A/N: Yay! It's done. Thanks to everyone who read and double thanks to everyone who reviewed it. Sorry it took so long to get the whole thing posted, but I'm glad you guys were interested all the way through.

Anywho, on to the story.

Epilogue-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Yes yes yes, I know we're a little late, but I found this interesting energy signal and I think it's important."

"Define interesting."

There was a pause. "You don't know what interesting means?"

"Yes, I know the definition of interesting. I meant was why is it interesting and you know it?"

"Well, you should have said that. It's defiantly Ancient and it just might lead to a Zed-PM and - ooh. I just found something. Got to go. McKay out."

Rodney practically tore his earpiece out of his ear and threw it across the control room. He twisted around and pierced John under his blue glare. The other man was barely able to stop the chuckle that escaped even through Rodney was glaring daggers his way.

"This is not funny. Can you believe that?"

"I know. Her name is 'Sheppard-McKay'. How can she just use half of her name? And when did she start calling it a 'Zed-PM' again? I thought I broke her of that habit."

"I meant the way she talked to me? Get a team together, because we're going after them right now," he demanded. John just smiled at him as he leaned back his chair, his hands behind his head.

"Come on, Mer," John teased. Rodney glared even harder, if at all possible. "Relax. This isn't the first time Chi's been off world. I'm sure she's just fine. Besides, she picked up that little speech from you."

"Relax? Oh, yes, I'm supposed to just relax while my daughter is on an alien planet investigating technology that could possibly kill her. Not to mention the life-sucking aliens that are still out there. But, yes, I'll just relax. And she did not pick it up from me."

"Yes she did. I can recall at least a dozen times you said those very words to me. And if I recall correctly, she's our daughter. My name's on that paper, too."

"Yes yes, minor technicality. Send a team, John," Rodney said as he snapped his fingers impatiently. John leaned back in his chair a little bit and smirked.

"Rodney, let's trust our daughter's judgment. I'm sure if there was something wrong, Lorne would have said something. You're just going to have to relax. And if they're not back in half an hour, I'll send a team."

"Half an hour!" Rodney yelled. John propped his feet up on the control panel. "Fine. Half an hour."

Rodney could feel the knot in his stomach twisting as he paced the room. He glanced at his watch, turned in his pacing and glanced at his watch again. Only five minutes had passed. Rodney turned to John, who was having a casual conversation with Chuck, and gritted his teeth.

"What did Chi say when she checked in?" Elizabeth asked as she joined Rodney in the control room.

"Will you tell him to send a team after her?" Rodney asked instead of answering her question. Elizabeth raised an eyebrow and glanced at John.

"John?"

"Yes?"

"Is Chi in any kind of danger? Because Rodney believes that you should send a team after her."

John glanced at his watch. "She's fine Elizabeth. She just checked in a little late, is all. They found some Ancient device and wanted to check it out. I'll have team 7 go out if we don't hear from them in twenty minutes."

"Oh, she checked in late," Elizabeth looked back at Rodney, a tiny smirk on her lips, her eyebrow cocked with amusement. "Because of an Ancient device. How interesting? Inform me if you have to send team 7 out, John. And tell Chi to stop by my office after she gets cleaned up."

"Will do."

"But…but," Rodney stuttered as Elizabeth left. He whipped his head around to set his intense blue gaze on John's back. The other man continued his conversation with Chuck, completely ignoring Rodney in the process. Frustrated, Rodney threw his hands into the air.

"Fine, just ignore me. I'll just be…over there, under that control panel, fixing…that control panel." Deflated, Rodney turned. He plugged his computer into the control panel and pulled up the system diagnostic. With a few quick keystrokes, he had the program running. He sighed in satisfaction and glanced at his watch again…and frowned. Starting the program only took a few minutes and now he had to wait until the program finished before he could fix anything. He growled in frustration, sat up, and hit his head on the bottom of the panel.

"Damn it!" He rubbed the back of his head as he ducked under the panel.

"Watch your head there," John said as he extended a hand. Rodney eyed it before he accepted the help to his feet. John patted Rodney on the back, and if his hand lingered for just a moment Rodney didn't say anything.

"She's fine, Rodney."

"Well, you don't know that. The Wraith could have got her or-"

"Rodney." Rodney looked up as John squeezed his arm. "She's fine." They locked eyes, blue on hazel, and Rodney saw. John was just as worried about Chi as he was.

"So, um, yeah…fine." Rodney's laptop beeped. "Oh, good. It's done." He picked up the computer and let his fingers fly over the screen, mumbling to himself as he did.

"Rodney?"

"Busy now. Go away."

John chuckled. "And you wonder where Chi gets it." Rodney waved an impatient hand at John's departing back and almost lost himself in his work. Every once in a while, he glanced at his watch until the thirty minutes were up.

"Okay, send a team now," he commanded at he stood, careful of his head this time.

"Incoming wormhole," Chuck called out. Rodney almost dropped his computer as he raced for the rail. "It's Chi's ID-"

"Disengage the shield," Rodney and John yelled at the same time. The shield dropped. There was a pause before the event horizon rippled and Lorne stepped through. Rodney almost tripped over John in his rush to the steps. The questions were on the tip of his tongue when Chi casually stepped from the gate and smiled.

"Nice of you to meet me, Dad, but it wasn't necessary," she remarked as she waved to John on the balcony. Rodney could feel his cheeks brighten with anger.

"Oh, don't give me that. You're late. You were supposed to be back half an hour ago. You have a watch. I know you have a watch because I gave it to you. So why, exactly, are you late?"

"It's my fault, Doctor McKay," Lorne replied as he stepped forward. Chi put her hand out.

"No, Colonel. Thank you, but no. It was my fault. I found the source of those weird energy readings, but it turned out to be nothing so I shut it off. Turns out, it was masking something that was pretty cool. I had to check it out. It could have yielded a Zed-PM, but, actually, it was an Ancient EMP, which I accidentally might have turned on. And you're lucky that I had spare parts and that I know how to fix the GDO because we could have been stuck there," she informed him. Rodney really wanted to be mad at her for making him worry, but he was proud of her. Very proud of her.

"You carry spare parts for the GDO around with you?" John asked as he joined them. Rodney and Chi gave him almost identical 'how-stupid-could-you-be-of-course-we-carry-spare-parts" looks.

"Yes."

"M5X-281," Rodney stated. Chi rolled her eyes.

"That wasn't my fault, you know."

John wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "We're just glad you're safe, kiddo." Chi hugged him back. When he released her, she glared at both of them.

"It wasn't like I was in any danger, you know. Besides, you two are the last people to lecture me about coming home late," she said as she pointed an accusing finger at each of them. John smiled sheepishly while Rodney sputtered.

"We are late for important reasons, not because we, you know, tripped an EMP."

"Dad."

"What?"

"M21-699."

"What?"

"M21-699," Chi repeated. "I want you to think back, Dad, although I know your memory is a bit hazy."

"My memory is just fine," Rodney countered as John snickered.

Chi continued as if she hadn't heard him, although her smile indicated that she had. "M21-699 is just one of many missions where you and John have been late checking in. Do you remember what happened, Dad? Let me remind you. Aunt Lizzie was furious when you guys came through the gate almost an hour late without checking in. She was about to send Lorne after you. Do you remember what your excuse was, Dad? John? You found a really cool device and lost track of time trying to figure it out."

"But that was-"

"M9C-048," Chi said before Rodney could finish his sentence. She smirked when Rodney almost choked on his unfinished sentence.

"But I-"

"MX7-118."

"That was-"

"M81-PQ4."

"I think she has you beat, Rodney," John said with a laugh. He slapped Rodney on the back, and Rodney glared at him. Chi smiled then laughed at the two. Rodney slumped for a moment, but hearing John and Chi's laughter made him smile.

"Yes, fine, I remember all of those planets. I've already told you that my memory is fine, so you don't need to remind me. Just…don't make a habit of this, Chi." Chi leaned over and kissed Rodney's cheek.

"Sorry, Dad. I didn't mean to make you worry. I better go get cleaned up. You know how Uncle Carson gets when you miss a post-mission check-up. Last time, he yelled at me," she smiled, a pure, bright, clean smile that melted Rodney's heart every time. She was half way up the stairs when Rodney remembered the EMP.

"Wait. What about the EMP?" he called as he jogged up the stairs after her. Chi glanced over her shoulder.

"Standard EMP. Wave goes out, anything that produces an electromagnetic field turns off. You taught me this stuff, Dad. You sure your memory isn't fading?" she replied as she continued up the stairs. Rodney rolled his eyes as he followed her.

"Yes, yes, just mock me why don't you. Now tell me about this EMP. Maybe I should go check it out, or send another team to study it more. And what kind of power source did it have? Something that generated that kind of pow-"

"Dad. I'll have a full report on your desk by tomorrow morning, or you could just come to the briefing. Right now, though, I just want to take a shower."

Rodney looked up. They were stopped at Chi's quarters, with his daughter's hand hovering over the blue control crystals. She had a pleading look in her eyes and Rodney could only sigh and nod.

"Fine, I'll be in my lab when you get done," he said, but Chi turned away the second he said fine and was in her room. Hesitantly, Rodney took a step through the open door.

Chi's room was an eclectic mix of tastes. Against one wall was the surfboard John brought for her sixteenth birthday and a few shelves full of Athosian pottery and artifacts. Posters of the periodic table of elements and the electromagnetic spectrum hung above her bed. The ceremonial knives that Ronan gave her for her "coming of age" ceremony hung on her other wall above her desk. Her small desk was littered with paper print outs of experimental data, paper coffee cups, and several framed pictures of her and just about every member of the senior staff. Rodney picked up the one of her and John poised with their surfboards on the white beaches of Maui. It was still his favorite picture of the two and always reminded him of the fun they'd had on that vacation. Well, besides being eaten alive by mosquitoes in the Amazon and that horrible sunburn he got in Kenya.

"That was a fun trip," Chi commented from the bed where she was taking off her shoes. Rodney placed the picture back and set down next to her. He caught sight of Nen and picked him up by his tail.

"This thing tried to kill you."

"We've been over this, Dad," Chi replied as she gently took Nen from him and placed him back on her pillow. "Inanimate objects don't try to do anything. It was my grandfather who tried to kill me. But you and Uncle Carson removed the device and I take my pills everyday and I'm fine. You need to stop worrying about me all the time, Dad."

"Oh yes, right, stop worrying. Because that's going to happen." He patted her on the knee. "I'm going to the lab. I want a full report on that EMP on my desk tomorrow. If we can figure out a way to transport it back here, we might be able to use it against the Wraith or maybe the replicators if they try to attack again."

"Sure, Dad. Of course, neither of those groups have attacked Atlantis in years, but sure, whatever you say."

"It never hurts to error on the side of caution. So, we'll, ah, see you in the mess for dinner?"

"You mean you're going to tear yourself away from work long enough to have dinner with your daughter?" She smiled. "I should be done with everything about eight. I'll meet you and John there, okay? I really need to get cleaned up."

"Oh, of course. Eight." Rodney stood and moved toward the door. He paused a minute before he turned around and hugged Chi. "I'm glad you're safe."

On his way back to he labs, Rodney couldn't help but smile.

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A/N2: And before anyone asks, I might be turning this into a series, but since I'm in school and working so it will be a slow process.

Thanks again for reading and reviewing.