One

"How are you doing today, Major?" Silly question. All he wants to do is tell Obanashi to fucking stop asking him that every damn time he comes here. In fact, he wants nothing more than telling her to stop asking him anything in these sessions. But that would just serve to encourage her assessment of him that something was wrong with him and make her even more persistent that he come to the sessions.

So he just grits his teeth and answers as politely as possible. "Fine, thank you, ma'am."

She looks at him over the rim of her spectacles, wearing a professional half smile but he's positive that she's thinking something along the lines of 'Fine, my ass.' They all are, even Laura. But he is fine. Or he'll be, in a while. Everything will right itself over time, like it always does. He doesn't need a fucking shrink for that.

"Really? You aren't experiencing any… trouble sleeping? No concentration difficulties?" He shakes his head.

"Nope. Everything in the green." Well… not really. Most nights, he lies awake, beside Laura, trying very hard to appear deeply asleep. For some reason… he has the feeling that she knows very well that he isn't – he can tell from her breathing and way of moving when she has finally managed to fall asleep and it always takes much too long for his liking – but she doesn't tell him she knows about it.

And then there are those moments where he has those flashbacks… really only short, not even full seconds. Mostly just flashes of pictures of the time he'd been victim of the Goa'uld. Standing over Laura in the bedroom, struggling with the symbionte for control over the hand that held the gun… being tied to the bed in the SGC's infirmary, subject to hearing his own voice hurling insults at Laura… They come at the strangest times but he's got it all under control. Really, he does.

"Glad to hear that, Major. How's work going?" He wonders when… if Obanashi will ever lose patience and get fed up with asking him the same questions over and over again. He has the strong suspicion that she's doing this because she thinks it'll wear him down but if she can be stubborn… he can be more stubborn. She should know, being the base psychiatrist and everything.

"Fine. Well, as fine as work can go on a top-secret base a galaxy away from Earth," he answers her with a nonchalant shrug, still keeping up the casual façade. Maybe he's lucky and today's the day he will have worn her down… no, probably not. She's still her cool, professionally friendly self.

"No problems with handling weapons?" For heaven's sake, no. He's been a soldier for over ten years now. Handling weapons is in his blood. He shakes his head. "I see. You don't feel fatigue setting in earlier than usual?" What? No! He's as fit as he always was, thank you very much. He shakes his head again, this time having a little difficulty at keeping up his neutral, relaxed façade. "Of course not. Oh, what about your eating habits? You do eat regularly, I take it?" Okay, that's going a bit too far now. If and how and when he eats is solely his decision. If he isn't hungry… he doesn't eat. Okay, so… he hasn't been really hungry for about three weeks now, but so what? It's just a passing nuisance. And food in the mess hall hasn't been that good recently, anyway.

It's time, though, he ends this for today. He's got plenty of other important things to do. "Yes, I do. Look, ma'am, not to be rude or anything, but could we just…"

"How is Captain Cadman, by the way?" Obanashi says in this absolutely calm and cool way she'd been asking all her other annoying questions… but this one is a new one. But that's not the most annoying thing about it. The most annoying thing is that it actually managed to shut him up.

It even makes him swallow before answering, "Fine. Captain Cadman is absolutely… fine." At least she didn't say otherwise. Yeah, a little evil voice in his head whispers, because Laura was always so very vocal about feeling bad. So vocal, in fact, that Sheppard had to send you to get her to go to the sessions after the cave fiasco because not even he had managed to drag her there.

"Ah, good to hear. I take it you two have talked about what happened on your leave then?" That's not Obanashi's business, even less than his eating habits. Asking him about how and what he talks about with Laura… who does she think she is?

Could it be, the little voice from before whispers that you're just peeved because Obanashi didn't even have to start digging to get to this? Dammit, he starts to hate this little voice, sounding almost like that Goa'uld. He feels nausea coming up at this thought… and tries to cover it up with taking a deep, irritated breath before replying, "Yes, ma'am, of course we did."

In a way… in a way that's true. She'd asked if he was really okay, there at his bed in the infirmary, and he had given her a weak, brave smile and told her that yes – not in those words but it was what he had meant – and that had been it. She'd believed him – and back then it had been true – and she'd never asked him again. And dammit, it's still true. He's still okay.

"I'm sure you did." Then why are you asking about it? he thinks, growing more annoyed. "Things between you are fine, then?" Yes, goddammit, they are fine. Granted, they haven't really slept with each other in… a few weeks but they've been together for almost a year now and they are both sensible adults, not teenagers raging with hormones and they both had a lot to do and needed their sleep and everything. Sex isn't the only thing their relationship is based on.

"Yes, ma'am. Things are really, really fine between us." Obanashi gives him a tight smile that even looks a tad… cold.

"There's no need to get angry, Major." He's not angry and he's about to tell her that when she puts away her writing pad and takes off the glasses. "Just to get one thing straight: I'm not asking you these questions because I'm nosy. I'm here to evaluate if you're fit for duty or if the traumatizing events you went through will pose any long-term dangers for your deployment here and your overall psychological fitness. You do know that, Major, don't you?" All this she delivers very matter-of-factly and not the least bit agitated… almost casually. He resists taking a deep breath.

"Of course, ma'am." She puts on her glasses again and leans forward on her elbows.

"Then why do you keep lying to me?" He's not lying to her. He's not telling her the truth in the strictest sense but he's not lying to her, either.

For example, he doesn't have any trouble sleeping… since he doesn't sleep much at all. He also doesn't have much trouble concentrating because concentrating on everything but the issue is what keeps him from thinking about it. And things between Laura and him… are as fine as they ever were. Aren't they?

"With all due respect, ma'am… I'd like to ask you to refrain from accusing me of lying to you. Because I'm not. And I'd appreciate you not asking any more questions about my off-duty life. There is nothing to ask about there. I'm fine, Captain Cadman's fine… we are fine." There, that should settle it.

Obanashi raises her eyebrow. "Really? Then I take it Captain Cadman agrees with that?"

He frowns. "Of course she does." Why shouldn't she?

"How do you know?" What stupid kind of question is that? Seriously, what's Obanashi trying to get at?

He shrugs, keeps on frowning. "Well… I just do." It's what marks a working and healthy relationship, he wants to add but something… keeps him from it.

Opposite him, Obanashi doesn't look very convinced. "Have you ever actually asked her?" Again, one of these questions that come out of nowhere and make him speechless for just a moment too long. No… no, he hasn't.

In fact, lately he hasn't asked Laura much at all. They haven't even really talked much at all since they came back. But he can't possibly answer that because then she'd be totally convinced he was a nutcase, wouldn't she? Isn't that what she's been waiting for all the time?

She uses his momentary hesitation to add, "That's what I thought. Like I said, Major, stop lying to me if you ever want these sessions to end. And stop lying to yourself." Again he wants to give her back something for calling him a liar a second time but she doesn't give him time for that. "Well then, that will be it for today. I'm sorry I don't have more time today but I really need to keep other appointments as well. I'll see you in three days?"

He'd love to tell her not to bother with him in three days or ever again but this isn't up to him and he doesn't want to risk bringing Sheppard's wrath upon himself by dumping the sessions without authorization so all he says is, "Of course, ma'am." To that she just nods, already pulling out another record… and he feels awfully much like just having been thrown out.

As he leaves, feeling a little confused… he just can't get that one question out of his head, 'Have you ever actually asked her?' and he just can't stop pondering why he never did until now.

A/N: Oh yeah, someone apparently thought he can outsmart a shrink... lot of good that did to him ;) (probably as much good as going to judo practice today did to me... hello, GP, I really like to visit you about sport injuries... well, not, but there's this pesky thing with the knee I apparently busted and all...). Well, at least it was worth several great lines of snark from mac ;)