Title: A Better Fate
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Pairing: McKay/Sheppard
Categories: Earth!fic, h/c
Length: Long
Warnings: none

Author on LJ: mmmchelle
Website: http://chelle.slashcity.org/

Review:
Coming back to Earth soon after a particularly horrific off-world mission, John and Rodney are ordered to take a couple weeks leave. They end up spending the time with John's parents, quietly healing each other and discovering a whole new facet to their relationship.

Most fic (including mine, I have to admit) paints John's parents (read: dad) as cold and uncaring. Chelle goes a different direction in this story, and it really pays off. John's parents are lovely, wonderful people, but they're also very liberal and they have a hard time accepting that John is in the military. This adds a delicious low-level tension that blends in with John and Rodney's personal demons to create quiet, realistic conflict underscored by open, unconditional love. A sweet, gentle fic, perfect for a quiet afternoon read.

A Better Fate