The last few months had been a blur for Sam Carter. It had started when they discovered that a black hole - or rather, its accretion disk - would be visible from P8X-987. The planet the locals called Hanka soon had its own observatory, complete with a state of the art telescope. But the fiasco that followed had become a completely life-changing event for everyone involved. Everyone on the planet - locals and SG personnel - had mysteriously contracted and promptly died of an unknown disease the day before the eclipse. Everyone on Hanka, that was, except for one little girl. Cassandra had been the lone survivor of a Goa'uld extermination, and the false god had left her alive only to be used as a bomb against the Tau'ri.

She had bonded with Sam, silently at first, but slowly the tenacious blonde had brought the girl out of her shell. Almost as soon as the girl began talking, she began to complain of a pain in her chest. That was when Sam Carter had realized how strong her maternal instincts really were. As she watched the child slip more often into unconsciousness, she felt a piece of herself withering away. The discovery of the bomb had shocked everyone. The only thing that Sam was grateful for was that Cassandra was out most of the time. When the time came, the girl would never even know.

But the time had never come. Taking Cassandra to the bunker had saved her life, and given Sam something she never knew she wanted so much. She hadn't been one to coo over babies, or imagine life as a mother. But the bond she had with Cassandra was strong, and she secretly loved the fact that she could honestly say she brought Cassandra into this world. The metaphor for giving birth felt right; Sam had an instinct to protect and nurture her that came from deep within. Even so, she knew that trying to raise an almost-teenager was not going to go well with her drive for her career. She would only hurt the girl with her constant absence. She had discussed her fears with Dr. Fraiser, who she had become quite close to during Cassandra's illness. She had been utterly relieved to hear that Janet too loved the girl enough to petition to adopt her - with Sam's approval, of course. Sam had been so happy that she'd grabbed Janet into a bear hug and cried.

Now, months later, Janet's house had been transformed. Sam and Janet had turned the upstairs guest bedroom into a room much more suited to a pre-teen. Toys, books, stuffed animals, and games sat neatly on their shelves in Cassandra's room, and hid in corners of the rooms downstairs. Janet always smiled when she caught a glimpse of a book or toy unintentionally left on the kitchen counter or the living room sofa. She had what she had always wanted now, a child to love; a child to delight in. After her divorce she had wondered if she would find another man in time to start a family. But now, here with her new charge, she found she didn't need a man at all. Somehow, her family was complete.

Cassandra had been easy to deal with from the beginning, but lately, she had become more touchy and resistant to Janet's affections. Sam had been holed up in her lab more lately, and Cassandra had recently had a break from school - and, so, Janet guessed, too much time to think. They had had a few squabbles, the most recent of which ended with Cassie in full pout, running upstairs and slamming her bedroom door. It was this that had snapped Janet into action. Where was Sam? Her presence would surely improve the situation.

.

Janet stepped into Samantha Carter's lab with arms crossed and leveled a stare at the sole occupant. After a few moments, Sam felt the burning on the top of her head and looked up into the face of one very displeased Dr. Janet Fraiser. She frowned at the look she was receiving.

"What's wrong, Janet?"

"She's turning into a teenager already. And you've been AWOL for over two weeks. I don't know what to do with you two."

"Janet, I've been right- oh… Here." She shrank lower on her workbench stool.

Janet's look softened as she saw Sam realize that she'd not seen Cassie for a fortnight. Sam cringed. "It's really been that long?"

Janet nodded. "And she's gotten pretty moody."

"Well, yeah she's been through a lot…" Sam thought briefly of what Cassie had been through in just her first week on earth.

Janet uncrossed her arms and stepped toward Sam. "Which is why she needs you around. She bonded with you, not me. We're still working on being a mother and daughter."

Sam put down the pencil she'd been holding and took Janet's forearms into her hands. "What can I do?" She asked earnestly. She wasn't going to argue that this was a big change, and that it would take more time for everyone to settle. That wasn't what Janet needed to hear. This woman who was usually the rock of the SGC was sincerely asking for help, and Sam couldn't have turned her down for anything in the world.

"Girls night in. I'll order a pizza or something, and we can play games or whatever Cassandra wants to do. But tonight, please, be there for her?"

"I'm there. Just call down when you leave the base and I'll be right behind you."

"I'll come get you. You can ride with me to pick her up. I think it'll make her day." Janet smiled a small smile, wishing she meant as much to the little girl as Sam did.

Sam gently pressed the arms she still held. "She'll come around, Janet. You're a wonderful mother. You have that patience thing down pat." Another reassuring squeeze and she released the doctor.

"Due in no small part to having SG-1 in my infirmary repeatedly." She raised an eyebrow at Sam and they both smiled.