Themed Writing

1 – Pink Panties

"Do you know how long it's gonna take?" Daniel asked, leaning over his friend's shoulder.

"Hopefully not as long as it takes that other ship and their friends to reach us," Sam replied as she wrenched the cover off the sparking panel.

With a nod, Daniel wandered away, leaving Sam to repair the alien ship.

Upon first inspection, Sam saw that the crystals were fried and there were a few wires that needed to be stripped and reattached. She was definitely going to have to Mickey Mouse a few of the main systems so they could keep life support and regain hyperdrive.

Puffing a short breath from her nose, Sam pulled her jacket off and rolled up the sleeves of her black long-sleeve shirt. She spotted a panel in the floor and yanked the cover off, hefting it to one side. It was deep and filled with various cords, wires and crystals. She knelt before it, reaching into the jumble of colored wires. There were two crystals that needed replacing that were visible and probably a dozen more underneath.

As she fiddled with the cords, wires and crystals, she noticed how stiflingly hot it was in the tiny vessel. She pulled her long-sleeve shirt over her head and tossed it onto the pile with her other things. Straddling the hole with her knees, she dove back into her work, her tank top coming loose from her pants. Beads of sweat dried on her exposed skin in the minimal amounts of recycled air.

Keeping herself steady with her knees on either side of the hole, she lowered herself waist deep to reach the circuits at the bottom. This was possibly the most undignified position to be in, and highly uncomfortable with her ass in the air, her lower back exposed and her legs spread to keep her balance. Then again, it was the only way she could reach the bottom of the cramped working space.

Elbow-deep in circuits, conduits, crystals and cords, Sam didn't hear her commanding officer enter the rear compartment.

Jack's boots clicked on the polished floor with each casual stride. His hands were tucked into his pockets and he too had stripped down to his teeshirt. It was a good thing Sam was distracted by her work because she would not have appreciated the look she earned from her Colonel.

"That's a new shade for you, Carter," he eventually said with a smirk obvious in his voice.

Sam only heard her name, and she barely even hear that, so she pulled herself out of the electrical panel and sat back on her heels. Wiping her forehead with the back of her hand, she looked up at O'Neill with a sheepish smirk. "Sorry, sir. I didn't catch that," she said to him.

Jack hated repeating himself, especially when he said something like he just did. "I said, how's it goin', Carter?"

"I'm getting there. We should have hyperdrive back online shortly and full life support as well. Now I'm just hoping we don't lose artificial gravity as well," she explained, fiddling with the dead crystal in her hands.

"I'm pretty sure that's the last thing we need." Jack fell into silence once more and watched Sam return to the wire-filled hole.

A few moments later, Daniel joined them in the rear of the ship. "Got an estimate, Sam? Those guys are showing up all over the radar."

Once again, Sam sat up to answer the question. "I'm working as fast as I can, but I'm not all too familiar with these systems," she replied, wiping more sweat from her forehead.

"Okay. Um...just so you know, your underwear is sticking out." On that note, Daniel rejoined Teal'c in the cockpit.

Sam swallowed hard and tugged her pants back into their proper place while tightening the belt. "Sir...you didn't actually ask how things were going, did you?" she asked slowly, a slight knot of embarrassment in the pit of her gut.

Jack shrugged, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "I couldn't exactly miss it. I mean, c'mon. Hot pink?" As he spoke, he turned and headed back toward the front of the ship.

"It was laundry day!"