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The afternoon sun cast a warm, golden glow across the balcony of Teyla's quarters. She stood by the railing, looking out over the blue ocean of Lantea, enjoying a rare moment of quiet. A sharp, hesitant knock at the door broke the silence. "Teyla? Are you in there?"
Rodney McKay’s voice called out. It lacked his usual frantic energy and sounded uncharacteristically nervous.
"It's me. Can I come in?" It takes a minute before Teyla answers.
"Of course, Rodney. Enter," Teyla said, turning around with a welcoming smile.
Rodney shuffled into the room, his hands stuffed deep into his pockets.
He didn't have a data tablet with him, which was a sign that this wasn't an official military or scientific emergency. Instead, his fingers twitched inside his uniform jacket, a habit he started doing recently that no one seemed to notice. "I, uh... I got you something," Rodney stammered, shifting his feet. He cleared his throat and pulled his hands out of his pockets. In his palm sat a polished wooden box.
Teyla tilted her head, her curiosity piqued.
"What is this, Rodney?"
"Just... open it," he said, holding the box out to her.
Teyla took the container, her fingers brushing against his. She carefully lifted the lid. Her breath caught in her throat, and her eyes widened in profound shock. Resting on a bed of dark velvet was her ancestral necklace. It was the very same heirloom she had worn for years—the one that had once secretly contained a hidden Wraith tracking device.
She had tucked it away in a drawer long ago, unable to wear it after learning it had been used to hunt her people, yet too heartbroken to throw away the only physical piece of her family's history. But it was completely transformed.
The bulky, metallic housing that had once held the tracking technology was gone. In its place, Rodney had meticulously rebuilt the setting.
Cradled perfectly within the polished, dark Athosian metal was a breathtaking, multifaceted crystal.
It didn't look like standard technology; it was a rare mineral that seemed to catch the ambient light in the room, refracting it into a brilliant, pulsing glow. It looked exactly like a fallen star trapped in glass. "Rodney..."
Teyla whispered, her voice trembling slightly as she gently lifted the necklace from the box.
"You... you fixed it."
"I did," Rodney said quickly, his words tumbling out in a rush as he rubbed the back of his neck, his words made sense.
"I mean, it always bothered me. The Wraith took something beautiful and turned it into a weapon against your people. It wasn't fair. So, I took it to my lab. I completely stripped out the tracking sub-frequencies. I melted the interior casing. There’s no radiation, no subspace signal, nothing. It's completely safe. I swear." Teyla ran her thumb over the glowing crystal, entirely spellbound.
"The stone. What is it?"
"It’s a Lantean quartz variant," Rodney explained, his voice softening.
"I found a small geode of it during a deep-underwater scan a few months ago. It naturally stores light energy. I spent... well, three weeks using a laser-cutter to shape it into a star pattern. Because, you know. Athosians guide themselves by the stars. I thought it was fitting."
Teyla looked up from the necklace, her eyes shining with unshed tears.
"I do not know what to say. This is a magnificent gift, Rodney. The time and care you took..."
"Well, you deserve it,"
Rodney interrupted gently. He took a small step closer, his usual arrogant shield completely dropping away, leaving him looking vulnerable.
"Teyla... I'm not good at this. I'm arrogant, I'm loud, and I complain about everything. But I wanted to tell you how much you mean to me."
Teyla stood perfectly still, listening intently.
"When I first came to this galaxy, I was terrified,"
Rodney confessed, looking down at his boots before meeting her gaze again. "I didn't trust anyone. You’ve always looked out for me. You keep John grounded, and you've saved my life more times than I can count. But it's more than that, Teyla. You listen to me. You don't just dismiss me as a crazy scientist." He smiled, a genuine, fond expression that reached his eyes.
"I never had a big family growing up. My sister Jeanie and I... have a complicated dynamic. I didn’t agree with her choices. But out here, I've realised something. I don't just see you as a teammate, Teyla. I see you like a sister. You're part of my family now, and I know you’ll always have my back. A profound wave of warmth washed over Teyla. She was deeply surprised.
She knew Rodney cared for his friends, but he rarely articulated his emotions so clearly, or with such pure, unguarded honesty. Hearing him speak of her as family—as a sister—touched a piece of her heart that had felt lonely ever since the loss of her father.
"Thank you, Rodney,"
Teyla said softly, stepping forward.
Before he could react or make an awkward joke, she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight, fierce hug. Rodney stiffened for a fraction of a second, entirely startled by the physical affection, before his shoulders relaxed and he hugged her back, patting her shoulder. When she pulled away, she handed him the necklace with a radiant smile.
"Will you help me put it on?"
"Oh. Right. Yes, of course," Rodney muttered, his cheeks flushing slightly with pride. He took the necklace, his fingers steady as he draped the chain around her neck and secured the clasp.
The crystal star rested perfectly against her collarbone, catching the light and casting beautiful, shimmering patterns across her skin.
Teyla looked down at it, her smile bright and full of joy.
"It is perfect, Brother. Thank you."
Rodney beamed, standing a little taller. "Yeah. It really is."