Okay Campers, another bit! Un beta'd i'm afraid, but i had to post it...busy for a few days now and it wouldn't have happened. Hope you like how this is going...please R & R!! Don't make me beg...lol and thanks for the lovely reviews already, you're all stars!!!) hugs xox


"Hey, Danny, come on in!" Jack greeted his friend cheerily and patted the seat to his right. (The one between Jack and his mom, Daniel noted.)

Daniel shyly smiled, nodding slightly, before making his way around the table, but without warning, his elbow was grasped and he was pulled down to Martha's opposing side.

"I want to sit next to my two favourite boys', Jack. Let Danny sit here." Martha cajoled Daniel down in her preferred spot without asking his consent. Daniel raised his eyebrows at Jack's badly concealed eye roll before giving a genuine 'Daniel grin' to Martha.

"Ow!" Jack exclaimed from nowhere, before rubbing his ribs with over exaggerated vigour.

A pretty, blonde woman lent over the table, obviously elbowing Jack without concern before offering Daniel her hand. "Nice to meet you, Daniel; Jack's told me nothing about you, `cause he never writes, phones or anything."

The line was delivered with complete grace towards Daniel, but the younger man couldn't help notice Jack squirm at the accusing words as he leaned away from the woman's elbow reach.

Jack frowned, continuing to rub his injured side before waving his hand absently at the person sitting next to him. "This is Em', my younger sister."

Daniel couldn't help the stunned look that danced across his face, "You have a sister?"

"You didn't tell him about me," Emily ground out, elbowing Jack a bit harder

"Ow! Hey! Oh-for-cryin'-out-loud! Will you cut that out, Em'?" Jack itched away from his attacker.

"Jonathon! Language!" Martha raised her eyebrow's obviously awaiting an apology.

"Mom!" Jack drawled out, know ducking the other way from his mom cuffing his ear.

"Ok, ok! Sorry, but she started it!" the colonel complained bitterly.

Daniel couldn't help the small smile that crept across his face. This was an anthropologists' dream, an all American family at their best.

"Jack," the warning tone from behind the paper was clear to hear.

Jack quite obviously stopped another eye roll before bringing down anymore of his mothers wrath and Daniel all but sniggered.

"Emily, leave him alone, he's getting to old for your teasing," Martha smiled ruefully.

Emily laughed, as did John and Martha at Jack's disgusted look.

Eye's twinkling with laughter, Emily cast an apologetic look at their guest, "Daniel, I'm so sorry you have to work with this joker. You know it isn't easy having him as a big brother."

Daniel laughed and shook his head. "Really?" he drawled out with comical concern.

Martha in turn patted Daniel's hand, "Jack, honey. Get Danny a drink, there's coffee in the pot."

Jack barely managed to conceal his irritation before getting up noisily from the table and heading to the other side of the kitchen.

"You sleep well, son?" John O'Neill appeared from behind his paper, a broad smile touching his lips.

Daniel met his line of vision and felt his cheeks heating. Who comes to a stranger's house and then proceeds to nap for over three hours?

"Yes, thanks, Mr... I mean, John. I did, very well as a matter of fact."

John's smile increased on seeing Daniel's shy grin meet his own from behind slightly ruffled bangs. "You're welcome, son. You just ignore these two; they're always the same, regardless of how long it is in between visit's."

Daniel couldn't help the laugh that escaped him as Emily managed to look completely indignant at her father's accusation.

"What they don't tell you, Daniel, is that we have to get this from somewhere," Jack offered grinning, from the safety of the other side of the room.

Daniel spotted Emily biting her lip in an effort to stop the giggles and John and Martha cast, what can only be described, as the patented O'Neill death glare across to where Jack stood.

"Joke, joke," smirked Jack as he waved the spoon towards his parents disapproving glares.

As Jack turned away, John briefly met everyone's gaze, raised his eyebrows and winked before growling his warning. "You're never too old, Jonathon."

Jack stilled in the act of pouring coffee in a way that Daniel had never seen happen before. Even General Hammond didn't have that effect on the Colonel.

Everyone around the table seemed to develop a bad case of trying to smother a giggle before Jack turned around slowly, obviously trying to judge his fathers real mood. "Coffee, Dad?" the colonel asked with saccharine sweetness before catching the squiggly grins of his onlookers.

Everyone burst into laughter, "Oh for peats sake!" growled jack, scooping up two mugs and heading back to the table.

"The threat still works, dear," smiled Martha warmly towards her husband.

"Apparently so," John nodded before returning to his paper.

Jack seemed to do, what appeared to be, a good impression of sulking over his coffee as Martha swept away with promises of a roast chicken for dinner.

The conversation continued on pleasantly around the table for the next hour or so, while Jack and his sister continued to jibe at each other in between growls from John's firmly held paper. Daniel smiled, telling Emily about himself and what he liked doing. She relayed the fact that she wasn't married, but was a career woman in the city. She was an accountant from what Daniel could make out and was at the top of her game. She definitely resembled something of Jack, but more than anything, Martha. The blonde hair and delicate features, blue eyes and olive skin. She was every bit as pretty as thought Martha would have been in her day, but she was a little taller. Daniel mused at the similarities between Emily and Sam Carter. Intelligent, beautiful, tall and very single minded by all accounts. Maybe that's why Jack and Sam got on so well?

*

"Jack?"

"Daniel?"

"Why didn't you say about your sister?"

Jack looked thoughtful as he stretched his long legs out on his hockey bed spread. "I did," he stated matter of factly.

Daniel's brow creased, "You did?"

Jack looked back from the ceiling, nodding as he smiled, "Yup."

Daniel sat on the window seat that had a beautiful view of the distant shore line, now fixing Jack with a questioning stare.

"Daniel, don't look at me like that. I did," Jack stated emphatically.

Daniel pushed his glasses back further onto his nose, "Nope, don't think you did."

"So you're telling me, you've never heard me talk about Em'? "

Daniel rolled his eyes, ready to make his point when he spotted Jacks eyes sparkle as the older man grinned mischievously.

The cogs in the academics mind started to whirl, trying to join the dots that Jack was so obviously hinting at, "Em'?" he mumbled thoughtfully.

"My sister, Daniel," Jack teased. He knew when he'd got the upper hand.

In typical Daniel style, he suddenly sprang to life; his eyes alight with realization as he waved a knowing finger at his friend. "Follow the yellow brick road! The Wizard of Oz, Auntie Em…" Daniel's glee seemed to die on his lips with his next thought as he sat carefully back down, watching his friends now uncommonly forlorn face. "I'm sorry, Jack, Charlie's favorite film, hur?"

Jack nodded, a soft smile tinged with sadness now creeping across is features.

"And he had the Auntie Em' too." Daniel offered before getting up and placing a hand on his friends shoulder.

Jack now seemed lost in his in his own thoughts, so Daniel made his way to bed.

In one day, Daniel had learnt more about his friend than he had in nearly a whole year and he thought he'd probably come closer to Jack's sorrow and joy than he could ever have thought possible. This was the most intermit part of his friends life and Daniel felt honored to have been allowed to be part of it, even if it was only for a short time.

TBC