Title: A Simple Cold

Author: Meushell

Disclaimer: Stargate owns what they own, (even if they are trigger happy with the Tok'ra) and I own what I own.

Summary: Sam has a cold.

Rating: PG

Parings: Sam/Martouf/Lantash

Sequel to: The Question, which basically means Sam is married to Martouf and Lantash.

"Are you sure about this?" Jack asked.

"Yes, I'm sure about this."

As he looked over to the gate, Jack considered what Daniel had to say. "Sam has a cold. That's all. I don't think the Tok'ra would want to be bothered about it. You know how they are."

"I'm not asking you to harass all the Tok'ra, just Martouf...her husband."

"...Fine, but I'm sending you and Teal'c to deliver the message..." He couldn't bring himself to send another team for the sake of a cold. "...and you're explaining it to Teal'c."

"I will." Daniel headed off to find Teal'c.

--

A few hours later, Sam woke feeling achy. She blinked, feeling as though her body weighed a few times heavier than it normally did. Finally, she made the move to roll over in bed. The sheets hadn't made it easy. They tangled around her in some areas while bunching in others.

"Hello Samantha," was Martouf's voice.

Sam rubbed her eyes, thinking she was hearing things at first. Then she realized that Martouf was indeed in her bedroom. "Martouf?"

"Daniel and Teal'c were kind enough to inform you of your illness."

"It's just a cold." Sam tried to sit up a bit.

Martouf put pillows behind her and rearranged the sheets around her. It was much more comfortable after that. "Daniel was then kind enough to bring me to you." Martouf wiped her forehead with a damp cloth. "Are you hungry? Daniel informed me of a food that makes a person feel better when faced with such an illness."

"A food?"

"He called it chicken noodle soup."

Sam smiled and noticed she had a tray by her bed. On it was a bowl of steaming chicken noodle soup and a glass of orange juice. "I can eat something."

Martouf put a pillow in her lap and carefully placed the bowl on the pillow. He kept the bowl steady as Sam ate some. "Are you thirsty? Daniel said you should drink orange juice." He offered her the glass.

Sam wondered where they had gotten orange juice. She hadn't had any in her refrigerator. "Thank you." She drank some. She ate a bit more before she started coughing.

Martouf took away the food and put a large bowl in her lap. He sat near her and rubbed her back while she coughed. "Lantash feels helpless," he said when she was done coughing.

Sam smiled a bit. She knew the symbiote wished he could help her in the way he helped Martouf. He didn't have that worry with Rosha. She had had Jolinar to heal her. "You're both helping by being here." Her lungs were hurting now, and she could feel another cough coming. She tried to keep it in, but her body finally forced the cough out. She did this several more times, after which, her lungs felt like they were burning.

"Do you want to sleep some more or eat some more?"

"I want to sleep, but I need cough medicine." She told him where it was, but she wasn't sure what brand of cough medicine she had. She knew she had something.

Martouf left, and he returned several minutes later with several types of medications. He set them down before noticing Sam's eyes were watering. "Samantha?"

She had been coughing so much, it hurt to breathe. She didn't know how she managed to get to sleep earlier. She didn't respond, but looked over the medicine Matouf had brought. It wasn't until now that she realized how much she had in her medicine cabinet. There was something for almost everything. She dismissed most of it. She set the cough drops to the side, hoping to find something stronger. She finally found cough syrup. She took that, needing more than normal due to the naquadah in her system. Then she settled back into her pillows, which were helping her sit upright.

Martouf put everything off to the side before crawling into bed next to her.

"Martouf." Sam coughed.

He rubbed her back. "Relax and go to sleep."

It took a bit for the medicine to kick it, and when it did, Sam was finally able to close her eyes and sleep again. Time passed quickly for her. She woke up without remembering her dreams. She felt slightly more rested. She quickly noticed that Martouf was still holding her. "Hey."

"Samantha."

She noticed the food was gone and realized he must have left at some point.

Martouf noticed her eying the tray. "Are you hungry?"

"A little."

He gave her a gentle kiss before leaving. A few minutes later he returned with reheated soup and more orange juice.

Sam gave her thanks as she took the soup. "I guess I don't have to worry about getting you sick."

"Lantash will keep me healthy."

Sam gave him a smile. "Did the Tok'ra mind you coming?"

"They know that I will at times have to go to Earth. They accepted that when we married."

Sam noticed that the question wasn't actually answered. She didn't really mind though, so long as Martouf and Lantash were there. She made a nod before realizing she needed to make use of the bowl Martouf had given her earlier. She grabbed it quickly before losing her meal.

Martouf waited until she was finished before cleaning up after her. Afterwards, he used a clean washcloth to wipe sweat off her. "Do you feel cold?"

"No. I don't have a fever."

"Achy?"

"A bit achy." She closed her eyes as she felt him massage her temples. As she settled back into her pillows, she found herself feeling a bit spoiled. She hadn't had such treatment the last time she had a cold. "Thank you."

All day, he took care of her. When night came, she fell asleep again. She missed Lantash taking over for the night shift. She woke up a few times during the night, but she was too sleepy to notice who was in control. It wasn't until morning that she noticed him. "Lantash." As she took his hand, she remembered him always being there when she woke up. "Did you stay awake all night?"

"Yes. I enjoyed watching you sleep."

Sam chuckled. She had gottened used to him liking to watch her sleep a while ago. "Thank you."

"Do you need to call your work?"

"I have today off."

"What can I get you?"

"Right now I need to use the restroom."

Lantash smiled. "While you do that, I'll get you something to eat."

Sam nodded and headed into the bathroom. When she was done, she went back to the bed and waited for Lantash. He soon returned with soup, toast, and orange juice.

"There's a lot of work I need to do. I shouldn't just be sitting here."

"It's your day off."

"Yeah, but I usually still work on my day off."

Lantash smiled. "Martouf and I often do the same."

Sam felt a little sad as old memories told her that they didn't used to. For ninety-nine years they'd spend their days off with their wives. She realized they must have thrown themselves into their work after Jolinar and Rosha died. Not sure what to say, she ate some toast. "You made good toast."

"Thank you. I was pleased that it didn't come out burnt."

The toast was good, but it scratched her throat, making her want to cough. She began using the orange juice to swallow it down. Afraid of the outcome of eating too much, Sam left most of her meal. She noticed Lantash cleaned it up while looking concerned. "Can I have some water?" That pleased him, and she thought it would be easier to handle. "Thank you," she said, when given a glass.

"Is there anything else?"

"No thank you." She watched him settle down next to her. "I'm feeling better than I did yesterday." She leaned in when he put his arm around her.

"We'll stay until you feel even better."

He kept his promise. For three days he and Martouf were there for every need, a bit more than they needed to be. When Sam felt she was ready to return to work, they declared she wasn't well enough for them to leave her. It made coming home nice. On the forth day of her cold, Sam came home to the smell of chicken noodle soup. It smelled better than the canned soups she had been getting before, and she wondered how it was made.

"Hello Samantha," Martouf said with a smile. He greeted her with a kiss. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes."

"Lantash and I went to the store."

"That must have been a long walk."

Martouf directed her to the kitchen as he continued speaking. "The trip was well worth it. We bought different varieties of ingredients. We tested all of them and figured out which was the best combination for nutrition and a good but mild taste. It took all day."

Sam saw a pot of chicken noodle soup on the stove. "It smells good."

He gave her a kiss. "You should sit down and rest now."

Sam gave no arguments as she went to sit down. She soon saw him come in with her meal. She had been getting tired of chicken noodle soup, but this tasted different enough. "This is very good, and..." She smiled. "You don't even like our stores."

"I did get a few strange looks."

"Oh?"

"Well, when I asked about making the soup, they gave me the aisle numbers for everything. They were surprised when I told them I couldn't read English numbers. I thought they were quite rude about it."

"Brave Martouf," she half complimented and half teased.

Martouf smiled.

Sam finished her bowl, having toast and orange juice with it. Afterwards, she got ready for bed. "Are you sure you don't want help cleaning up?"

"I am certain," Martouf replied as he tucked her in. "We don't want you overworking yourself."

"I feel fine."

"You still cough and your nose runs."

Sam smirked to the way he put it. "All right, I'll rest."

He nodded his head, and his eyes flashed when he looked back to her. "Good." Lantash gave her a kiss. "Most everything is already cleaned. We'll just put the food away, and then we'll return."

Sam watched him go before closing her eyes.

For the next three days, Sam felt spoiled whenever she was home. Breakfast was delivered in bed, the house was cleaned while she was at work, and dinner was always ready when she arrived home. In return, nothing was asked. They just wanted her to get well again.

"Thank you," Sam said as they spent the last night in bed. "You helped a lot."

Lantash ran his fingers through her hair. "You still have the sniffles."

Sam smiled. "I'll be fine, and I don't want you to get into trouble with the Tok'ra." She closed her eyes as she felt him rub her back.

"Sleep?"

She nodded.

"Good night, Samantha."

The next morning, they went to the the stargate. Martouf was in control since most of the SGC staff preferred him over Lantash. He was holding her hand as they approached. "I enjoyed our time together."

"I did too...well, I would have even if you hadn't been doing everything for me."

"I added more chicken and vegetables to the soup this morning since you are feeling better. It's more like a stew now."

"Sounds good."

"Lantash cleaned the rest of the dishes."

"Thank you, Lantash."

Martouf looked to the stargate as it activated. "I hope we see you again...soon." He kissed her. "Samantha." He took a few steps back before releasing her hand. Then he turned and headed to the stargate. Sam watched them disappear, and as the gate closed, she found herself already missing them.

The End