Turnabout is Fair Play – Part 9
Author: Neiths Arrow
Disclaimer: The following characters are fictitious. They, in no way, make a statement about any real persons – especially since I have made up the names, histories, interests, personalities, and experiences (fictional 'facts) to suit my needs (as authors tend to do). Any similarity to real persons is just that – a similarity. The personalities are based on characteristics of people in Stargateland (MGM Television Entertainment). I don't own those characters by the way. I am not profiting from this story in any financial way. Please do not post this story without my consent.
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/ Previously on Stargate SG-1 /
As the actor turned suddenly, he almost bumped into an immovable Teal'c. Up close, the alien's opinion of his surroundings was not apparent. He had the same intimidating look he wore when facing execution at the hands of a system lord. Roc moved back and directed a thought to his internal body mate. 'So O'Neill. What does Teal'c think about my place?' After a short pause, Roc got the hint. Aloud, he said, "Right. Let me show you where I really live."
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Scene 20 - Opportunity
After a tour of the home and grounds, Roc led them into the large kitchen. The cooking area was decorated to be somewhat primitive with a large wooden table underneath hanging pots and pans. Eight bulky, but comfortable-looking chairs welcomed visitors in this less-than-formal dining area. A plush sectional sofa divided the large room to allow a seating area off to the side. From the kitchen table, the side edge of a big screen television was apparent opposite the couch. But the room was dominated by a beautiful, river-stone fireplace, which covered the wall directly opposite the kitchen area. The overall effect was one of homey comfort. It was now obvious why Roc stated he would show them where he really lived. Roc gestured to the sofa. "Please, make yourselves at home. Are you hungry?"
His question was met with two pairs of large blue eyes and one pair of brown eyes, which were exotically accented by interested eyebrows. Flanders laughed. "I'll fix something to eat, and then we can rest. We'll be alone here today because my family is out of state." Sam removed her shoes and curled up on the sofa. Daniel walked around the perimeter of the room to study the pictures and other memorabilia on the walls. O'Neill exclaimed in irritation, "Daniel, we're not on an archeological dig. You don't have to study the walls, for crying out loud!"
Flanders quickly followed with his own response. "Daniel, please feel free to look at anything you'd like. That goes for all of you." Daniel looked back triumphantly toward Flanders, but then frowned in confusion and frustration because Jack was in the same body. He decided to change the subject instead. "Roc, have you met all the people in these photos?" He was amazed at the collection of photographs – some included famous sports figures and well-known movie stars. There were framed covers from national and international magazines, which featured Roc on the cover. A number of them showed Jack O'Neill and the rest of SG-1 in full uniform. Daniel turned when he realized that the actor had never answered his question. Roc's face was flushed in embarrassment. Daniel realized that the actor was very much like O'Neill in the fact that he didn't like the recognition. One of the walls in Jack's home was covered with various awards and medals, but the decorated airman never wanted to talk about them. He wondered why both men displayed the awards if they didn't want to talk about them. He chalked it up to another mysterious piece of Jack O'Neill.
Daniel was startled by a change in subject. "Do you have Star Wars, Flanders?" Teal'c was looking through the video collection cleverly hidden behind a pillar.
The actor replied with a grin, "Uh, No Teal'c. The only Science Fiction you'll find in this house is the SG-1 collection." The room became quiet as they all looked toward him.
Sam spoke first. "You mean, we can watch your show? Our show? With us?" She waved at her fellow teammates.
Flanders laughed, "Yeah, I thought you might like to see it. It might answer some questions for you. That is, if the same events happened in your . . . reality. They're in chronological order."
Sam got up to join Teal'c and began looking through the video collection. "Hey! We aren't in the first movie! I mean, it isn't /gestures to her teammates/ us? Colonel, you're played by . . ." They were interrupted by the telephone ringing.
"Excuse me." Flanders nodded as he backed out of the room. He took the business call in the next room, but kept the team in sight by standing in the doorway. O'Neill insisted on being in view of his teammates. The call was from the script courier who was trying to coordinate delivery of an updated script for the shoot the following day. They finally agreed that the courier would bring the script to his trailer in Vancouver. After hanging up, Flanders / O'Neill re-entered the room to find the rest of the team enthralled in front of the big screen television.
"Jack, you've got to see this! You're the star of the show and an executive producer!"
Flanders shyly responded. "Daniel, we are all stars on the show – including the people behind the camera. The show couldn't happen without every single person. No one is more important than anyone else." He waited a moment to let his words sink in. "Hey listen, I'm going to take a soak in the tub and I . . . we'll be right down. Help yourselves to anything in the kitchen." O'Neill internally expressed disappointment that he wouldn't get to watch with the others. Flanders responded, 'Sorry, but my back will stiffen up if I don't apply some heat and do some stretches.' Out loud O'Neill said, "See you kids in a bit." With a barely perceptible signal from the rest of SG-1, Teal'c accompanied his CO. O'Neill had ordered that a member of SG-1 be in the room with Flanders at all times. Since the rest of the team was hidden from Asgard sensors because of Replicator technology, there was no fear that the presence of another person would prevent Loki from initiating the abduction.
A little over half an hour later, Roc/O'Neill and Teal'c came back downstairs into the kitchen area. As they entered the room, a shouting voice was heard from the television. /'Three fries short of a Happy Meal ... WACKO!'/
Roc and Jack both enjoyed the sight of Sam and Daniel grinning on the couch. They were apparently enjoying whatever they were watching. Something niggled at the back of O'Neill's mind, but he wasn't quite sure what it was. The dialogue on the television continued while Roc looked through his mail at the kitchen table.
On the television, the tapping sounds of chalk on a blackboard were interrupted by intermittent dialogue. O'Neill looked over to make sure that it wasn't really Daniel and Teal'c speaking. The alien had joined his teammates and was currently sitting on a stool behind them. Teal'c appeared enraptured. "O'Neill, I suggest you observe."
The Colonel was looking through Roc's mail to vicariously see how his life turned out in this universe. He absently responded, "Yeah! In a minute, T." In the background/'Exactly how many of these loops have you ... we ... been ... thru?'/
O'Neill's eyes bugged out of his imaginary head as Roc pulled a photograph from the next envelope. It was a picture of Roc with his arm comfortably around the shoulders of the airman's favorite actress. 'You know her?'
Roc grinned and responded silently, 'If you're a good boy, I'll let you take this picture with you.'
Jack wanted to know more details about the relationship between Roc and . . . . Jack panicked as he replayed what Danny's voice had just said on the television. /'Well, think about it. If you know in advance that everything will be going back to the way it was, then . . . you could do anything . . . for as long as you want without having to worry about consequences.'/
Roc quickly released control of their mutual body when he realized what was happening. O'Neill's eyes popped open in panic and he rushed over to see the view screen just in time to see his television image stand up and excuse himself.
Sam giggled. "Roc, you certainly have the Colonel down." Her grin froze and her mind went into hyperdrive when she looked up into the panicked face of her CO.
O'Neill calmly asked for the remote control by holding out his hand. His teammates sensed that he was in a panic and had quickly deduced the reason – he didn't want them to know what he had done during the time loops. This was too good an opportunity to resist, so Daniel deliberately kept the remote out of his grasp by tossing it to Teal'c. Even Sam got into the fracas. With a disgusted look, O'Neill began walking toward the television to shut it off manually. His face expressed triumph as he reached for the off switch. All of a sudden his movements froze. His teammates wondered why until they saw the amused features of their host replace the Colonel's self-satisfied expression. "Jack, I believe your team would like to know what they missed." He grinned as the panicked airman screamed threats in his head. The actor's face suddenly blanched, and he quickly reached to turn off the television. He ejected the DVD and then silently left the room with the disk in hand.
Daniel looked after the retreating figure. "I wonder what that was all about." Sam joined him to look after Roc's stiffly retreating back.
The morning passed uneventfully. Roc looked refreshed after having slept a couple hours in his own bed. He opened a sleepy eye to see Samantha Carter peering intently into his face. He gave her a drowsy grin and reassured her. "We're both still here, Major Carter."
She looked embarrassed having been caught staring at him while he slept. She couldn't get over the fact that the two men shared the same body. She averted her eyes as they sat at the edge of the bed. "Sir, what are the plans for the day?" She had decided it was better to err on the side of caution when communicating with the dual personalities, so she addressed the two men as she would her CO.
Flanders was amused by O'Neill's internal exasperation at the formality of her question. 'Oh! For crying out loud! For just once, I'd like to know how she would treat me if I were just . . . some guy.' The actor quickly relinquished control to the airman which caught the Colonel at the end of a scowl. O'Neill's expression softened as he replied with light sarcasm. He punctuated his response with characteristic hand movements. "Carter, first I'm going to take a long, hot shower. Flanders seems to think it will help his back. Believe me, I'm all for anything that will help his back. Then I'm going to eat breakfast. I might even watch a little television, but that's completely up to my cell mate."
Carter's face was flushed with embarrassment at his detailed response. She disliked having to question his every move, but she was responsible for their safety. Because O'Neill was currently compromised, Sam was officially in charge of this mission. But why did it have to feel so uncomfortable managing this man; she had commanded many other people in the past and had never experienced this much discomfort. Sam had renewed sympathy for what General Hammond had to go through. She swallowed nervously and gave herself a pep talk. 'Buck up airman.' The Major continued her thought process. She was expected to continually monitor the actor during her shift, but she felt she was encroaching on her CO and Roc by being present when they took a shower. Though the members of SG-1 had been intimately close for the past seven years, she was not comfortable alone with her wet, naked CO a couple feet away. Her quick mind thought of a way out. "Sir, if you would rather, Teal'c can . . ." Her indecision was interrupted by the actor's soft-spoken suggestion.
"Major Carter, the bathroom is pretty large. You can sit on the other side of the room and you won't see anything." Sam quickly peeked in to see the double sink with an additional seating area along one wall, a shower enclosure separate from the large, sunken Jacuzzi tub, and a door dividing the bathroom from the secluded toilet. She turned and nodded her assent. Roc smiled gently at her relief. He shook his head in disbelief at the officers' situation.
A gruff voice continued, "Besides, Carter. It's not my body that you would see anyway."
Sam realized that the Colonel thought he was helping the situation, but it only made it worse to think of the gorgeously fit body in front of her as 'just a man' rather than as her 'against regulations' CO. She turned away and tried to gulp away her discomfort unobtrusively. It was already getting hot in the room.
The Colonel sighed, put his hands on his knees, and pushed off from the bed. He disappeared in a closet and reappeared shortly with fresh clothing. Somewhere along the line, Flanders had taken over control. As Sam followed him into the open bathroom, he ushered her to sit on a chair in the doorway. She could watch from a distance through the mirror, but the shower itself was not visible. "I hope you like opera." Sam cocked her head in puzzlement. She heard the water turn on in the shower. Sam's curiosity about the earlier cryptic comment was satisfied when she found out that Flanders had speakers in the bathroom and liked to play opera music loudly while showering. Sam couldn't help her surreptitious looks when the actor began removing his clothing at the far end of the bathroom. She averted her eyes quickly when she saw him turn to look in her direction. "No peeking." He smirked.
The sounds of the water spray were diluted by the blaring opera music. As time passed, steam slowly fogged the mirrors and Carter became indecisive about whether she should move in closer. Her sense of duty won out and she crabbed hesitantly into the room. "Roc? Sir? Are you doing OK?" There was no response. "Sir?" When she still got no response she quickly ran to stand before the shower. It was empty. Major Carter keyed her radio. "He's gone."
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AN: Thank you to those of you who reviewed both publicly and privately. It really makes this author's day. You should see my face light up with glee. In fact, my face freezes up on that last word.
