Wow, where did the time go? Anyway, here's another chapter for you all to enjoy. Thanks as always for all your lovely comments.

Christmas Spirit.

By Lingren.

Previously:-

"I really can't thank you enough General O'Neill. Please, won't you come in for a few minutes and get warm, you must be frozen dressed like that out here in this weather."

Chapter 3 – Fiery Problems

Jack shrugged. He was cold; very cold actually, but up to that point it hadn't bothered him too much.

"Thank you," he replied, looking down at his clothes. He hadn't bargained on being sociable when he'd thrown on his comfortable old sweats, but it would give him more of a chance to warm up a bit. He was actually further away from home than he'd intended to be, and would get warm again when he resumed his jogging, but right now he could really do with a potty break – 'another one of those annoying things about getting older and feeling the cold more!' he bemoaned inwardly "I think that would be most welcome. I must confess to feeling pretty cold now I come to think about it. So thanks, don't mind if I do."

"Yous come right on in then, and get y'self warm. I'll make you some real coffee that'll warm the cockles of your heart!"

"Thank you Ma'am, that's mighty kind of you," Jack responded, flashing her one of his brilliant smiles that usually had the women falling over themselves to gain his attention.

"Go on wid ya, I can't let a fellow Irishman go widout thankin' yous properly now!"

Jack acknowledged this with another smile as he waited for Max to take his bike through the door to the back, following in his Mom's footsteps. Jack shut the door behind him after stamping the snow from his running shoes on the porch before he entered. Max then showed Jack into the living room while his Mom called out to him from the kitchen telling him to get comfy in one of the armchairs.

So, now sitting in said comfy armchair, Jack began to slowly thaw out.

"Dis is the least I can do for yous General O'Neill," Mrs. Johnson stated as she entered the room to hand him a steaming mug of coffee.

Jack took it in both hands, wrapping them round to feel the warmth seeping into his fingers. He inhaled the aroma of the strong dark brew, and raised his eyebrows towards Max's Mom.

Mrs. Johnson just grinned back, informing him that it was just a tot o' the Irish Whiskey to warm him on his way home.

Jack raised his cup to her and held the coffee to his nose, inhaling deeply. It smelt real good, and despite the resolutions that he'd made first thing this morning about not eating or drinking much today, he couldn't help enjoying the rich aroma along with all the other delicious smells emanating from the kitchen. Mrs. Johnson had obviously been very busy baking up a storm in between worrying about her son, perhaps to keep her mind occupied.

He glanced down at his watch and gasped in surprise. He hadn't realised just how much time had passed while he'd been out on the road as it were. No wonder he felt hungry, and the wonderful smell of a Christmas dinner cooking was making him wish he was back at home again. Not that, that particular thought was at all welcoming, but at least he had a full freezer these days. He was sure to find something a little more special in there for today.

He downed his coffee in record time, gulping down the rich drink around the pain of a burned tongue; wanting to escape before his stomach rumbled and embarrassed him.

He made an excuse that he had to get home. He didn't lie to her; he never said there was anyone waiting for him, though he may have insinuated the idea as they chatted.

Mrs. Johnson was one step ahead of him though.

"Please, General, won't yous stay for dinner? We'd be honoured, and I know Max would enjoy your company." Jack was trying to waive her off, but she forestalled him by looking him straight in the eye. "Now General, don't tell me that you have someone at home waitin' on yous, 'cos I don't think you do." That came out more of a proclamation, rather than an actual supposition. She seemed to completely understand the reason he was out on his own on Christmas morning. A man of his age would more likely be at home with his wife and children having fun around the Christmas tree and opening presents. It was fairly obvious to her that he had nobody to stay at home for, Christmas or not.

Jack tried hard to form a polite refuse, but what came out instead was a particularly loud rumble from his traitorous stomach. Betrayed by his body, she wouldn't take no for an answer, so he'd suddenly found himself belonging to a family, despite being a relative stranger.

"Ah...and no, you're right, I don't have anyone at home," he confessed, "I'd like to take up your offer Mrs. Johnson, really, but you don't know me from Adam Ma'am, it wouldn't be right."

"Nonsense General O'Neill..."

"Jack!" he insisted, seeing as how he wasn't going to get out of having lunch with them any time soon.

"Now that is what wouldn't be right, not at all, an' you not wantin' t' stay fer a grand meal," she replied just as quickly, bringing a grin to his lips.

"Touché Ma'am!"

"Good! And it's Chrissie, Jack," she insisted.

"Pleased to meet you, Chrissie."

"You too, and I can't thank yous enough Jack, for coming to my Max's rescue. I'm real glad you were there for d' boy. If his father had been here, then he would have done the same."

"Think nothing of it, Chrissie. My pleasure. Ya know, I'm not really dressed for such a grand occasion, and if you insist that I share your meal, then you have to excuse me for a few minutes to let me go home and change; and then I promise I'll drive back in time for dinner."

"You will come back, won't you?" she queried, giving him a hard look.

"Sure, I will. If you think you really want a crusty old General at your table."

Chrissie laughed.

"I think Max would really enjoy your company this afternoon, and I'm sure my Patrick would too."

"Patrick?" Jack asked, unsure if it was another son he'd not seen as yet.

"My husband. Max's step-father."

"Look, maybe this isn't such a..."

"Oh no you don't! You's not backing out of this now, Jack O'Neill. I've never yet known an O'Neill to pass up a good meal when it's offered." She countered in a voice that didn't bode well, should he back out of the arrangement. "And besides, Max will be so disappointed if you don't come."

"Please!" begged Max, adding more weight to the argument.

Jack's resolve to stay away and not get involved any further, wavered under the pleading gaze of the boy. Jack found himself undecided for probably the first time in his life.

"Dad's at work. He's a Policeman but he'll be home in time for dinner too. You won't be the only man here, Jack."

Jack still hesitated, unwilling to intrude on their family time together.

"Good! That's settled then," Chrissie announced without letting Jack decide anything. "We'll expect you back here at One o'clock sharp."

Jack shook his head at her tactics, though he couldn't help but grin too.

"We could sure use you at the mountain, Chrissie. I don't think there would be many who would disobey your orders like they do mine; even Daniel wouldn't dare."

She cast him an enquiring glance and he smiled, filling her in as much as he could without saying much of what they did there.

"One of my staff members," he clarified with an indulgent smile, thinking about the trouble magnet that was Daniel. "He has this tendency to wander off on occasions and get himself lost or into trouble."

"And I bet you're right there to sort him out again," Chrissie laughed. She could well imagine the General going in after his men. She'd already seen that side of him to see beyond the gruff exterior, for all his blustering, he was obviously a softie at heart and thought much about the people under his command.

"Not always, unfortunately," he sighed. He couldn't be there for Daniel now, nor for Carter or Teal'c. He was no longer part of SG-1, and damn, if that didn't hurt a little bit. "I have other duties now," he explained sadly.

"Oh!" she sympathised when she could see the disappointment so clearly on his face.

Jack brought himself back to the present and made his excuses, looking at his watch.

"Well, if I'm gonna make it back here in time for dinner, then I'd better get going. Are you sure you really want me to join you?"

"Absolutely. Besides, it will give Patrick someone to talk to, 'sides me. I'm sure you two will be gettin' on jus' fine."

Jack shook his head in disbelief. There he was, expecting to be all alone on the big day, but now...here he was, invited to join in with these kind folks. He took his leave and strolled down the street for a few moments, turning things over in his head. Eventually he broke into a jog when the wind whipped straight through his sweats, reminding him that he was cold and to hurry home, shower, shave and change before getting back to his newly acquired family.

He kept his mind on his own business as he jogged at a steady pace along the streets. He could see from the corner of his eye, that several kids had now come out and were happily trying out their latest possessions. There weren't as many youngsters as he'd expected, but, maybe things were somewhat different these days. With a sigh of nostalgia, he guessed that most of today's kids would receive computer games for Christmas and would be stuck indoors, glued to their game consoles. He sighed heavily at what they called progress, as he continued running at a gentle pace now he was feeling warmer again. The one thing he did regret was that now he was no longer actively involved in missions.

He heard the deafening music long before he detected a car approaching him from behind. He stopped at the intersection waiting for the little bit of traffic to pass, trying hard to ignore the racket being made by the occupants of that wreck they called a car. The battered saloon with the deaf morons inside suddenly pulled up alongside him, jeering him as he stood there waiting to cross.

As an active soldier, he'd been in many situations where he'd faced off antagonists who ranted and raged at him in aggression, so it was easy to ignore their constant jibes. When the lights changed, he decided it would probably be better to walk behind the vehicle in order to escape from their attention, rather than invite trouble if he stepped in front of them. It was with a resentful sigh, that he recognised the youths in the noisy car, to be the very same ones from his encounter in the park. Once safely across the road, he started to jog away from them, and just hoped they wouldn't take it in their head to follow him home.

Thoroughly pissed off by their lack of sensibility, Jack took off at a slightly faster pace, trying to put as much distance between himself and the kids. He still had roughly another mile to go yet until he would reach the safely of his house. Ducking down a narrow alley and then making a few extra turns, he glanced over his shoulder to see if he'd lost his tail, and released a sigh of thankfulness when he no longer saw them. He took a few moments to stop and catch his breath regretting his lack of activity these days. Sitting behind a desk was a sure fired way to add those extra pounds without the constant exercise he had been getting as part of an active team.

There had been no sign of them for several minutes so Jack thought that perhaps they had gotten fed up with being ignored and had finally gotten the message that he wasn't going to take the bait. He slowed again, needing to catch his breath again, and turned his thoughts back to the youngster, Max, and smiled when he thought about the meeting with his very persuasive Irish mother. So, how was it that the reputedly hard-assed General Jack O'Neill had been coerced into accepting dinner by a diminutive Irish, yet fiery red headed whirlwind? He chuckled to himself thinking that with a combination of her nationality and the famed auburn hair, it was no wonder that he'd never stood an earthly chance of refusing her offer. It would probably give his old team plenty of gossip for months to come, if that little piece of information ever got out.

He was so wound up in his thoughts that he didn't hear that certain car's approach for the second time. The overly loud music had been turned off completely, concealing their approach. It wasn't until they drew along side of him and began yelling more abuse at him, that he unhappily realised they were back again. He briefly turned towards them, before stopping completely, hoping they could drive by, and then he would double back and take a different route.

What happened next, took him completely by surprise.

With an absolutely deafening roar the music blasted out of the open windows accompanied by such foul language – bad enough it would make a soldier blush -as the vehicle revved its engine, then with a loud squeal of burning rubber, took off at great speed. leaving behind scorch marks on the road in its wake.

Jack turned to watch them leave, then staggered and gasped in sudden pain. Clutching his chest, he dropped to his knees on the sidewalk, blood pouring through his fingers from a bullet wound in his chest. Sheer astonishment warred with agony inside him as he looked down at the spreading blood stain on the front of his sweatshirt and sleeves. His world lurched and spun away from him as he quickly slumped forward where darkness threatened his consciousness; and then he knew no more.

TBC