''Interstellar Destiny''

Happy To See You

Lara looks back at Evan and takes a deep breath.

-"The day you left for that mission, things were weird in the city. Teyla and Ronon came and took Jennifer with them, just a few hours after you left. Jennifer told me that there was something she needed to do off-world and that she would be back soon, so I didn't think too much of it."

"A couple of hours after that, Sheppard and Elizabeth came into the infirmary and told me they needed to talk to me in private. I followed them to our old room, thinking, at first, that something might've happened to you, but I quickly dismissed it because I had been in the infirmary all day and there had been no indication that something went wrong with your mission."

"When we got to the corridor outside our room, Teyla, Ronon and McKay were there, and I figured that maybe it was about Jennifer. I hadn't seen her since she left with Teyla and Ronon, and looking at how uncomfortable McKay was as he waited for us, that kinda of solidified that idea."

"We went inside and that was when Elizabeth told me what had happened. How Sheppard and his team found what was supposed to be your burned body, the only ID being your dogtags. I remember telling them that I wanted to see the body, but both Sheppard and Elizabeth convinced me not to. Two days later, your body, as well as the bodies of your team, were sent through the gate back to Earth and I followed. I couldn't stay in Atlantis, not after all of that."

"So, I moved in with Jack for a little while, until I found a place of my own and opened my own medical practice. I've spent the last three years trying to accept that you were dead, taking care of Ava and working in my practice, although occasionally I still do consults for Dr. Fraiser whenever a member from the Atlantis expedition, or the Daedalus, arrives at the SGC sick from something they caught in Pegasus."

Evan nods, feeling the pain of not being there for her all this time. He wishes he could go back in time and change things, maybe if he could, Lara would've never had been alone and his team would still be alive.

Lara takes another deep breath and looks back at him, silence falling between them, waiting for the question she knows is coming.

-"Can I ask you something?"

-"Sure."

-"When did you found out?"

-"That morning, after you left for that mission. I had been feeling weird for a while and decided that I should see what was going on with me. I knew it couldn't be something I had caught off-world because it had been a while since I went through the gate, so I was kinda hoping it was just some weird stomach bug or something like that. I was gonna tell you that night at dinner. That was the real reason I left. I couldn't raise a baby in a place that was almost constantly under attack."

-"Did anyone knew?"

-"No. I didn't tell anyone, not even Jennifer or Elizabeth. No one from Atlantis knows." - Lara sees him nod and going silent for a moment.

-"Does Ava know about me?"

-"She does, to a certain extent. She doesn't know that you were supposedly dead, if that's what you're asking. All that she knows is that her dad was a painter and a soldier, who went missing before she was born. I felt like it was too soon for her to know that you, again, were supposedly dead."

-"I guess it makes sense."

He looks away from her and down at his hands, playing with his wedding ring, having noticed that she doesn't wear hers anymore, but doesn't say anything about it. It has been three years and she thought he was dead, it is perfectly normal for her not to be using her wedding ring, but it still hurts a bit not seeing her with it.

-"I should go. It will be lunch time soon and I'm not really seeing Ava eating anything out of the mess."

-"She's here?" - There's hope in his eyes.

-"She is. She's with Jack and Sam, and if I don't go and get her soon, Jack will most likely feed her a bunch of candy for lunch." - Lara smiles softly at her brother's antics.

-"Do you think..."

-"Not right now. And definitely not here. Just... Give me some time to wrap my head around everything and that you're alive, before I introduce you to her. When that happens I don't want it to be in a guest quarter inside of a mountain. I hope you can understand."

-"I do. I'll wait for you to tell me when it will be a good time, whenever that might be."

-"Thank you." - Lara stands to leave. -"I will be in touch soon."

She starts to leave the room, when she feels him holding her hand, making her stop.

-"I'm really happy I got to see you, Lara." - His eyes shine with tears.

-"Me too."

Lara squeezes his hand before letting go and leaving the room. She walks down the corridors, headed for Daniel's office, a tight grip around her heart. Things went better than she had expected, even if she could feel her heart breaking as he told her what he went through.

Now she needs to decide what to do about Ava and Evan. She knows they deserve to know each other and have a relationship, but she worries what her daughter's reaction will be and how Evan will take it.

Lara can already hear her daughter's laughter as she approaches Daniel's office, a smile appearing on her lips, and thinks that no matter what, she will give Ava a chance at knowing Evan. Whatever her reaction might be when that happens, they will deal with it.