Atlantis has been good for him, and certainly he needs to be good for Atlantis. What's he like now?" When Rodney looked away uncomfortably, Daniel pressed with, "Really, he's part of the expedition's command structure, which means I may end up working with him again at some point. If you can give me something to work with beyond that first impression, it might help things go smoother."
"Given that he seems to specialize in making things run smoothly, that's an apt enough choice of words," Rodney said with a sigh, setting his tools aside and scooting a little closer so he could keep his voice low. "I mean, he was a jerk at first, but he's proven himself competent. The military personnel follow him as readily as they do Sheppard, I think, but he's loyal and doesn't try to take over. A refreshing change from some other military officers which have come our way." Rodney grimaced slightly.
"That's it? He's 'competent' -- that's the big change?"
"No. Yes! I don't know -- he's just learned that the civilian portion of this expedition aren't here to be mocked. Honestly, I think he must've said something to Elizabeth, and she gave him the eyebrow."
Daniel snorted with laughter.
"Yes, I've seen her do that."
"Well, he's not a jerk anymore. He even puts up with Zelenka, for God's sake. Better than Ford ever did, not to speak ill of the --" Rodney churned the air with one hand. "You know."
Daniel opened his mouth, and then blinked and answered his radio.
"Jackson here." His face took on that particularly confused look he got when he was listening. "Noooo, she was supposed to be with you, Sam." His eyes went wide with alarm and he scrambled to his feet. "I'll help." He began to walk briskly away, and then spun and came back.
"Rodney, Vala's loose in your city."
"Shit!"
They dropped talk of USAF Majors in favour of trying to contain the disaster.
Summary: Set before SG-1 went home after the events in "The Pegasus Project"; Rodney and Daniel discuss someone who seems to have quite a habit of making bad first impressions.
"How's that working out for you?" Daniel asked in one of those leading tones he had. Rodney frowned but didn't look up from the console. He often felt that he'd have an easier time communicating with Daniel if he had more practice doing it. Fortunately, communicating with people was one of the anthropologist's specialties, something which Rodney grudgingly admitted the soft sciences were at least useful for -- but only because so many people were too illogical to communicate sensibly.
"Lorne?" he asked. "Pretty good, I suppose. He's not as paranoid and anal-retentive as Bates, at least."
Daniel's only response was significant silence. Rodney slid a glance at him, just in case -- but no, he didn't seem absorbed enough in the translation work Elizabeth had given him to account for it. Rodney thought for a moment while he finished repairing a section of sub-conduits leading to the malfunctioning equipment.
"You don't like him?" he finally concluded.
"Well," Daniel said, then stopped. "...No, not really. You could say he made a bad first impression on me. Frankly, I wouldn't have thought..." He trailed off, frowning intensely at the laptop with a sudden burst of typing, and Rodney took advantage of his distraction to remove the next panel and inspect the damage behind it.
"What did he do?" he asked when he judged Daniel had done whatever he was doing.
"Do?"
"Lorne."
"Oh. He --" Daniel sighed. "Look, Rodney, as much as you -- I'm aware of your attitude towards the soft sciences, but we do employ the scientific method in archaeology. I'd gotten the importance of our analytic approach through to the SGC administration well enough that there were protocols in place, standing orders about what to do when an archaeological site or artifacts were discovered. Orders that you'd expect the military contingent to follow, but Lorne -- his team were doing a survey for a possible naquadah mine, and they found archaeological materials and just packed them in crates, when they knew full well they specifically were not supposed to remove them from context. It --" He stopped and removed his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose. "If they had contacted me immediately like they were supposed to, there's a very good chance that they wouldn't have nearly caused a war by desecrating an Unas holy site. Chaka and I were able to negotiate a peace treaty, but not before lives were needlessly lost on both sides."
"Huh," Rodney said, sitting back to watch the other man put his glasses back on.
"I'm glad he seems to be working out better here, but --" Daniel waved a hand.
"Actually, my first impression of Lorne was that he was a grade A jerk." Daniel snorted at Rodney's frank admission. "No, really! Our first real interaction was on this horribly over-irradiated planet where we suspected Ford was hunting Wraith --"
"This was after he was --"
"Yes, yes, of course it was." He waved away the interruption impatiently. "Sheppard and Teyla went one way and stuck me with Lorne. And then they went missing, and he'd already degenerated to insulting me in a vaguely threatening way."
"Sounds lovely."
"Yes, well. He's improved since then."
Daniel raised his eyebrows eloquently, and Rodney sighed.
"Look, I'm something of an expert at getting off on the wrong foot -- and you should be, too, at this point; I've read your mission reports, Jackson --"
"Rodney."
Rodney stopped talking with a huff.
Daniel set the laptop down and spread his hands.
"Listen, if he's changed -- well, good. Maybe Atlantis has been good for him, and certainly he needs to be good for Atlantis. What's he like now?" When Rodney looked away uncomfortably, Daniel pressed with, "Really, he's part of the expedition's command structure, which means I may end up working with him again at some point. If you can give me something to work with beyond that first impression, it might help things go smoother."
"Given that he seems to specialize in making things run smoothly, that's an apt enough choice of words," Rodney said with a sigh, setting his tools aside and scooting a little closer so he could keep his voice low. "I mean, he was a jerk at first, but he's proven himself competent. The military personnel follow him as readily as they do Sheppard, I think, but he's loyal and doesn't try to take over. A refreshing change from some other military officers which have come our way." Rodney grimaced slightly.
"That's it? He's 'competent' -- that's the big change?"
"No. Yes! I don't know -- he's just learned that the civilian portion of this expedition aren't here to be mocked. Honestly, I think he must've said something to Elizabeth, and she gave him the eyebrow."
Daniel snorted with laughter.
"Yes, I've seen her do that."
"Well, he's not a jerk anymore. He even puts up with Zelenka, for God's sake. Better than Ford ever did, not to speak ill of the --" Rodney churned the air with one hand. "You know."
Daniel opened his mouth, and then blinked and answered his radio.
"Jackson here." His face took on that particularly confused look he got when he was listening. "Noooo, she was supposed to be with you, Sam." His eyes went wide with alarm and he scrambled to his feet. "I'll help." He began to walk briskly away, and then spun and came back.
"Rodney, Vala's loose in your city."
"Shit!"
They dropped talk of USAF Majors in favour of trying to contain the disaster.