I'm back again! Sorry about the lack of an update on AOA for those reading it, but I wanted to get this out and get it done with. I swear, I'm going back to work on the next chapter as soon as I'm done here. (Well, the next chapter for me to write. I already have a couple of chapters in the hands of my beta that I'm just waiting for her to return so I can post them. I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you wanted to let her know to hurry up. Her address is windscryer (at) hotmail (dot) com. Let her know you want more! And Waves, since I know you're reading this . . . I would just like to remind you that I did warn you. Payback's a . . . well you know.)

I wrote this on the plane coming back after my assignment a few weeks ago after the woman I was sitting next to mentioned how she was just glad the in-flight breakfast was an omelete and not Froot Loops. Apparently whoever she'd been visiting hadn't had anything else for breakfast options and she was going nuts with no other choices. This of course remnded me of Jack's little problem with Froot Loops and-having a pretty reliable memory, except for the occasional blip-I began mentally reviewing all the things I love about that episode and when I got to the part about Jack's 'resignation', I wondered if Sam had said or done something to inspire him. Frankly, I would think that would have been at the top of his list of things to do with no consequences to worry about. The rest is, as they say, history.

Anyway, love it, hate it, didn't care . . . However you felt just click on that much underused button at the bottom of the page and let me know how you felt about it.

Thanks!

Inspiration
By Keaira

"Sir?" The soft knock caught Jack's attention and he looked up from his Gameboy. He'd beaten the game about ten loops earlier anyway, but it was better than listening to Daniel drone on about verbs and past tense and nominatives and . . . it was boring just thinking about it.

"If it's a bad time-"

Shit! He'd left Carter hanging.

"No! Not at all. Come in, Carter. What's up?"

She did as he said and shut the door behind herself. "Well sir, I was looking for you to ask another question about the geomagnetic storms but you weren't in Daniel's office. He said you'd gotten bored again and left."

Jack shrugged. "Teal'c's still working on it and we're not that close to finishing it so I thought I'd take a break."

"Ah." She seemed to drift off into thought and it took him calling her name several times before she came back from wherever her thoughts had taken her. "Sorry, sir."

"You had a question?" he reminded her.

She looked intently at him for a few moments and he thought she might have drifted off again.

"Carter?"

She licked her lips, suddenly nervous somehow.

"So, until you guys finish the translations you won't know how to stop it, right?"

"Yeah . . ." he said, wondering at her asking him that. She was the egghead. He was just guessing.

"So anything that happens today won't have happened at all when you start over tomorrow, right?"

"That seems to be the way it works," he said, still wary. Something wasn't right but he couldn't quite figure out what.

"But the loop is the exact same length every day, right?"

"Right."

"So . . . " She licked her lips again. He found his eyes drawn to the movement.

She really needed to stop doing that, he decided. It was driving him nuts. He had a hard enough time keeping his thoughts where they were supposed to be at work as it was, but when she went and drew attention to something like her extremely soft lips and the way they- Oh man.

He shook his head to get his mind back on track.

Don't go there, he ordered himself sternly. You know the rules.

"Uh, sir?"

He realized she'd asked a question and he hadn't heard it.

Now where was that familiar from? he thought wryly, then forced his mind back to the conversation.

"I'm sorry, what did you ask?"

"How long do we have until the loop resets?"

He glanced at his watch. "Three hours and twenty-seven minutes. Why?"

She shrugged and stood. "Just curious. Well, I'd better get back to those calculations," she said quickly and hurried out.

He stared after her for a long time before shaking his head and returning to his game.

-O-O-O-O-

Jack glanced at his watch and sighed. Five minutes to go.

He rocked back on his heels and watched as the klaxons started blaring indicating an off-world activation.

Right on time, he thought as he felt someone come up next to him. He looked over to see it was Sam just as she did something he never expected.

She moved to where she was facing him, her gaze rather intense, her cheeks flushed. Without further delay she grabbed the lapels of his jacket and yanked down, pulling him into range for a kiss that only left him shocked for a few moments. He very soon found himself returning it, his hands moving to her waist as hers slid back to the nape of his neck.

He only vaguely heard General Hammond asking what the hell was going on and Daniel's surprised "Wow!" before the crackle of electricity filled his ears.

There was the now-familiar moment of disorientation as Daniel once again asked him what he thought about whatever he'd been babbling about.

Before he could even think about it the word popped out of his mouth.

"Fuck!"

Both Daniel and Sam blinked in shock.

"Oh . . . um . . . huh?" Daniel finally managed, brow furrowing in confusion. "I didn't realize it was that . . . Jack?"

He'd stood and now he looked down at Carter and shook his head. "You- you-" His voice held a note of confused accusation. He froze and then suddenly grinned. "You genius!" he said with feeling. Before either of them could ask what he was talking about he turned and practically bolted from the room.

"What just . . ." Sam started, then looked at Daniel who was shaking his head.

"Don't even look at me," Daniel said and stood.

Sam stared at the door where Jack had gone and then shook her head as well and followed her teammate's example and stood. She couldn't stop the small smile that suddenly sprang to her lips though she couldn't exactly explain why she suddenly felt giddy.

Maybe whatever the Colonel had was catching, she thought as she left the commissary. She just hoped it wouldn't delay their mission today.

She couldn't wait to see the effects of a geomagnetic storm in action . . .

"Opportunity may knock only once, but temptation leans on the doorbell." - Anonymous

Keaira