Doctor Daniel Jackson, world-class archaeologist and linguist, ducked behind a tree to avoid a blue-tinged blast of energy.  How exactly did I get into this mess? he wondered.

            Not that this was the first time he had run from enemy fire.  In the nearly five years since he had become a member of SG-1, Daniel had been involved in more firefights and battles than he could count.  Yet, every time, he had wondered how he had gone from calm dig sites in Egypt to a planet known only by the designation P3X-564, being chased by aliens.  Aliens with very powerful guns.

            Several feet to his left, he heard the all-too-familiar sound of machine gun fire.  Jack.  Another energy blast zapped into a bush a few feet away, and Daniel scrambled for better cover.

            The mission had started out innocently enough.  In the briefing, General Hammond had informed them that the initial data on 564 led them to believe that the inhabitants had a slightly higher level of technology than Earth, although all attempts at radio communication had been unsuccessful.  SG-1 had arrived through the Stargate without incident and started toward what appeared to be a city.  But, before they got there, they had been ambushed by an armed patrol and escorted to a military base of some sort.  A powerfully built man wearing a black-and-grey uniform asked them half an hour’s worth of questions about Earth and SG-1’s mission, most of which they had answered.  Finally, the man had ordered them to come with him for further questioning.  Frustrated about a lack of response to their (more or less) friendly overtures, Jack had refused.  The man had laughed and informed the four teammates that, willing or no, they were going to be the instrument that conquered their planet.

            That was the wrong thing to say to Colonel Jack O’Neill.  He had lunged at the man while Sam and Teal’c took out the two guards inside the tent.  SG-1 had quickly rearmed themselves and made a break for it.

            The running and shooting on the rough, hilly, wooded terrain had separated the four, but, by Daniel’s best estimation, Jack was off to his left, Sam was someplace to his right, and Teal’c was a bit ahead on his right, past Sam.

            Two more blue bolts flew past Daniel, and he fired a few shots from his handgun in return.  With all these rocks and trees, I don’t have the proverbial snowball’s chance of hitting anyone, he thought.  His only hope was to make it to the Stargate.

            As he ducked around yet another tree, a blast of pain struck his trailing left arm.  Daniel staggered, but kept moving.  After a moment, he glanced down, fully expecting to see a burned stump where his arm had been.  He was shocked to see his arm still there, his green jacket sleeve not even burned.  He tried to move his fingers, but the hand would not respond.

            They aren’t shooting to kill, he realized, a sick feeling coming up in his gut.  They’re using some kind of stun weapon.  They want us alive.

            Pain exploded through him again, this time from his head, and the world suddenly went black.

            A few yards away, Jack saw the second blast catch Daniel in the back of the head, and he watched his friend collapse, twitching.  Something about the fall reminded Jack of zat fire, and he stopped running, dropped to one knee, and strafed the area above Daniel’s still form with bullets.  One of the alien pursuers fell, but the rest fired back.  Jack wished desperately for some cover fire, but he couldn’t see Carter or Teal’c.  And that better be ‘cause they’re running, not because they’re…  He refused to finish that line of thought.  Taking a deep breath, he ran toward his fallen teammate, sweeping his P-90 back and forth as he ran.  He was only two feet away when a blue energy blast hit him in the chest.

*           *           *           *           *

            Consciousness leaked slowly into Jack’s mind, and he lay perfectly still, waiting for memory to return before moving.  Once he was as awake as he was going to get, he opened his eyes and eased himself into a sitting position.  He was in what looked like a jail cell, maybe eight feet square.  The walls on both sides and in front of him were made up of a grid of metal bars; the wall behind him was smooth stone.  Looking around, he noted that identical cells lined both sides of the long room, twelve in all.  Most of them were empty, but he quickly identified the still figure lying in the cage to his right.

            “Daniel?  Daniel!”

            Daniel didn’t move, so Jack figured he was still out from the stun weapon the aliens had used.  Climbing to his feet, Jack paced the perimeter of his cell, then reached out to test the strength of the bars on the door.  The resulting shock nearly knocked him onto his back.  Tentatively, Jack tried the bars on either side, but felt only metal.

            His attention was averted as Daniel began to stir.  The archaeologist’s bright blue eyes fluttered open.  “Jack?”

            “Welcome back to the land of the living,” Jack replied glibly.  “How ya feeling?”

            Daniel stood gingerly and blinked several times before replying.  “Not bad, all things considered.  But they took my glasses.”

            “They took everything,” Jack pointed out.  Even their uniform jackets were missing, leaving both men dressed in their loose camouflage pants and black t-shirts.  And, from how loosely his boots were tied on, Jack suspected that they had been removed and checked for weapons before being returned to his feet.

            “Don’t touch the front bars,” Jack warned right before Daniel did just that.  “They’re rigged with some kind of shock.”

            “Oh.”  Daniel examined the door to his cell for a moment, then nodded to Jack.  “Thanks.  Any idea how long we’ve been out?”

            Jack shook his head.  “They took my watch.”

            “Do you think Sam and –“

            “Shh!”  Jack cut him off.  “Just because there aren’t any guards doesn’t mean nobody’s listening.  They probably have security cameras in here.”

            “Right.”  Daniel thought for a moment, then added, “But if any of the guys who were chasing us reported to the guys who are keeping us here, then they know how many of us there are.”

            “True.”  Jack ran one hand through his hair, then answered the earlier question.  “They aren’t here, so they weren’t captured.  I’m hoping they made it to the ‘gate.”

            At that moment, however, the door at the end of the room burst open and two men wearing a familiar back-and-grey uniform entered, dragging a limp form between them.  A sharp pain stabbed Jack in the chest as he recognized the spiky blonde hair.  Carter.

            The two men flipped a switch on a pole in the aisle, then opened the door to the cell on Jack’s left and shoved Sam’s unconscious form inside.  Jack couldn’t hide a wince as she hit the hard floor.

            Wordlessly, the two men left, one of them flipping the switch again on the way out.

            Daniel gestured toward the pole.  “That must control the shock in the bars,” he commented.

            Jack nodded, but said nothing.  His mind was now split between a desperate hope that Teal’c had somehow made it to the ‘gate and a painful concern for the woman sprawled gracelessly in the cell next to him.  His rational mind told him that Carter was probably fine; she was a tough woman.  However, the gnawing concern in his chest usually didn’t listen to his rational mind.

            It had been almost a year since the Tok’ra’s testing for Zatarc mind control had forced Jack to admit his true feelings for Major Samantha Carter; a year in which he had stuffed those feelings as far down as possible.  But every time SG-1 had gotten themselves in trouble (and there had been plenty), that pain in his chest had reminded him that he truly cared about this woman, a good deal more than a commander should care about one of his subordinates.  But Carter was too valuable a member of SG-1 for him to lose her over his romantic interests.  So, he continued to shove his riled emotions back down where they belonged.

            But seeing her lying unconscious in a jail cell made the emotions harder to shove.

            “Jack?”

            Jack forced his mind back to reality and turned to Daniel.  “Sorry.  What?”

            Daniel gave him a rueful smile.  “Nothing.  You just looked like you might be having one of those crazy Jack O’Neill ideas.”

            “Sorry.  I’ve got nothing.”  Carter was the brilliant one.  Carter would get them out of here.

            A sound from his left sent Jack to the side of his cell.  “Carter?”

            Sam sat up slowly and looked around, blue eyes blinking rapidly as she made her own assessment of the situation.  Finally, her eyes met his.  “Colonel.”  She looked past him and nodded.  “Daniel.”  She glanced over her shoulder, then looked back at Jack, questioning.

            “We were hoping you could tell us,” Jack replied to her unspoken question.

            Sam shook her head.  “I think he was ahead of me.  I don’t think he saw me go down.”  She let out a breath.  “I thought I was dead.”

            “They were using some kind of stun weapon,” Daniel said.  “Before they knocked me out, one hit me in the arm, and my whole arm went numb.”

            “Doesn’t sound like any technology we’ve seen,” Sam commented, pushing herself upright.  “Zats will knock you out no matter – ow!”

            “Carter?”  Unconsciously, Jack gripped the bars that separated them.

            Sam shook her head and stood the rest of the way.  “I’m fine, sir.  Feels like I may have pulled a back muscle or something.”  She stretched gingerly.  “I’m fine.”

            Jack nodded and returned to the center of his cell.

            Sam stepped toward the door.  “Any idea how –“

            “Stop!”

            “Don’t!”

            Jack and Daniel yelled at the same time, causing Sam to freeze with her hands inches away from her cell door.  She shot them both an incredulous look, but didn’t move.

            Jack quickly explained about the shock.

            “Ah.  Thank you.”  Sam stepped back.

            “So…now what?” Daniel asked after a few minutes of silence.

            Jack sighed.  “Now we wait.”

            A few minutes later, the door creaked open, and three men entered.  The center man’s uniform had more decorations, and it was he who spoke.

            “Which of you is your leader?”

            “I am,” Jack replied immediately, not seeing any benefit in hiding that piece of information.

            “Colonel Jack O’Neill,” the man said.  “Or so you told my men.”

            “That’s my name.”

            “And you are Major Samantha Carter.”

            Sam nodded.

            “And Doctor Daniel Jackson.”

            “Yes.”

            The man turned his attention back to Jack.  “There was another man with you, a dark man with a symbol on his forehead – Tilk.”

            “Teal’c.”  Jack corrected his pronunciation.

            “Yes.  You seem to…respect those under your command, Colonel Jack O’Neill.”

            Jack’s eyes narrowed.  He wasn’t sure where this was going.

            The man continued.  “I suppose, then, it will grieve you to know that this ‘Teal’c’ is dead.”

            A physical pain shot through Jack’s chest at that, and he couldn’t force his mouth to form words.

            Apparently, Sam did not share his difficulty.  “You’re lying.  Your men weren’t shooting to kill, or we’d all be dead.”

            “My instructions were to capture you alive, if possible,” the man replied, “But your friend refused to be reasonable.”

            “Prove it,” Jack demanded, having regained the ability to speak.  “I want to see his body.”

            “You are my prisoner, and five of my men are dead because of you,” the man said.  “You are in no position to demand anything.”

            Jack nodded in reply, but hope burned in his heart.  Teal’c was really hard to kill.  Until he saw proof, he refused to believe that the Jaffa was dead. 

            “My technicians are studying your technology,” the man went on.  “I am sure some of it will be quite useful to us.”  He looked at each of them in turn, but none of them reacted.  “Tomorrow, we will begin questioning, and you will tell us everything we want to know.”

            Jack scoffed.  “I doubt it.”

            The man smiled coldly at him.  “Oh, you will.”  He spun on his heel and marched out, the two silent guards behind him.

            “Do you think he was telling the truth?  About Teal’c, I mean,” Daniel asked after the doors closed.

            “Nah,” Jack said with more confidence than he felt.  “He just wants us to think there’s no hope for a rescue.”

            The lights in the room suddenly dimmed.

            “I think that’s a hint,” Sam said wryly.

            “Let’s take it,” Jack responded.  “Try and get some rest.  We may need it.”

            Obediently, Sam and Daniel lay down, and Jack followed suit.  It was impossible to get comfortable on the bare floor, but, eventually, the rigors of the day sent all three to sleep.

            Harsh light woke the three members of SG-1.  Jack sat up quickly and looked around.  Their situation hadn’t changed.

            “I’d say ‘good morning,’ but it’s hard to find things that are good about it, and I’m not entirely sure it’s morning,” Daniel said.

            Sam offered him a weak smile.

            Around half an hour later, by Jack’s best estimate, the man who had spoken to them before strode in, this time trailed by four guards.  For a moment, Jack expected to see them dragging Teal’c in with them, but there was no sign of the Jaffa.  So he’s still loose, Jack thought.  Unless he was telling the truth…no.  Not gonna believe that.

            The man stopped in front of Jack’s cell.  “You will come with me.”

            Jack made a show of studying the guards.  “You think you have enough men to drag me out of here?”

            The man barked an order, and two of the guards drew sidearms from their belts.  Rather than pointing them at Jack, however, the two men aimed at Sam and Daniel.

            “Believe me when I tell you that these weapons are set to kill,” the man sneered.

            Jack raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.  “Drag away.”

            One of the guards who wasn’t holding a weapon flipped the switch on the pole, and the other approached Jack’s cell door.  Mindful that his teammates’ lives were on the line, Jack walked calmly into the aisle and stopped in front of the man who had done all the talking.  The guards quickly locked a pair of metal cuffs onto his wrists, then fastened some kind of metal cable to the cuffs.  The other end of the cables they attached to their belts.  Jack raised an eyebrow as he inspected their precautions.  Although the cables were long enough to allow him to walk easily between the two guards, if he made any hostile movements, the guards could move apart, pin him in place, and have enough room to shoot him.  Once his restraints were in place, the other two guards lowered their weapons.

            “Come.”  The commander led the way.  Jack’s human tethers followed, and he obediently went along.  Just before they reached the door, he glanced over his shoulder and shot Sam and Daniel what he hoped was an encouraging look.

            Jack’s escort led him down a corridor painted a dull shade of grey.  What do these people have against color? he wondered.  He counted doors almost automatically, wanting to be able to find his way back to Sam and Daniel if he had to.  Four doors down and across the hall, they led him into a square room painted the same shade of grey.

            Knowing he was going to be interrogated, Jack expected to be tied to a chair or fasted to the wall or something.  But, although he did notice several clips in the wall that looked as if they would attach nicely to the cuffs on his wrists, Jack’s escort led him to a device that resembled a medical examination table.  The surface was a reflective metal, dotted with tiny indentations.  A few feet above the table hung a metal board, similarly covered in dents.  Cables of varying sizes and colors ran from the upper piece into the ceiling.

            I’m really hoping that’s a medical scanner of some kind, Jack thought somewhat nervously as he studied the device.

            A tall, white-haired man stepped around the machine.  “Hello, Colonel Jack O’Neill.  Such a long name.   May I call you ‘Colonel?’”

            Jack shrugged.  “Whatever you like.”

            “Good.  I am Shirell.  Put him in.”  The last comment was directed toward the escort.

            With an efficiency that told Jack how often they had done this, the two guards forced Jack onto the table, fastening his wrists by his sides.  They pulled a strap tightly across his ankles and eased another one over his forehead.  Jack flexed his muscles unobtrusively, but found the restraints strong.

            The guards retreated, but with his head strapped down, the metal plate above him filled his vision, and Jack couldn’t tell whether or not they left the room.

            “There.”  Shirell’s face moved into Jack’s peripheral vision.  “Now we may begin.  We have been studying the items you and your people brought with you from your planet.  Most of them are of no use to us.  But one item of yours confused us.  This.”  A GDO unit was shoved in front of Jack’s face.  “We had already identified your communication devices, so what could it be?”

            Jack said nothing.

            But Shirell continued.  “But we reviewed your conversation with Kreb.”

            Jack cursed silently.  The tent must’ve been bugged.

            “You mentioned a defensive device you called an ‘iris.’”

            Jack closed his eyes and cursed again.

            “My theory is that this device is used to send a security code that allows you and your teammates to pass this ‘iris.’  Am I close?”

            Jack remained silent.  He wouldn’t give this guy the satisfaction of knowing he’d guessed right.

            “I didn’t think you’d say anything.  You see, I’m an excellent judge of people.  But I don’t mind your being uncooperative, Colonel.  It gives me a chance to show off my machine here.”

            A strange sinking sensation appeared in Jack’s stomach.  It took him a moment to recognize it.  Anxiety, shading quickly into fear.  He shoved the emotion down ruthlessly.

            “This,” Shirell continued, “is the NSD – Neurological Stimulation Device.”

            What is it with militaries and acronyms? Jack wondered.  The SGC certainly had more than its fair share.

            “I’ll save you the detailed description but, in laymen’s terms, this device sends impulses to the nerves in your body – impulses that tell your brain that the nerve is in pain.  By varying the speed and variety of the impulse, it can imitate any sort of pain, from a dull ache to overwhelming agony.  And all without causing any actual damage.”  Shirell’s voice was gleeful.  “Now, being the judge of people that I am, I’ve already determined that you won’t tell me anything, no matter what I do to you.  But that’s not important.  Right now, I just want you to experience this.”

            Jack had no time to ponder the meaning of the man’s cryptic words, because Shirell immediately began pushing buttons.  A low hum began, and the table vibrated slightly.

            Then the pain began.  At first, the dull throbbing in his legs was easy to block from his mind.  But the pain spread up his body as it increased in intensity.  By the time it reached his chest, Jack was struggling frantically against his restraints.  The pain-sticks the Goa’uld used didn’t even hurt this much!  Then the pain reached his head, and Jack fought his restraints with strength he didn’t even know he possessed as he ferociously held back a scream.  Just as blackness began to seep in at the edges of his vision, the agony vanished.   He slumped on the table, breathing as hard as if he’d just finished a ten-mile run in full gear.

            Shirell said something, but Jack couldn’t understand it through the ringing in his ears.  A moment later, the straps on his ankles were released, then his right arm.  The moment his left arm was free, he rolled off the table, shoving the man there out of his way.  But his knees buckled, and he dropped to the ground.  The guards quickly grabbed him and dragged him across the room.  They pulled him to his feet, spun him around, and clipped his wrist cuffs to the walls.  At a nod from Shirell, they left.  Jack again tested the restraints, but found them as secure as before.

            “You must have known you could not escape,”  Shirell’s words were clear now.

            “Had to try.”  To Jack’s surprise, his voice sounded hoarse.

            “Now we can get to work.  All I really need from you are two pieces of information, Colonel.  The Stargate symbols for your world, and any codes you must use to bypass your security systems.”

            “So you can what?  March an army in?”

            “Essentially, yes.”  Shirell approached him, stopping just out of range of a kick.  “You see, our people are outgrowing this world.  We have explored a few nearby planets, but none are capable of supporting life.  Then you appear and offer us access to an entirely new world, with existing structures and services, only a few steps away through the Stone Circle!”

            “The fact that this planet is already occupied doesn’t bother you?” Jack asked.

            Shirell shrugged.  “It is not my concern.”

            “Well, I’m certainly not going to hand over my planet to you.”

            “We shall see.”

            Jack braced himself for the next trick, but nothing happened.  Shirell glanced at the door and sighed.  “So slow.”

            Jack’s eyes narrowed.  What was he waiting for?  Shirell had proven that he had no qualms about torturing information out of people, so why wasn’t Jack strapped into that machine, screaming?

            The door opened again, and it made perfect, agonizing sense.

            “Carter,” he whispered.

            Jack stood perfectly still, frozen in near-panic, as the guards strapped Sam into the machine.

            “You see, Colonel, I believe there are two main types of men.  One type of men will willingly sacrifice others to save themselves.  The other type will willingly sacrifice themselves to save others.  You are the second type.  And, so, I think this will be simpler than putting you into the machine.”  Shirell let his fingers hover over the controls.  “Shall I begin?”

            Jack couldn’t move, couldn’t speak.  Although his mind was racing, he couldn’t form a single thing to say that might stop Shirell from pushing those buttons.

            “Oh!  I nearly forgot.”  Shirell’s dark eyes bored into Jack’s.  “If you lie – if you send us to a hostile world or give us faulty security codes – I will put this woman into the device, turn it all the way up, and walk away.  Eventually, the overload will kill her.”  He sneered.  “Eventually.”  With that, he stabbed at the controls.

            Immediately, Sam’s hands bunched into fists as she fought the pain.  A few moments later, she began jerking back and forth, fighting the restraints as Jack had done.  As her movements became more and more agitated, her face contorted into a mask of pain.  Suddenly, she stopped thrashing, and Jack realized that Shirell had turned the device off.

            “You have an excellent tolerance for pain,” Shirell said to Sam.  “That level of intensity would cause most men to scream.”  He looked at Jack.  “Perhaps your motivations for having a woman on your team are not what I first thought.”

            Catching his implication, Jack growled.  “You sick…” he spit out as many foul names as he could come up with.

            Shirell waited until he had run out of curses, then pushed a single button.  Sam’s body arched off the table as far as the restraints allowed, and a sound halfway between a scream and a gurgle came from her throat.

            Jack continued to glare daggers at Shirell, but kept his mouth shut.  The man had made his point.

            “What are the symbols for your world?” Shirell asked.

            Jack said nothing.

            Another punch of the button sent Sam off the table again.  This time, the sound was definitely a scream.

            Jack locked his jaw closed.  He could not betray Earth.  Billions of lives depended on him doing the right thing.

            But that was a difficult thought to hold onto while listening to Samantha Carter scream.

*           *           *           *           *

            Jack could not have said how much time had passed when Shirell called for the guards to take them back to their cells.  Sam had finally passed out, and even the short, sharp blasts from the device did not wake her.

            “We will continue when she awakes,” Shirell said.

            Jack simply dropped his head and allowed the guards to lead him away.  A voice deep inside his mind urged him to fight, to defy his captors, but he couldn’t.  His wrists throbbed from where the cuffs had cut into them as he pulled and fought his bonds.  A glance down told him that blood oozed slowly from the wounds he had created with his struggling.

            But that pain was miniscule when compared to the pain in his chest.  Watching helplessly as Carter was brutally tortured had broken things inside him he hadn’t even realized he had.

            He fell as the guards shoved him into his cell but rolled to one side, coming to his knees facing Sam’s cell.  “Carter?  Carter?”  He let his face rest against the bars that separated them, wishing he could touch her, comfort her, hold her…  Finally he realized that Daniel was calling his name.

            “Jack!”

            Reluctantly, he turned to face his friend.  Daniel’s eyes were soft, concerned.  “Jack, what happened?  I heard…I thought I heard screaming…”  He glanced at Sam’s limp body.

            “You did.”  Woodenly, Jack explained the machine and what the aliens wanted.

            “You…” Daniel swallowed.  “You didn’t…”

            Jack shook his head.  But it was close, he said silently.

            “How is she?” Daniel asked gently.

            Jack looked back at his fallen teammate.  “I dunno.  She blacked out.”  He laughed bitterly.  “And that should tell you something.  Can you imagine the amount of pain it would take to knock out Carter?”

            Daniel winced.  “Jack, I’m sorry.”

            “They’re the ones who are going to be sorry,” Jack growled.  “Just as soon as we get out of here.”

            Daniel sighed.  “I hate to bring this up, but…”

            “What?”

            “If Teal’c made it back to Earth and was able to get a rescue team…they would have been here by now.”

            Jack nodded, but said nothing.

            Both men sat in silence, staring at the blonde woman sprawled on the floor of the far cell.  Perhaps half an hour passed, the quiet broken only by the rustle of cloth as one of the men shifted position.  Finally, a soft moan cut the silence.

            Immediately, Jack pressed his face against the bars again.  “Carter?” he hissed.

            Slowly, Sam’s eyes fluttered open.  “Sir?”

            “Don’t try to get up,” Jack advised softly.  “I don’t know how closely we’re being monitored.”  He hesitated for a long moment before asking, “How are you feeling?”

            Another pause before Sam answered.  “All things considered, not bad.”  Her voice was little more than a whisper.

            Jack nodded.  He hadn’t expected anything else from her.  “Try to get some rest.  Daniel and I are going to work on a way outta here.”

            “Yessir.”  Sam’s eyes drifted closed again.

            After a long moment of staring at her, Jack crossed his cell to where Daniel waited.

            “How is she?”

            “Hard to tell,” Jack replied.  “Now, you’ve had more time than me to think.  How are we getting out of here?”

            “The only chance we have is while you’re being moved,” Daniel replied.  “And they usually have a gun pointed at somebody’s head as insurance.”

            “We’re going to get out of here,” Jack said firmly.  “We have to.”

            But, try as they might, neither man had come up with a single idea by the time the door swung open, admitting the guards.

            “Enough rest!” the commander barked.

            As they had predicted, one guard held a weapon on Daniel while Sam and Jack were retrieved from their cells.  Jack waited patiently until they were safely in the hallway before making his move.  Feigning a stumble, he grabbed the cables connecting him to the guards and pulled, sending the guards crashing into each other.  But before he could get his wrists free, pain exploded from the back of his skull, and he found himself sprawled on the ground.  Then the ground dropped away as he was lifted and dragged by the two guards who had been behind him.  Jack realized that his wrists were now free from the cables and tried to struggle, but his muscles refused to obey him.  More pain as he was flung roughly against the wall and his wrist cuffs clipped to their restraints.

            The world spun alarmingly, but Jack could just make out the guards strapping Sam back onto the table.  “No…”  He let his head drop as he tried to force the world back into focus.  When he looked up again, Shirell was standing by the device, watching him.

            “That wasn’t very smart, Colonel,” Shirell said.  “You must have known by now that an escape attempt would be useless.  And we must discourage that kind of thing.”  He poked at his controls, and Sam’s body jerked.

            “No…please…no…”  Jack realized that Shirell had succeeded in breaking him.  And, at that moment, he didn’t care.  He could tell Sam was fighting the screams, but eventually the pain won and she cried out.

            Finally, Shirell turned the machine off.  “Now that our little demonstration is over, we can get back to business.  What are the symbols for your world?”

            Jack fixed his gaze on a crack in the floor and refused to open his mouth, afraid that if he did, he would tell Shirell everything he wanted to know.

            Shirell sighed.  “Still so stubborn.”  Again he touched his controls, and again Sam screamed.

            Time dragged past.  It could have been minutes; it could have been hours.  Shirell asked his questions over and over, while Jack refused to look away from the crack in the floor.  He leaned forward against his restraints, allowing the physical pain to offer a slight distraction from the inner pain.

            Noises from the hallway caused Jack to look up.

            Shirell heard them too.  “Now what?”  He strode to the door and flung it open.

            Gunfire…people yelling.  Shirell jerked back as a head peeked around the corner.  Then a familiar voice yelled, “In there!”  A male voice responded, “Go!  We’ll hold ‘em!”

            Jack thought that the two people bursting through the doorway were the most beautiful sight he had ever seen – Teal’c, brandishing his staff weapon, with Daniel right behind him.

            Shirell shrieked and ran to the far side of the room.  “Please don’t kill me!”

            Daniel rolled his eyes and shot him once with his zat.

            Teal’c scanned the room.  Seeing no other threats, he lowered his weapon and stepped toward Jack.  “O’Neill.”

            Jack shook his head.  “I’m fine.  Get Carter out of that thing.”  His voice sounded oddly thick and rough.

            Daniel and Teal’c quickly removed the restraints.  The moment they were loose, Sam shoved herself free, rolling off the table and landing in a heap on the floor.  She looked around with wild eyes, hands twitching.

            “Sam?”  Daniel knelt beside her.

            Sam didn’t react.

            Gently, Daniel placed his hands on either side of Sam’s face and turned her toward him.  “Sam, it’s me.  It’s Daniel.  You’re all right.  You’re safe now.  Nobody’s going to hurt you.”

            Sam stared at him, seemingly seeing nothing.  Then her eyes rolled back and she went limp.

            “Uhm…”  Daniel looked at Teal’c nervously.  “We’d better get her back to Janet as fast as we can.”

            Teal’c nodded.  He leaned his staff weapon against the table and carefully scooped Sam into his arms.  Daniel ran the few steps over to Jack and set to work unfastening his restraints from the wall. 

            “Are you sure you’re all right?” he asked softly.

            Jack nodded curtly.  “Fine.”  He touched his face with his freed right hand and realized why Daniel was so concerned. 

            There were tears on his cheeks.  Brushing the moisture roughly away, Jack followed the others into the hallway, where SG-3 and SG-15 were waiting.  The group picked their way carefully through the hallways of the building and out into the open air, encountering surprisingly few patrols.

            “How far are we from the Stargate?” Jack asked.

            “A little under an hour if we run,” Major Pierce replied.

            Jack bit back a groan.  He’d hoped they were closer than that.

            However, with Jack and Daniel’s weakened states, Teal’c’s burden, and the necessity of avoiding groups of soldiers, it was nearly two hours later that the group approached the Stargate.  A group of ten soldiers guarded it.

            The SG teams took up positions behind rocks and trees and opened fire, Jack using Teal’c’s staff weapon.  Taken by surprise, the guards didn’t stand a chance.

            General Hammond and Dr. Frasier were waiting at the bottom of the ramp.  “Welcome home,” Hammond said with a smile.

            A few hours later, Jack lay in a bed in the infirmary, staring at the ceiling.  He had insisted that Dr. Frasier take care of Sam first, but there wasn’t much the doctor could do for her, other than dress and bandage the places where the restraints had dug into her fair skin.  Her scans hadn’t shown any brain damage, which made everybody relax a little, but Sam remained unconscious.

            As for Jack, Janet had informed him that he had a mild concussion from being hit in the head during his escape attempt, and white gauze now sheathed his bloodied wrists.  He’d given General Hammond the short version of the mission report, and the general had ordered him to rest, saying that a full debriefing could wait another day.  But Jack didn’t figure he’d get much sleep with Sam unconscious in the next bed.

            Janet puttered around the room, seemingly oblivious to her two patients.  But when Sam twitched, Janet was by her side in seconds.  “Sam?  Sam, can you hear me?” she called quietly.

            Slowly, Sam’s bright blue eyes opened.  She blinked a few times before focusing on her doctor’s face.  “Janet?” she whispered.

            Janet nodded.  “Yes, it’s me.”

            “Where…”

            “You’re in the infirmary, back at the SGC.”

            “Others?”

            Janet smiled gently.  “They’re fine.  I forced Teal’c and Daniel back to their quarters to rest, and Colonel O’Neill is right here.”

            Sam tipped her head so she could see Jack, now standing behind Janet.  “Sir…”

            Jack shook his head.  “Don’t try to talk, Carter.”

            Sam nodded.

            Janet patted her arm.  “Try and get some rest.  We can talk later.”

            Sam nodded again and closed her eyes.

            “She’s not the only one who needs rest,” Janet said firmly, turning around.  “Back in bed, Colonel.”

            Jack gave Sam’s still form one last look, then obediently climbed back into bed.

            “And sleep,” Janet ordered, “or I’ll drug you.”

            Jack didn’t doubt for a second that she would follow through on that threat, so he closed his eyes and tried to relax.  But sleep was a long time coming.

            The next morning, Daniel and Teal’c came to the infirmary to collect Jack for their official debriefing.  They found the colonel sitting on the side of the bed while Janet shone her penlight into his eyes.

            “How is he, Janet?” Daniel asked.

            Janet smiled.  “Concussion is essentially cleared up, but you’re going to want to take it easy for a few days.”  The last of her comment was directed toward Jack.  “But you’re free to go, Colonel.”

            “And how is Major Carter?” Teal’c asked.  Both he and Daniel had been by the infirmary during the night, defying Janet’s orders to rest, so they knew that she had at least woken a few times.

            “Come see for yourself,” Sam’s voice replied from the other side of the privacy curtain.  Janet pulled the curtain aside to reveal Sam sitting up in bed.  Although her skin was paler than usual, her eyes were bright and her voice held only a slight rasp.

            “I’m keeping her here one more night just to be sure, but I expect to release her tomorrow morning,” Janet informed them.  With a smile, she walked away, content to let SG-1 have a moment.

            “How are you feeling?” Daniel asked.

            Sam shrugged.  “Sore throat, sore…well, sore just about everything.”  She chuckled.  “But I’m fine.”  She looked Jack firmly in the eye.  “Really.”  After a moment, she broke eye contact and looked up at Teal’c.  “And I’m glad to see you’re alive.”

            Teal’c bowed his head in acknowledgement.

            “Although, I must admit, I am a little confused,” Sam went on.  “The last thing I remember was…” she hesitated.  “Was being in that machine, then noise…and then I woke up here.”  She looked up at Teal’c again.  “I assume you brought some kind of rescue team.”

            “SG-3 and 15 accompanied me back to 564,” Teal’c replied.

            “You sure took your time getting there,” Jack muttered.  Catching the incredulous looks from his teammates, Jack spread his hands in surrender.  “Not that I’m not grateful.  I’d about given up on you, that’s all.”

            “I apologize for my tardiness,” Teal’c said with another bow.

            “I’m sure it wasn’t deliberate,” Sam responded.

            “Indeed it was not.”

            When he didn’t continue, Sam pressed, “So, what happened?”

            “As we fled the patrols, I was forced away from you,” Teal’c said.  “When it became clear that I would not be able to get through, I concealed myself in a cave and waited for the patrols to cease their search.  It was some time before I could reach the Stargate.  I had hoped that the three of you had safely returned to Earth.”

            “We were a little busy getting shot,” Jack commented wryly.

            Teal’c ignored him.  “When I returned to the SGC and found that you had not yet arrived, I asked General Hammond to allow me to return to the planet and search for you.”  He looked at the wall.  “I feared you had all fallen in battle.”

            “Then why did you come back?” Sam asked.

            Teal’c arched one eyebrow.  “Because I was uncertain.  General Hammond allowed me to lead SG-3 and 15 back to the planet in search of you.  However, our search was unsuccessful.”

            “Then how did you find us?”

            Something that might have been a smile touched Teal’c’s face.  “We ambushed a patrol and…convinced one of the men to lead us to where you were being held captive.”

            Sam swallowed her own smile. “Thank you.”

            “Once we arrived at the building, we located Daniel Jackson, and then you and Colonel O’Neill,” Teal’c finished.

            “We pulled you out of the…whatever it was, but you were in some kind of shock,” Daniel told Sam.  “I tried to get through to you, convince you that you were safe, but you just stared off into space for a second, and then you passed out.”

            Sam’s forehead furrowed.  “I think I remember that,” she murmured.  “Somebody was talking to me, and I remember thinking that I could stop fighting…”

            An awkward silence followed, until Daniel glanced at his watch.  “We’re late for our debriefing,” he said.

            Sam waved them off.  “Go.  I’ll still be here when you’re done.”  When the men were gone, she turned curious eyes on Dr. Frasier.  “Hey, Janet?”

            “Yes?”  Janet hurried to her side.

            “I was just wondering – do you know what that machine was?”

            “Not entirely.”  Janet told Sam what Shirell had told Jack about the device.

            “So no permanent damage?”  Sam pressed.

            “Not that I can tell.” Janet patted her arm.  “Don’t worry, Sam.  I’m sure you’ll be back to work in a few days.”

            “But you said you were going to release me tomorrow.”

            “Yes, but I want to wait a few days before clearing you for active duty,” Janet said gently.  “Your body has taken a tremendous strain.  I just want to be sure.”

            Sam sighed.  “Can I at least have my laptop?” she asked as pitifully as she could.

            Janet laughed.  “All right.  But only if you promise me to stay in that bed until I tell you otherwise.”

            Sam saluted crisply.  “Yes, ma’am.”

*           *           *           *           *

            The following afternoon, Jack knocked on the doorjamb of General Hammond’s office.  “You wanted to see me, sir?”

            “Colonel, yes.  Come in and close the door.”

            Jack hesitated before doing so.  A closed-door meeting with the general was usually not a good thing.

            The general had noticed the pause.  “It’s all right, Colonel.  I won’t bite.”

            “No, sir,” Jack said skeptically as he approached the desk.

            General Hammond clasped his hands on the desk in front of him.  “I just wanted to let you know what was happening with your team.”

            “Sir?”

            Hammond waved as if to brush away Jack’s suspicions.  “Nothing like that.  Doctor Frasier tells me that it will be several days before she clears Major Carter for active duty.”  He looked Jack in the eye.  “SG-1 has been through a very difficult time, Colonel.  I am putting your entire team down for some leave.”

            “Thank you, sir,” Jack said, relieved.

            “There’s more, Colonel.”

            The sinking feeling returned to Jack’s gut.

            “I would be remiss in my duties if, after something like this, I didn’t order you and Major Carter to undergo psychiatric evaluations.”

            Jack winced.  He could think of a hundred ways he’d rather spend an afternoon than sitting in a tiny office while a shrink picked his brains apart.  But it certainly wouldn’t be the first time.  He knew pretty well by now what to say to get the psych guys off his back.  “Yes, sir.”

            Hammond gave him a smile.  “You have until the end of the week to get your evaluation done.  Give it a few days.  Let things settle.”

            “Yes, sir,” Jack said again.  “Anything else?”

            Hammond shook his head.  “Enjoy the time off.  Get some rest.”

            Jack nodded and left.  After a moment’s consideration, he headed for Sam’s lab.  He stopped outside the open door.  “Carter, shouldn’t you be at home?”

            “Colonel!”  Sam shot him a sheepish look.  “I’m just getting a few things.”

            “Planning on working from home?”

            “Well…”  Sam looked away.  “Janet threatened to have my clearance revoked if I came back before Friday.”

            “You talk to Hammond yet?”

            She nodded.  “Friday is my psych evaluation.”  She shuddered.  “I’m fine.  I don’t need people probing around in my brain to tell me that.”

            She had just voiced his opinion, so Jack felt no need to reiterate.  Instead, he stepped into the room.  “Listen, Carter…”  He swallowed hard.  “About what happened on 564…”

            Sam looked up as he trailed off.  “What about it?”

            “I guess I just wanted to say…I’m sorry.”  Jack stared up at the plain grey ceiling and waited for a reaction.

            “Colonel, you don’t have anything to apologize for,” Sam said firmly.  “You did what you had to do to protect this planet, same as you do on every other mission.”

            Jack shook his head.  “This was different.  I should’ve done something.”

            “Like what?”  Sam folded her arms across her chest.  “What could you have done?”

            “I don’t know,” Jack finally admitted.

            Sam crossed the few feet between them and looked him in the eye.  “I think, overall, you got the worse end of the deal, sir.”

            “How do you figure that?” Jack asked, shocked.

            Sam smiled sadly.  “I’m healing.”  She stepped back and deliberately changed the subject.  “Since we’re all on leave for a while, Daniel and I were thinking pizza and a movie tonight.  You interested?”

            “Depends on the movie,” Jack replied more calmly than he felt.  Sam’s words had shaken him.

            “Well, Teal’c is likely to push for Star Wars again, but I’m open to suggestions.”

            Jack gave her a brief smile.  “I’ll bring a few options.”

            “My place.  1800,” Sam informed him.

            “Done.”  Jack forced himself to turn and walk away.

*           *           *           *           *

            Late Friday afternoon, Sam strolled into the infirmary.

            “Sam!” Janet exclaimed when she saw her.  “I was starting to think you weren’t coming.”

            “Sorry,” Sam apologized.  “The psych evaluation took longer than I expected.”

            Janet rolled her eyes at that and motioned for Sam to take a seat on the nearest bed.  Drawing the curtain closed around them, she started examining Sam for any lasting signs left by her experience.  “How did it go?” she asked.

            Sam sighed.  “You know those shrinks.  They never give anything away.  But I’m fine.  Honest.”  She looked at Janet as if waiting for her to deny it.

            Janet smiled.  “Don’t give me that look.  You seem perfectly fine to me.  Just let me do my job and make sure your body is in as good a shape as your mind.”

            That made Sam chuckle.  “Yes ma’am.”  After a moment, she said softly, “To be honest, Janet, I’m a little concerned about how Colonel O’Neill’s evaluation is going to turn out.”

            “Why do you say that?”  Janet asked.

            “He’s not taking this very well.  He’s blaming himself for what happened to me, which is totally ridiculous!”

            “Is it?”

            “What?”

            Janet hesitated, then spoke calmly.  “Think about it, Sam.  A member of his team, somebody he cares about, was put through a lot of pain while he had to watch helplessly.  That marks a person.”

            A thought suddenly struck Sam.  “Janet, you don’t think those aliens figured out about…”  She dropped her voice to a whisper.  “…about me and the colonel?”

            Janet considered for a moment, then said, “From what you’ve told me about what happened, I don’t think so.  It’s possible Colonel O’Neill did or said something to tip them off, but I doubt it.  My guess is they picked him to watch because he’s the leader and you to put in the machine because you seemed to be the weakest member.”

            Sam sighed.  “Chauvinists,” she muttered. 

            Janet laughed, then returned to the original topic.  “Sam, just remember that even if there was nothing else between you and the colonel, he’s still your CO.  He’s responsible for what happens to you, and he takes that responsibility very seriously.  Give him some time.”

            “Are you sure you aren’t a psychologist in disguise?” Sam asked teasingly.

            Janet laughed again.  “It’s called good powers of observation.”

*           *           *           *           *

            Nearly a week later, the members of SG-1 met for their first briefing since 564.  When Sam entered the room, she found Teal’c and Daniel already there.  “Good morning,” she said brightly as she headed for the coffeepot.

            “’Morning.”

            “Good morning, Major Carter.”

            Jack walked in a moment later.  “Hey.”

            “Good morning, sir.  Coffee?”  Sam held up the pot.

            “Sam’s in a good mood this morning,” Daniel observed.

            “Carter?”  Jack’s questioning use of her name as shorthand for “Please explain what’s going on” was as familiar to Sam as her uniform.

            She offered her CO a smile.  “Just glad to be cleared and getting back to work, sir.”

            “As are we all, Major,” said General Hammond’s familiar voice as he entered.

            Sam straightened automatically, but the general followed his greeting with a quick “As you were,” so she turned back to the coffeepot.

            “Coffee would be great, Carter,” Jack replied to her earlier question.

            Sam handed him the cup she’d already poured and grabbed another one.  “Anyone else while I’m pouring?”

            “I’ve got one, thanks,” Daniel replied, holding up his mug.

            “General?”

            “No, thank you, Major.”

            Sam didn’t bother asking Teal’c.  Despite the combined efforts of Jack and Daniel, the Jaffa still disliked the beverage.

            Once SG-1 was seated, General Hammond handed out the files he’d brought with him.  “Our initial scans of P3V-981 detected faint traces of naquadah in the soil.”

            Sam brightened.  “That could mean deposits!”

            “Yes.  The UAV has located three sites that may be natural naquadah deposits.  And, best of all,” the General smiled, “no signs of civilization.”

            Daniel seemed disappointed at this.

            “So, finders keepers,” Jack summarized.

            “Exactly.”

            An hour and a half later, Sam followed Teal’c and Daniel through the Stargate, emerging in a humid jungle.

            “Ugh.”  Daniel summed up everybody’s thoughts on the local climate, with the possible exception of Teal’c’s.  The Jaffa seemed to welcome the heat and humidity.

            “The first possible naquadah deposit is about two clicks that way,” Sam informed the team.

            “Tell me again why we got picked for this one?” Daniel asked as they started off.

            “Since naquadah isn’t native to our solar system, we’re dependent on off-world mines,” Sam explained.  “Finding even one new, untapped deposit of naquadah is certainly worth –“

            Jack cut her off.  “Carter, nobody’s denying that we need the stuff.”

            “I don’t mean to sound cocky, but isn’t this mission a little…simple for us?”  Daniel asked.  “I mean, I know Sam’s an expert on naquadah, but it doesn’t take an expert to get rock samples.”

            “Somebody has to do it,” Sam replied calmly.

            “I agree with Daniel Jackson,” Teal’c put in.  “I do not believe this mission is suited to our skills.”

            Sam looked back at Jack.  “You think it’s a shakedown, sir?”

            “I am unfamiliar with that term,” Teal’c said.

            “It’s when you send a new team or a team that’s had some trouble on an easy mission,” Jack informed him.  “Gets them back into the rhythm of working together.”  He shook his head.  “Hammond must really think we’re messed up.”

            “The psychologists cleared us,” Sam said.  “General Hammond wouldn’t have let us off-world if they hadn’t.”

            “They must have told him something,” Jack growled.  “Something tells me we’re in for a lot of easy off-world assignments and time back home for a while.”

            “Well, we can either protest – tell General Hammond that he isn’t being fair – or we can accept the easy assignments and be grateful we aren’t being shot at,” Daniel said.

            “I doubt protesting will do any good,” Sam remarked.

            Jack started muttering about shrinks and forms, and the rest of the group fell into an easy silence.

            Two and a half hours later, Sam packed the samples from the second mineral deposit into her pack and slung it back over her shoulder.

            Daniel was squinting up at what sky could be seen through the foliage.  “Sun’s going down,” he commented.  “It’ll probably be dark before we reach the third site.”

            Jack glanced at his watch.  Almost noon.  It was definitely one of the more disorienting aspects of gate travel – you almost never arrived at the same time of day you left.  “Then let’s head out.  Carter?”

            Sam unrolled the printout from the UAV’s scans, oriented herself against the landscape, and pointed off to her right.  “That way.”

            Forty-five minutes of hiking later, the sun had sunk behind the horizon.  SG-1 flipped on their flashlights and continued.

            A few times, Jack heard rustling in the plants nearby that didn’t correspond to the light breeze.  But, when he shone his light on the area, he saw nothing but leaves.

            You’re paranoid, O’Neill, he told himself.  There’s nothing here.

            Then Sam, who had dropped to the back of the group, whipped around in her tracks.  “Sir!”

            “What do you see?” Teal’c asked.

            “I don’t know,” Sam murmured.  “Maybe nothing but…”  She took two steps back the way they’d come.

            A shadow launched itself out of the foliage, knocking Sam off her feet.

            “Carter!”

            “Sam!”

            Jack and Daniel yelled at the same time.

            “I’m all right,” Sam’s voice replied.  “What is it?”

            “I am uncertain.”  Teal’c crept to the bush where the shadow had disappeared and poked through the leaves with his zat.  Suddenly, he jerked backward and fired.  A thud followed.

            “Nice shot,” Daniel complimented, hurrying toward Sam to give her a hand up.

            Sam brushed off her uniform and walked over to where Teal’c crouched.  Suddenly, she burst out laughing.

            “Carter?”

            “Come and see, sir,” Sam replied through her laughter.

            Lying still on the ground in front of Teal’c was a black, furry animal not much larger than a housecat.

            “That’s what knocked you over?” Daniel asked, his own mouth twitching ominously.

            Jack did not join in the merriment.  “Let’s move on before any more show up.”

            Sam stood obediently, but said, “C’mon, Colonel.  You have to admit it’s a little funny.  I wonder how fast it was moving.”

            Jack didn’t respond.

            Daniel shot Sam a questioning look, but the major only shrugged.  She had no idea what was bothering her CO.

            Sam scanned the briefing room as she entered and was mildly surprised to find Daniel the only occupant.

            “Sam!  Great!  I thought I had the time wrong,” Daniel exclaimed as she entered.

            Sam glanced at her watch.  06:58.  “Colonel O’Neill said 07:00.  I thought I was running late.”

            “As did I,” Teal’c’s deep voice stated from behind her.

            “It’s not like the colonel or General Hammond to be late,” Sam said.

            “Technically, they aren’t late yet,” Daniel pointed out.

            “O’Neill does seem to have been acting in an unusual manner during the past few weeks,” Teal’c commented as he sat beside Daniel.

            “I thought I was the only one who’d noticed,” Sam responded as she sank into her own chair.  “He’s so…preoccupied.  He’s been spending a lot of time with General Hammond.”

            “And working on paperwork he doesn’t want us to see,” Daniel added.

            At that moment, the object of the conversation strode into the room.  “Sorry I’m late,” Jack said calmly.  Rather than taking the chair next to Sam, he walked around to the head of the table.

            “Aren’t we going to wait for the general?” Daniel asked.

            “He’ll be here in a little while.  We do have a briefing this morning, but I needed to talk to you first.”  Jack paused for a moment, looking each member of his team in the eye.

            “What’s wrong?” Daniel asked.

            “Nothing’s wrong,” Jack replied quickly.  “But the paperwork is going to become official in the next day or two, and you deserve to hear this from me.  This is going to be my last mission with SG-1.”

            Sam felt as if she’d been punched in the stomach.  “You’re being transferred?”

            Jack shook his head.  “I’m retiring…again.”  A brief, sardonic smile flickered across his face.  “Maybe the third time is the charm.”

            “You’re leaving the SGC,” Daniel said slowly.

            “Technically, no.”

            “I do not understand, O’Neill.”  Teal’c spoke for them all.

            “I’m retiring from the Air Force.  But you don’t have to be military to work at the SGC.”  Jack gestured pointedly at Daniel and Teal’c.  “Officially, I’m being kept on payroll as the liaison between the SGC and the Asgard, since they already know me and, for some reason, seem to like me.  But something tells me that Hammond will find a few other things for me to do.  It’s sort of a…part-time thing, you might say, but it means I get to keep security clearance.”

            “Why?”  Sam’s eyes were narrowed, suspicious.

            “I’m not being forced, Carter,” Jack said calmly.  “This isn’t like when they blackmailed General Hammond into stepping down.  I can think of plenty of people who will be happy to see my retirement papers, and, while the thought of giving them a moment’s happiness makes me sick, this is the way it has to go down.”

            “But why, Jack?” Daniel pressed.  When Jack hesitated, Daniel added, “We’re a team.  You know you can tell us anything.”

            Jack glanced at Sam, then stared down at the table.  After a moment, he forced out as much of the truth as he could.  “Certain…situations…personal things…have come up which make me unable to lead SG-1.”  He winced, realizing how vague he sounded.

            The other three pressed as hard as they dared, but Jack refused to explain his “personal things” or what he meant by “unable to lead.”

            Finally, the interrogation, as it had digressed into, was stopped by General Hammond’s entrance.

            “We’re ready for you, sir,” Jack said quickly, and the general took his place to begin their briefing.

            The briefing was mercifully short, as none of the participants, except possibly the general, could fully focus on the mission at hand.

            “The Stargate is on the nighttime side of the planet at the moment, but we figure the sun should be up in a few hours,” Hammond concluded.  “Be geared up and ready to go at eleven hundred hours.  Any questions?”

            Sam shook her head with the others.  Rarely had she felt so unprepared for a mission.  But for once she didn’t care.

            The moment Hammond said “Dismissed,” Jack practically bolted from the room, causing the general to chuckle.  “You three must have been giving him quite the grilling when I came in.”

            “He won’t tell us why!” Daniel exclaimed.

            Sam turned to Hammond.  “Sir, do you know…?”

            Hammond raised both hands to ward off her questions.  “Only a little, Major, and I’m not at liberty to discuss it.”

            “General, please…” Daniel all but pleaded.

            “I’m sorry, son.  But if Jack wants you to know, he’ll tell you himself when he’s ready.”

            That wasn’t good enough for Major Samantha Carter.

            After nearly an hour of searching, she finally cornered Colonel O’Neill outside the locker rooms.  “Colonel,” she called.

            He winced as he turned.  “Carter.”

            She stepped directly in front of him, forcing him to look at her.  Fire snapped behind her blue eyes as she demanded, “Why won’t you tell us?”  She realized she was pushing the insubordination, but she didn’t care.  She knew he wouldn’t bust her.

            “Carter, this isn’t exactly the place…”

            “Then what is?”  When he didn’t respond, she pressed, “What do we have to do to get you to trust us with this?”

            “Trust you?” Jack burst out.  “This has nothing to do with trusting you!  I trust the three of you with my life every day!  What more do you want?”

            “Then what is it that’s so important that you can’t trust your team with it?”  After a moment of silence, Sam tried a different tactic.  “Tell me this has nothing to do with what happened on 564.”  She was guessing, but his flinch confirmed a hit.  “It does!  Did the psychologists convince the general you were unfit for command?”

            “No, it wasn’t them,” Jack said quickly.  He took a deep breath and, for a moment, Sam thought he would tell her.  Then a wall went up behind his eyes.  “After the mission.”

            “What?”

            “After the mission,” he repeated.  “We’ll talk.”

            “And you’ll tell us what’s going on?”

            “We’ll talk.”  With a final, long look, Jack walked away.

            Sam stood in the corridor for several minutes, trying to analyze what she had seen in the chocolate depths of his eyes.

*           *           *           *           *

            Several minutes’ walk from the Stargate, Jack brought the team to a halt.  “I realize that you are a bit…frustrated with me at the moment.”

            “A bit?”  Daniel raised both eyebrows in the innocently inflammatory look that never failed to annoy Jack.

            “Ok, a lot,” Jack amended.  He continued firmly, “But the facts aren’t going to change.  You’re all just gonna have to trust me.  Now, like it or not, this is my last mission, and I’d rather not remember it by the three of you silently glaring at me the whole time.”  He looked from one teammate to another.  “Can we please act like this is a normal mission rather than a court-martial?”

            Sam met Jack’s eyes, nodded, and turned away.  Teal’c nodded as well.  Daniel, however, had to comment.

            “If this was a ‘normal mission,’ at least for us, we should be getting shot at.”

            Sam smothered a laugh.

            “Daniel…”  Jack seemed about to scold the archaeologist, but could not come up with a thing to say.  Finally, he muttered, “For cryin’ out loud,” and started off toward the village.

            While the natives preferred hiding in their huts to fighting, they certainly did not welcome the visitors from Earth.  It took Daniel longer than usual to convince the villagers that Teal’c was no longer a servant of the “gods” and that SG-1 did not want to hurt them.  Once he was successful, the villagers informed them that, while no Goa’uld lived on the planet, Jaffa came through the Stargate once a month or so to collect taxes and tribute to the goddess.

            “The servants of the goddess have not come through the Stone Circle since the last new moon,” said Cheleb, one of the village elders.  “We expect them to come any day.  We thought you were them, especially when we saw…him.”  He pointed warily at Teal’c.

            “Well, that’s understandable,” Daniel said.

            “Which snake-head did you say runs this planet?” Jack broke in.

            Cheleb looked from Jack to Daniel.  “I do not understand.”

            “What is the name of your goddess?”  Daniel rephrased the question.

            Before Cheleb could answer, yells from the street distracted him.  A boy, perhaps eleven or twelve years old, burst into the hut where they sat.  “They are coming!” he gasped.  “The servants of the goddess come through the Stone Circle!”

            “Jaffa?”  Jack stood.

            Cheleb gestured to Teal’c.  “Ones like him.”

            “How many?”

            Cheleb shrugged.  “It changes, but I have never seen fewer than eight.”

            Daniel put a hand on Cheleb’s shoulder.  “Will these servants of your goddess hurt your people?”

            “Usually, no.  They come for our crops, but leave when we give them what they want.”

            “You said, ‘usually,’” Jack said.

            Cheleb nodded.  “Twice in my lifetime, the servants came in greater number and took away some of my people.”

            “Hosts,” Daniel guessed.

            Jack nodded.  “We aren’t going to let that happen.  Which way will they come into the village?”

            Cheleb scrambled to his feet.  “You must not fight them!”

            “Why not?”

            “Even if you survive, the goddess will punish us for our rebellion.  She will burn my village to the ground!”

            “He’s probably right,” Daniel said reluctantly.  “Killing a few Jaffa isn’t going to change anything here, and it will make the Goa’uld angry.”

            “If we depart now, O’Neill, we could reach the Stargate undetected,” Teal’c advised.

            Jack considered for only a moment.  “All right, let’s go.”

            Before they could leave the hut, however, Sam stopped short.  “Sir, the Jaffa know we’re here.”

            “How?”

            Sam looked up at him, eyes wide.  “The MALP, sir.”

            Jack swore.  They had left the probe by the Stargate in order to use its radio relay to communicate over the ridge protecting the village.  Now, the moment the Jaffa stepped onto the planet, they’d know SG-1 was there.  Unless…  “Who is this ‘goddess’ of yours?” he asked again.

            “She is called Bastet,” Cheleb replied.

            Jack looked at Daniel, who answered the unspoken question.  “She’s one of the system lords, but this is the first we’ve encountered her.  Well, the first you’ve encountered her.  I saw her at that system lord summit meeting.”

            “So there’s a chance she won’t know the MALP is from Earth,” Jack said.

            Sam winced and shook her head.  “If I remember right, Sir, both SG-4 and SG-10 have run into Bastet’s Jaffa before.”

            Jack cursed again.  Carter always remembered right.  He looked at Cheleb.  “If they ask you where we are, tell them we’re hiding nearby.  Got it?”  When Cheleb nodded, he added, “And tell them we’re all human.  Don’t tell them Teal’c is Jaffa.”

            Cheleb nodded again, and Jack hurried out of the hut.  He heard Daniel offering a quick “Thank you” and “Goodbye” behind him.

            The Jaffa had not yet come over the ridge when SG-1 left the village at a run.  Jack led them into the cover of the trees, then looped around and began picking his way toward the ‘gate.  When they finally reached a vantage point, Jack pulled out his spyglass.  Behind him, Daniel and Sam fished out their binoculars.  Four Jaffa stood on guard by the ‘gate, but a wormhole was open and, while they watched, another dozen stepped through.

            “They are indeed warriors of Bastet,” Teal’c informed them after getting a glimpse of the Jaffa’s tattoos.

            The Jaffa who seemed to be in charge barked an order they couldn’t hear.  One of the others punched symbols into the DHD while two more pushed the MALP closer to the ‘gate.

            “They’re going to take it with them,” Sam said.

            “Bastet likely wishes to study it and determine what secrets of the Tau’ri she can learn from it,” Teal’c commented.

            Jack looked at Sam, who shrugged.  “I doubt they’ll learn anything useful, sir.  It’s just a probe.”

            As the wormhole opened, Daniel dropped his binoculars and pulled out his notepad.  “I got all but the last two symbols,” he said.  “So at least we know where they went.”

            “Daniel, five out of seven symbols doesn’t really help us,” Jack said.

            “Actually, it does.  I couldn’t see the sixth symbol because his body was in the way, but I know about where his arm was, so I can narrow it down to four or five options.  And we already know the seventh.”

            Sam nodded.  “Point of origin.”

            “It is unlikely that they are taking the probe to Bastet’s home planet,” Teal’c said.

            “Why?” Daniel asked.

            Teal’c raised one eyebrow in his version of amusement.  “Because, Daniel Jackson, she would not want it near her if it were to explode.”

            “Wish I’d thought of that,” Jack muttered as he watched the MALP disappear into the blue puddle.  “Now what?”

            His last comment was prompted by the sight of another Jaffa running toward the Stargate from the direction of the village.  He and the leader conferred for a few moments, then the leader barked more orders.

            Eight of the Jaffa set off into the forest in pairs.  The other seven remained by the ‘gate.  None of the search parties were on a course that would bring them close to the hidden members of SG-1, but they’d been targets of Jaffa searches before.  More Jaffa would be sent.

            “At least they don’t have gliders,” Jack commented.  He looked at his team.  “Let’s work our way closer, then fan out and find cover.  Once those search parties are far enough away, we open fire on the guards, then dial home and get out of here.  Got it?”

            When everybody nodded, Jack turned to Daniel.  “Looks like this is gonna be a normal mission after all.”

            It took Daniel a moment to realize what he meant.  “We’re going to get shot at.  Great.”

            Twenty minutes later, SG-1 started the firefight.  They were outnumbered, but had the advantages of cover and surprise.  And, before the Jaffa could react, the numbers were even.  The fight was over in a few minutes, with the only casualty (other than the seven Jaffa) being the tree Teal’c had been using for cover.

            “Daniel!  Dial us home!” Jack ordered.

            Obediently, Daniel ran across the fifteen feet of open ground to the DHD and, after making a mental note of the possible sixth symbols the Jaffa had entered, pressed the first symbol to open the wormhole home.

            A staff weapon blast hit the ground entirely too close, flinging dirt and rock into the air.  Daniel glanced back, but couldn’t tell how many Jaffa had found them.  He saw Teal’c taking aim and heard Jack and Sam open fire, but he didn’t run to help.  SG-1 had been in similar situations dozens of times before.  His only job was to get the Stargate open.  Six more symbols, then the red dome, and the wormhole exploded into a blue puddle.  He pushed up his sleeve and entered his code into the GDO.  When he looked up again, his teammates were running toward him.

            “We good to go?” Jack asked.  At Daniel’s nod, he motioned to the waiting wormhole.  “Go.”

            Daniel wasted no time in following that order, Sam and Teal’c right behind him.  Jack backed up the steps to the Stargate, then took one final look across the alien landscape.  In the distance, he could see four more Jaffa running down the ridge.  He tossed them a sloppy salute, spun on his heel, and strode into the wormhole.

            General Hammond entered the gate room a moment after the ‘gate shut down.  “You’re back early,” he commented.  His gaze rested on Teal’c for a moment, then darted to Jack.  “Colonel, what happened?”

            Jack looked over at Teal’c to see what had upset the general and saw blood oozing out from a tear in Teal’c’s jacket sleeve.

            Teal’c himself glanced down at his arm as if he had just noticed.  “I believe I was struck by flying debris from a miss,” he stated calmly.  “My symbiote will heal me.”

            “Seemed this planet is conquered, general,” Jack explained.  “The Jaffa come by every so often to collect taxes, and we showed up on collection day.  They saw the MALP by the ‘gate and went looking for the owners.”

            Hammond nodded.  To Teal’c, he said, “Jaffa or not, Doctor Frasier is going to want to see that arm.”  Teal’c bowed his head in acknowledgement, and Hammond turned back to Jack.  “Well done, Colonel.  Debrief in one hour.”

            Jack winced slightly at the “well done.”  “I just can’t believe my last official act as leader of SG-1 is losing a MALP.”

            General Hammond looked him in the eye.  “Colonel, your last official act as leader of SG-1 was to bring your team home safely.”

            A hint of a smile lifted Jack’s mouth.  “Thank you, sir.”

            Sam stalked toward her lab.  Their last mission debriefing as a team had ended nearly two hours ago.  She had lingered in the briefing room, hoping for a chance to speak to Jack, but General Hammond had needed a moment, and then Daniel had asked her a question, and Jack had slipped past her.  She had looked everywhere, finally concluding that he had gone home.

            Until she reached her lab and found him sitting in her chair.

            “Sir!”

            If he was startled by her entrance, he didn’t show it.  “I figured you’d come back here before you left.”

            “I’ve been looking for you.”

            “And now you’ve found me.  I didn’t forget, Carter.”

            Her frustration evaporated as she stared across the room at her CO.  Well, sort of.  At that moment, she wasn’t sure exactly what he was to her.  But he still definitely outranks me. 

            Jack motioned to the stool by her worktable.  “Sit down.  Let’s talk.”  It was a suggestion, but Sam moved as quickly as if he’d ordered her.

            “I’ve been thinking, while I was waiting for you, and I have a lot of this planned out, so let me finish before you start poking holes in it, ok?”

            Sam hesitated, but nodded.  If Jack wanted her to listen, she could do that.

            “You were right…you’re always right…this all goes back to 564.”  Jack chuckled mirthlessly.  “Funny, that’s about the only planet designation I can remember.  Daniel could probably tell you every planet we’ve ever been to, but me…”  He was lost in his own thoughts for a moment, then seemed to shake himself loose to continue.  “But it wasn’t anything the shrinks said.  I know how to handle them, and they cleared me.”  He hesitated again, staring at the floor.  “Going through that, watching someone…someone I respect and…yes, someone I care about…”  He looked up at Sam as if daring her to deny it.  “Watching you go through that…you know what they did to you.”

            Sam nodded.  She had known Jack O’Neill for nearly five years, but she had never seen him this lost for words. 

            “It did something to me.  Broke…something…I dunno.  I thought I was fine.  That once we got back, it would all be better.  Be normal.  But it didn’t work like that.  Do you remember our next mission?  The one we thought was a shakedown?

            Sam nodded, not daring to speak.

            “And do you remember how that cat thing jumped out and knocked you over?”

            Sam nodded again.

            “I…”  Jack clenched his jaw, then spat out the words, “I froze.”

            When he didn’t expand, Sam prompted quietly, “What do you mean?”

            “I panicked.  Froze.  Couldn’t move.”  Jack’s voice was tight now, his words clipped.  “You and Daniel thought it was funny, but, for a minute, all I could see was that…thing…back on 564, with you in it.”

            “That’s understandable, considering everything,” Sam said gently.

            “Maybe.  But it’s not acceptable.”  At Sam’s look of confusion, he went on.  “What we do is dangerous.  There’s no doubt about that.  I thought I could live with it – watching you go in and out of danger – and, for years, I did.  But I can’t do it anymore.  I just can’t.”

            “So you’re quitting.  Because of me.”

            Jack pointed at her.  “I told you to let me finish,” he said mildly.

            “Sorry,” Sam murmured.

            “Thank you.  And I am not quitting because of you.  I am quitting because of me,” he said firmly.  “I didn’t have a lot of options, Carter.  I realized that I am not capable of being on an SG team with you.  So, I thought about asking for a transfer.  But, Hammond can’t transfer me off SG-1 without it looking like a demotion.  And, while I don’t care so much about the way it looks on my record, I knew Hammond wouldn’t do it, even if I explained all the circumstances, which I wasn’t willing to do.”

            “So ask for him to transfer me,” Sam said.

            “I thought of that, too.  Transferring you to another unit would be easy.  You’d probably even get your own command.  But then you’d be going out there with a couple of airmen watching your six instead of Daniel and Teal’c.  And, while Daniel isn’t worth all that much in a fight…”

            “He’s not bad with a zat,” Sam pointed out.

            Jack ignored her comment.  “…between the two of them, they can either out-talk or out-shoot just about anybody or anything.  They’re the ones I want keeping an eye on you out there.”

            “So your only other option was to quit?” Sam asked.

            “Pretty much, yeah.  And it does have some fringe benefits.”

            Sam ignored the last comment.  “May I talk now?”

            Jack sighed.  “Yeah, I’m done.  Fire away.”  He braced himself for the onslaught.

            It didn’t come.  Sam was trying to process the rather startling revelations Jack had just made.  A part of her mind was still stuck on the infuriating idea that he was quitting because of her, but she pushed past it.  Jack had clearly put a lot of thought into this decision, and her response to it deserved nothing less.  But this plan had to have a fatal flaw.  There had to be another way.  Finally, she had something.

            “You didn’t want to transfer me off SG-1 because you didn’t know if you could trust the people I’d be working with to protect me, right?”

            “A little harsh, but yeah.”

            “But, by quitting, you’re leaving SG-1 open to a new CO.  Neither Daniel nor Teal’c can command, and the last time you ‘retired,’ General Hammond made it clear that major was too low of a rank to command SG-1.”

            Jack gave her a bit of a smile.  “The paperwork isn’t through yet, so I can’t say anything, but if it goes the way Hammond and I want it to, you’ll like your new CO.”

            Sam tried for another argument, but came up empty-handed.

            “Take some time.  Sleep on it.  I’m sure you’ll come up with plenty of questions,” Jack said, standing.  “You can corner me with them tomorrow.”  He headed for the door.

            “What about Daniel and Teal’c?  What will you tell them?”

            “I told you because you’re…involved.  I thought you deserved to know,” Jack responded.

            “Sir, neither of them would think any less of you,” Sam said softly.

            Jack glanced over his shoulder.  “Tell them whatever you want.”  He left.

            Sam sat in her lab for another half hour before packing up and heading home.

*           *           *           *           *

            Sam was drained.  For the past three days, she had spent every second her attention hadn’t been forced elsewhere going over what the colonel had told her.  Problem-solving was part of her job; give her a set of data and she’d work it through to its conclusion.  Only, this time, someone else had found a conclusion, and it was her job to disprove it.  She had looked at it from every angle.  Twice, she had cornered Jack and peppered him with her questions.

            But it all came back to the same thing – because he cared about her, Jack was leaving.  And there was nothing she could do to change his mind.

*           *           *           *           *

            “SG-1 to the briefing room, SG-1 to the briefing room.  Walter’s voice echoed off the bare walls.

            Jack looked up from his pile of files.  Now what?  His retirement went into effect at the end of the day, and he had a lot left to clean up.  An emergency?  Would they manage to keep him on board long enough to save the world one more time?

            The first thing he noticed when he entered the briefing room was that Sam, Daniel, and Teal’c were already there, standing by General Hammond.  The second thing he noticed was that the room was filled with people.  The third thing he noticed was the cake.

            “Attention!” General Hammond barked.

            Jack straightened automatically, but the order wasn’t really directed at him.  Everyone in the room came to perfect attention and saluted.  A smile tugged at Jack’s mouth as he looked around the room at his friends.  The smile blossomed when he looked at his teammates, because even Daniel was saluting.

            Slowly, Jack drew himself up and crisply returned the mass salute.  “At ease.”

            Hammond smiled at him.  “You didn’t think we’d let you go without a party, did you?”

            “I should have known better, sir,” Jack replied ruefully.

            “Then give the order.”

            “There’s an order?” Jack asked.

            Hammond’s eyes sparkled.  “There is now.”

            Jack spread his arms to include everybody.  “You are all ordered to party!”

            A resounding cheer went up, and the party was on.

            “So, whose idea was this, anyway?” Jack asked Daniel several minutes later.

            “Mostly mine and Sam’s,” Daniel admitted.  “The last time we thought you retired, we kinda wished we could have thrown one, but under the circumstances…”

            Jack nodded.

            “Anyway, we took it to General Hammond, and he let us do it.”

            “Where is the general, anyway?”  Jack suddenly couldn’t find the bald head in the crowd.

            A moment later, the general stepped out of his office and made his way to the center of the room.  “May I have your attention, please?”  The roar in the room settled as everyone turned to face him.  “I realize that this little shindig is to honor Colonel O’Neill’s retirement.  But I just got a phone call with a bit of news, and this seems like as good a time as any to share it.”  He glanced at Jack, who nodded in agreement.  He had a suspicion what Hammond’s news was.

            “As you may know, SG-1 has been left pretty much in the dark about their new CO while I tried to get the paperwork through.  But the Pentagon just gave me the go-ahead to do what I wanted.”  He took a deep breath.  “One of the best ways to determine an officer’s ability to command is to question those who serve under them.  When Colonel O’Neill left this command to investigate the theft of alien technology, the members of SG-1 knew who they wanted as their new commanding officer.  They wanted Major Carter.  Partially due to the investigation, I wasn’t able to grant that request, but I think if I asked Doctor Jackson and Teal’c today, they’d say the same thing.”

            Both men nodded.

            The general grinned.  He was enjoying stringing everyone along.  But Sam was looking more and more anxious by the second, so he got to the point.  “Major Carter, if you’re willing, I’m offering you command of SG-1.”

            It took Sam a moment to form coherent words.  “But…but, sir, you said I couldn’t.  You said major wasn’t a high enough rank.”  Her eyes searched his face.

            To her surprise, Hammond merely smiled.  “True.  But I couldn’t very well promote you to Lieutenant Colonel without giving you your own command.”

            “Sir?”  Sam struggled to keep her jaw from dropping.  Her last promotion hadn’t been that long ago – she hadn’t been expecting one any time soon.

            “Your new rank insignia should be here in a day or two, and we’ll have a proper little ceremony then, but the promotion is effective immediately…Colonel.”

            For a moment, Sam thought she might cry.  She wanted to throw her arms around Hammond’s neck, but couldn’t think of anything less appropriate.  So, she drew herself up straight and saluted crisply.  “Thank you, sir.”

            The second cheer of the day went up from the crowded briefing room.

            A few minutes later, Jack heard a familiar voice by his ear.  “You knew.”

            He grinned.  “I hoped.  But the general and I weren’t a hundred percent sure the Pentagon would go for it.”

            “I’m glad they did.”  Sam leaned back against the table.  “You’re going to be a hard act to follow, sir.”

            “Eh.”  Jack shook his head.  “You’ll be great, Carter.  Just remember to use your instincts, not just your brain.”

            Sam laughed.  “Yes, sir.”

            Then Hammond beckoned from across the room, and Sam hurried to his side.

            “Never thought I’d be voluntarily leaving my command to a scientist,” Jack muttered.  “And a female scientist at that.”

            Someone behind him unsuccessfully tried to turn a laugh into a cough.  He spun to see Daniel’s eyes twinkling at him from behind his glasses.  “I’m sure Sam would love to hear that analysis, Jack.”

            Jack just shook his head.  “Carter knows I respect her ability to command, or I wouldn’t have put her up for the job.”

            “She’d rather have you,” Daniel said simply.  “We all would.”

            “Well, sorry,” Jack replied in a tone that said he wasn’t.

            “Jack, about all that…”

            Jack cut him off.  “I’m through with it.  You want details?  Bug Carter.”  He regretted that as soon as the words left his mouth.

            “So you told Sam.”

            Jack stared across the room at the blonde.  “I had to,” he muttered.

            Daniel looked from Jack to Sam and back.  “I see.”  Facts began fitting together in his brain.  A few discrete questions for Sam, and he was pretty sure he could figure out what was going on.  When he caught Jack’s questioning look, he changed the subject.  “I was thinking O’Malley’s afterwards.”

            “New colonel buying the first round?” Jack responded.

            Daniel chuckled.  “I bet we can talk her into it.”

            “Tell Teal’c.”  Jack nodded toward the Jaffa, currently standing in the corner talking to Sergeant Siler.  “Maybe if we get him drunk enough, he’ll sing that song he told us about when Hammond retired.”

            Daniel studied Teal’c’s imposing figure.  “He’d have to be very drunk.”

            And, although they tried, they could not get the Jaffa quite that drunk.

            Colonel Jack O’Neill paced the length of his living room, spun as crisply as if he was on parade, and paced back the other way.  Maybe this retirement thing wasn’t such a good idea after all, he thought for the twentieth time in the past hour.  He glanced at his coffee table, where his cordless phone lay silent, mocking him.  She should have called by now.

            Even though his security clearance had been downgraded a notch or two since his stepping down as the commanding officer of SG-1, it was still high enough in his new civilian position for him to know that SG-1 was off-world on their first mission since the change of command.  And, while he had no doubts about newly promoted Lieutenant Colonel Carter’s ability to lead SG-1, he also knew how dangerous the galaxy was.  And the gnawing concern that showed up in his chest every time Carter was in danger was currently gnawing away.

            The phone rang, startling him.  He grabbed for it, trying to keep his voice level.  “O’Neill.”

            “You were waiting by the phone,” the woman on the other end teased.

            Jack’s shoulders relaxed.  “Maybe I was.  How’d it go?”

            “Not bad.  Daniel had a field day.  I was wondering if you’d mind some company.”  Sam switched topics smoothly.  “I think if I mention ‘unit bonding,’ I can pull Daniel away from his books for a few hours, and I know Teal’c would like an excuse to see you.”

            “What about the new kid?”

            Sam laughed.  “Captain Sellers is hardly a kid.  He’s barely younger than I am.  And you should have seen his face when I mentioned hanging out with you.  He sees you as a hero.”

            “He’d better get over that,” Jack grumbled.

            “We can stop and pick up pizza on our way,” Sam went on.  “Is your place ok, or should we go to mine?”  Jack and Sam were the only two with enough space to host all of SG-1.  Teal’c, of course, lived on base, and Daniel’s apartment was so full of books and artifacts that Jack sometimes wondered how Daniel moved around.

            Jack glanced around the room and measured the clutter against the drive from Cheyenne Mountain.  “My place is fine.”

            “Great.  See you in about…half an hour,” Sam estimated.

            “Sounds good.”

            By the time the knock on his door came, almost exactly thirty minutes later, Jack had either put away or hidden his various piles of clutter.

            “It’s open!” he yelled.

            The door creaked open.  “Jack?” Daniel’s voice called.

            “In the living room,” Jack replied.

            A moment later, Daniel, Teal’c, and a man Jack vaguely recognized came into view.

            “Where’s Carter?” he asked when the blonde failed to appear.

            “She stopped to get the pizza,” Daniel responded.  “You remember Captain Andrew Sellers, formerly of SG-12.”

            Jack extended a hand.  “Jack O’Neill, formerly SG-1.”

            Captain Sellers, who stood about three inches shorter than Jack, returned his firm grip.  “Pleasure to meet you, sir.”  He had close-cropped brown hair above a tanned and rugged face.  His hazel eyes were bright, and a white scar ran from the corner of the right eye back to his hairline.

            “Nice to meet you, too, Sellers.  And, please, drop the ‘sir.’  I’m retired.”

            “I’ll try, but military protocol is a hard habit to break.”

            Jack smiled ruefully as the men found seats.  “Don’t I know it.  I think it’s going to take years to convince Carter to call me ‘Jack.’”  He looked over at Sellers.  “Mind if I ask how you got that?”  He motioned to the side of his own face.

            Sellers traced the line of the scar and shrugged.  “Not much of a story, I’m afraid.  I’ve got a background in demolitions, so when my unit found a booby trap attached to a downed plane we were checking for survivors, my CO asked if I could disarm it.  I thought I could.  I got most of it before it got me.  The doc said I was lucky I didn’t lose the eye.”

            “Background in demolitions,” Jack muttered.  “That would have come in real handy when we were trying to defuse the nuke on that asteroid.”

            Teal’c nodded, and Daniel groaned.  But Sellers, who had been at the Alpha Site during the incident, looked mildly interested, so Jack launched into the story.  He was explaining the five yellow wires when the doorbell rang.  “It’s open!”

            Sam’s muffled voice replied, “My hands are full!”

            “I got it.”  Daniel hurried to open the door. 

            Sam came into view a moment later, balancing two pizza boxes on her left arm while carrying a six-pack of beer in her right hand and trying to keep her computer bag from falling off her right shoulder.  Jack jumped up from his seat, but Sam had pizza and beer both safely on the counter before he got there.

            “Thanks for bringing drinks,” he said.  “I forgot to tell you I was almost out.”

            “No problem.”  Sam threw him a dazzling smile.  “Sellers, I didn’t think to ask what kind of pizza you like.  This one’s got everything for Teal’c and the colonel…”

            Jack made a face at Sam’s refusal to use his name.

            Sam ignored it.  “…and this one’s pepperoni for me and Daniel.  Hopefully you aren’t vegetarian.”

            Sellers shook his head.  “I like steak too much to ever go vegetarian.  Does the everything include olives?”

            “Oh, yes,” Jack replied, sliding two gooey slices onto a plate.

            “Then I’d better stick to the pepperoni,” Sellers responded.

            “Allergic?” Daniel asked.

            “Nope.  Just really don’t like ‘em.”

            “So, Daniel,” Jack said after everyone had eaten several bites.  “Carter mentioned that you found something interesting today.”

            “Well, I think it’s interesting,” Daniel replied warily, “but you usually hate it when I go all ‘archaeologist’ on you.”

            Jack shrugged.  Daniel had a point.  “I’m just wondering what you found.  The short version.”

            “We located a temple that Daniel Jackson believes was once used for sacrifices to the Goa’uld Anubis,” Teal’c said.

            “Anubis?”  Ever since Daniel had discovered Anubis’ existence at the Goa’uld summit meeting, the SGC had been searching for clues about his whereabouts and plans.

            “My best guess is that the planet was abandoned hundreds of years ago, so I’d guess the worshippers eventually gave up after Anubis disappeared,” Daniel said.  “Still, there’s the equivalent of two or three hundred pages of text on the walls of the temple, so there should be something useful in all that.”

            “So, what are the rest of you going to be doing while Daniel translates?” Jack asked, knowing that General Hammond would lighten their mission load while Daniel was engaged in an important translation.

            “I have offered to instruct Captain Sellers in defensive techniques when engaging in hand-to-hand combat with a Jaffa,” Teal’c stated.

            Jack winced, remembering the bruises he’d gotten when Teal’c had taught him those techniques.  “Good luck,” he muttered to Sellers.

            “And I’m going to be working on upgrading some of the subroutines in the dialing computer,” Sam put in.

            “What’s wrong?”  Daniel looked a little nervous.  Without a DHD, SG teams were completely dependent on that dialing computer to get them safely to their destinations.

            “Nothing’s wrong,” Sam replied quickly.  “But we think there are a few things that could be improved upon.”

            “I see.”  Daniel did not look convinced.

            “Daniel,” Jack said gently, “are you forgetting that Carter practically built that computer?  Let her play with her sub-whatevers.”

            “Thank you, Colonel,” Sam said.

            “Jack.”

            “What?”

            “I’m retired.  You’re no longer under my command.  Use my name.”

            “You still call me ‘Carter,’” Sam pointed out.

            “Ah, but you haven’t asked me to call you anything else.”

            “Fine.”  Sam folded her arms across her chest and stared defiantly at her ex-CO.  “You call me ‘Sam,’ and I’ll call you ‘Jack.’”

            “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?”  With a jolt, Jack realized that this conversation was toying with the fine line between teasing and flirting.  And, while the idea of flirting with Sam shot a warmth into his gut that had nothing to do with the beer, he had no desire to flirt in front of the rest of SG-1.  So, he changed the subject as fast as he could.

            A little after ten, Daniel stood and said he needed to get back.  Teal’c had ridden with him, since they were both going back to the mountain, so the Jaffa said his farewells.  Sellers said he needed to be getting home, as well.

            “Colonel?  Are you coming?” he asked politely.

            It took Jack a moment to remember Sam’s promotion.

            “I’ll be a few more minutes.  See you tomorrow.”

            Sellers nodded.  “G’night, ma’am.  Sir.”  He caught his slip and offered Jack a smile.  “Sorry.”

            “What do you think of him?” Sam asked after the door closed.

            “Of Sellers?”

            “Yeah.”

            Jack shrugged.  “He seems like a nice enough guy.  I’ve never seen him in the field, so I can’t really say.  You regretting your choice?”

            “No.  He isn’t very experienced – he’s only been with the SGC for a little over a year, and SG-12 has been on some long-term assignments.  That’s actually why he wanted the transfer.  He wanted the kind of front-line interactions that we get.

            “Who came in to replace him on SG-12?” Jack asked.

            “Actually, Lieutenant Satterfield.  You remember her?”

            Jack nodded.  He’d helped train Satterfield, along with Lieutenants Hailey, Grogan, and the late Elliot.  “I thought you liked Satterfield.”

            “I do, but her background’s in linguistics, and the last thing I needed was somebody arguing with Daniel over translations.”

            Jack chuckled.  She had a point.  “Give it a few more missions.  Nothing like being shot at to bring a team together.”

            Sam smiled that dazzling smile that had the power to make him weak in the knees.  “Thanks.  I should get going.  I’ve got an early day tomorrow.”

            “Yeah.”  Jack walked her to the door.  “Sleep well.”

            “You, too.”

            As he loaded his dishwasher, Jack could feel the corners of his mouth tug upwards as he whispered a name forbidden to him for nearly five years.  “Sam.”

            *           *           *           *           *

            Three weeks later, the klaxons in the main areas of the Cheyenne Mountain Complex screeched their warning.  “Unscheduled off-world activation!”

            General Hammond hurried down the stairs to the control room, running through his mental list.  He currently had six teams off-world, and none of them were scheduled for so much as a report until late in the afternoon.

            By the time he reached the control room, Sergeant Harriman had already palmed open the iris.  “Sir, it’s SG-1,” Walter informed him.

            The general hurried to the gate room.  SG-1 had only been gone for a few hours.  Usually a return that swift meant that they’d come under fire.

            But Captain Sellers and Teal’c stepped calmly through the Stargate, weapons at their sides.  Before he could ask what was going on, Daniel stepped through, supporting Sam, who hobbled down the ramp.

            “No need to call a medical team, General,” Sam said.  “I think it’s just a sprain.”

            “Well, get down to the infirmary and have Doctor Frasier take a look at it,” General Hammond responded.  “We’ll debrief whenever she lets you out.”

            “Yes, sir.”

            Half an hour later, Sam sat alone in the infirmary, waiting for Janet to come back with her x-rays.  Finally, the doctor breezed in.

            “Well?  Was I right?” Sam asked.

            Janet smiled.  “You’re going to be on crutches for three to four weeks, but, yes, it’s just a sprain.”

            “Thank you.”

            “But those ribs are definitely cracked,” Janet went on.  “Two of them.  So take it easy for a few weeks, all right?”

            Sam sighed, but nodded.  “With this ankle, I won’t be going off-world anyway, so I’ll just be puttering around my lab.”

            “Good.  Now, I have some painkillers for you.  If nothing else, they’ll help you sleep.  But wait until you get home to take them.  I don’t want you driving while –“

            Sam’s groan interrupted her.  “Janet, I can’t drive!”  She gestured to her wrapped right ankle.

            “Can you get a ride?  Maybe Daniel…?”

            Sam shook her head.  “Daniel is spending every spare second on that translation.  He doesn’t have the time to chauffeur me around, I don’t know Sellers well enough to ask him, and you know how much I hate ordering an airman to drive me around.”

            “I’d offer myself, but I’ve got some cultures in the lab, and I won’t be going home for several hours.”  Janet pretended to think for a moment.  “Why don’t you call Colonel O’Neill?

            “What?  No.”

            “I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”

            “I was hoping to avoid Jack until I was off the crutches,” Sam admitted.

            “It’s ‘Jack’ now, hm?” Janet pressed.

            Sam glared at her.  “At his insistence.  Janet, I will never hear the end of this if he finds out!  It’s embarrassing enough without him knowing.  Add to that the fact that he gets all mother-hen-like when I’m injured.”  Then, she sighed.  “But it is a good idea.”

            “Thank you.”

            Suddenly, Sam’s face lit up.  “You call him.”

            “What?  Oh, no, Sam.”

            Sam talked over her.  “I have to go to debriefing anyway, and it was your idea.  You can at least convince him that I’m fine so he’ll have some of the fussing out of his system by the time he gets here.”

            “Sam…”

            “Tell him I’ll meet him outside in an hour.  Debrief won’t take long.”

            “Sam…”

            But Sam had grabbed her crutches and was halfway across the room.  “Thanks, Janet!”

            Janet sighed in frustration.  “How did I get into this?” she muttered as she headed for the phone.

*           *           *           *           *

            Jack grabbed for his ringing phone without taking his eyes off the TV.  The game was essentially over, but he was holding out hope for a come-from-behind win.  “O’Neill.”

            “Hello, Colonel.  It’s Doctor Frasier.”

            “Hello, Doc.  Please tell me this is a social call.”

            “Not exactly.”

            Jack tensed, the game forgotten.  “What’s wrong?”

            “Nothing’s wrong; everybody’s fine.  I have a favor to ask you.”

            “Ok…”

            “Would you be able to drive up to the mountain and give Sam a ride home?”

            “Why does she need a ride?” Jack pressed.

            Janet sighed.  “She sprained her right ankle and can’t drive, and you know how much she hates ordering somebody to drive her.”

            “You said everybody was fine.”

            “Everybody is fine.  It’s just a sprained ankle.”  Janet waited for the explosion, but it didn’t come.

            “Did Carter ask you to call me, or was it your idea?”  Jack sounded surprisingly calm.

            “It was my idea to call you, Sam’s idea for me to do it,” Janet admitted.  When Jack didn’t respond, she realized how that sounded.  “She had to get to debriefing, and –“

            Jack cut her off.  “What time?”

            “About an hour?”

            “I’ll be there.”

            “Thanks, Colonel.”  Janet made no effort to hid the relief in her voice.

            Jack brought his small talk with the airman on duty at the main entrance to an end when he caught sight of the blonde woman hobbling toward the door on crutches.  She hadn’t bothered to change out of her BDU’s, but her computer bag was slung across her body.

            The airman quickly opened the door and saluted.

            “At ease, Airman,” Sam said.  “I can’t walk and salute at the same time with these.”

            “Yes, ma’am.”

            “Lemme help you.”  Jack tried to take Sam’s bag, but she resisted.

            “I’m almost there.”  Once she was at the passenger door of his truck, she let him take her crutches and stow them in the bed, but she insisted on keeping her bag with her in the cab.

            Jack offered a stabilizing hand as she climbed into the truck, noting her two winces of pain as she shifted position.

            Once they were on their way, he asked, “Didn’t the doc give you something for the pain?”

            “Yeah, but she said they were going to knock me out, and I had to get through a debriefing,” Sam replied.

            “You could take ‘em now,” Jack suggested.  At her look, he added, “They won’t do you any good in the bottle.”

            “You’re being pretty calm about this,” Sam commented as casually as she could, reaching for her bag.

            “What did you expect?”

            Sam studied his profile for a moment.  “I don’t know.”  She pulled the bottle out.  “You don’t happen to have anything to take these with, do you?”

            “There should be a canteen behind the seats, but I don’t know if it has anything in it.”

            Sam hid her grin as she turned to feel behind her.  Of course Mr. Survival had water in his car.  I’ll bet he’s got a compass, a pocketknife, and a couple of energy bars in here, too.  Her fingers brushed something metallic.  And a flashlight.  Finally, she found the canteen, which proved to be about half full of very stale water.

            “I don’t know how long it’ll take for these to kick in,” Sam warned Jack.  “So if I say anything outrageous…”

            “I’ve been warned,” Jack finished for her.

            They drove in silence for a few minutes before Jack asked the question.  “Carter…what happened?”

            “It’s Sam now, remember?”

            “Sorry.  Sam.  What happened?”

            Sam pressed both hands to her face, willing away the blush that she knew was rising in her cheeks.  “It’s really embarrassing.”

            “It can’t be that bad.”

            “Yes, it can.  The only thing that prevented it from being as embarrassing as humanly possible is that it didn’t happen on my first mission as CO.”  She laughed lightly.  “All those times I’ve run for my life across all kinds of terrain, running away from Jaffa or gliders…made it every time.  But on a cakewalk of a mission, I am walking across a field, and I step in the P5R-572 version of a gopher hole.”

            “A gopher hole,” Jack repeated.

            “Yep.”  Sam knew her face had to be beet red.  “The grass looked like every other bit of grass, but my foot went right through it.  It caught my boot just right, and I fell.  Voila.  Sprained ankle.”

            “And the ribs?”

            Sam looked over at him, startled.  “Janet told you?”

            Jack chuckled.  “Nope.  But I saw the way you flinched getting into the truck.  I’ve broken ribs a few times myself.  I know pretty well what it looks like.”

            Sam buried her face in her hands again.  “I didn’t mention my ribs to the others.  I was hoping they were just bruised.  Janet informed me otherwise.”

            “So how’d that happen?”

            Sam closed her eyes and admitted, “I landed on my gun.”

            “You what?”

            “I know.  I didn’t have time to react when I fell, and I landed on top of my P-90.  Go ahead and laugh.  I feel like an idiot.”

            Jack did laugh, but he was quick to say, “You aren’t an idiot.  A klutz, maybe, but not an idiot.”

            “Thanks,” Sam muttered sarcastically.  “Now you know why I didn’t want to tell you.”

            After a moment, Jack asked, “Is that why you had Doc Frasier call me?  Because you were embarrassed?”

            “Yeah.  I knew you’d never let me live this down,” Sam said.  “Did you think it was something else?”

            Jack thought about deflecting the question, but decided it wouldn’t get him anywhere.  “You didn’t want to call me.  I figured you had some reason to want to keep me away.”

            “Then why did you come?” Sam asked bluntly.  “You know you didn’t have to.”

            Jack took his eyes off the road for a moment to drill Sam with a fierce look.  “Because, retirement or no, we’re part of a team.  No matter what, I will always be here when you need me.  Always.”

            Sam gave him a weak smile.  “Thanks.”

            By the time they reached Sam’s house, her words were running together, and her comments were making less and less sense by the moment.

            “Can you walk?” Jack asked as he opened her door.

            “S’not far,” Sam slurred.  “Up th’sidewalk to th’door.  I like my door.”

            Jack stifled a laugh and helped Sam steady herself on her crutches.  She wobbled a few times, but made it to the front door without incident.  She pulled her keys from her pocket and stared blankly at them.

            This time, Jack couldn’t entirely suppress his chuckle.  Gently, he took the keys from her hand and unlocked the door for her.

            “Knew I shoulda’ waited t’ take pills,” Sam mumbled as she hobbled into the house.

            “No worries.  I got you here safely, didn’t I?”  Jack set her computer bag down on the table in the front hall.

            “Why’re you still here?” Sam asked, her voice carrying confusion rather than aggression.

            “I am going to make sure that you make it from here to your bed without falling over,” Jack replied calmly.  “Then I’ll let myself out.”

            “Oh.”  Sam started forward and grabbed at the wall for support.  “Good idea.”

            Jack took the place of one of her crutches and helped her to her bedroom, but Sam balked in the doorway.  “’S th’middle of th’day.”

            “I don’t know what the doc gave you, but you really need to sleep it off,” Jack told her.

            Sam nodded and let him lead her to the bed.

            “What time do you have to be on base tomorrow?”  Jack asked once he got her settled under the blankets.  His only response was a questioning murmur.  He smiled and said, “Never mind.”  Moving as quietly as he could (and Special Forces training made that pretty quiet), Jack put Sam’s crutches beside her bed and left a few things on the table by her head.  Then he found a spare key in a basket and left, locking the door behind him.

*           *           *           *           *

            Consciousness came slowly to Sam, but her mind told her immediately that she was safe, so she let herself wake up gradually.  She was warm and comfortable, and everything seemed familiar.  Finally, she eased her eyes open.  The room was dark, but enough light trickled in through the window for her to recognize her bedroom.  The problem was, she didn’t remember coming home.  She started to roll over, but a sharp pain in her side stopped her.  She reached down and realized that her ribs were taped under her shirt.  Then memory flooded back.  The gopher hole…sprained ankle…broken ribs…Colonel driving me home….  She couldn’t recall much of anything between her front door and falling asleep, but she assumed from the fact that her boots were off and she was under the covers rather than sprawled on top of them that Jack had helped her to bed.  Her face warmed at the thought of Colonel O’Neill in her bedroom, but she pushed the embarrassment away.

            Moving more carefully now, she sat up and flipped on her lamp.  Next to the phone on her nightstand were a glass of water, the bottle of painkillers Janet had given her, and a note written in familiar handwriting on a piece of her notepaper.

            If you need anything, call.  Otherwise, I’ll call you in the morning.  -Jack

            Sam glanced at her clock.  10:43pm.  Wow…I really slept.  By her best guess, it had been about three in the afternoon when she got home.  She reached for her crutches, determined to at least wash her face and put on pajamas before going back to sleep.

*           *           *           *           *

            The ringing phone woke Sam, and she grabbed blindly for the source of the sound.  “H’lo?”

            “Good morning, sunshine.”  The voice was gruff but teasing.

            “Sir,” she acknowledged automatically.

            “I’m going to let that one slide, since you aren’t awake yet,” Jack said.  “Sorry to call so early, but you weren’t in any shape yesterday to tell me what time you had to be on base this morning, so…”

            Sam smiled as she looked at the clock.  6:02.  He gave me exactly enough time to get ready and get to the mountain by 07:00.  “Thank you.  But I don’t have anything scheduled, since I’m on the injured list.  Whenever is good for you is good for me.”

            “Fortunately for you, I haven’t been able to break the early morning habit.  I’ll swing by in about an hour?”

            “Perfect.  Thank you.”

            “No problem.”

            Sam hung up and stretched gingerly, mindful of her throbbing side.  Grabbing her crutches, she hobbled to the bathroom and dug out her Advil.  These should dull the pain a bit, and they won’t knock me out like the stuff Janet gave me.  Her next stop was the kitchen; Advil on an empty stomach always made her a little queasy, and Jack had given her enough time to grab some breakfast.

            When her former CO’s truck pulled up to her house an hour later, Sam was waiting by the front door.  She met Jack halfway down the sidewalk.

            “You look a little more…”

            “Coherent?” Sam suggested.

            “That’ll work.”  Jack grinned as he helped her into the truck.

            “Jack, I want to thank you.  I heard what you said about team loyalty, but you still didn’t have to do this.  I just want you to know I appreciate it,” Sam said.

            Jack shrugged off her gratitude, as she figured he would.

            They spent the rest of the trip debating taste in radio stations, and Sam found herself inexplicably saddened when Jack turned at Cheyenne Mountain.

            “What time do you want me to pick you up?” he asked when she got out.

            Sam felt her face warm.  “You really don’t have to.  I can probably get a ride from Janet or –“

            Jack interrupted.  “What time?”

            Sam gave in.  “17:00?”

            “K.”  Without another word, Jack drove away.

            All day, Sam was looking forward to the drive home.

            It was about twenty-five minutes from Cheyenne Mountain to Sam’s house in Colorado Springs.  For nearly three weeks, Jack and Sam used those fifty minutes a day as a start on their new friendship – one that drew on nearly five years of shared history, but seemed brand new with the crumbling of the wall military protocol had built between them.

            That newness was the reason Sam hesitated before dialing Jack’s number.

            “O’Neill.”

            Sam smiled.  Some military habits refused to go away.  “It’s Sam.”

            “Everything all right?”

            “Yes, everything’s fine.  I just had a checkup, and Janet says I can put weight on my right foot if I’m careful.”

            “That’s a good thing.”  Jack sounded skeptical.

            “It means I get to drive my car home,” she continued.  “No more chauffeuring me around.”

            “Ah.”  A silence followed, long enough that Sam wondered if Jack had hung up.  “You know I don’t mind, right?”

            “I know,” Sam replied quickly.  “And I owe you a huge favor for it.”

            Jack’s tone lightened.  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

            Sam groaned in mock terror, then said, “I have to go.  Janet needs her phone back.  I just wanted to let you know.”

            “Thanks.  I guess I’ll see you, then?”

            “Soon,” Sam promised before hanging up.

            But a series of near-catastrophes, missions, and knotty technological problems turned “soon” into another three weeks.  Twice during that time, Jack and Sam made plans, only to have her call it off at the last minute.

            Which is why both of them stopped to stare as they nearly collided just outside the main doors of the mountain late on a Sunday morning.

            Jack recovered first.  “You on your way out?”

            Sam nodded.  “Yeah.  How’ve you been?”

            “Not bad.  I’d ask you the same, but…”

            Sam ran a hand through her tousled blonde hair.  “I must look awful.”

            Before Jack could argue, Teal’c came out, dressed in street clothes, with a tan hat pulled down over his forehead.  “O’Neill.”

            “You two headed out?” Sam asked.

            “I’m going to introduce T to the very American sport of baseball,” Jack replied.

            “I have viewed matches on the television, but I do not understand how the contest is conducted,” Teal’c explained.  “O’Neill has agreed to explain the rules.”

            Jack hesitated before adding, “You’re welcome to come…”

            Sam gave him a weary smile.  “Thanks, but I’ve been awake since very early yesterday morning, trying to fix a glitch in the dialing computer that wouldn’t let us dial anything except P7C-480.”  She rubbed the back of her neck.  “Stupid bug.”

            “That must’ve caused problems,” Jack said, trying to seem concerned without prompting a lecture on the inner workings of the dialing computer.

            “Incoming wormholes worked fine, so our off-world teams were safe, but we had to postpone two missions, which didn’t make General Hammond happy.”  She offered another weak smile.  “And we fixed it.  It just took a while.”

            “Well, go home and get some rest,” Jack said.

            “Is that an order?” she asked archly.

            “Just a suggestion,” Jack replied with a grin.

            “Yes, sir,” Sam responded.  A jaw-popping yawn cut off whatever else she had been about to say.

            Jack took her by the shoulders, turned her in the direction of the parking garage, and gave her a gentle push.  “Go.”

            She waved over her shoulder.  “G’night, Teal’c.”

            “Good day, Colonel Carter,” Teal’c replied.

*           *           *           *           *

            The phone woke Sam from a strange dream involving a Goa’uld control panel that was running Microsoft Windows.  By the time she cleared her mind enough to locate her phone, her answering machine had picked up.

            “Sam?  Sam, are you home?”  Daniel’s voice.

            She grabbed for the receiver.  “I’m here, Daniel.  What’s up?”

            “Did I wake you?”

            Sam rubbed the grit from her eyes and glanced at her watch.  17:23.  “Yeah, but I’ve been asleep since about eleven, so it’s fine.”

            “I just got a call from Jack.  He and Teal’c wanted to check out that new Mexican place on Park Avenue, and I thought maybe you’d like to come.  Jack didn’t want to wake you if you were sleeping, but I figured you needed to eat, so…”

            Sam grinned and cut off Daniel’s rambling.  “I’ll come, Daniel.  Are we inviting Sellers?”

            “Uhm…not this time,” Daniel said, sounding sheepish.  “I thought it would be nice just the four of us.”

            “Sure, no problem,” Sam reassured him.

            “Is half an hour ok?”

            Sam glanced down at the rumpled uniform she’d been wearing for the past two days.  “If I’m not there, start without me.  I may be a few minutes late.”

            “Ok.”

            “Bye, Daniel.”  Sam hung up and made a dash for the shower.  Years in the military had given Sam many skills.  The ability to get ready quickly was one of them.  And a military haircut helps, she mused as she finger-combed her short, spiky hair.

            Forty minutes after Daniel’s call, she was washed, dressed, made up, and walking into Jose’s across town.  She spotted the three men in a corner booth and headed for them.

            “You look much better than the last time I saw you,” Jack greeted her as she slid in across from him.

            “Considering the last time you saw me, I hadn’t slept for about thirty hours, that’s not saying much,” Sam retorted.  “How was the game?”

            “I do not understand the Tau’ri fascination with these competitions,” Teal’c replied.  “They seem to serve no purpose other than inspiring wagers.”

            “Which is his way of saying there wasn’t enough violence,” Daniel teased.

            “A sporting competition should require skill,” Teal’c argued.  “This ‘baseball’ does not.”

            “You should take him to some batting cages,” Sam suggested to Jack.

            “Bad idea,” Jack replied.  “I’d embarrass myself, and T would probably drill the second pitch into the machine.”

            Sam laughed.  He was probably right, at least about Teal’c.

            Jack went on, “Hockey has always been more my game.”

            “Now there’s a sport with violence,” Daniel put in.

            Their waiter arrived, and the conversation turned to food.  After he left, they debated the merits of hockey for a while before talk turned to work.  Of course, being in a public place, they had to dance around a few words, but they were all pretty good about hearing what wasn’t said.

            “Any word on our assignment?” Daniel asked Sam.

            “The general postponed it because I was busy with the computer problems,” Sam explained to Jack. “But my guess is we’ll have a briefing tomorrow morning.”

            “Recon?” Jack asked.

            Sam nodded.

            “You sure you’re up to it?  This morning you were half dead,” Jack pointed out.

            “I’m fine,” Sam retorted.

            “If you’re too tired, Sam, I’m sure the general would postpone the mission,” Daniel said.

            “I’m fine,” Sam repeated.  “And don’t you even think about talking to Janet.  I’ll get a good eight hours of sleep tonight and be perfectly alert tomorrow.”  She changed the subject.

            After the group negotiated the check (Jack liked to joke that splitting a restaurant tab four ways required an astrophysicist to do the math), Daniel turned to Teal’c.  “I’m heading back to the mountain if you want a ride.”

            “Daniel, I can’t believe you got on my case about being exhausted when you were planning on spending the night on your translations!” Sam exclaimed.  “We’re going to need you fresh tomorrow.”

            Daniel raised his hands in surrender.  “I won’t stay more than an hour.  I promise.”

            “That means two hours at least,” Sam translated.

            “I’ve only got a few more pages of that text that SG-14 discovered,” Daniel explained.  “I’d really like to get it to General Hammond before our briefing tomorrow.”

            Sam sighed.  She knew the way time slipped away when you were close to the end of a project.  “Fine.  But I am going to call your apartment at 22:00, and you had better answer the phone.”  Catching Daniel’s expression, she translated the military time for him.  “Ten o’clock.”  When Daniel started to protest, she cut him off.  “We’re going to need you awake tomorrow, not running on coffee fumes.”

            Daniel mumbled an agreement, and he and Teal’c headed for his beat-up car.

            “You’re getting better at that,” Jack commented, holding the door for Sam.

            “Better at what?”

            Jack grinned.  “Bossing Daniel around.”

            Sam chuckled.  “If he’s allowed to kick me out of my lab, I’m certainly allowed to kick him out of his office.”

            “I’m glad somebody’s still making sure you don’t live in that lab.”

            After a moment of silence, Sam motioned toward her car.  “I should get going.”

            “Lemme walk you to your car.”

            Sam made a face.  “Afraid the boogeyman will get me?”

            “In a fight between you and the boogeyman, my money’s on you,” Jack replied with a straight face.  “I have something I want to ask you.”

            “Sure.”  Sam fell into step beside him as they crossed the parking lot.

            “You remember you said a few weeks ago that you owed me a favor?”

            “Time to pay the piper,” Sam responded, but she was smiling.  “What is it?”

            Jack took a deep breath.  “I want to take you out.  On a…date.”

            “A date,” Sam repeated.  “That’s the favor?”

            “That’s it.  Let me take you out.  Someplace nice.”

            “I have to dress up?” Sam asked, still turning the idea over in her head.

            “I have known you for five years, and I have never seen you in a dress.  At least, not a modern dress,” Jack amended, remembering the blue number she’d been forced to wear on Simarka.  “Every time I’ve seen you all formal, you’ve been in a dress uniform.”

            Sam shrugged.  “Hazard of being in the Air Force.”

            “I know.  But…do you even own a dress?” Jack asked.

            Sam pretended to be offended.  “I can’t believe you would ask me that.”

            Jack studied her for a moment before deciding that she was teasing him.  “Well, that’s the favor.”

            “You do realize I would have said yes without the favor?”

            “I like having insurance,” Jack replied.  “Is this week too soon?”

            Sam blinked.  When Jack O’Neill decided to do something, he didn’t mess around.  “Well, we’re going…”  She caught herself just before the words “off-world” left her lips.  “…on a trip tomorrow, and I’m not sure when we’re getting back.”

            “These…trips…usually don’t take more than a few days,” Jack said.  “What about Wednesday night?”

            Sam considered for a moment.  Even if the mission took two and a half days, she could still make it.  “Probably.  I’ll call you after our briefing and let you know how long we think we’ll be gone.”

            Jack nodded.  “Be careful out there, Sam.”

            She gave him a smile.  “I always am.”

            Jack hummed tunelessly as he straightened his tie.  He’d talked with Sam briefly Monday morning, and she’d told him SG-1 was leaving for P4R-something or other at 09:00 Monday morning and were scheduled to be back in 48 hours.  Which means that even if they were late, and they probably were, she should have been back hours ago.  He was supposed to pick her up at 18:00 sharp.  He glanced at his clock.  Perfect timing.  After one last glance in the mirror, he headed for the truck.

            Ten minutes later, Jack pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and punched in the memorized number with trembling fingers.  Sam’s house was dark, and her car was nowhere to be seen.  His dreams of a perfect evening had shattered into visions of Sam lying in an infirmary bed.  If she’d been able to call, she would have…  He shoved back images of the torture device on 564 and focused on keeping his voice steady.  “Colonel O’Neill for General Hammond.”

            The general’s familiar voice picked up after a few minutes of silence.  “Hammond.”

            “General, it’s Colonel O’Neill.  Is SG-1 back from their mission yet?”

            “Jack, I –“

            Jack cut him off.  “General, I know I’m retired.  But I was supposed to meet Carter tonight.  She told me she’d be back sometime this morning.  I’m at her house, and she’s not here, which means she’s either still off-world, or she’s injured.”

            Hammond sighed.  “SG-1 is more than nine hours overdue.  We’ve tried to raise them on radios, but haven’t had any success.  I’m going to give them a little more time before sending a rescue team.”

            “General, may I –“

            It was Hammond’s turn to interrupt.  “You know I can’t let you on that rescue team.”

            “I know.  Would it be all right if I came up to the mountain to wait?”

            The general’s voice had a smile in it when he said, “I’d appreciate the company, Jack.”

            Jack left his grey suit jacket and his tie in the truck, hoping not to be glaringly obvious about the fact that he’d been planning to go on a date tonight.  But he still felt conspicuous walking down the corridors of the SGC in civilian clothes.

            “Anything, General?” he asked as he entered the control room.

            Hammond shook his head.  “We’re prepping the UAV,” he said, motioning to the gate room below them.  “And I’ve got SG-15 getting ready for a possible rescue mission.”

            Jack nodded and found a spot more or less out of the way to watch.

*           *           *           *           *

            Millions of miles away from the planet they called home, the four members of SG-1 collapsed against a small ridge.  Hot, dirty, and exhausted, they’d been running for what felt like days.

            Sam summed up the situation.  “We’ve got maybe one day’s worth of water, and not enough ammo to shoot our way to the ‘gate.”

            “We’re assuming the ‘gate’s heavily guarded?”  Sellers asked.

            “The Jaffa spotted us and have had time to report,” Sam replied.  “Yu knows that we’re here.  He’s not going to let us escape.”

            “And the really bad news is that, if he catches us, there’s a good chance he’ll recognize me as the slave that ran away during that summit meeting,” said Daniel.

            Sam checked her pockets.  “I have one clip left, plus the one that’s in here, then I’m left with my zat.”

            Daniel shrugged.  “I ran out of bullets about three stops ago.”

            “Sellers?”

            The captain replied, “I have two more clips for my P-90, the one that’s in there’s almost empty, and I have one grenade left.”

            “Save it,” Sam ordered.  “We might be able to rig something with the C-4 to discourage some of this pursuit.”

            “Yes, ma’am.”

            Sam glanced at her watch and sighed.

            “Colonel Carter, why do you consult your timepiece?” Teal’c asked.

            Sam flushed a little under the dirt.  “I…I was…”  She sighed again.  “I was supposed to meet Jack forty minutes ago.  He’s probably frantic by now.”

            “You had a date?”  Daniel’s eyes were brighter than Sam had seen them since this ruin of a mission began.

            She hemmed and hawed for a minute, but finally admitted that, yes, she had a date with her former CO.

            “’Bout time,” Daniel said.  “It’s been, what, two months?  I was wondering if he was ever going to make a move.”

            “Wait.  You knew?”  Sam ran through her memories.  “You weren’t there during the Zatarc testing.  You were up in the gate room with the delegation.”

            “What does Zatarc testing have to do with anything?” Daniel asked.

            Teal’c explained, “When the Tok’ra Anise tested the members of SG-1, she believed O’Neill and Colonel Carter to be Zatarcs because they were concealing their affection for one another.  Doctor Frasier and I were present when they admitted their attraction, but we were asked not to speak of it.”

            “Sorry to burst that bubble,” Daniel said with a grin, “but I’ve known, or at least suspected about the two of you since before the Zatarc thing.”

            “Really?”

            A Jaffa horn in the distance effectively ended the conversation.

            Sam motioned in the general direction of the Stargate.  “Let’s move.”

            Several minutes later, SG-1 heard a familiar buzz overhead, and Sam’s radio hissed softly.  The other three had turned off their radios several hours earlier, while hiding from a Jaffa patrol, but Sam had left hers on low.  Now, she risked a bit more volume.

            “…ate Command,” General Hammond’s voice said.  “Please respond.”

            “This is SG-1,” Sam said as loudly as she dared.  “The planet is covered in Jaffa.  A mothership landed about twelve hours ago.”

            “Can you reach the Stargate?”

            “I don’t know yet, sir.  We’re trying to get there, but the Jaffa are everywhere.”

            “Understood.  We are trying to get confirmation on the guard at the Stargate,” Hammond said as the UAV buzzed away.

            “Copy that.”  Sam motioned for her team to wait.

            A few minutes later, the radio crackled again.  “We’ve got at least a dozen Jaffa plus a staff weapon emplacement between you and the ‘gate, Colonel.”

            “Roger that.  General, if we can distract the Jaffa at the ‘gate, another team might be able to come through and catch them from behind.”  When she didn’t get a reply, Sam added, “I don’t think we’re going to be able to get out of here on our own, sir.”

            “Understood.  Get your team in position near the Stargate.  We will reestablish communication in thirty minutes.”

            “Yes, sir.  Carter out.”

            Back on Earth, General Hammond turned to Jack.  “I just hope they can make it that long.”

            Jack offered a reassuring smile he didn’t really feel.  “They know what they’re doing.”  I hope.

            Exactly thirty minutes later, Sam heard the Stargate activate.  She watched from her concealed position as all of the Jaffa turned their weapons on the glowing blue circle.  “This is SG-1; we are in position,” Sam said before anyone could hail her.

            “Copy that.  On my mark, SG-15 will go through the ‘gate,” said Hammond.

            “Give us a minute or so to get their attention,” Sam responded.

            “Whenever you’re ready, Colonel,” came the reply.

            Sam took a steadying breath, glanced to both sides to check on her team, then said into the radio, “SG-1, attack on my mark.  3…2…1…now!”

            As one, the four members of SG-1 partially rose from their positions and gunned for the Jaffa.  As per Sam’s instructions, Sellers lobbed his single grenade at the weapon emplacement.  It didn’t do much damage to the weapon, but it did send the two Jaffa operators flying.

            As she emptied her second-to-last clip, Sam heard Hammond’s voice.  “SG-15, move out!”  The new team would come out shooting at the Jaffa’s backs, but they wouldn’t have any cover.

            A yell from her left told Sam that Sellers had taken a hit.  She glanced over at him, but the captain was still on his feet, so she turned her attention back to the enemy.

            As the four members of SG-15 stepped through the ‘gate, the Jaffa became increasingly desperate as they fired at the humans from both directions.

            “Teal’c!  Try to get the weapon emplacement!” Sam yelled.  It was a risk, but a calculated one.

            Not bothering with an acknowledgement, Teal’c charged out from behind the tree, firing his staff weapon as he ran.  One of the Jaffa still standing saw Teal’c’s approach and tried to beat him to the weapon, but a blue beam felled him a few paces away.

            Sam’s eyebrows went up.  Nice shot, Daniel!

            Once Teal’c had control of the weapon, the battle ended quickly.

            “Everybody ok?” Sam asked as SG-1 emerged from cover and ran for the ‘gate.

            “Still mobile,” Sellers assured her.  Daniel and Teal’c appeared unhurt, but Major Pierce of SG-15 was kneeling beside the still form of his lieutenant, whose name Sam didn’t know.

            “He’s alive,” Pierce said in answer to her unspoken question, “but we need to get him home.”

            Daniel was already at the DHD.  He sent his IDC, and Sam motioned both teams to go through.  She could hear the sound of Jaffa horns getting closer.  Once everybody else was through, she stepped into the wormhole.

            Familiar sights and sounds assaulted her as she finished her step onto the gate room ramp.  Pierce was yelling for a medical team to get his lieutenant to the infirmary, boots were clattering down the metal ramp, and General Hammond was welcoming them home.  But a sixth sense told her that a set of dark brown eyes was watching her, checking her for injuries as they had done so many times in the past.  She swept her gaze over the group gathering at the bottom of the ramp.  Nothing.  Then she looked up at the window to the control room.  There, almost out of sight, looking very out of place in a button-down shirt and slacks, stood Jack O’Neill.  She raised a hand in greeting, then ripped her attention back to where it needed to be.

            “I want all of you to report to the infirmary,” General Hammond ordered.  “We can debrief after Doctor Frasier clears you.”

            Sam smiled, realizing that Janet had stayed on base specifically to be there when they came home.  “As soon as she’s done with the lieutenant, Sellers, I want Doctor Frasier to have a look at that shoulder.”

            Walter glanced down at his burned right shoulder.  “It just winged me, Colonel.  I’ve had worse.”  He caught Sam’s glare and nodded.  “Yes, ma’am.”

            Ten minutes later, Jack found Sam loitering in the corridor just outside the infirmary.  “Shouldn’t you be in there?” he asked.

            Sam shrugged.  “Janet and Doctor Warner are busy with the lieutenant and Captain Sellers.  It’ll take them a little while to get to the post-mission physicals for those of us who aren’t injured.”

            “Not injured?”  Jack grasped Sam’s right arm and lifted it, running the fingers of his free hand over a blackened hole in her sleeve.

            Sam blinked several times and probed at her arm.  “I think the only casualty is the jacket,” she said, noting that the skin beneath the hole was only red.  “I hadn’t even noticed.”  She looked up into Jack’s eyes.  “I’m all right.”

            “I know.”

            “Jack, I’m so sorry about –“

            “Don’t be.  It’s not your fault Jaffa landed on the planet.  As long as you’re all right, we can reschedule.”

            But Sam caught something flicker behind his eyes, something that prompted her to say, “Tomorrow night?”

            “What?”

            “You said you wanted to reschedule, and I know I won’t be off-world again so soon…”

            “If you’re up to it, then tomorrow night is fine.”

            Daniel stuck his head around the corner.  “Oh, there you are, Sam.  We thought you’d run away.  Hi, Jack.  You can blame the Goa’uld for ruining your date.”

            Jack turned an incredulous gaze on Sam.

            “Don’t look at me,” Sam defended herself, “Daniel claims to have suspected for a long time now.”

            “Daniel?”  Jack turned on his friend.

            “What can I say?”  Daniel grinned at Jack, then turned, serious now, to Sam.  “Janet says that Lieutenant Anderson should make a full recovery.”

            “Wonderful!” Sam exclaimed.

            “Yeah.  Just…wanted to let you know.”  With an awkward nod, Daniel disappeared back into the infirmary.

            “I should go,” Sam said.

            “You want a ride home?”

            “I’ll be at least an hour, probably closer to two,” Sam protested.

            “You want a ride home?” Jack repeated.

            Sam weighed imposing on him against not having to drive.  Exhaustion won.  “All right.  Thanks.”

            “I’ll be here when you’re done.”  Jack leaned against the corridor wall, the picture of relaxation.

            Sam couldn’t shake her little smile, even as she stepped into the infirmary.

            The trip into town was quiet.  Sam was too tired to make conversation, and Jack simply wasn’t talking.

            Finally, Sam gathered her energy and broke the silence.  “I know you’re mad.”

            “Not at you,” was Jacks’ immediate response.

            “You’re acting mad at me,” she said softly.

            Jack glanced over at her in surprise.  “Sorry,” he mumbled.  “I guess tonight hasn’t been easy on anybody.”

            “But everybody made it,” Sam reminded him.  “Lieutenant Anderson will be back on duty in a month or so, Seller’s going to be fine in about a week, and I just got a little singed.”

            “I know.  I guess the idea that you’re getting shot at and I’m not there to help get you out of it is harder to get used to than I thought it would be,” Jack admitted.

            The truck rolled to a stop outside Sam’s house.

            “I don’t have to be in until 09:00 tomorrow,” Sam said as she collected her bag.

            “Than I’ll be by at 08:30,” Jack replied.

            “Thank you for the ride.”  Sam hesitated for a moment, then, in one quick motion, leaned across the cab and pressed a kiss to Jack’s cheek.  “And for caring,” she murmured in his ear.  Before he could form a reaction, she was out of the truck and on her way up the sidewalk.

            Once she was safely inside, Jack started to drive, but his mind wasn’t on the road.  It wasn’t until he blew through a stop sign that he forced himself to stop thinking about Sam and start thinking about where he was going.

            Sam dabbed a bit more concealer onto her upper arm before deciding that the burn was invisible.  The last thing she needed was for Jack to spend their entire first date staring at a reminder of how close she’d come to death.

            The doorbell rang, causing Sam to jump.  She hadn’t heard Jack’s truck pull up.  She gave herself one last look in the full-length mirror, slipped on her shoes, and hurried to the door.

            When the door opened, Jack had to fight to keep his jaw from dropping.

            “Come in,” Sam said, seemingly unaware of his reaction.  “I just have to get my jacket.”

            Jack’s eyes followed her every move.  She was wearing a spaghetti-strapped black dress that set off her fair skin.  The fabric shirred at the top, swept in to showcase her slender waist, then fell in light folds to just above her knees.  It was in no way immodest, but it did show off a good bit more skin than Jack was used to seeing.  He couldn’t say he minded the change.

            Sam flushed when she turned around and caught Jack staring.  “Well, Colonel,” she asked teasingly, “do I pass inspection?”

            “Carter, I would be willing to wager that you’ve never failed an inspection in your life,” Jack replied glibly.  A mischievous smirk appeared on his face as he added, “And you certainly don’t fail this one.”

            Sam flushed a deeper shade of pink and accepted the arm Jack offered.  As she locked the door behind them, she said, “You’d lose.”

            “Huh?”

            She smiled at him, noting that her heels negated the slight difference in their heights.  “You said you’d wager that I’ve never failed an inspection.  You’d lose the bet.”

            “You?  Miss Perfect Air Force Officer has failed an inspection?” Jack said incredulously as he held the truck door open for her.

            Sam smiled in acknowledgement of his gentlemanly behavior.  Once he had joined her in the truck’s cab, she answered, “It only happened once.  It was my first year at the Academy.  A senior cadet had learned that my father had just made Brigadier General, and he made the mistake of assuming that I had gotten into the Academy based on family connections rather than on merit.  He decided to make me wash out.  So, he pulled a surprise inspection and came after me.  My boots weren’t polished.”

            Jack winced in sympathy.  “What happened?”

            “After that awful inspection, somebody told me that he was trying to get me to wash out, and I decided that it wasn’t going to happen.”

            “And?  Obviously you didn’t drop out.”

            “He came after me for the rest of the semester, but he never caught me again.  No matter what, I made sure that I was perfectly in uniform with perfect behavior.  I didn’t sleep much, but he didn’t have a thing on me.”  She grinned at the memory.  “Right after the Christmas break, he came up to me and said, ‘I can still make your life miserable.’  Then he gave me this funny look and said, ‘But you don’t care, do you?’  I said, ‘I am going to graduate at the top of my class and become an Air Force officer.’  He just said, ‘I think you’re right, Carter,’ and walked away.  Never bothered me again.”

            Jack smirked.  That was the Sam Carter he knew, not taking anything from anybody.  “Whatever happened to him?”

            “I have no idea,” Sam replied.  “I know he graduated, but I didn’t exactly try to keep in touch.”

            “What was his name?”

            “Uhm…”  Sam dug through her memories.  “Something long and Scandinavian.  Kjellstrom?   Yeah, that’s it.  Kjellstrom.”

            The name tugged at Jack’s memory.  “What was his first name?”

            Sam shrugged.  “I’m not sure I ever knew it.  Why?”

            “The name sounds familiar.  I think I may have met him.  What did he look like?”

            “Blonde, blue eyes, about six foot, maybe six-one.”  Sam shrugged.  “He was actually pretty good-looking.”

            A brief flash of irrational jealously hit Jack at her last comment.  He brushed the emotion away and concentrated on sifting through his own memories.  “Yeah.  I think I knew him.  If I’m thinking of the right guy, he few cover for a Special Forces mission I was on.”

            “Small world.”

            “The Air Force isn’t that big,” Jack responded.  “We’re bound to know a few of the same people.”  He pulled the truck into the parking lot of the nicest Italian restaurant in Colorado Springs and glanced at his watch.  Perfect.  Their reservations were in three minutes.  He switched off the engine and went around to help Sam out, but she met him behind the truck.

            “You’re supposed to let me help you out,” he grumbled.

            Sam grinned and linked her arm through his.  “I don’t play the helpless woman very well.”

            Jack snickered.  “No, you don’t.”

            Once they were settled at a table for two, Sam returned to the earlier topic.  “Have you ever met Elizabeth Ranetti?  Last I knew, she was a captain.”

            Jack shook his head.  “Doesn’t ring any bells.”

            “She was my best friend at the Academy,” Sam said.  “We lost touch about a year before I joined the SGC.  She doesn’t know I moved to Colorado.”

            Discussing old friends and colleagues got them through most of dinner.

            “You know the nice thing about tonight, as first dates go?” Sam said suddenly.  “We have things to talk about.  Usually first dates are a frantic search for a conversation topic that both people find interesting.”  She chuckled.  “And, in my case, trying to avoid any topic that will make me sound like a science professor.”

            “You do have a habit of giving a lot more details than the average person wants to know,” Jack said wryly.

            Sam shrugged.  “I babble when I’m nervous, and most people are too afraid of being rude to tell me to stop.”  She smirked.  “You’ve never had that problem.”

            “Being willing to cut off your babbling, or being rude?” Jack asked.

            “Both, actually.”

            Jack nodded in acknowledgement that he was being teased and changed the subject.  “So, you’ve been on quite a few first dates?”

            “I’ve had my share, especially in my years at the Pentagon after I broke it off with Jonas.”  She flinched slightly at the name.  “But I’ve never had too much trouble getting first dates when I want them.  My trouble has always been getting second dates.”

            Jack’s eyebrows lifted in surprise.  He couldn’t imagine anyone going out with the beautiful, intelligent, funny woman sitting across from him and not wanting to repeat the experience.  All he said, however, was, “I find that hard to believe.”

            “Some of them I didn’t want to see again, men after connections more than anything else.  Some of them got scared off when they found out I knew my way around a physics book.”

            Jack snorted in laughter.  Saying that Samantha Carter knew her way around a physics book was like saying Daniel knew his way around an archaeological dig site.

            A memory caused Sam to chuckle.  “At least one guy went out with me on a bet.”

            Jack studied her face, wondering whether or not he should be angry about someone using her like that.  His instinct was to rip the guy apart, but Sam seemed more amused than bitter about the memory.

            “His name was Andrew.  Lieutenant Andrew Ingalson.  We’d met at the Academy, graduated together, and ended up on the same base.  Apparently, some of the other guys in the flight were discussing me, rather unflatteringly.  Andrew tried to put in a good word, one thing led to another, and they ended up betting him that he couldn’t get me to go out with him.  He asked, I said yes, and when we got to dinner, he admitted that it was a bet.”

            “He ‘fessed up?” Jack repeated, surprised.  If he’d pulled off something like that, he wouldn’t have dared to admit it.

            Sam nodded.  “I was mad for a minute, but I had to appreciate the guy’s guts, especially when he offered to split the proceeds.”

            Jack chuckled in appreciation for that tactic.

            “So, we had a nice evening, said our goodnights, and spent weeks dropping hints to the rest of the flight.”

            Jack started to ask about the kind of hints, but decided he really didn’t want to know.

            “But enough about my love life,” Sam said.  “What about you?  I’m sure a dashing officer like you had no problem finding first dates.”

            She called me “dashing”!  Jack tucked that thought away for later.  “I took advantage of the charms of being a pilot,” he admitted.  “But I met Sarah just after I made First Lieutenant.”

            “Ah.”  Sam dropped her gaze to stare at her plate.

            “Does it bother you to hear me talk about her?” Jack asked softly.

            “Should it?”

            “I’m a lucky man, Sam.  In my life, I’ve gotten to know two remarkable women.  Not many people get a second chance at something like this.”

            Sam snapped her eyes back up to his.  She seemed to like what she saw there, because a gentle smile stretched across her face.  “Are you sure you know what you’re getting into?”

            Jack laughed.  “Sam, over the last five years, I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly with you.  I think I know pretty well what I’m getting.”

            “And?”  Sam was fishing for a compliment, and they both knew it.

            For once, Jack decided to be obliging.  “I’m going to want a second date.”

            After dessert, which Jack had to talk Sam into, he drove her home.  After she unlocked the door, they both hesitated.  Jack was pretty sure she wouldn’t invite him in, and he was very sure he wouldn’t accept if she did.  The last thing he wanted to do was to rush this.

            Instead, he asked, “If I were to kiss you goodnight, what kind of reaction would I get?”

            Sam looked surprised.  “I wouldn’t have thought of you as the type to ask first.”

            He gave her his best smirk.  “Only when I know that the woman I’m trying to kiss would have no problem punching me out if she thought I was being too…forward.”

            Sam rolled her eyes.  She’d read his file; she knew his skill ratings.  “You could take me out in a heartbeat.”

            Jack looked her in the eye.  “No, I couldn’t.”

            A flush spread up Sam’s face as she caught his meaning.  She phrased her response to his question as coyly as possible.  “The Jack O’Neill I know wouldn’t let a little threat get in his way.”

            Jack brushed his fingertips along her cheekbone and settled his hand on the back of her neck.  “You, Samantha Carter, are a very big threat,” he murmured as he leaned in.

            Sam wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

            When they broke apart several moments later, they were both breathing hard.  Before Sam could say anything, Jack stepped back out of her arms.  “Goodnight, Sam.”  He walked down the sidewalk without a single glance back, climbed into his truck, and drove away.

            Sam walked into her living room and collapsed on the couch.  She was both elated at the almost picture-perfect evening and profoundly confused by its ending.  She laughed aloud.  Only Jack O’Neill has the ability to make me feel so happy and so exasperated at the same time!

*           *           *           *           *

            “So…how was it?”

            Sam spun in her chair to glare at the man standing in the doorway to her lab.  “Do you make a habit of sneaking up on people, Daniel?”

            Daniel shrugged.  “Only when they’re too distracted to hear me thumping down the hallway.  And you’re avoiding the question.”

            Sam turned back to her computer.  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

            “Your date with a certain colonel,” Daniel prompted.

            “None of your business,” Sam replied primly, keeping her eyes on her screen.

            “Oh, c’mon, Sam.  You can tell me.”  Daniel hopped onto the stool by her work table and stared pleadingly at her with his big blue eyes.

            Sam turned back around and fixed her friend with what she hoped was an intimidating stare.  Daniel didn’t flinch.  She sighed.  “We had a nice time,” she said as neutrally as possible.  “And my social life is none of your business.”

            Daniel’s flickering smile stretched into a cat-in-the-cream grin.  “So it went well.”

            “Daniel!”

            “Sam, I think it’s great.  The two of you are perfect for each other, and it will be good for you to have a life outside the SGC.”

            Sam sighed.

            “Besides, we finally have something interesting to pass along the next time we speak to the Tok’ra.”

            Sam’s jaw dropped.  “You wouldn’t!”

            Daniel made a show of glancing at his watch.  “Time for our briefing.  See you there!”  He jumped up and practically ran out the door.

            “Daniel Jackson!” Sam yelled after him.  When she walked into the briefing room, Daniel was sitting with a look of angelic innocence on his face.  General Hammond was already there, so Sam contented herself with glaring viciously at the archaeologist as she passed.

            The mission was a simple one, which was good, since Sellers wasn’t cleared for active duty yet.  They were just doing a follow-up on some equipment they’d left on P4R-273 a month ago.  They were back a few hours later, carrying a lot of information.  Sam headed straight to her lab after the short debrief and started the laborious process of analyzing the raw data.  The magnetic fields on the planet were strangely erratic, which is why Sam had wanted to leave the equipment there in the first place.  The analysis quickly drew her in.

            Eventually, Sam noticed that her back was cramping.  Stretching gingerly, she caught sight of her clock.  She blinked several times before realizing that she wasn’t seeing things.  22:00.  I’ve been at this more than eight hours.  No wonder the halls are so quiet.  She was a little surprised that none of her teammates had come to drag her away.  But, then, it was usually Jack who came and ordered me out.  Since Jack’s retirement, Daniel had started to take over the role of her watcher, but he probably didn’t feel comfortable confronting her after his teasing earlier.  Besides, he can’t actually force me to leave.

            A smile tugged at her lips as she remembered the many times over the last five years when Jack had knocked on the door to her lab, having gone out of his way to see if she was still there.

            “Carter,” he’d say, “what are you still doing here?”

            She’d try to explain the importance of whatever she was working on or tell him that she was nearly done.

            He never bought it.  “Carter, go home.  Your thingamajig will still be here in the morning.”

            She would protest, and he would threaten to make it an order.  So, she’d finish up and put her project away.  Then he’d walk her out, making sure she made it all the way to her car.

            The thought of that routine made Sam reach for her phone.

            “O’Neill.”

            “Hey, Jack.  It’s me.”

            “Good, you got my message.”

            “What message?”

            “The one I left on your answering machine this afternoon.”

            “Oh.”  Sam searched for an excuse.  “I haven’t had a chance to check my messages yet.”  She changed the subject.  “I was just thinking about you and decided to call.”

            But, despite his apparent ineptitude with all things scientific and technical, Jack O’Neill was not stupid.  “Sam, it’s after 2200.  Tell me you’re at home.”

            “Ok, I’m at home,” Sam replied obediently.

            “Now say it honestly.”

            “I…well…uhm…”

            “You’re holed up in your lab,” Jack said.

            “Well…yeah.”

            There was a silence long enough for Sam to wonder if he’d hung up on her.  Then Jack said, “You’re holed up in your lab and you’re thinking about me?”

            Sam grinned.  “I was actually remembering how you used to come and throw me out.”

            “So you decided to call and rub in the fact that I can’t do it anymore?”

            “No!  That’s not it at all.  I just…wanted to talk to you.”

            “You know what I’m going to say.”

            “You’re going to tell me to go home,” Sam guessed.  “You’re going to tell me that whatever I’m working on will still be here in the morning and that I need to get some sleep.”

            “See?  You don’t need me there at all,” Jack teased.

            “Your arguments have never worked on me,” Sam reminded him.

            “No, as I recall, I usually had to resort to ordering you off the base.”

            “And then you’d crack stupid jokes all the way out so I wouldn’t be mad at you.”

            “And it usually worked,” Jack pointed out.

            “But now you can’t order me out, so I guess I’m staying here,” Sam said lightly.

            “Maybe.”  Jack’s voice was low.

            “What are you planning to do?”  Sam was completely unprepared for his reply.

            “I am planning to make evenings at home, with me, much more enjoyable for you than evenings spent in your lab.”

            Sam felt her face warm.  “Oh,” was all she could say.

            “So why don’t you go home, get some rest, and listen to the message?”

            “What does it say?” Sam asked.

            “Go home and find out.”

            “Jack…”

            “Goodnight, Sam.”  Jack hung up.

            Sam spent another twenty minutes in her lab, just to prove she could, before driving home.  Her curiosity was in high gear, and she hit the “play” button on her answering machine the moment she walked in the door.

            “One new message,” said the mechanical voice.  The machine beeped, and Jacks’ gruff voice said, “Hey, Sam, it’s Jack.  I realize you’re still at work, but I’d like you to call me as soon as you get home.  I don’t want to push you into anything, but I had a good time last night, and I want to do it again.  Soon.  So call me.”  The machine beeped again, indicating the end of the message.

            Sam sank into her couch cushions.  Jack was pursuing this relationship with the single-minded tenacity he pursued everything he wanted.  She grinned.  It felt good to be chased.

            Ok…this is a little awkward, Sam thought.

            The four original members of SG-1 were crammed into a Goa’uld cargo ship, hurtling through hyperspace.  It wasn’t the first time they’d done this; their most recent adventure in this ship had involved a Goa’uld-created asteroid.  But that was before the events leading to Jack’s retirement.  Their mission this time around seemed simple enough – rescue a stranded Asgard scientist.  It was the involvement of the Asgard that led to Jack’s inclusion in the mission.  He was, as he pointed out, supposed to be the liaison between Earth and the Asgard.  And, since Captain Sellers’ injury had gotten infected, he was still on the injured list, leaving SG-1 one member short.

            It had taken Jack quite a while to get General Hammond to agree to his inclusion.  Finally, the general had said, “If I agree to this, I want one thing understood.  Colonel Carter is the ranking officer on this mission.  She is in command.  Is that going to be a problem?
            Both Jack and Sam had assured him that it would not.

            So, now they were sitting in the cargo hold making small talk as they checked over their gear.  They’d done this dozens, if not hundreds of times.  Only now, Jack was a civilian attached to Sam’s unit, rather than her CO.  And Sam was starting to regret the assurance she’d made to General Hammond that she was ok with this.

            “You all right, Carter?” Jack asked.  He made sure to address her as “Carter” anytime she was on duty.

            Sam nodded.  “This is all just a little…odd.”

            “Maybe a little,” Jack admitted.  “But I’m not planning a mutiny, and you’re used to giving orders.”

            “Not to you.”

            “Just pretend I’m Sellers,” Jack advised.

            “That’s a little hard to do,” Sam replied mischievously.

            Jack feigned shock.  “I think my CO is flirting with me.”

            Sam grinned.  “Don’t let it go to your head.”

            Jack saluted.  “Yes, ma’am.”

            None of them could have predicted that their simple mission to extract a lone Asgard scientist would turn into a complicated and dangerous rescue mission for their old friend Thor.  Getting Thor off Anubis’ mothership involved the three men ringing up to the ship while Sam directed their movements via the Asgard scanners.  Originally, Sam had wanted Daniel to stay behind, but she had the best grasp on Asgard technology, so she eventually agreed to be the one who stayed.

            But, in a twist of fate, Sam was the one on the point of collapse when the mothership’s shields came down and they were all transported back to the cargo ship.  For, while Thor had been able to use the device implanted in his brain to free Jack, Daniel, and Teal’c, Osiris had located the Asgard lab and was in the process of killing Sam with a ribbon device when the Asgard teleporter beamed her out of reach.

            The four humans and Thor appeared in the cargo ship, and Teal’c caught Sam before she hit the floor.  He lowered her gently to the ground, then ran for the controls.  Jack took his place by her side.

            “I hate those things,” Sam muttered as she tried to sit up.

            Jack gently pushed her back down.  “Rest a second.  We’re all right.”

            But the Goa’uld were shooting at them, and Sam made Jack help her to the front of the ship where she could see what was going on.

            And so they all saw the cavalry ride over the hill in the form of three Asgard motherships.

*           *           *           *           *

            “Sam?  Sam?”

            Someone was gently shaking her shoulder.  Sam bit back a moan.  Sleeping on the floor of a cargo ship was nearly impossible.  She felt like she’d only been asleep for a few minutes.  But she forced her eyes open to see Daniel hovering over her.

            “Sorry to wake you, but General Hammond’s on the radio, and he wants to talk to you,” he said softly.

            Sam glanced over at the other sleeping bag, where Teal’c sat, deep in kel-no-reem.  “Who’s flying this thing?”

            “It pretty much flies itself in hyperspace,” Daniel replied, “but Jack’s sitting in the chair.”

            Sam nodded.  He might not be able to read any of the readouts, but Jack had proven how well he could maneuver a cargo ship during that mission in the mine field.  She followed Daniel into the front of the ship and sank into the empty chair.

            “Stargate Command, this is Carter.”

            “Ah, Colonel, good.  I hope I didn’t take you away from anything important.”

            “Just a catnap, General.  What can I do for you?”

            At his request, Sam gave Hammond a status report, saying that they had safely delivered Thor, Heimdall, and Heimdall’s research to the Asgard.  “They’ve promised to send word as soon as there’s any news about Thor’s condition,” she said.

            “Good.  What’s your ETA, Colonel?”

            “About forty-eight hours, General,” Sam replied after a glance at the readings.  She could read Goa’uld numbers pretty well by now.

            “I look forward to a full briefing then.  Hammond out.”

            Sam sighed at that prospect and turned to the man now standing behind her.  “Jack, if you want to try and get some sleep, go ahead.  I’m awake now.”

            “What about me?” Daniel asked from the pilot’s seat.

            “If something goes wrong with this thing, we need somebody awake who can read the warning,” Sam reminded him.

            Daniel made a face, muttering something about “flying itself.”  The other two ignored him.

            “I’m going to start on my mission report,” Sam said.  “Might as well get it out of the way.”

            Jack groaned.  “And I thought I’d never have to write another one of those things ever again.”

            “Maybe the general won’t make you,” Sam said.

            “I doubt it,” Jack muttered.

            Sam pressed her hand against his arm as she passed, intending only a brief moment of reassurance.  To her surprise, Jack quickly covered her hand with his own, trapping her.

            “Can’t keep your hands off me?” he murmured.

            “Jack!” she hissed, shooting a glance at the room’s other occupant.  Daniel seemed very focused on his controls, but his eyes were twinkling.

            “Aw, Daniel likes me,” Jack said confidently.  “Your whole team likes me.  They think this is a good thing.  But I’m not so sure about their CO.”

            The warmth in his gaze brought a flush to Sam’s face.  “Their CO doesn’t like looking like a hormonal teenager in front of her team,” she hissed.

            Jack immediately let go.  “Sorry.”

            Only someone who knew him as well as Sam would have noticed the hurt in his eyes.

            So, after Teal’c joined Daniel in the main cabin, Sam gestured for Jack to follow her into the cargo hold.  She pulled him around the corner, out of sight.

            “You going to yell at me now?” Jack asked.

            Sam offered a little smile.  “Wasn’t planning on it.”  She leaned in and pressed her lips to his.

            The kiss was, by necessity, brief, but it told Jack what he needed to know.

Six months later

            “Are you sure you’re ready for this, sweetheart?” Jacob Carter asked.

            Sam turned to face her father.  “I’m sure.  I’ll admit it all happened really fast, but I’m ready.”  She ran her hands over the white material of her dress self-consciously.

            Events had moved very quickly.  A month and a half ago, Jack had arrived at her house and announced that she had fifteen minutes to get ready.  He’d taken her to the Italian restaurant where they’d had their first date, and, during dessert, he’d pulled out a diamond ring and asked her to be his wife.

            Neither of them had wanted a long engagement, but they’d been planning on a few months, at least.  But when they contacted the Tok’ra to tell Sam’s father the happy news, he’d informed them that he was going undercover soon, and he didn’t know when he’d return.  Since Sam desperately wanted her father to give her away, she’d convinced Jack to move up the wedding.

            The wedding party presented a small problem.  Jack originally wanted Teal’c to be his best man, but Sam had pointed out that the best man had to sign the wedding certificate, and Teal’c’s lack of a last name was sure to raise eyebrows.  So, Teal’c agreed to be a groomsman, while Daniel was promoted to best man.  Sam’s attendants were much easier – Janet was her maid of honor and Cassie was her bridesmaid.

            Jacob’s voice interrupted Sam’s reverie.  “You look beautiful.  Jack isn’t going to know what hit him.”

            Sam smiled.  “Does Selmak have any final words of wisdom?  Both bride and groom had family attending the ceremony – family that had no idea what they really did for a living.  So, everyone had been reminded to stick to the “deep space radar telemetry” story, and Jacob’s Tok’ra symbiote was being kept to an observing role.  Not that Dad would ever allow Selmak to give me away, Sam thought.

            Jacob’s head dropped as control passed from host to symbiote.  “May your life together be joyous and fruitful,” the alien voice said.  “And, although Jacob hesitates to mention it, I think it should be said that your mother would be extremely proud of you today.”  His head fell forward again.

            Sam blinked back tears.  No way she was going to cry and ruin her makeup.

            “Interfering little bugger,” Jacob muttered.  He placed a gentle hand on Sam’s shoulder.  “He is right, though.  Your mom would be proud.  I know I am.”

            “Oh, Dad!”  Sam gave up on poise and threw her arms around her father’s neck.

            A tap on the door was quickly followed by Janet.  “We’re ready, Sam, Jacob…or Selmak.”

            Jacob smiled at her.  “Selmak’s sitting this one out.”

            Janet smiled in acknowledgment.  “Sam, you look gorgeous.”

            Sam glanced down at her white satin dress and was suddenly relieved that they’d decided against dress uniforms.  Searching for “The Dress” had certainly added to the stress of planning a wedding in six weeks while commanding an SG team, but it was worth it to actually feel pretty at her wedding.  Her dress blues always made her feel a little stiff.

            The music was playing as she approached the double doors.  Daniel shot her a grin and a wink before taking Janet’s arm and processing down the aisle.  The music changed, and Sam heard the rustle of dozens of people standing.  Then her dad started forward, and her feet moved without her direction.

            The church was only about a quarter full, the back pews standing empty.  But the front several rows were filled with friends and family, all smiling as father and daughter walked down the aisle.

            Sam noticed none of them.  Her entire focus was taken up by the man standing at the end of the aisle.  Jack’s usual gruff demeanor was gone; the man looked positively star-struck.  When she stopped in front of him, Sam whispered, “I think I’m dreaming.”

            Jack whispered back, “I’ve pinched myself at least twenty times since I got up this morning.”

            As Jacob formally placed Sam’s hand into Jack’s, he said, “Take care of her, Jack.”

            Jack didn’t take his eyes from Sam’s face.  “I always have.”

            The rest of the ceremony passed in a blur for Sam, although she did have to swallow a snicker when Jack started his vows with, “I, Jonathan O’Neill…”  Finally, however, they were pronounced man and wife, and Jack pulled her in for a kiss that lasted long enough for Daniel to clear his throat, reminding them of their audience.

            After the reception, as the newlyweds prepared to make the traditional run for the getaway car, Teal’c approached them.  “In the interest of your safety, I must inform you that the braking device on your vehicle has been interfaced with the alert system.”

            It took Jack a moment to translate.  He shot an incredulous look at his friend.  “You wired my brakes to the horn?”

            “Daniel Jackson informed me of the tradition of sabotaging the vehicle of a newly married couple.”

            Jack tried to glare at Daniel, but he couldn’t get the smile off his face.

            “You didn’t expect us to let you sneak out of here, did you?” Daniel asked.

            Sam grinned up at her new husband before answering, “And you didn’t expect two Air Force officers to leave their getaway car where you could get at it, did you?”

            Daniel burst out laughing.  “I should have known.”  He pulled Teal’c outside to join the birdseed-throwing gauntlet, leaving Jack and Sam more or less alone.

            Jack took advantage of the moment to pull Sam close.  “I don’t know what I did to deserve you, Mrs. O’Neill.”

            Sam wrinkled her nose at the name; they’d realized that she couldn’t take his name at this point in her career without creating confusion.  But she replied, “Funny, I was just thinking the same thing.”

            The two grabbed hands and sprinted between the rows of family and friends.

            Oh, yeah, Jack thought as he looked at his laughing bride.  It was worth it.

The End