"Everything all right John?" Elizabeth didn't even try to suppress the amusement in her voice. She stood and retrieved John's cup before extending it out towards him.

He took it and once again, polished off the drink in one long slow sip. "Let me get back to you on that." He turned away from her crinkling eyes and filled up his glass of punch, grabbing a refill for Elizabeth as well. When he returned Elizabeth had been surrounded by crew members.

John placed her cup on the table and turned his eyes back to scan the colorful crowd. As he turned, he spotted someone rising from a crouched position before him. He instinctively took a step backwards and then took another step which sent him tumbling over his chair when he got a closer look at a freakishly white face rose sporting a large round red nose. As he maneuvered into a hopefully somewhat more dignified sitting position, he spotted Elizabeth's unmistakable feet hurrying towards him. Her ankles were really quite amazing, he thought. So tiny and delicate, so feminine. Her foot began to tap before him and he awoke from his reverie. What was in that punch? He became aware of the voices of crew members excitedly talking behind him.

"What's going on?", "Is the Lady of the Night here?", "I just knew we'd see her tonight!", and "Where is she, I don't see anything?" Were just a few of the comments he could make out. Then the clown was squatted before him, peering in his eyes. John jumped unsteadily trying to stand, but he ended up colliding with Elizabeth sending them both tumbling backwards to the floor.

"Having fun Major?" Elizabeth sounded amused as she lay on the ground beside him. They were both on their backs, giving them a wonderful view of…well not much really. The sky was still ominously dark and the clouds were blocking even the most brilliant of the stars.

He turned to look at her and she turned her head towards him and smiled mischievously. Maybe it was just because it was Halloween, but this night was beginning to seem more and more surreal. But, this was good, Elizabeth smiling. Good, since he'd just knocked the expedition leader to the ground in front of the entire crew, it was good to know he wouldn't be sleeping in the brig tonight. But he was probably getting further and further away from where he'd really like to be sleeping. Not good. Good is a good word, he thought absentmindedly.

"John?" Elizabeth sat up, obviously listening to the conversation around her. "Who is the Lady of the Night?"

"She's a ghost that's been quite frequently spotted here on Atlantis. She's said to be quite beautiful." The clown said.

"Zelenka? John recognized the clown's voice.

"Yes, Rodney sent me over, he said you loved clowns. I must admit, I was expecting a…different reaction." Zelenka said as helped Elizabeth up. He then carefully adjusted his loose pants being held up by two neckties tethered to the belt loops to imitate suspenders.

"Well, I'll have to remember to thank him for that." John said. Beckett and Lorne had moved closer and were now pulling him to his feet. "Just don't get too close." John warned Zelenka who was scratching the dyed mop head that served as his wig.

"So, the Lady of the Night?" Elizabeth asked again.

John may have had a decent buzz going from the drinks he'd just inhaled, but he would have sworn he'd seen Lorne and Beckett exchange a glance of concern. He filed that away for later.

He was distracted again when he saw McKay was approaching with a trim blonde nurse on his arm, who tonight was dressed in military uniform. That had been John's payback and Rodney obviously had drunk too much punch to notice she wasn't the real thing. "Like I was saying Sam, I think she's sweet on John, she usually only shows up when he's overdue to report, just our team. She's even been spotted pacing outside his the door to his quarters."

McKay passed on by and John's joy was short lived. "Who was he talking about?" Elizabeth asked.

"The Lady of the Night." Zelenka said.

John scowled in his direction sending the scientist back a few steps for safety. John then turned to see Elizabeth's more ferocious scowl in his own direction. "Seriously John? A ghost now?" She turned away and walked off muttering about searching the database to find out who this woman was.

Before he could protest his indignation, he was distracted again. John knew he wasn't imagining it this time when he caught Beckett and Lorne again exchanging a glance. "You guys want to fill me in here?"

Just then the dim lights started flickering. Everyone froze and the voices all crashed to a painful silence. The flickering stopped, but it took a moment for the voices to return to full throttle. McKay paraded "Sam" back by the group and announced proudly that they would take care of it. "Sam" threw a helpless look back at John almost as if pleading for help. John waved bye-bye! She could have been a little gentler with the needle with that last IV he'd received.

"Zelenka?" Elizabeth's voice spoke her unasked question.

"I'll go make sure he doesn't make it worse. Who is in the control room?" Zelenka asked.

"Teyla is, she doesn't quite get Halloween, she volunteered." Elizabeth said. "Look in McKay's pocket, he's the Accidental Tourist."

"That's what I said; I said he was a tourist." John reminded her.

"The Accidental Tourist, John it's a book, maybe if you ever finished War and Peace you could start a second book."

"Not that's just not nice; I'll have you know I've read plenty of books in my time."

"Really? Name one? Besides the Art of War." Elizabeth challenged.

"And they wonder why there are rumors; they bicker like a married couple." Zelenka muttered under his breath. Then he cleared his throat loudly. "Fine, well then, I guess I will just let Teyla know if we need you." Zelenka began ambling off in borrowed and oversized combat boots covered with silver duct tape.

"I'll go with them, keep the peace and all." Lorne nodded as they moved out.

John briefly wondered how much punch Elizabeth had consumed. He was knocking her down, lights were flickering and she was bantering with him like she didn't have a care in the world. Surreal. He loved Halloween. Halloween was good, he smiled.

"All right then, let's get this show on the road!" Ford stood excitedly in front of them.

"Why are you so excited, you don't even have a costume on?" John said.

"I wanted it to be a surprise. I've got it tucked away close." Ford said as he sprinted off.

The next thirty minutes passed easier than John had imagined. The costumes were ranged from unimaginative to amazing. There were many variations of the predictable standbys, but a few pretty good originals. A botanist had draped her arms in ivy and was holding a bottle marked poison, there was a cool Edward Munch painting come to life with The Scream costume, but it was his turn to snort punch through his nose when Ford appeared for judging in a huge potato sack and a name tag that read Good.

Cavanaugh was sniveling somewhere behind John. "I don't get it."

"You wouldn't." Elizabeth directed her voice in John's direction, knowing Cavanaugh was back there somewhere. "He's good in the sack." Elizabeth said, just as a song ended resulting in her voice carrying across the room. She began blushing profusely as she realized everyone saw her looking at John when she said that. They all thought she had been talking about him. John watched her flee towards the drink table as he handed Ford the prize for best original costume.

John turned to find Cavanaugh still looking confused as he walked away shrugging his shoulders. They had all but forgotten about the problem with the lights when they began to flicker again.

McKay's voice emerged across the PA system. "Samantha Carter are you drunk? Stop touching things, I think you are making it worse."

"Uh, Rodney? You're on the citywide PA. "Zelenka's voice emerged.

"Oh. Uhm, this is McKay. Everything is under control here. The city appears to be redistributing power as it prepares for the coming storm. The lightning rods will gather a significant amount energy from the lighting strikes so the city compensates by….Sam I said stop touching!"

"It wasn't me!" The nurse's voice protested.

Suddenly their voices were replaced with music. But John could see from the confused expression on the DJ's face, he wasn't responsible. Suddenly, Johnny Cash's voice emerged from the PA speakers. "The first time…ever I saw your face." John looked around in bewilderment. Whoever had done this, he wasn't sure how they knew. This was the song that always came to mind when he thought of playing for Elizabeth. He wasn't sure there was enough alcohol in the Pegasus galaxy for that day to come anytime soon though.

Besides the DJ, the crew was mostly inebriated and clueless that anything was out of the norm. Couples began to pair off as they headed towards the dance floor.

"Shall we?" John asked extending his hand towards Elizabeth. His voice hadn't been as light as he'd strived for. It sounded deeper, huskier, even to himself he heard the deeper meaning.

She accepted his hand in silence, her eyes asking silent questions. His eyes locked on her own, answering silently in return.

He barely heard Beckett as they moved towards the dance floor. "No, that's why there are all the rumors. It's always in the eyes…"

Elizabeth heard him too; John saw the conflict twisting inside her as her forehead crinkled. "John? Maybe it's time to call it a night."

They instinctively headed for the stairs rather than the transporter. It was a wise decision, as soon as they reached the landing to check in with Teyla the lights began to flicker again. In moments, Beckett, Lorne and Ford had joined them in the control room.

"Ford, you're on crowd control. Lorne, stay here with Teyla, let me know if you hear anything. Beckett, can you go check on McKay and Zelenka? I'm taking Elizabeth to her quarters." John said as he begun tugging her by the elbow out the door.

"John what are you doing, I'm not going anywhere until we know what's going on and I certainly don't need a chaperone." Elizabeth said as she struggled against his hold.

She stopped suddenly as their eyes met and everything he was tired of fighting emerged through the gaps of his emotional defenses. Damn Athosian liquor. As they stared in each other's eyes, the resistance seemed to melt away from her limbs, but they hadn't taken two steps when John saw her.

Shrouded dimly in a veil of light, the Lady of the Night was heading towards them. Elizabeth sucked in her breath as she spotted her. Rather than being afraid, Elizabeth emerged from behind the arm he'd extended to stop her and began moving towards the apparition. It seemed to take no notice of her, at first anyway. The ghost seemed to be pacing back and forth looking below with concern as the costume clad staff wandered in and out of the party.

"She doesn't know its Halloween, she's worried about you." Elizabeth said, still moving forward.

"You didn't even know she existed until tonight, how could you possibly know what she's thinking." John asked.

"Trust me John, I know." Elizabeth said, moving closer still to the ghost.

John stopped and realized Lorne and Beckett had crept up behind him.

"Well I'll be…" Lorne said.

"We're not crazy, would you look at that?" Beckett said.

"What is it with you two?" John said, never taking his eyes from Elizabeth.

"You don't see it? Just wait, you will. Elizabeth sleepwalks, did you know that?" Beckett said.

"It's always on nights when you're MIA or in trouble somewhere. We've been taking turns watching her door since the sighting of the Lady of the Night became the hot topic on Atlantis. But there have been times when I've been off world trying to save your butt and Beckett hasn't been able to leave the infirmary. We've been reluctant to tell anyone else." Lorne said.

"Tell anyone else what?" John hissed.

"Elizabeth is the Lady of the Night. She's who the crew has been seeing wandering the halls when you're gone." Beckett said.

"Obviously not, look, there's Elizabeth and there's the Lady of the Night." John said. He hadn't seen either of them with a drink, but he was beginning to wonder.

"There have been a couple times when we walked Elizabeth back to her room and…." Lorne looked questioningly at Beckett.

"What?" John said growing frustrated.

"We'd turn around and see her back in the hall. But when we opened the door, Elizabeth was still in bed." Lorne said, looking embarrassed.

"What are you trying to tell me?" John said.

"We wondered if we were going crazy, if her worry was making us crazy along with her. You don't know what you do to her when you're off gallivanting about trying to kill yourself. It's a lot of work for us to try to keep her calm when you're gone." Beckett said.

"I still don't see any point here, there's Elizabeth, there's the ghost. You probably are crazy." John said taking a step towards Elizabeth, his insides still twisting as he digested their words. He knew she worried, but he'd never realized the extent to which he pushed her fears.

Then the ghost looked at him, smiling disconcertingly. John realized he was holding his breath as recognition dawned upon him. Damn it! Well, at least Elizabeth could stop being jealous. John looked to Elizabeth who was smiling contentedly at the apparition who was now rapidly approaching her. John moved behind Elizabeth, placing his hand on the small of her back. Reassuring himself, more than her. The apparition took notice and smiled immediately. She then took a step forward, and the figure's vision melded around and into Elizabeth. The ghost finally passed through her and reformed in front of John, smiling broadly before her figure began to melt away into blinding molecules of light.

"Elizabeth?" John asked.

"Yes. She's been here since we found her in the stasis pod, since she died here. She's been holding on waiting until…." Elizabeth said. She paused and her head tucked around, noticing Lorne and Beckett watching intently.

"I think you were showing me to my room?"

_ _ _

They had finally reached Elizabeth's door. "What was she waiting for?" John asked.

Elizabeth smiled. "The inevitable, I suppose. She needed to make sure what she had changed by going back in time…was…was corrected."

"What did she change? Did she just ascend?" John asked.

"I believe so. I'd like to think she'd earned ascension after sacrificing ten thousand years in a stasis pod to save the lives of the expedition. "She said.

"And you don't find that a little….creepy?" John asked.

"I find it comforting actually. We need someone up there on our side, I can't think of anyone better."

"I suppose you wouldn't." John said. "Still-"

Elizabeth silenced him when her hands reached around the sides of his neck. Caressing him gently, she looked deeply into his eyes. She pulled his lips to her own with a surprising ferociousness. His eyes closed as lost himself into the heat of her silent quest for answers. She startled him when she suddenly pulled away, licking her lips evocatively and looking extremely satisfied with whatever answer she'd found there.

"This is what she changed. She was waiting for us to find each other, to accept this gift of fate."

John had barely starting to feel like he was standing on solid ground since her lips left his and now; she'd sent him reeling again. He wondered how it had been different before, when the other Elizabeth had gone through the gate. They would have had very little time and yet…she'd held off ascension to make sure they found each other again? She'd wandered the halls of Atlantis worrying about him? As had the Elizabeth before him now he realized, trying to focus his eyes upon her.

Elizabeth broke through his thoughts. "Hey, you still in there? You owe me a song you know. You never got to play and I never got to hear all of that Johnny Cash cover. Want to come in?"

Settled in a chair in Elizabeth's room, John pulled the guitar from his case. He thought he'd managed to escape the night without actually playing the guitar. He'd really only drug it out just to irritate McKay. But as he watched her nestle into her bed to listen, he realized he didn't really mind. His fingers began to strum the chords on the guitar and he took a quick sip of the punch Elizabeth had retrieved and began to sing.

"First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" as covered by Johnny Cash

The first time ever I saw your face, I thought the sun rose in your eyes.
And the moon and stars were the gifts you gave,
To the dark and the endless sky, my love.
And the first time ever I kissed your mouth,
I felt the earth move through my hands.
Like the trembling heart of a captive bird
That was there at my command.

Elizabeth had fallen into sleep before John even finished the song. He gently pulled the covers over her and pressed a kiss to her forehead before regretfully slipping out of her room. He hated to leave, but somehow didn't feel he'd yet earned the right to stay.

He crashed into Lorne pacing in the hallway. "What the hell!"

"Sorry sir, didn't realize you were in there. Zelenka reported the power supply had stabilized, I just wanted to make sure there were no more Lady of the Night sightings." Lorne said.

"I don't think we have to worry about that anymore, I think the Lady of the Night has been appeased. The light we saw, that was her ascending." John said.

"Hard to imagine sir, Beckett and I thought we were crazy. Guess there was a good reason they looked just alike-"

Lorne was interrupted by the opening of the door. Elizabeth floated out walking on her tiptoes. She had changed into a white silky flowing bathrobe-identical to the gown the ghost Elizabeth had worn- and was clutching one of the glow sticks John had stocked her room with for emergency situations. John found it hard to believe, even seeing it himself. Elizabeth sleepwalking seemed so out of contrast with the carefully controlled calm and poised leadership that the leader gave to their city every day. He smiled as she started to tiptoe down the hall and the pale light from the stick radiated about her casting a ghostly appearance across her luminous pale skin. He kind of liked seeing her vulnerable side, he just wished she was doing so consciously.

"See!" Lorne said with vindication.

John's wide eyes turned upon Lorne but for a second before dashing after Elizabeth.

She seemed startled to see him at first; her green eyes were blinking rapidly. Then she threw herself into his arms. "I knew you would be okay." She breathed into his ear. He could only imagine what kind of nightmare she'd had, the kind of nightmares he'd caused her.

He led her gingerly back to her room. As he passed by Lorne he whispered, "Let's just keep all this between us."

"Don't worry Major; I've had months of practice at keeping her secrets." Lorne said as he walked away.

John guided Elizabeth back into her bed. When her arms pulled him down beside her, he was more than happy to allow her to nestle against him as she settled back into slumber. He began to softly sing the rest of the song he'd begun earlier.

And the first time ever I lay with you,
I felt your heart so close to mine.
And I know our joy would fill the earth,
And last till the end of time, my love.

The first time ever I saw your face.

"Hmm, love you too." Elizabeth muttered before pressing a soft kiss into his neck.

John's neck burned pleasantly where her lips had brushed against him; he tugged her closer into her arms. As her breath deepened against his neck, he groaned. His fingertips stretched painfully to reach her cup of punch on the table. He needed… something. If he had any hopes of sleeping tonight with her at his side…he needed something to dull his senses. Because he didn't plan to let her out of his sight any time soon.