The Fault Is Mine
The Fault Is Mine
by Geonn
Summary: Teal'c blames himself for an incident off-world.
Category: Angst, Drama, Hurt/Comfort
Season: Season 6
Pairing: Sam/Teal'c
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: none
Disclaimer: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. I have written this story for entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author(s).
Archived on: 05/14/03
Title: The Fault Is Mine
Author: Geonn
Email: neiljmiser@yahoo.com
Rating: PG13
Pairings: Sam/Teal'c Friendship
Category: Drama, Angst
Disclaimer: These folks don't belong to me. I stole them from MGM's toybox without asking their mommies for permission. I promise to return them more or less unscathed. Spoilers: "Changeling,"
Archive: Not unless I send it to you.
Note: Set after "Prophecy"
Summary: Teal'c blames himself for an incident off-world.
P7J-881
The Stargate was pitched at a dangerous angle atop the crumbling remains of a temple. Teal'c led the way out of the long-forgotten building, pushing aside the stones that lay in their path. Major Samantha Carter was a few paces behind him, followed by Jonas Quinn. Colonel Jack O'Neill brought up the rear, occasionally pausing to sweep the ground they'd just covered. He didn't have the same acute hearing Teal'c did, but he would be killed before he let anything sneak up on his team.
Every now and then, Teal'c would push aside some overgrown stalk of plant, using either his staff weapon or his hands. They'd been walking for ten minutes when it happened.
Teal'c pushed aside a particularly large overgrown stalk letting it slip out of his hands as he passed. As it fell, he heard a quiet 'phwep.' Jonas cried, "Sam!" Teal'c turned, eyes widening when he saw what had happened. Sam was on her knees, hands to her throat. Blood was seeping between her fingers and staining the cuffs of her jacket. Teal'c knelt next to her, on the opposite side of Jonas, and carefully moved her hands. A thin, round projectile was protruding from the hollow of her throat, the blood pouring out from around the object.
Sam coughed, blood marking her chin as her hands returned to the wound. Jack looked around, P90 at the ready. "What happened? Who shot that?"
"No one," Jonas said, indicating the tree. "The plant there has barbs... when Teal'c brushed it aside, the branch was bent back and shot the barbs out like a rifle. They hit Major Carter."
Teal'c scanned his teammate. Five more barbs had penetrated her vest but hadn't managed to reach her skin. The one in her throat was the only one that had hit it's target. He stripped her out of her vest, a move she helped with as much as she could, and Jack lifted her. "Jonas, get her legs. Teal'c, run ahead and get the Gate open for us. Let Doc Fraiser know she's needed."
Teal'c could only nod, staring at the blood on his friend's skin.
"TEAL'C!" Jack snapped. "Go! Now!"
"Yes," Teal'c managed to say, turning and running back the way they'd come.
Dr. Fraiser didn't allow herself a split-second to consider the fact that her best friend was bleeding from the neck. She merely barked orders at the nurses and hurried to help someone who was injured. She had to be professional... no hysterical outbreaks allowed. It was her burden as Chief Medical Officer. She checked Sam's vitals, happy to see them well within norms. After the initial minor surgery to remove the spike, all that remained was healing the damage done.
Janet peeled off her bloody gloves, tossing them into a waste basket and walking to the three-man door jam at the end of the hall. Jonas was the first to see her coming and straightened. "Well?" O'Neill asked.
"She'll be fine in a couple of days. Her throat got a little scratched and I don't want her talking for a while. But if I can get her to get a little bedrest..." She sighed, knowing what a challenge that would be. "We're just lucky none of those other spikes hit flesh."
"Why is that?" Jack frowned.
"The spike that did penetrate added a small amount of poison to her system. It's harmless on it's own, but mixed with a certain catalyst, it could've been deadly." She held up the small specimen jar holding the remaining spikes. "The catalyst needed was on two of the other spikes."
O'Neill nodded. "Thank God for small favors, huh? Can we see her?"
"See only. If she wants to say something, she has to write on the board I gave her." She smiled. "Go on in." Jack and Jonas headed in, but Teal'c remained where he was. Janet raised an eyebrow and touched his shoulder. "Teal'c? It's okay, you can go in."
Teal'c raised his head slightly, then turned to look at her. "I... do not believe she wishes to see me."
"Why in the world not?" Janet asked, smiling.
"The fault for her accident is mine," he said softly, turning and leaving Janet alone in the corridor.
A few days had passed. SG-1 was on downtime until Carter completely healed. Jack had immediately pulled up stakes and headed for fish, fun and sun. Jonas was buried in his notebooks and trying not to get hooked on reality TV. Teal'c attempted kel'no'reem several times to no avail. He eventually headed to the infirmary, moving slowly so he could turn around at any time. He was halfway through the doors when Dr. Fraiser spotted him. "Teal'c," she said, sounding a bit relieved. "Are you here to see Sam?"
"I..." No use denying it. "I am."
She nodded. "Good. Unfortunately, she's sleeping at the moment." She indicated which bed the Major was in, even though she was certain he already knew. She then walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?" She'd been worried about him since he admitted his guilt over what had happened. "You look a bit tired... Have you been achieving kel'no'reem?"
He shook his head slowly. She gave him a stern look, then said, "You can go see her. But promise me you'll take care of yourself? I don't want to drag you down here and strap you to the bed."
He nodded once, then moved towards Sam's bed. Janet watched him go, then gave the Jaffa a bit of privacy.
Sam was piled under a thick quilt, definitely not the standard infirmary issue, and wore a pair of pale blue pajamas. Apparently being the doctor's best friend led to some extra perks. She was asleep, her head lolled to one side. A square bandage marked the spot where the spike had gone in, covering most of her throat. He stood beside her bed, hands clasped behind his back, and watched her breathe for a few minutes.
According to Doctor Fraiser, the dart had done no serious damage. She seemed to be breathing normally. He looked at her once more, then turned to leave.
"Tu... lk?"
He turned. The voice was strained, full of gravel and honey, but he recognized it as Major Carter. She had a hand touching the bandage, her face screwed up in pain. He stopped and returned to her side. "How are you feeling?" he asked after a long moment of deciding what to say.
Sam picked up her marker, uncapped it, and scrawled on the eraser board: 'Fine. Janet says I'm not supposed to talk.'
"Your throat... was damaged," he said. "Dr. Fraiser believes it would accelerate the healing process if you do not speak."
She rolled her eyes. 'I know, I know. The least she could've done was give me a computer.'
Teal'c allowed himself a small smile. "And you would have use it only for speaking to others?"
She shot him a 'you got me' grin and wrote, 'OK OK. What took you so long to come see me? I thought I'd made you mad or something.'
"I... did not believe you wished to see me."
Sam frowned and shrugged her shoulders.
"It is I who caused your injury, Major Carter."
Sam raised her eyebrows and wrote 'What?'
He sighed and lowered himself into the seat next to her bed. "I swept aside the branch, which launched the spikes at you. If it had proven fatal, I... I could not..."
"Teal'c," Sam rasped, her voice sounding like someone had put pebbles and a pint of water into a blender.
"You are not supposed to speak," Teal'c reminded her.
"Screw that," she said. "Teal'c, it wasn't your fault that I got hurt. People get hurt on missions all the time. Not just Stargate missions, but on--" She paused and coughed violently, her entire body shaking. She picked up the glass of water on the side of the bed, refilled it from the carafe and took a long swallow. She coughed weakly, then said, "Earth missions, too. I have a dangerous job, Teal'c. We all do. I... I don't blame you one bit for what happened." She shrugged. "If anything, I should thank you for allowing me to finally get a little bit of bedrest."
Teal'c managed a smile, then stood. "I am sorry, Major. But I cannot forgive myself as easily as you can." He bowed slightly and left her bedside.
Janet watched him go, then walked to Sam's bedside. She crossed her arms over her chest, raised her eyebrows and, faking anger, asked, "Did I hear you speaking, Major?"
Sam shrank into her mattress and pulled the blanket up to her neck.
Sam was finally released from the infirmary with stern warnings from Dr. Fraiser to take it easy on her throat; which meant cold water and lots of it. She thanked Janet for all the care, then headed for Teal'c's quarters. She knocked lightly, then a bit harder, then all but pounded on the door. Finally, the door opened and Teal'c appeared, his face puffy from sleep. She raised her eyebrows, a bit shocked at the sight of Teal'c in his pajamas. "Major Carter," he said sluggishly, raising a bit when he saw who was visiting.
"Teal'c. Were you... asleep?"
He nodded once. "Since losing my symbiote, I have attempted to sleep instead of kel'no'reem. It is... difficult."
Sam raised her chin and said, "Ah. I see... humans generally don't sleep at--" she checked her watch. "--three-fifteen in the afternoon."
"I believe Colonel O'Neill calls it a 'cat nap'."
Sam chuckled. "Good ol' Colonel O'Neill..." She coughed, then touched her throat. "I just wanted to make sure you weren't still killing yourself over..." She drummed her fingers on the small bandage now covering her wound.
Teal'c looked away. "I am to blame."
"Okay," Sam nodded, pressing her lips together. "Fine." She reached behind herself and pulled the zat from her belt. She opened it with the standard 'chukking' noise.
"What... are you doing?" Teal'c asked.
Sam shrugged. "You hurt me, I get to hurt you, right?"
Teal'c backed up a step. "Major Carter. This is--"
"Weird? Stupid? Insane?" She dropped the zat and stepped into Teal'c's quarters. "Right. Wanting revenge is unreasonable. Becuase you did nothing wrong." She sighed and dropped onto the edge of his bed. "Teal'c, we went on a mission. I got hurt. It's not because of something you did." He started to interrupt, but she held up a hand to silence him. "No. It was a coincidence. If it hadn't happened to me, it would have happened to Jonas when I went by. Or to Colonel O'Neill. It's ridiculous to blame yourself for what happened." She stood. "Stop it. I don't blame you. No one blames you."
"You trusted your life to me. Your safety," he argued. "I failed to protect you."
Sam rolled her eyes. "Please. Teal'c. Can we get off of the self-pity? It's really not your thing."
He didn't know what to say to that, so he said nothing.
Sam stood and put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Teal'c, look at me. I'm alive. And I'm that way because of you. I can't count the number of times I would be dead if it weren't for you. Hell, I wouldn't have gone on a second mission through the Stargate if not for you. Let's say, playing devil's advocate, something you did caused me to die. A ricochet from your staff weapon or something. Do you honestly think anyone would blame you?"
"I cannot help but feel..."
"I know," Sam closed her eyes. "You're not to blame. Can you just accept that and... and move on? Because I sure as hell don't want to go on our next mission without you watching my back." She dropped her hand from his shoulder and stepped back, extending it to him. "I forgive you whatever you feel you need forgiveness for. You're absolved."
He stared at her hand for a moment, then gently wrapped his own hand around it. Sam smiled and pumped the hand once before releasing it. "Now that you and I are friends again," she said, slinging an arm around his shoulder, "Janet and Cassandra wanna take me out for some pizza and chocolate cake. Want to tag along?"
"It... would be my pleasure," Teal'c said, managing a smile.
If you enjoyed this story, please send feedback to Geonn
Heliopolis Main Archive
A Stargate: SG-1 Fanfiction Site
Fault Is Mine, The
by GeonnSite Navigation
Support Heliopolis