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Addison's introduction to Ladies Poker Night was Laura Cadman shutting the door in her face telling her not to come back without chocolate.
Fifteen minutes later, after intervention from Kate Heightmeyer, she was seated on a cushion next to Teyla with a cold glass - filled with strange brown liquid - laughing at one of Teyla's many stories. The five women sat in a loose circle on the floor in Laura's room, cards laid out in the center and individually wrapped chocolate bars piled neatly in front of each woman.
Addison had learnt quickly that the Ladies Poker Night was clearly held sacred by the women on base, and while the night itself was regular, the participants depended on the time and whatever projects were on going. Tonight, along with Kate, Teyla, Laura and Addison, Sam Carter was - in a rare moment of free time - still laughing into her free hand.
It wasn't so much about trying to win as much chocolate from their fellow teammates but about taking a break and just have a girl's night. Laura had mentioned that Rodney McKay had once tried to find a way in - hacking into the security cameras in the mess one night when they'd booked them room, which had led to the travelling status of the event from room to room depending on the participants for the evening. Laura, Kate and Teyla were the most frequent of the ladies, with Miko and Emily putting in an appearance whenever they could. They'd even dragged Jennifer down from the infirmary in her first few weeks because they thought she worked too hard.
"What about you?" Teyla asked, turning to Addison. "Surely you have some amusing stories you can share with us? Perhaps about Col. Sheppard - he has said that you two knew each other before the Atlantis mission."
Addison raised an eyebrow, praying fervently that her face didn't go red, while Sam choked on her drink. Kate managed to keep her composure, but Laura look intrigued. "Really? Knew? Or knew?"
She had to laugh. "I spent a lot of time working in military hospitals, and I met him while he was training on base," Addison told Cadman, hoping that it would satisfy curiousity for the time being. She doubted it would. "He was a newly minted Lieutenant," she added, nodding to Teyla. "Always getting into trouble. Dragged a lot of people along with him. Willingly, of course."
Laura groaned. "How annoyingly vague," she complained.
"It's probably classified," Sam reminded her.
"And in his file. Which you've read," Laura pointed out.
The biggest rule of Ladies Poker Night was the dissolution of title or rank. Laura wasn't a lieutenant, Sam wasn't a Colonel, and Kate and Addison were not doctors. While she could not have said that to Sam at any other time, she could - within reason - say whatever she liked in the few hours they spent together. Nothing left the room.
It was, Addison thought, rather therapeutic. In a high schools gossip session kind of way.
Teyla ignored them both. "Were you friends?"
Out the corner of her eye, Addison saw Kate's composure falter. Of the four other women in the room, only Sam and Kate knew of her previous marriage to John Sheppard, over ten years prior to the Atlantis mission. While there was no reason to hide it, John hadn't seen fit to mention it to anyone - including his team - and she'd been quite happy to follow his lead. In any case, giving that knowledge away wasn't going to do anything but incite the rumour mill in the city.
"I suppose you could call it that," she told Teyla, trying to twist her own words so they weren't whole lies. "I was an intern at the time, and all the men on base - including John - were always eager to try and mess with the new people, particularly when we grounded them on medical basis. It was never anything personal, but no one likes to be told they can't go on a mission because their doctor has overruled them. He was, as I remember, quite popular among the nursing staff." She grinned.
"He spent a lot of time in the hospital?" Kate asked.
Addison nodded. "Visiting friends, mostly."
"His popularity amongst the nursing staff hasn't changed," Laura muttered under her breath and they all started laughing again.
"So I've heard," Addison replied, when she'd regained her composure. "I'm sure he's performed his fair share of noteworthy antics in Atlantis?"
Not to let the opportunity pass, Laura spoke up again. "Well, there was the giant jello explosion-"
"One of the training rooms was covered in blue jello for three days," Kate filled in the blank.
"- and the time he tried to convince MacKay to go diving off one of the platforms-"
"Rodney locked John out of his own quarters for two days in retribution," Teyla added.
Sam frowned. "Didn't I read something about a show game of football that he organised?"
Laura, Teyla and Kate all pulled a face at that.
"Yes," Teyla confirmed. "He was trying to teach a number of Athosian children the rules of the game and thought that it would be most beneficial for them to watch a real game-"
"-by enlisting the help of the first group of marines who would form one of the teams-" Kate explained. The thread was picked up by Laura, who was giggling at the memory:
"- most of whom were avid football fans and were, well... competitive. Dr. Weir told them that they could play it in the city if they could find a space big enough."
Sam was listening to the story avidly. "I assume they did?"
All three women telling the story nodded.
Addison wasn't quite sure she wanted to hear the rest of story; it could only end badly. "What happened?"
Teyla sighed. "They broke a window."
"And lost the football," Laura added.
"And two marines, three Athosians, and Col. Sheppard all ended up in the infirmary with minor injuries," Kate finished.
Addison groaned. "Typical." She put her empty glass on the floor, suddenly feeling light-headed from whatever had been in the liquid and the constant laughter. "Am I to assume that that is not a one-off incident?"
Teyla shook her head, containing her laughter behind another amused smile.
"Great," Addison muttered, shaking her head. "Jenn knows?"
Kate nodded, and Sam shook her head in amusement.
Laura lent across the circle, gathering up all the cards. "Right," she said cheerfully. "Who's for another round?" She was sitting on a mean-looking pile of chocolate, having been on a winning streak all night.
"Only if there's more to drink," Addison told her, pushing the glass in Laura's direction. The marine lieutenant scowled.
Teyla pushed her glass towards Laura, too, and the lieutenant's resolve faded under the sweet smile on the Athosian woman's face. "And perhaps Samantha might share some stories with us now?"
"Uh-" The amused smirk on the colonel's face faded, to renewed laughter amongst the group.
Kate grinned brightly. "Everyone takes a turn."
With the attention shifted off of herself, Addison joined in the teasing.