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Teyla walked into the tack room after the Equitation class had left. John was sitting on a stool, fixing a broken stirrup strap. She came over and gracefully sank down onto the dusty floor next to him.
He looked at her out of the corner of his eye as he continued with his task. "You sure you want to do that? You're in your court Whites, Queen's Own."
She smiled at him. "There is no need to be so formal, John. Besides, it is merely dust and will brush off easily enough." She shifted to get more comfortable and then said, "Tell me how it went with our surprising new trainee."
John blew out a sigh and stared at the strap in his hands. "Well, you were right about him not being happy. He came in looking like he was going to his own funeral. Atlantis says that Cadman's monumental smugness isn't helping things either."
Teyla gave a wry nod. "Charin says much the same as well. Cadman is very young and does not see that upending Rodney's whole life has been upsetting to him."
"I took her down a peg or two in class today," John said, finally turning to look at her. "Rode her through the obstacle course at full speed and ran her through the worst of the battle maneuvers as a demonstration to the class of what they'll be able to do when I'm done with them. Atlantis approved."
Teyla briefly got that far away look most Heralds got when they were listening to a Companion, and then laughed. "So Atlantis just showed Charin. She looked a like staggering colt out there." She then sobered. "John, you are in the best position to assist Rodney in settling in at the moment. Herald-Dean Daniel even assigned Rodney the room next to yours. He is an adult who has been ripped from a way of life and livelihood that he derived great comfort and satisfaction from and is now challenged to learn things that he does not naturally excel in."
John gave her a brief, bitter smile and then slanted an eyebrow. "Well that's true for horsemanship at any rate. He told me that Cadman had said that he rode like a sack of potatoes and unfortunately she's dead right on that one."
Teyla sighed. "The teacher for Intro to Inter-kingdom Politics said that it appears that he doesn't have a good grasp of the intricacies of politics either."
John set aside the strap that was in his hands and turned to her. "Does anybody have any idea why she Chose him? For what possible reason could the kingdom need a Herald that has his particular skills? He was already doing his best to thump math and science into his student's heads for us at the Collegium."
Teyla leaned back on her hands and grinned. "I did not know you paid that much attention to what went on at the Collegium."
He made a face at her. "I've had enough students come through here moaning about Master McKay making their lives a living hell." He then crossed his arms and gave her a stern look. "Seriously, answer my question. Do we have any idea why he was Chosen?"
Teyla's eyes slid to the side for a moment and then she leaned forward and put her hands into her lap. She kept her gaze on them as she said, "No, we do not. And that is a thing that both Elizabeth and I find disturbing. When something unusual like this happens, particularly when a Companion Choses when it is as young as Cadman is, it generally means that something terrible will be ahead of us soon that only that particular Herald can save the kingdom from. Like Lavan Firestorm of the old tales."
"Damn it," John said quietly. He uncrossed his arms and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, hands clasped between them. Then he turned his head slightly towards Companion's Field in a listening pose for a bit before breathing out a curse and reaching up to rub his hands across his face.
Teyla's head snapped up and she looked at him warily. "What is it, John?"
"Atlantis says that the thing that Rodney keeps thinking that's driving Cadman absolutely nuts is that he's going to die as soon as he's in Whites," John replied in a rough voice as he let his hands dangle between his knees. "Gods, Teyla, Lavan Firestorm died to protect the kingdom. If Rodney has the gift of Foresight, he could be right."
"Daniel has noted he already Mindspeaks with Cadman and has natural shields strong enough that he is not leaking to other Mindspeakers," Teyla countered.
John gave her an impatient look. "Yeah, well, he could have more than one Gift." His mouth twisted into an unpleasant smirk. "It's happened before."
Teyla's shoulders drooped a bit. "That is true."
Silence stood between them for a bit, then Teyla arose up off the floor in a soft swirl of skirts. "I must go speak with Ronon. Rodney is scheduled to start weapons training with him tomorrow and I wish to make sure that Ronon knows to be supportive despite any clumsiness he may show."
John snorted in amusement. "Good luck with that."
Teyla gave a sly smile. "I may intimate that if he does not I will be less careful to not hurt him during our training sessions."
John brayed out a laugh. "If you do that, let me know so I can watch. He beats my ass entirely too often."
"I will have Charin tell Atlantis if I do," Teyla swore. She then edged closer to him and laid a hand on John's shoulder, ignoring his slight stiffening at the contact. "Promise me you will look after him, John. Of all of us, you understand best what he is going through."
John looked away from her, his jaw knotting. "He will have to want to talk to me, Teyla. Not many people do."
"It has been many years now, John," Teyla said softly. "You think about it more than anyone else does."
John shrugged off her hand, surged up off of the stool, went to the door and then stopped in the doorway, one hand resting on the door jamb. With his back still to her, he said, "I'll do my best, Teyla. But I'm not going to force it."
"I understand," she replied, her face solemn. And then he left.