Storytime with Rachel F Hundred

Three Months Ago

The sound of their boots hitting the ramp filled Sam with the sense of home and belonging.  She smiled happily at the waiting and almost fidgeting figure of Jack O’Neill and his body relaxed into what was becoming a familiar ‘SG1 is back and I can stop worrying’ stance.  She figured it was all part of his adjustment to being the General in charge of Stargate Command rather than the leader of SG1.  She empathised with the struggle; she was still adjusting to stepping into the SG1 team leader position.

‘Carter,’ Jack greeted her cheerfully, ‘I take it the mission was successful?’

‘We’ve established a preliminary agreement with Commander Gareth and the Rand Protectorate,’ Sam confirmed.

‘Their society is fascinating,’ Daniel interjected enthusiastically.  ‘They’re a bizarre mix of Earth circa ‘Forties and ‘Eighties.’

‘Daniel Jackson asked many questions about their social and cultural situation, O’Neill,’ Teal’c confirmed.

Sam hid her smile at Teal’c’s words.  He would definitely know since she’d assigned him as Daniel’s escort while she talked with the Commander.

‘I look forward to the debrief,’ Jack claimed insincerely.

Sam smiled with unhidden amusement at that.  ‘Yes, sir.’ 

She inclined her head towards the doors; they all started moving out of the gate room, handing off their weapons as they continue on towards the infirmary to have their post mission medical checks.

The medley of tests was routine enough that Sam tuned out through most of it, letting her mind run over the experiments she had running in her lab and the ones she had slated to review. 

The game chair from P7J989 was being brought to the SGC from Area 51 for beta testing. Bill Lee had been giddy about it at the science briefing that week.  It would be interesting to see whether the virtual training programme would work.  Sam knew General Hammond had hoped it would reduce the reliance on using the base in training simulations, Jack just hated the very idea of the game chair which wasn’t surprising given his experience with it.

She bit her lip.

She was thinking more and more of Jack as Jack rather than his military rank.  Some of it was the sheer weirdness of calling him ‘General’ rather than ‘Colonel.’  It hadn’t escaped her notice that she rarely verbalised his rank preferring to stick to ‘sir.’  ‘Jack’ seemed less weird than ‘General’ for all she’d rarely called him by his first name.  She’d had permission for years. Like a lot of senior officers, he wasn’t one for standing on the formalities in private settings when it was just the team.  She’d always stuck to ‘Colonel’ to quell any gossip about them. But maybe…she was with Pete, Jack was a General, and the possibility of Sam and Jack having any kind of a romantic relationship seemed as remote as it had ever been. 

They were friends, Sam reminded herself.  Good friends, even.  It was something she treasured beyond the measure of it.  If she wanted more than that sometimes, well, it was something she would keep to herself.

She huffed out a breath.

She had Pete and she knew she really needed to make a decision on whether to keep seeing him.  Their relationship was…it was fine. 

God.

She could almost hear Janet cackling in her ear.  She missed her best friend; missed talking to her.  It had barely been five months since Janet’s death and it felt like a lifetime ago.

Speaking of doctors, Sam mused, glancing at the clock.  She’d been left alone for a while; she wondered what was going on with her medical check.

As though her thought had conjured her up, Doctor Anna Brightman strode into the exam room, her white coat almost billowing behind her. 

‘Sorry to keep you waiting, Colonel,’ Anna said briskly.  ‘I had a phone call with General Hammond run long.’

‘Not a problem,’ Sam assured her.  She regarded Anna thoughtfully as the doctor perused the information on the clipboard.  ‘Tell me to mind my own business, but is everything OK?’

Anna clutched the clipboard to her and met Sam’s eyes.  ‘General Hammond offered me a new position.’

‘Oh,’ Sam murmured.

‘With the set-up of Homeworld Security, they’re going to establish a medical centre for Stargate personnel at Bethesda and he…he’s asked me to lead on it,’ Anna said.

‘Congratulations,’ Sam said sincerely.  Anna was a brilliant doctor.  She’d been Janet’s second for years. 

‘Thank you, but I don’t know if I’m going to take it,’ Anna demurred.

‘Why not?’ asked Sam, taken aback.  She would have thought it was a great opportunity.

Anna sighed.  ‘Janet recommended me for this post and…it’s only been a few months.’  She shook her head and Sam was impressed that not one single hair shifted from the smooth chignon Anna typically wore.  ‘I feel like if I took the new post…’ she stopped abruptly.

‘You’d be letting Janet down,’ Sam completed.

Anna nodded her head, a sheepish expression crawling over her usually professional demeanour.

Sam pressed her lips together. ‘Look, I can’t speak for Janet but…what do you honestly think she’d say if she was here?’

Anna closed her eyes briefly and opened them to look at Sam with a mixture of sadness and realisation.  ‘She’d think it was a brilliant career move for me.’

Sam nodded.  ‘So…’

‘So, I should probably accept General Hammond’s offer,’ Anna sighed heavily.  ‘I still feel like I’m letting you all down.’

‘Anna, we’ll all miss you,’ Sam said, honestly because although the team had never had the closeness with Anna they’d had with Janet, Anna had been an appreciated continuity after Janet’s death, ‘but we’ll be happy for you too.’

Anna smiled softly.  ‘Thank you, Sam.’

Sam returned the smile.  ‘Am I clear to…’

‘Oh, yes,’ Anna nodded, ‘you’re free to go.  All the tests came back clean. Doctor Carmichael cleared Daniel and Teal’c already.’

‘Great,’ Sam said, jumping down from the bed and grabbing for her discarded BDU shirt.  She paused at the door and turned around, debating whether to ask Anna about her situation with Pete but…she pinned a bright smile on her face in response to Anna’s inquisitive look and headed to her lab.

Maybe an hour of focusing on her experiments would help clear her head.

Sam’s lab had been her safe space for as long as she could remember and stepping inside she could feel the tension draining out of her.

She logged on and checked the schedule; the debrief was in the calendar for the next day.  She sighed and stretched.  She might as well get her report over with, Sam determined.  It had been a fairly straightforward first contact mission; Commander Gareth seemed a reasonable leader and not a power hungry despot so…she was planning to recommend they continue a relationship, but it was difficult to see what the Rand could offer them in any kind of alliance.  She opened up a new AAR and began typing.

She’d just finished when the phone rang startling her enough for a small jump in her chair.  She rolled her eyes at her own reaction and picked it up.

‘Colonel Carter,’ Sam answered crisply.

‘Hi,’ Pete’s cheerful tone carried across the telephone line.

Her nerves fluttered unhappily inside her.  She was certain that wasn’t the response she should have to her boyfriend.

‘Pete,’ she tried for an equally cheerful tone and winced visibly, confident she’d missed the mark by a lot. 

‘Sorry for calling you at work but when you didn’t pick up at the house I figured you were still at the base,’ Pete said hurriedly.

Sam shot a look at the clock on the computer monitor and winced again.  ‘Sorry, I have some experiments running.’  Were they meant to have had a call that evening?

‘Not a problem,’ Pete hastened to assure her, ‘I just thought I’d call and see if you were free tomorrow evening for a dinner date? Dave just called and requested me for a consult.’

Dave was Captain David Hook of Colorado Springs Police Department, Sam remembered.  He was Pete’s main contact. 

Dinner.

Pete had asked her to dinner.

‘I could do dinner,’ Sam acquiesced.  It wasn’t like Pete got to Colorado Springs often anymore with the case he’d been working on all wrapped up. 

‘Great, I’ll pick you up at eight,’ Pete said brightly.  ‘Oh, by the way, tell Teal’c the way he dealt with that bodega hold-up was awesome.’

‘What?’ asked Sam, her brow furrowing in confusion.

‘Oh I guess he hasn’t had time to tell you yet,’ Pete said.  ‘Dave mentioned it when he called.  Apparently Teal’c stopped his corner store from getting robbed this evening?  He walked on a couple of teens holding Mister Chen at gunpoint, but he managed to disarm and restrain them without anyone getting hurt. Dave remembered that he was a friend of yours from when you picked up Cassie that time.’

Sam closed her eyes in frustration.  God.  She was going to get another visit from Colonel Kendrick from the Office of Special Investigations who was overseeing Teal’c’s permission to live off base.  The guy was a dick and he hated Teal’c.

‘Sam?’

Pete’s hesitant prompt had her opening her eyes.

‘Sorry,’ Sam said, ‘I was just wondering if Teal’c is OK.  I should probably check on him.’  And remind him again that he was meant to be keeping a low profile.

‘If it helps Dave did say no-one was hurt,’ Pete said. 

Sam bit her lip.  ‘It helps.  Hey, I’ve got to go, I’ll see you tomorrow, OK?’

‘OK, love you,’ Pete said.

‘Bye,’ Sam concluded awkwardly, not comfortable returning the sentiment especially not in her workplace.  She rubbed her forehead as she set the phone down.

What the hell was she going to do about Pete?

Sam sighed and looked up at the ceiling as though it was capable of giving her advice.  She wished Janet was there to talk to again because she really couldn’t talk to the guys about Pete.  She thought back to what she’d said to Anna – what would Janet have said if Sam had asked her?

Maybe Janet would have asked what Sam wanted…

Sam chewed on her lip. 

The problem was she didn’t know.  She’d started going out with Pete to move on from Jack, had started to really like him only to discover he’d run a background check and stalked her.  She’d called a timeout on their relationship for a while and for the past five months had only started casually dating him again.

Sam breathed in deeply.

The original reason hadn’t gone away.  Sam had to move on from Jack; the regulations existed for a reason and beyond that, the General didn’t see her that way.  If she wanted a life outside of work, a romantic relationship with someone, she had to look elsewhere.

Pete was the elsewhere.  He was a good elsewhere.  He was a fundamentally decent guy.  Yes, the background check and the stalking had been a mistake but…Janet had once said to her that if Sam thought she was invested, that if the relationship had legs, to give him a second chance.

She’d also said it was a red flag though.

Sam sighed.

It was a red flag, but she understood it stemmed from the insecurity and trust issues Pete wrestled with thanks to his ex.  And Pete hadn’t stepped a foot out of line in the months since.  He was a good guy.  Sure, he sometimes struggled with her refusal to tell him anything about her work, but he was sweet with her.  He left her cute voicemails that said he was thinking about her; bought her ‘just because’ flowers; always made himself available to her when she was on Earth.

She could forgive him for one mistake.  God knew he put up with a lot from her.  She was a terrible girlfriend.  She’d originally only begun their relationship to try and get over her feelings for Jack. She rarely remembered to call him.  She stood him up constantly due to the weird scheduling of her work and her own avoidance at times.   

But she knew some of that was her own uncertainty about the relationship, and some of it had been PTSD from a human form replicator using Pete’s image in a fantasy world he’d constructed after torturing her for hours. 

OK, Sam thought.  She had three options.

Firstly, she could call it a day with Pete and give up on the idea of having any life outside of her career.  She shook her head.  Hadn’t she already decided not to do it?  Janet said she deserved to be happy and she’d always encouraged her to date and get out more.

So, secondly, she could call it a day with Pete and find someone else. 

She rolled her eyes at that thought.

Maybe some of her behaviour was rooted in her uncertainty, but there weren’t many guys who would put up with last minute cancellations and the focus her work demanded.  Not to mention she figured anyone else she dated was going to have a similar problem to Pete’s original issue with her; that she had a secret working life that she couldn’t talk about.  At least, Pete knew about her work on the Stargate even if it had been his previous bad behaviour which had facilitated him finding out.

Staying with Pete would definitely be easier than finding someone else.

But that wasn’t the only reason, Sam hurriedly assured herself.  Hadn’t she already told herself already how great Pete was as a boyfriend?  How considerate?  He was kind, thoughtful, funny.  She had been charmed by him when they’d started seeing each other.

Third option then; she finally forgave Pete wholly, put the red flag and Replicator business in the past, and tried to actually make the relationship a success on her side, tried to be a good girlfriend.

Her stomach churned with new nerves. 

Third option, Sam decided, her mouth dry and her heart beating fast in her chest.  She’d use their date the following day to make a fresh start. 

But , Sam thought dragging her mind back from the matter of her love life, first things first, she needed to do damage control on the whole Teal’c thing and find some way to convince Teal’c he had to stop being so…Teal’c.

Sam snorted.  God.  She really missed Janet.     

o-O-o

Present Day

‘Well, I’m glad to say that your injuries have healed well,’ Doctor Carmichael informed him crisply.

Daniel shrugged into a clean BDU shirt with a grimace as the remaining ache around his rib protested.  ‘I was well taken care of on the planet,’ he said quietly, thinking of how Leda had nursed him back to health.

Guilt fluttered through him. 

His relationship with Leda was complicated.  He’d been on his way to falling for her, had known she was on her way to falling for him when he’d found out she was married to Jared.  Afterwards, he’d pulled back unwilling to betray the friendship he’d built with Jared.  Yet he’d used Leda’s feelings for him to help sway Jared’s mind; to convince him to give Daniel’s plan a chance.

‘I’d like you to make an appointment with Doctor Mackenzie…’

‘I actually see Doctor Azjamin these days,’ Daniel cut in, reminding himself that Carmichael probably had limited knowledge of Daniel’s history with the psychiatrist.

‘Right,’ Carmichael nodded, ‘well, please set up an appointment with her.  Given your experience I’d like you to have an evaluation before signing off on your return to duty.’   

Daniel grimaced, but he nodded rather than argue. 

‘You’re expected to debrief tomorrow,’ Carmichael continued, ‘but you’re free to leave the base.’

‘Thank you, Doctor,’ Daniel said politely and made his escape.

He wasn’t surprised to find Teal’c waiting for him in the locker room. 

‘Hey,’ Daniel greeted him tiredly, ‘you didn’t need to hang around for me.’

‘I have been driving your vehicle in your absence, Daniel Jackson,’ Teal’c informed him warmly, ‘and require your assistance in returning to my home.’

‘Right,’ Daniel figured it was an excuse, but he wasn’t going to complain.  He liked knowing his friends cared about him to check up on him.

‘Colonel Carter sends her apologies, but Detective Shanahan was unexpectedly available this evening,’ Teal’c said as Daniel shrugged on his usual jacket and wondered where the one he’d worn on Tegalus had gone; he’d liked that jacket. 

‘She OK?’ asked Daniel.

‘She has been most concerned regarding your fate, Daniel Jackson,’ Teal’c said solemnly, ‘as has O’Neill.’

‘I was kind of concerned back there for a while myself,’ Daniel agreed.  He shut his locker and they headed out of the mountain.

Teal’c remained silent as they drove out of the base and Daniel was left to delve into his own thoughts.  He wondered what was happening back on Tegalus; what was happening with Leda.  He hoped she was alright and…and he shouldn’t be thinking about another man’s wife.

Daniel cleared his throat.  ‘Teal’c, uh, you’ve lost the women you’ve loved, right?  I mean, rhetorical question because obviously I know the answer and…’ he sighed heavily, discomfort rolling through him at the awkwardness of what he was doing, ‘and I should just shut up.’

‘You may ask me any question you wish, Daniel Jackson,’ Teal’c said firmly. 

Daniel quickly glanced over and found Teal’c regarding him with quiet concern.  ‘Thank you,’ he said, ‘I just…’ he lifted a hand briefly from the steering wheel, ‘I’m not sure what I want to ask.’

But he did know, really.

‘I just,’ Daniel sighed again, ‘when do you know you are ready to move on?’  He could feel Teal’c’s gaze on him as they drifted to a stop at a red light. 

‘I believe there is no easy answer,’ Teal’c said.  ‘My relationships with Drey’auc and Sho’nac were complex.  It was not until I found myself thinking of another that I knew.’

Daniel sighed again at the truthful answer.  ‘There was someone on the planet…I think I could have…’ he gestured vaguely.

The light turned green.

‘She was married so…nothing happened,’ Daniel shrugged.  ‘I was just wondering if this meant I was ready.’

‘I believe when you meet the right person you will know,’ Teal’c assured him.

‘Like you did with Ishta,’ Daniel glanced over and was surprised by the flicker of something which crossed Teal’c’s face at the mention of his Jaffa girlfriend.

‘Indeed,’ Teal’c murmured.

Daniel frowned.  ‘You, uh…is everything OK with Ishta?’ 

SG1 had been scheduled for the supply run to Hak’tyl, he remembered; it was why Sam and Teal’c hadn’t been his escort on Tegalus.

‘I believe the current vernacular is that we are taking a break,’ Teal’c informed him grumpily.  ‘Ishta was not pleased with my decision to live outside of the base and procure a home on Earth.  I reminded her that we are not yet committed to each other in such a way for her opinion to be considered in such matters.’

‘Ouch,’ Daniel muttered, raising his eyebrows a little.

‘We will discuss the matter when we return next month to discuss the situation with Moloc,’ Teal’c said. 

‘And until then you’re on a break?’ checked Daniel.

‘Cassandra Frasier has informed me that this is the correct expression,’ Teal’c said.

Daniel wondered when they’d all started taking romantic advice from Janet’s adopted daughter and determined he really didn’t want to think about it.  God, he missed Janet. 

Maybe that’s why he’d been so attracted to Leda; she’d reminded him of Janet with how she’d taken care of him; how brave she’d been.  Only he hadn’t been ready for Janet.  Maybe he’d gotten there eventually if she hadn’t died.  Sadness suffused him.

Daniel pulled up in front of Teal’c’s apartment. 

‘Would you care to come inside?’ Teal’c offered.

‘Thanks, but I’ve been looking forward to sleeping in my own bed,’ Daniel quipped.

‘Very well, Daniel Jackson,’ Teal’c said, ‘another time.’

‘I’ll pick you up in the morning,’ Daniel confirmed. 

He watched as Teal’c disappeared into his apartment complex.  He shook himself slightly and started the car up again.  He was home.  Maybe he should focus on that and forget about his love life for a while. 

o-O-o

Two months ago

Sam rapped sharply on the jamb of Daniel’s office door. 

Daniel looked up from the book he was reading, slapping it shut one-handed.  He blinked at her blankly, swivelling around on the tall stool he sat upon to look at her.

‘You got a minute?’ Sam asked.

‘Sure,’ Daniel waved her in.

Sam closed the door behind her and wasn’t surprised when Daniel’s eyebrows rose at the action.  They rarely closed doors.

‘Is everything OK?’ asked Daniel, his tone brimming with concern.

‘You tell me,’ Sam said, walking up to stand at the end of the centre table directly across from him.

Daniel’s face was the very picture of befuddlement.  He clearly had no idea why she’d cornered him in his office.

Sam repressed the urge to sigh and to cross her arms defensively over her body.  She met Daniel’s gaze firmly.  ‘The General just informed me that you’re heading out tomorrow with SG9 to Tegalus.’

‘Yes?’ There was at least a note of hesitancy in his voice.

Sam placed her hands behind her back, entwining them closely together.  ‘You don’t see anything wrong with that statement?’

‘No?’ Daniel offered, again with a note of hesitancy.

Sam hummed.  ‘Who is your team leader, Daniel?’

‘You,’ Daniel said immediately which helped soothe the knot in her stomach which had formed when she’d realised she had to have this conversation with him in addition to the one she’d already had with Jack.

‘And who should you talk to first about your assignments?’ Sam continued pointedly.

Daniel’s eyes widened behind his glasses as he got hit by the clue bus.  ‘Ah.’ 

‘Look,’ Sam said, ‘I know we’re all adjusting but this isn’t the first time you’ve basically ignored my position as your team leader and jumped straight to discussing things with the General.’

Daniel winced. 

‘Do you…’ Sam paused and took another breath to give herself more time to ask the question she didn’t want to ask.  ‘Do you have an issue with my being team leader?’

‘No!’ Daniel almost shouted the word.  ‘Of course not!’  He shook his head before meeting her gaze again.  ‘I’m sorry, Sam.  I just…’ he sighed heavily, ‘didn’t think.’

Sam felt the sincerity of the apology.  She knew he meant it.  She bit her lip and swallowed the follow-up words she wanted to say; the ones where she explicitly pointed out how disrespectful he’d been to her in cutting her out of the loop, how embarrassing it had been to hear from Jack about Daniel’s assignment and the awkward conversation she’d had with him about also respecting her position – at least he had given her blanket permission to kick his ass when he stepped on her toes after they’d both shifted ranks and she’d used it.

‘Look, the General had every right to agree to your request,’ Sam began quietly, because she had acknowledged that with Jack too, ‘he is the Man,’ she quipped trying for a lighter tone, ‘but I need both of you to, you know, keep me in the loop and discuss stuff with me hopefully before the actual decisions are made.’

‘I will, I promise,’ Daniel said sheepishly.  ‘I’m just so used to it always being Jack, I really didn’t think, Sam.’

Sam nodded.  ‘Like I said, we’re all adjusting.’

Daniel slid off the stool and came around the table.  She wasn’t surprised when he opened his arms to offer her a hug and she stepped into it, hugging him tightly in return.

‘I really am sorry,’ Daniel said quietly.

Sam patted his back and moved out of the embrace to point at the book he’d been reading.  ‘Is that prep for your visit tomorrow?’

‘Yeah,’ Daniel shoved his hands in his pockets, ‘it’s a book on religious extremism.  I was hoping it might offer some insight into how to head off the faction the Rand Protectorate are dealing with.’

‘I’m not sure that’s possible,’ Sam mused out loud.

Daniel shot her a questioning look.

Sam shrugged.  ‘Radical religious extremists never listen to reason, Daniel.  They’re the hardest enemy to fight because nothing with placate them or change their minds.  We know that from our own experiences on Earth never mind from fighting the Goa’uld.’

‘Yeah, that’s what I was thinking which means the situation there is…a war waiting to happen,’ Daniel murmured.  He wrinkled his nose.  ‘I just…I just hope we can help them avert it somehow.’

‘Me too,’ Sam offered.  She tapped her hand lightly on the table and took a step toward the door.

‘Hey, you want to grab some dinner?’ Daniel suggested.  ‘Consider it my apology?’

Sam bit her lip and shook her head.  ‘Sorry, I have plans with Pete tonight.  Maybe when you get back from Tegalus?’

‘Sure,’ Daniel agreed, although his surprise was written all over his face.  ‘How are things with Pete?’

Sam’s smile was genuine.  ‘Good.’ 

And they really were.  The couple of dates they’d managed in the past month had been fun.  Sam was enjoying Pete’s company, enjoying having a life outside of work.

It was good. 

Fine.  

Sam pointed at the door.  ‘Speaking of which, I should head out.’

Daniel nodded and waved her out.  ‘See you tomorrow?’

Sam nodded.  ‘I’ll be in the gate room to see you off.’ 

And to remind SG9’s team leader to watch Daniel’s back.  She’d pointed out to Jack that was also her job with his promotion.

o-O-o

Present day

Daniel bounded down the SGC corridor and into Sam’s lab only to stop short when he realised she was on the phone.

Sam looked up and held up a finger at him to signal she’d only be a minute.  ‘…yes, Colonel, I understand the implications for Teal’c’s continuing permission to live off base as does Teal’c.’

There was a pause while she listened. 

Sam caught Daniel’s eyes as he moved further into the lab.  She rolled hers expressively and Daniel bit back a smile.

‘Yes, Colonel,’ Sam said politely, ‘however as I’ve been trying to explain, I’ve discussed this latest incident with the bulldog with General O’Neill and he’ll be liaising with you going forward on this matter.’  She tapped her fingers impatiently on the table.  ‘Thank you; goodbye, Colonel.’

The last word was spoken in the same tone as someone calling a bad name. 

Daniel’s face wrinkled in confusion.  ‘How’d you get Jack to agree to that?’

Sam smiled at him wryly.  ‘Same way I got him to agree that he should give you the ‘when I tell you to leave when it goes squirly; you leave’ talk.’

Daniel felt his face heat under her pointed look.

‘It’s his apology for getting a little frustrated during the whole search for you,’ Sam concluded.

‘Ah,’ Daniel pressed his lips.  Jack always got frustrated when one of them was missing. 

‘Besides,’ Sam continued, starting to tidy up the papers she had laid out, ‘it’s not like Teal’c is paying any attention to me so…’

Daniel frowned as he pushed his hands into his pockets.  ‘You know that’s not out of any disrespect for you though, right?  Teal’c respects the hell out of you.’

‘Oh, I know,’ Sam agreed cheerfully, ‘it’s just Teal’c being Teal’c.’  She grinned at him.  ‘I might have read Teal’c’s evaluation on my leadership.’

‘I thought those were meant to be secret,’ Daniel said amused and half-wondering if she’d read his.  Maybe not given she’d had to ask him if he was OK with her leadership when he’d made the mistake of asking Jack for permission to go back to Tegalus, forgetting Sam was his team leader.  If he was honest, he was a little surprised she’d told Jack to discipline him on his insubordination.  Or maybe not.  It had been Jack’s decision to let him go back to Tegalus; maybe it was a way of punishing them both for cutting her out of the loop to begin with.

‘Eh,’ Sam continued to grin.  ‘Anyway, I’m glad the General’s taking over with Kendrick,’ she said, ‘if I have to berate Teal’c for a good Samaritan act again only for him to turn around and ask me ‘would you not do the same to rescue the dog, Colonel Carter?’’ she sighed.

‘With or without the eyebrow?’ joked Daniel.

Sam smiled broadly at him as she continued to tidy up the stack of folders in front of her.  ‘How are you, anyway?  I’m sorry I couldn’t stay last night to see you home.’

‘I’m good,’ Daniel said, pushing his glasses up his nose.  ‘Glad to be home, you know?’

Sam nodded.

‘Teal’c explained that you had plans with Pete,’ Daniel said. 

‘Yeah, I’d cancelled on him while you were gone so…’ Sam said.  ‘He’s been pretty great about it.’

Daniel raised his eyebrows a little at that.  Sam sounded charmed in a way she hadn’t since the start of the relationship.  ‘Yeah?’

‘Yeah,’ Sam said, stacking the folders into a pile, ‘I mean, most guys would have run for the hills the amount of times I’ve had to cancel on him.’

‘Sounds like things are going well,’ Daniel commented, unsure how he felt about that.  Pete Shanahan wasn’t who he would have chosen for Sam.  Then again, he mused, the only man he might have chosen for Sam hadn’t fought for her either so…

Still, if things got serious between Sam and Pete, Daniel hated to think how much that was going to hurt Jack.

‘They are,’ Sam seemed almost surprised by her own answer.  She shook herself a little and waved at the open door. ‘Ready for the debrief?’

‘Looking forward to getting it over with,’ Daniel said honestly.

Sam patted his arm as they fell into step and headed for the elevator.

o-O-o

Six weeks ago

Sam frowned down at the rough maps they’d had drawn up of the bunker.  It was everything she, Teal’c and SG9 could remember about the layout.  It’s accurate enough that they can plan an assault, that was all Sam cared about.

‘Carter,’ Jack entered the lab, hands in his pockets, BDU sleeves rolled up to his elbows. 

If Sam ignored the stars on his uniform and the ‘Gen O’Neill’ on his stitching she could almost believe he was still just a Colonel.

‘Sir,’ Sam said quietly.

‘It’s late,’ Jack said, ‘shouldn’t all good Lieutenant Colonel’s be in bed?’

‘I just wanted to finish reviewing these,’ Sam demurred.

‘Uh-huh,’ Jack leaned down so his elbows were flat with the lab table, his hands clasped in front of him.  ‘Maps of the Rand bunker?’

‘I thought it would be good to prepare in case…’ Sam began.

Jack waved her off.  ‘Believe me, I’d rather we were planning a rescue mission rather than the diplomatic crap we did today.’

Diplomatic crap being making first contact with the religious faction which had taken over the Rand Protectorate and agreeing they could send a team through to discuss their concerns about their missing team member with Soren, their leader. 

‘Apparently,’ Jack continued, ‘invading and taking over the bunker would be bad.’

Sam’s lips twitched despite the circumstances.  ‘Do you think Daniel got out?’

‘I think if they had him, they’d be keen to leverage that,’ Jack replied seriously.  ‘Besides, Daniel is…Daniel.  How many times have we thought he’s dead and he’s, you know, fine.’

Sam nodded slowly.  Daniel did have a remarkable record of turning up alive.  It was just that one time when he hadn’t…

‘I’ve asked Sergeant Harriman to prepare recording and analysis tools for when we dial the Stargate to Tegalus,’ Sam said, ‘if Daniel is alive…’

‘He’ll be trying to contact us,’ Jack completed.  He tapped the table and shifted to stand again.  ‘You should get some rest.  You and Teal’c will be heading out with SG9 tomorrow to meet with Soren.’

‘Right,’ Sam glanced at the clock and winced at the time.

‘Where is Teal’c anyway?’ Jack asked.

‘He went to spar with SG9 earlier,’ Sam said.

‘Ah,’ Jack grimaced.  ‘Are they going to be in any fit state to accompany you guys tomorrow?’

‘He said he would go easy on them,’ Sam confirmed without a trace of humour.  SG9 had left Daniel alone on the planet.  They fully deserved Teal’c’s sparring rebuke.

‘I should probably say something General-y about that,’ Jack mused.

They looked at each other for a beat.

‘Yeah,’ Jack said, ‘I got nothing.’

Sam’s lips twitched again, before she sobered.  ‘I should have requested Teal’c and I remain assigned to escort Daniel.’

‘It was my call, Carter,’ Jack said sharply.  He cut his hand through the air when she opened her mouth to protest.  ‘If anyone is to blame it’s me for giving into Daniel’s initial request to return when we knew things were getting politically hot.  I should have refused to let him go.’

Sam tilted her head as she caught the chagrin that flitted through Jack’s brown eyes for a second.  She figured he was second-guessing his decision and she could understand why.  She doubted he would have agreed if it hadn’t been Daniel pressing him to go.  Daniel’s Ascension, his unhappiness before he had Ascended, still lingered in their minds.  Not one of them wanted him to feel the same way ever again.  So, Sam considered, maybe Jack’s permission had been indulgent.

‘Daniel was meant to remove himself if there was a threat of the bunker being taken,’ Sam pointed out.

‘Yeah,’ Jack sighed.

‘And SG9 should have made sure he left with them,’ Sam continued.  ‘They shouldn’t have left him behind.’  Or SG1 should have been with him.

She hadn’t realised she’d spoken the last thought aloud until Jack waved at her again.  ‘You guys had to the planned tretonin supply run to Ishta to do, and besides,’ his gaze met hers with an amused glint of a challenge in his eyes, ‘if you guys had been with Daniel, what’s the betting you’d all be lost on Tegalus right now?’

It was a fair statement.  It was likely she and Teal’c would have remained with Daniel rather than going, although she’d hope as team leader she would have insisted on going and Daniel would have complied.

‘By the way,’ Jack asked, his tone falling into one of puzzlement, ‘why was Teal’c so grumpy when he came back from your supply run?’

Sam winced. ‘Rya’c wasn’t part of the group at the waystation, and, uh, he and Ishta had another fight over his taking an apartment outside the base.’

‘Ah,’ Jack said.

Sam held back on telling him the details; that Ishta had taken offence at Teal’c making what she saw as another commitment to living on Earth rather than rejoining the Jaffa and Teal’c had essentially told Ishta to mind her own business as they were essentially only friends with benefits.  At least, that’s what she thought they’d said since they’d been speaking Goa’uld and Sam was OK with the language after so many years, but she wasn’t Daniel and Teal’c hadn’t translated. 

‘So, I guess he and Ishta are…’ Jack made a rocking motion with his hand.

Sam nodded briefly.

Jack grimaced, but his gaze sharpened on hers.  ‘And how are things with you and Pete?’

‘Good,’ Sam said automatically.  She wasn’t lying, she assured herself.  Things were good.  Solid.  Fine.

‘Great,’ Jack enthused.  ‘That’s…great.’

Sam tried hard not to show how much his encouragement hurt her.  She knew he didn’t see her as a romantic possibility, but it always made her flinch at how much he encouraged her to be happy with someone who wasn’t him.  It just underlined to her that Jack wanted nothing more than friendship; that he didn’t want her anymore.  She’d made the right decision to move on.

‘Great,’ Sam repeated with a tight smile.  She motioned at the maps.  ‘I should get these stored for when we need them and…’

‘When?’ Jack asked archly.

‘When,’ Sam stated firmly.

Jack tilted his head.  ‘I think I’m supposed to say something General-y again.’

‘Diplomatic efforts, sir?’ Sam suggested.

‘Right,’ Jack pointed at her, ‘let’s pretend I said that.’

‘Yes, sir,’ Sam couldn’t quite keep her fondness for him out of her tone.

Jack gestured at the door.  ‘Well, I’m going to check Teal’c didn’t accidentally murder SG9…’

Her lips twitched into a reluctant smile.

‘…and then go brood in my quarters.  Wrap it up, Carter, and get some sleep,’ Jack said, already on his way out.

He was gone before she answered.

‘Yes, sir.’

o-O-o

Present day

‘Well, let’s all be glad that’s over,’ Jack quipped brightly.  ‘Dismissed.’

Daniel breathed out a long, slow sigh of relief that the debrief was over.  He gathered the folder in front of him and…

‘Daniel,’ Jack stated loudly, ‘a word.’ He jerked his head towards his office and without waiting headed there.

Daniel tried hard to keep the wince off his face.  Teal’c and Sam had understanding and sympathy on their faces but SG9’s expressions were much more in the ‘serves you right’ category.  He couldn’t blame them.  He’d assured them he was right behind them when he’d sent them back through the Stargate and then he’d gone back to the bunker.

Daniel walked over to the office and stepped inside. 

‘Close the door,’ Jack advised without looking up from the report he was signing.

Daniel closed the door and went to stand awkwardly in front of Jack’s desk. 

‘Look,’ Daniel began, ‘I know what you’re going to say and I agree with you, alright?  It was always going to be a losing proposition and I should have just stayed out of it.  Their socio-political issues preceded our coming through their Stargate and it was foolish to think that I could make any kind of impact on a radical religious movement set on political tyranny in the time available.  But you know I had to try and I’m grateful you gave me the opportunity even if it was hopeless and I can’t say that I won’t ask again in the future, because, well, you know me.’

Jack blinked and opened his mouth to speak.

Daniel jumped in again.  ‘And I take full responsibility for SG9 coming back without me; I manipulated the situation so they would go through the Stargate first and I used their trust in me to facilitate fooling them into leaving me behind.  They should bear no responsibility for my actions, although given they are our diplomatic team maybe they shouldn’t be quite so trusting?’  He waved a hand with Jack.  ‘I’m sure you’ll pick that up with them because I think I probably owe them beers and pizza for the sparring Teal’c made them do.’

Jack blinked again.

‘I also want to apologise fully for the fact that my action in staying behind led to my being trapped on Tegalus and leading to, uh, days of wasted activity while people tried to find me and bring me home,’ Daniel continued, ‘and to the SGC having to spend money and effort in rescuing me by assisting in a dangerous ambush.’

Jack looked as though he was about to talk so Daniel held up a hand. 

‘Although in my defence I would like to point out that I was the one who came up with the plan and it worked with minimal casualties to our people so…’ Daniel shook his head, ‘but I obviously recognise that my actions led to the need to rescue me and I take full responsibility for that.’

Jack stared at him for a long moment. 

Daniel refrained from rolling his eyes.  ‘Look, Jack, I just want to…apologise.  What happened was all my fault and I accept that.  I’ll accept any punishment you want to assign.’

‘Can I speak now?’ Jack checked tersely.

Daniel waved a hand for him to continue.

‘Thank you,’ Jack said sarcastically.  ‘I guess after all of…’ he made a brief rolling gesture with his hand, ‘that, I don’t need to say anything.’

‘Really?’ checked Daniel, surprised, because he hadn’t thought his tactic would actually work.

‘No!’ Jack said outraged.

Right.  Jack was being sarcastic.

Jack motioned with his pen at Daniel.  ‘It was your fault that you got caught up on the planet when things went squirly.  I seem to distinctly remember only agreeing to you going on the basis that you should get your ass home if things went squirly and instead you stayed there.’

Daniel flushed with shame.

‘So you can be assured that the next time you ask to get involved in the socio-political situation of another planet because you think it’s our fault for stepping foot through their Stargate, my answer isn’t going to be just no, it’s going to be hell no.’

Daniel figured that was fair.

‘You also owe SG9 an apology,’ Jack continued, ‘beer and pizza would probably be a good start.’

That was also fair.

‘You should also refrain from going missing and being presumed dead for a while,’ Jack said.  ‘Carter’s not used to you doing that as team leader and you freaked her out.’

Of course, Jack hadn’t been freaked out, Daniel thought dryly seeing right through his friend.

‘SG1 is stood down until you clear the psych eval,’ Jack said.  ‘I figure doing the psych eval will be punishment enough because I know how much you love those…’

Daniel brightened at that.  Psych evals were a pain but he knew how to get through them with ease.

Jack’s eyes narrowed on him.  ‘…except in this case I’m adding a sparring session with Teal’c…’

Oh.  That was bad.

‘…and you get to talk to Teal’c the next time there’s an ‘incident’’ Jack mimed finger quotations, ‘he gets involved in.’

Daniel regarded Jack thoughtfully for a moment. ‘The bulldog incident?’

‘He played the whole ‘but would you not also rescue the cute puppy, O’Neill?’ card,’ Jack complained.

Daniel hid his smirk.

Jack pointed the pen at him.  ‘You really OK after…everything?’

Daniel took the time to consider his answer.  ‘Yeah,’ he said, ‘I’m OK.  It’s just…I wanted to make a difference but…’

‘Hey,’ Jack said, ‘because of you the Rand Protectorate isn’t the hands of that Soren guy; that’s a difference.’

‘Maybe,’ Daniel conceded.

‘No maybe about it,’ Jack insisted.

Daniel went over everything that had happened on Tegalus briefly in his head and sighed.  Maybe he had made a difference.  If he hadn’t been there, Jared and Leda might have been killed; Soren may have continued his religious extremism…maybe he had made a small difference.

‘Now, unless you want to help me find a new CMO…’ Jack said, motioning at the closed door and giving Daniel an exit.

‘Carmichael’s not taking it?’ asked Daniel, surprised.

‘He is temporarily but General Hammond passed on a request from the President to consider a civilian Head of Medicine,’ Jack’s lips twisted in disgust at the politics and he sighed heavily.  ‘God, I miss the Doc.’

‘Me too,’ Daniel admitted.

For a moment, the two men shared their still raw grief at her loss in a quiet look.

Jack broke first, gesturing again at the door.  ‘Go on, Daniel; skedaddle.’

Daniel nodded.  He headed for the door only to pause with his hand on the door handle.  ‘Thanks, Jack.’

Jack lifted his scarred eyebrow.  ‘Just…don’t do it again.’

Daniel opened the door, readying himself to step through and shot Jack a smile.  ‘No promises.’

He closed the door just in time for the pen to hit it.

fin.