Sorry to everyone with the delay in getting Brotherly Love out - it's taking a lot longer to get the pictures done than I thought. I'd estimate that we'd now be looking at an late January/early February date as I'll be going away soon after Christmas, unless the pictures get finished very soon.

As an apology, here is a little kidfic that I wrote, with Little Daniel and Little Jack.

Merry Christmas!

Sam should have realised that it was a stupid idea as soon as it was mentioned. But no, she had remembered how much fun they had been when she and her brother were young and so she thought that Danny - in his new incarnation as a toddler - and Jack - now four - would like it too. She had forgotten that two-year-olds don't like things way bigger than themselves.

"It's alright, Danny," she crooned, holding the cute wide-eyed toddler next to the inflatable steps leading up to the bouncing castle. It had seemed like such a good idea when she and Teal'c had brought Jack and Danny to the local fair but as soon as she had put the toddler onto the steps, Danny had frozen. One look at the blue eyes and Sam knew that the little boy was confused and scared. She had gathered Danny into his arms and sat down where the toddler could see all the kids having fun inside the castle. "Let's just watch Jack, shall we?"

She sighed as her eyes sought out her four-year-old commanding officer. When Daniel had touched something off-world that he wasn't supposed to, he had been sent back to relive his childhood. Jack had been nearby and had caught some of the effects, therefore not de-ageing as much. The good part was that, thanks to the translations Daniel had done before becoming a toddler, they knew that the effects were only temporary, probably only likely to last for two or three weeks. Which was why Sam had temporarily taken both boys - who thought they were brothers - into her home, and why Teal'c was also living with her; Jack was a handful at any age.

Speaking of Jack, he was having a wonderful time bouncing inside the inflatable castle. Teal'c was standing guard nearby, armed with a digital video camera, should the little boy need any help. Leaning down so that her mouth was near Danny's ear, she said, "Look at Jack. He's having lots of fun, isn't he?"

Danny nodded twice, and Sam turned slightly so she could see his face. The toddler's expression was one of curiosity and longing now, something she had seen many times on the adult's face. "Would you like to try it?" she asked him again.

Danny pointed with one hand. "Jack," he stated.

"Would you like Jack to bounce with you?" Sam queried, hoping she was guessing right. Looking after two children under five for the past week had been an experience and she was getting marginally better at working out what they wanted.

Danny nodded again. "Jack." His big brother looked like he was having lots of fun and he wanted to join in, even if the big thing looked scary.

Sam gestured to Teal'c, who called out to Jack. The boy bounced his way over to the edge, a huge grin on his face, and said, "This is fun!"

"That is good," Teal'c replied, the only sign of his amusement in the slight twitch of his lips. "Danny wishes to join you. You will guard him carefully."

"Okay!" Jack didn't mind that because he loved his little brother. He carefully made his way over to where Danny was. "Come on, I'll look after you," he said, holding his hands out. He would always protect Danny because that's what brothers did for each other, especially when one was littler than the other.

Sam lifted Daniel up to where Jack was standing, the older boy latching onto the younger one immediately. Because of the others bouncing in the castle, it was very hard for the little boy to remain standing so he fell to his hands and knees.

Jack, keeping Danny company, did the same and together the boys made their way along an inside edge, the former keeping the latter protected from anyone else bouncing nearby. Once they were in what he judged to be a good spot, Jack carefully stood up and then helped Danny do the same. He held onto Danny's hands and then started bouncing a little. "See? You have to jump," he instructed his little brother.

"Jump," Danny echoed, doing his best to imitate Jack. He got the up and down bit right but had a little trouble in getting his feet off the moving floor. It was still fun though and a big grin appeared on his face.

"That's it," Jack praised, his grin equalling Danny's.

Sam moved over to stand next to Teal'c as the two boys bounced together. "They're so cute," she commented with a smile. It was interesting seeing the dynamics between the two, especially the adult characteristics that were evident as children. Jack was very much the protector and doted on the boy he thought of as his little brother. Daniel was still very curious, always wanting to touch things, and Jack was always on guard to make sure that those items weren't sharp. Daniel also knew a lot of words even if he used them sparingly. The only time he babbled was when Jack was playing in the sandpit at the park or watching television. There was no evidence that either of the boys had their adult memories but Sam found it very funny that they still acted like they always had.

"They are indeed," Teal'c agreed. He had enjoyed the company of his two down-sized teammates, although it sometimes seemed similar to when they were adults. He would never state it to his teammates but they often reminded him of Rya'c with their behaviour, and that was disconcerting when they were grown. However, he missed them, as he would miss these young versions of his friends when they returned to their older selves.

"Hi, Sam!" Jack called, waving to her as he and Danny continued to jump.

"Hi, Teek!" Danny wasn't about to be left out, and promptly fell down when he tried to wave and jump at the same time. He pulled Jack down with him; fortunately, not on top of him as that would have hurt.

Jack flopped his arms and legs out as he was bounced by the force of the others still jumping. "Whoo-hoo!" This was great fun!

"Uh-uh." Daniel turned over so that he could crawl; he didn't like being bounced that way. "Up," he demanded.

"Dannyyy," Jack complained half-heartedly; he wanted to stay down.

"Jack!" Danny was insistent on this point.

"Danny."

"Jack!"

With a sigh, Jack got to his feet and helped Danny to stand up again. Soon, they were bouncing away enthusiastically.

Sam and Teal'c shared a knowing look. That had been so typical of the relationship between the two males - a whole argument happening using just their names and then Jack, usually, giving in. It would be good hearing that again when the 'littleness' wore off but in the meantime, they were having a ball too.

Oh yeah - and getting great blackmail material.