Sheppard was tired. He was more than tired. He was exhausted. But he couldn't let her see that. He and Teyla had been sparring for over an hour. She believed, and rightly so, that he needed the practice. "In a real fight", she would say scornfully, "you would not stand a chance." But, Sheppard being Sheppard, he had come up with the sarcastic retort that in a real fight, he would have shot her before she could ever get to him. However, John Sheppard also knew that occasionally (and past experience had made him painstakingly aware of this) he would find himself weaponless in the hands of the enemy, so he supposed it couldn't hurt to have a backup self-defence plan should he ever find himself in a similar situation.

'So much for "couldn't hurt",' he grumbled to himself, as he heaved himself up from the floor for the hundredth time, after being struck in the kneecaps with a wooden pole. 'I'm hurting all over'. He stifled a groan as he bent to pick up his own stick. His back was aching.

"You are not concentrating", said Teyla, with a note of amusement in her voice, expertly spinning her pole in her hand like a baton causing it to make a swishing sound. She found it rather entertaining to see a fit man such as the colonel at her complete mercy. "Every attack you make is without effort. You are not trying hard enough." She began to circle round him, casting shadows in the dim morning light that was streaking through the stained glass window.

"That's because I'm completely whacked." He replied, breathing heavily. "Literally". He added, looking up at her, and flashing her a weak smile.

"Do you think the Wraith will stop attacking you because you are "whacked"? She asked, trying to ignore his attempt to lighten the situation. She needed to remain serious. "Or the Genii?" She added. "I have heard that they excel at hand-to-hand combat. I am sure they will let you rest in between attempts at your life, Colonel."

John sighed. "Yeah, I'm sure they will. They're such nice people. I particularly liked that guy…what was his name? Oh yeah, Kolya." He said sarcastically, grimacing slightly as he recalled the cold voice of the Genii Commander who had killed two of his men and taken doctors Weir and McKay hostage, in an attempt to take the city of Atlantis under siege.

"I am sure that the Wraith will be just as sympathetic as the Genii." Teyla replied, sternly.

"Okay, okay. I get your point." He didn't need reminding about the Wraith. He'd had enough encounters with them to know that they had no fibre of sympathy in their bodies whatsoever. Or any other emotions for that matter. All they cared about was sucking the life from your body with their hands to satisfy their hunger. John tried to shake the thought of them from his mind. They had not encountered the Wraith for several weeks, and he didn't want to spoil the feeling of relief he was experiencing.

"Good." Teyla said, untying her hair from its pony tail and slipping the hair band around her wrist. "We will finish now. You may rest. However, I would like to continue at the same time tomorrow as you still evidently need the practice." She said with a smile, taking the stick from his hands and placing it in her rucksack, along with her own. John was slightly disgusted to see that she wasn't nearly as out of breath or as sweaty as he was. He rubbed his forehead with the black sweatband around his arm, and ran his fingers through his damp and somewhat ruffled dark hair, before realising that he was staring at the beautiful Athosian woman as she packed away her things. The light from the window was brighter now, and the golden rays reflected off her hair, making it shine. He shook himself, and picked up his own rucksack, wincing as he hoisted it onto his back. He didn't notice Teyla glancing up at him. She smiled to herself as he exhaled. She knew that no matter how much pain he was in, the colonel would do his best not let it show. He was too proud to let his team members see any weakness in their ranking officer. The only time she remembered seeing him in any real pain was when he had a two-foot long insect attached to his neck, leeching away his life as a Wraith would. She and Lieutenant Ford – Sheppard's second-in-command – had tried to remove it in several ways, each seemingly more painful to John than the last, until Ford had eventually shot it at point-blank range with his handgun. Teyla would never forget John's screams of agony as the creature drew the life from him to heal itself. He had almost died that day.

"Okay", he said, rousing her from her thoughts. "I need breakfast, and I need coffee. And I need them now."

"Mess hall?" She asked.

"Mess hall." He replied, before frowning suddenly.

"What is wrong?" Teyla said, puzzled at his change in mood.

"I'm just hoping that McKay hasn't eaten all the food", he said, flashing her a reassuring grin. "Let's go."