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Stargate AU fanfic: "A Matter of Guilt"
Title: A Matter of Guilt
AU: The one with Dr. Mary McKay.
Warning: Mentions non-con; generally unhappy fic.
Author's note: Another story in my Mary 'verse Stargate AU. Technically still backfilling for my original plotbunny, a process which is more interesting to me at the moment than that bunny (which is basically a crossover between this 'verse and a reality more like canon, spoiler).
When the dust cleared, twenty-six SGC personnel were dead, Vala Mal Doran had gotten away, and Jack wasn't sure he could have Carter and his wife in a room together without them yelling at each other to try to distract themselves from their guilt.
But he had to try.
Not that yelling was anything new between them. He resolutely refused to believe it might be foreplay for them, but the fact that a normal shouting match often ended with the two of them synergizing into some brilliant new idea couldn't be denied, and unfortunately he knew they found each other's big science brains sexy. He was the one who threw Sam's bachelor bash, after all.
Best not to think about it.
This was different, though, with the guilt. Jack knew all about guilt ripping a marriage apart. It didn't matter that the docs had conclusively identified the aphrodisiac Sam was dosed with; he cheated on Mary with Vala while under its influence, and that's where this started. It didn't matter than Mary had no reason to suspect Vala would react the way she did to being confronted -- hell, no one at the SGC had expected it; Mary revealing she knew about the adultery triggered Vala's violent, bloody escape from Earth. They had both been ruled legally non-culpable, but that didn't matter a damn to how they felt.
Guilt. In Jack's opinion, its power was generally underrated. He would almost lay money that, if it weren't for the body count, Sam and Mary could get past the hurt and betrayal. But with it...
What he had to tell them... probably wouldn't help. Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones putting the blame on, well, them, and in the name of preventative peacekeeping, Jack had his goddamn orders.
He sent Daniel to fetch Carter and Teal'c to get McKay, both because it created the feeling of keeping this inside the team, and because McKay wouldn't argue with Teal'c like she might with Daniel. He waited outside his office for them, to put a damper on any pre-verdict shenanigans in the corridor. The timing worked well, and they arrived almost simultaneously. He noted the way their eyes met once, and then they didn't look at each other.
The urge to try to punctuate the bubble of tension and misery with a little levity was powerful, but he didn't feel like wasting his breath on a failed attempt, especially since he had to wear his Serious Authority hat.
"These are the rules," he said, jerking a thumb towards the door at his back. "Inside this room, I talk, you listen. You can talk to me if I say so. You don't get to talk to each other."
Daniel raised a hand. "Can I talk to Teal'c?"
"If you're quiet." Jack eyeballed Sam & Mary. "Got it?"
"Yes, sir," Sam said quietly. Mary just nodded, frowning.
"Good. Get inside."
Jack sat behind his desk, silently directing Carter and McKay to the pair of chairs set facing it. Teal'c positioned himself equidistant between them, about two feet back -- well within lunging distance -- and stood in guard position. Daniel leaned against the wall to jack's left, careful not to jostle the filing cabinets.
Jack picked up the first set of papers in front of him.
"Right. Adultery is illegal in both military law and in the state of Colorado. Doctor McKay, if you choose to press charges of adultery against your husband, because you both work in a military installation and for the Air Force, and because he is an officer of the Air Force, the matter will be tried by military law. If the evidence regarding the alien aphrodisiac is deemed admissable, he may be found not-guilty, or receive a reduced sentence. If he is found guilty, he will serve time in a military prison facility. Do you understand? Yes or no."
"Yes," McKay said tightly.
Jack set down the first set of papers and picked up the second.
"The state of Colorado does not allow no-fault divorces. Doctor McKay, if you file for a divorce and cite adultery, it will automatically set in motion the aforementioned court proceedings. Do you understand?"
"Yes," she said again, this time glaring at Jack and crossing her arms. Unexpectedly, she added, "I don't want a divorce."
Carter shot her a surprised look and very nearly spoke before remembering himself. Daniel's eyes narrowed speculatively. Teal'c looked utterly unsurprised; maybe they'd talked on the way in.
"Are you sure?" Jack asked neutrally.
"Very. If we're not married he can sleep with whoever he wants," McKay said.
Jack blinked. Was this spite? Jealousy? Possessiveness? He thought she was capable of all three, but wasn't entirely sure any of them were in play now, exactly.
"Do you intend to bring charges of adultery against Lieutenent Colonel Carter, Doctor McKay?" Jack asked formally.
"No," she said firmly, then ruined the effect by biting her lip. "I -- I was angry, before. Well, I still am angry, but I didn't know about the drug then. He wasn't in control of his actions, and frankly if I were the one had extramarital sex while under the influence of libido-increasing and judgement-impairing pharmaceuticals administered by a, by a hostile double-agent, I would expect the rational conclusion of any intelligent person in possession of all the facts to be rape, not deliberate adultery," McKay said tartly. "So no, General O'Neill, sir, I am not charging my husband with adultery over this matter."
Jack nodded and made a couple of notations on the papers in front of him. He hoped Sam hadn't been too busy wincing at Mary's bald assessment to catch her apology, or the fact that she was giving him a second chance.
He picked up the third set of papers and took a fortifying breath. This part was going to suck.
"Colonel Carter. You are being reduced to the rank of Major and reassigned --"
"What?!" McKay bleated, as Daniel straightened, with an alarmed, "Jack --"
"-- shut up -- reassigned from Cheyenne Mountain -- I SAID SHUT UP!" Jack slammed his hand on the desk and glared at the two civilian contractors until their loud vocal objections subsided. McKay looked bewildered and angry; Daniel's expression promised they'd be having words, soon.
"Better. Transferred to Antarctica. You're to head the team examining the Ancient Outpost."
"Yes, sir," Carter said, seeming a bit stunned.
"Find any info you can about the Lost City, see if you can figure out how to repair the damned chair, it's all there." Jack pushed a folder across his desk towards Carter. "I'll try to get you back as soon as I can, Sam. This decision was made over my head."
"I understand, sir, thank you," Carter replied stoutly, picking up the folder.
Jack sighed. "And we'll have to get somebody to fill in for you on SG-1. If you have any recommendations you'd like me to consider, e-mail them to me," he said, ignoring the way Sam's gaze flickered to the field-qualified astrophysicist/engineer/expert on Ancient tech sitting right beside him. No way was he putting Mary McKay on SG-1.
"Right, meeting over, everybody out."
.
AU: The one with Dr. Mary McKay.
Warning: Mentions non-con; generally unhappy fic.
Author's note: Another story in my Mary 'verse Stargate AU. Technically still backfilling for my original plotbunny, a process which is more interesting to me at the moment than that bunny (which is basically a crossover between this 'verse and a reality more like canon, spoiler).
When the dust cleared, twenty-six SGC personnel were dead, Vala Mal Doran had gotten away, and Jack wasn't sure he could have Carter and his wife in a room together without them yelling at each other to try to distract themselves from their guilt.
But he had to try.
Not that yelling was anything new between them. He resolutely refused to believe it might be foreplay for them, but the fact that a normal shouting match often ended with the two of them synergizing into some brilliant new idea couldn't be denied, and unfortunately he knew they found each other's big science brains sexy. He was the one who threw Sam's bachelor bash, after all.
Best not to think about it.
This was different, though, with the guilt. Jack knew all about guilt ripping a marriage apart. It didn't matter that the docs had conclusively identified the aphrodisiac Sam was dosed with; he cheated on Mary with Vala while under its influence, and that's where this started. It didn't matter than Mary had no reason to suspect Vala would react the way she did to being confronted -- hell, no one at the SGC had expected it; Mary revealing she knew about the adultery triggered Vala's violent, bloody escape from Earth. They had both been ruled legally non-culpable, but that didn't matter a damn to how they felt.
Guilt. In Jack's opinion, its power was generally underrated. He would almost lay money that, if it weren't for the body count, Sam and Mary could get past the hurt and betrayal. But with it...
What he had to tell them... probably wouldn't help. Unfortunately, they weren't the only ones putting the blame on, well, them, and in the name of preventative peacekeeping, Jack had his goddamn orders.
He sent Daniel to fetch Carter and Teal'c to get McKay, both because it created the feeling of keeping this inside the team, and because McKay wouldn't argue with Teal'c like she might with Daniel. He waited outside his office for them, to put a damper on any pre-verdict shenanigans in the corridor. The timing worked well, and they arrived almost simultaneously. He noted the way their eyes met once, and then they didn't look at each other.
The urge to try to punctuate the bubble of tension and misery with a little levity was powerful, but he didn't feel like wasting his breath on a failed attempt, especially since he had to wear his Serious Authority hat.
"These are the rules," he said, jerking a thumb towards the door at his back. "Inside this room, I talk, you listen. You can talk to me if I say so. You don't get to talk to each other."
Daniel raised a hand. "Can I talk to Teal'c?"
"If you're quiet." Jack eyeballed Sam & Mary. "Got it?"
"Yes, sir," Sam said quietly. Mary just nodded, frowning.
"Good. Get inside."
Jack sat behind his desk, silently directing Carter and McKay to the pair of chairs set facing it. Teal'c positioned himself equidistant between them, about two feet back -- well within lunging distance -- and stood in guard position. Daniel leaned against the wall to jack's left, careful not to jostle the filing cabinets.
Jack picked up the first set of papers in front of him.
"Right. Adultery is illegal in both military law and in the state of Colorado. Doctor McKay, if you choose to press charges of adultery against your husband, because you both work in a military installation and for the Air Force, and because he is an officer of the Air Force, the matter will be tried by military law. If the evidence regarding the alien aphrodisiac is deemed admissable, he may be found not-guilty, or receive a reduced sentence. If he is found guilty, he will serve time in a military prison facility. Do you understand? Yes or no."
"Yes," McKay said tightly.
Jack set down the first set of papers and picked up the second.
"The state of Colorado does not allow no-fault divorces. Doctor McKay, if you file for a divorce and cite adultery, it will automatically set in motion the aforementioned court proceedings. Do you understand?"
"Yes," she said again, this time glaring at Jack and crossing her arms. Unexpectedly, she added, "I don't want a divorce."
Carter shot her a surprised look and very nearly spoke before remembering himself. Daniel's eyes narrowed speculatively. Teal'c looked utterly unsurprised; maybe they'd talked on the way in.
"Are you sure?" Jack asked neutrally.
"Very. If we're not married he can sleep with whoever he wants," McKay said.
Jack blinked. Was this spite? Jealousy? Possessiveness? He thought she was capable of all three, but wasn't entirely sure any of them were in play now, exactly.
"Do you intend to bring charges of adultery against Lieutenent Colonel Carter, Doctor McKay?" Jack asked formally.
"No," she said firmly, then ruined the effect by biting her lip. "I -- I was angry, before. Well, I still am angry, but I didn't know about the drug then. He wasn't in control of his actions, and frankly if I were the one had extramarital sex while under the influence of libido-increasing and judgement-impairing pharmaceuticals administered by a, by a hostile double-agent, I would expect the rational conclusion of any intelligent person in possession of all the facts to be rape, not deliberate adultery," McKay said tartly. "So no, General O'Neill, sir, I am not charging my husband with adultery over this matter."
Jack nodded and made a couple of notations on the papers in front of him. He hoped Sam hadn't been too busy wincing at Mary's bald assessment to catch her apology, or the fact that she was giving him a second chance.
He picked up the third set of papers and took a fortifying breath. This part was going to suck.
"Colonel Carter. You are being reduced to the rank of Major and reassigned --"
"What?!" McKay bleated, as Daniel straightened, with an alarmed, "Jack --"
"-- shut up -- reassigned from Cheyenne Mountain -- I SAID SHUT UP!" Jack slammed his hand on the desk and glared at the two civilian contractors until their loud vocal objections subsided. McKay looked bewildered and angry; Daniel's expression promised they'd be having words, soon.
"Better. Transferred to Antarctica. You're to head the team examining the Ancient Outpost."
"Yes, sir," Carter said, seeming a bit stunned.
"Find any info you can about the Lost City, see if you can figure out how to repair the damned chair, it's all there." Jack pushed a folder across his desk towards Carter. "I'll try to get you back as soon as I can, Sam. This decision was made over my head."
"I understand, sir, thank you," Carter replied stoutly, picking up the folder.
Jack sighed. "And we'll have to get somebody to fill in for you on SG-1. If you have any recommendations you'd like me to consider, e-mail them to me," he said, ignoring the way Sam's gaze flickered to the field-qualified astrophysicist/engineer/expert on Ancient tech sitting right beside him. No way was he putting Mary McKay on SG-1.
"Right, meeting over, everybody out."
.