Title: Dreams and Nightmares
Author: NYPD55Chick
Rating: T to be safe
Pairing: Sam/Jack, maybe Dan/Janet later on.
Spoilers: Up to and including the end of Season 4 (thus far.)
Disclaimer: checks under bed Nope not mine.
Summary: A trip through the Gate triggers more of Jolinar's memories. What will Sam learn from them?
The Gateroom was flooded with blue light as the wormhole engaged with its familiar blinding vortex.
"SG-1, you have a go." General Hammond, said standing in the Control Room. "God speed."
Colonel Jack O'Neill nodded to the General and said, "Okay campers, let's move out!" He moved up the ramp followed by his good friend, and personal trouble magnet Dr. Daniel Jackson. Side by side, they stepped through the event horizon of the gate and after a moment were standing on another planet hundreds of thousands of light-years way from Earth. Mere seconds after Jack and Daniel stepped through the gate, Jack's second in command; Major Samantha Carter stepped through with their Jaffa-turned-rebel, Teal'c.
"Nice place," Jack said sarcasm dripping off his words. "Lots of lovely trees, trees and oh look, more trees."
"Haven't we been here before?" Sam asked to no one in particular.
"Not that I am aware of Major Carter," Teal'c replied.
"Something wrong Carter?" Jack asked.
"No, Sir," She replied. "This planet must just remind me of another one we visited."
"I don't know how you could confuse them," he said. "It's not like they all look the same or anything." Carter smiled, but Jack could sense she was still a little unnerved but she pushed the feelings aside and focused her attention back to the task at hand.
Jack couldn't help but smile with pride at his team, without having to say a word; they already knew what needed to be done. Teal'c began establishing a perimeter, Daniel was checking the DHD, and Carter was hunched over, comparing readings from one of her doohickeys to the readings on the MALP. Jack continued with his own visual sweep of the area, keeping one eye on the surrounding forest, and the other on Sam.
"Carter, any life signs?"
She stood up, stretching her now stiff back. "I'm picking up several life signs, but I have no way of knowing if they're just animals in the forest or hostiles."
"Right, everyone keep your eyes open. Daniel, how many miles to this temple thingy?"
"It's a settlement Jack" Daniel replied clearly annoyed with Jack's lack of interest, "and it's fifteen miles, east of the gate." Jack waggled his eyebrows at Carter who just shook her head at them both, and readjusted her pack.
"Lead on then, oh wise geek." Daniel shot back a dirty look and started walking.
They had been walking for half the day, and they still hadn't reached the ruins. They had barely covered half of the trek, and they all felt the need to stop and rest. "Daniel," Jack said after gulping down some cool water from his canteen. "Are you sure we're going the right way? I don't remember you saying anything about a million miles uphill in your briefing."
"That's simply because you weren't paying attention Jack, and it's not been a million miles, only eight or so."
"I don't remember you saying uphill either Daniel," Carter stated dropping her pack heavily to the ground.
"Indeed," Teal'c added, eyebrow raised.
Daniel scowled at his former comrades in arms, "Et tu Brute?"
"Okay folks," Jack interrupted, "Let's take a rest here and we'll move on in five." He watched his team closely, looking for anything out of the ordinary. Daniel sat as he usually did, legs stretched in front of him, nose deep in a book. Teal's was a few paces to Daniel's left, sitting cross-legged near a tree, and even though his eyes were shut, Jack knew the large man's senses were hyper extended, and he would sense anything coming long before any of the rest of them did. Just to the right of Daniel, Jack noticed something off with Carter. Normally, she would sit across from Jack, back against a tree, talking his ear off about some theory or another. Today, however, she was curled up in a ball, head resting on her pack, eyes closed and silent. Slowly, he moved to sit next to her.
"Hey Carter, what's up?" he asked softly.
"Just tired, Sir." She sounded exhausted to him. Jack looked her over for any injuries and noted that her whole body seemed tense and on edge, quite a change from when they had arrived.
"Are you going to be alright to keep going?" He asked though he already knew the answer.
"I'll be fine Sir; I'm just going to rest for a couple of minutes."
He figured that she was going to say that. Carter was always 'fine.' She could be half dead on her feet and still be fine. "Okay Carter. We'll get you up when we're ready to leave."
"Thanks Sir." She said it so quietly that he almost missed it. He squeezed her shoulder slightly and moved back to his spot, keeping a vigilant watch. He was starting to get that feeling in the pit of his stomach: the one that always told him when something wasn't right. He just prayed that this time it was wrong.
Sam felt totally exhausted. Her cat nap hadn't given her the energy boost she so desperately needed. It took almost all her strength to lift her pack, not to mention carry it. Jack seemed to notice her struggle and without a word helped her into it. She was grateful and infuriated with him at the same time. While she appreciated his help, she hated feeling that he thought her weak, though she knew he didn't think that way.
Jack watched Carter even closer as they continued their trek. She seemed unsteady on her feet, and she was stumbling a lot, almost falling completely at times. He could tell that her rest didn't help her at all as she was now completely silent and barely seemed to register anything around her. Even Teal'c and Daniel had noticed that something was wrong with Sam. Jack decided that he didn't like the way she was looking and directed them to make camp. He came up behind her to help her with her pack. He had just set it down when she started to sway.
"Whoa there Carter," he said, grabbing her around her middle. "Let's sit you down before you decide to nose dive on me."
"I'm fine," she said.
"Okay Carter," he said, not wanting to start a fight with her. "You can start dishing up some rations while Daniel and I pitch the tents."
A muffled grunt was all he got as a response.
It took Jack and Daniel all of ten minutes to pitch the tents and discretely get Sam's sleeping bag ready. While she was out of earshot, Jack suggested to Daniel and Teal'c that they let her sleep the whole night through. They both agreed and Teal'c offered to take the extra watch as he didn't need as much sleep as the others did. Jack turned his attention back to Sam and found that she had lost her fight against her exhaustion and passed out against the tree, one half opened ration on her lap. He scooped her up in his arms and took her into her tent. He didn't want to attempt to undress her, so he settled for taking her boots and vest off. This way she would be at least a little more comfortable. Once she was sufficiently tucked in, Jack went back out to the fire Teal'c had built to eat his rations.
As the male members of SG-1 were eating, Teal'c and Daniel were discussing the ruins and what they hoped to find there. Jack on the other hand was lost in his thoughts. He couldn't understand what was wrong with Carter. He wasn't sure what he should do about her. His better judgment told him he should get her back to Earth and Dr. Frasier's expertise, but he knew that Carter would fight him, protesting that she was fine, and she would resent him if he forced her back before the end of their mission. He knew that either way Teal'c and Daniel would support his decision, Sam's health was of greater concern to them than it was to Sam herself.
Jack's thoughts kept him company all through his watch, but he still hadn't reached a decision. Teal'c had just come to relieve Jack when Sam screamed. It was a blood chilling scream of sheer agony. In seconds flat, both Jack and Teal'c were inside Sam's tent, searching for the cause of her scream. All they could see was Sam thrashing in her sleep, clearly in the throws of a powerful nightmare. Jack's heart went out to her and all he wanted to do was hold her and comfort her.
"Carter, wake up." Jack gently shook her arm, trying to avoid startling her. She didn't wake but seemed to calm down.
As if sensing Jack's desire to stay with Sam, Teal'c quietly said, "I will resume the watch O'Neill. Perhaps you should remain here in the event she becomes distressed again," then left.
Jack sat down beside Sam. Her body was still tense and he could just make out tears on her cheeks. He started absently stroking her hair, unsure of when exactly he had come to care for her so much. He thought back to all the things they had been through together and knew in his heart that he was in love with her, and that thought scared him. He looked back down at Sam; she was beginning to thrash again. He was about to shake her as he had done before when she started shouting "No" over and over again.
Jack could take no more. He shook her hard, shouting at her, "Wake up Carter, that's an order!"
Instantly, she shot up, and her eyes opened. She looked around slowly, trying desperately to slow her racing heart. "Sir?" she asked her voice now small and hoarse.
"I'm here Carter, its okay." She looked at him and all the excruciating pain and immeasurable terror from her dream came flooding back to her, replacing her confusion. The intensity of the emotions overwhelmed her and the tears fell harder. She turned her head away, embarrassed by her weakness. Jack cupped her cheek with his hand and turned her face back toward his. "C'mere," was all he said and she was wrapped safely inside his embrace. She let the tears and the sobs rack her body freely, unashamed. All she knew was that she was safe in Jack's arms.
Jack held her while she cried, comforting her the only way he knew how, stroking her hair and gently rubbing her back. When her sobs subsided, he softly whispered words of comfort, hoping to break the powerful hold of her nightmares. Jack pulled back to look at her. She didn't pull herself out of Jack's embrace, but she wouldn't look him in the eye.
"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked softly.
She wiped at her eyes and nodded, "It was horrible. I think it was another one of Jolinar's memories." She visibly shook and Jack pulled her closer again, hating Jolinar for the constant pain she kept putting Sam through. She shifted herself, forcing Jack to lie down, and snuggled up beside him, resting her head on his chest. "She was running from someone. There were Jaffa all around. She hid in some bushes beside the Stargate and waited for night to fall. When she thought the coast was clear, she ran for the gate and dialed, she was almost through when the Jaffa saw her and shot her with their staffs. The force of the blasts knocked her through the gate and she came out here."
Sam stopped; Jack knew there was more that she wasn't telling him. He squeezed her to his chest a little tighter, offering his silent support.
"Her wounds were too great," Sam continued, her voice catching in her throat and her shaking increasing. "A local woman just happened to be walking near the gate and came to investigate when Jolinar landed on the other side. The woman bent over to see if she was alright and... and..." Jack rubbed small circles on Sam's back, easing her heaving sobs. "Jolinar jumped hosts. I could feel Jolinar in my head all over again, the pain, the terror, the screams of the new host ringing in my ears. Oh Jack..." she was hysterical now; speaking so fast Jack could barely understand her. He held her tight, letting her cry, rant, scream, fight and shake, all the while he held her, softly telling her that she was alright, and safe and that he wasn't going to let anything happen to her.
Cried out and exhausted, Sam slipped into a deep dreamless sleep, still wrapped in Jack's arms and holding on to him for dear life. Jack noticed her deep even breathing and knew she had fallen back to sleep. Not wanting to move her for fear of waking her back up, Jack settled himself in for the rest of the night, secretly reveling in the feel of Sam lying in his arms. A few moments later, Jack joined Sam in slumber.
It was still dark when Teal'c crept over to Sam's tent. If asked, his intention was simply to ensure that she was sleeping soundly, but he actually wanted to make sure that O'Neill was still there. He had watched his teammates for many years. He knew their feelings for each other ran deep and he was determined to help them find the happiness in each other that they deserved.