Well, here is a fairly long chapter to make up for the long delay! I'm sorry about the wait- my sister has been in the hospital (she was hit on the hit which messed up her skull) and I was in charge of my siblings while my parents were with her in L.A so I didn't have a lot of time to write. She's home now (yay!) so hopefully I'll be able to update again soon, but won't promise anything as all I'm doing is proving myself a liar.

I hope you like this chapter! (And again I'm really sorry for the delay!)



Chapter 11

The next day, 1400.

"Jack, we're going to be late!"

A slow smile spread across his face at the excited spark in Carter's eyes. Her face was lit up in a way he generally only saw when she was brought a new alien doohickey. "Slow down, Sam," he said amiably, shifting the suitcase to his other hand, "plane's not going anywhere without us."

With a childish grin, she turned to Daniel and started questioning him about his upcoming trip to Antarctica. As they chattered, Jack glanced at Teal'c who had been characteristically quiet.

"Thanks for coming, T," he said quietly as they neared his truck.

Teal'c inclined his head.

"So, what are you going to do when you get back?"

"I intend to visit Rya'c and various leaders of the Jaffa rebellion."

Jack pulled open the car door for Daniel and Carter to enter the back, leaving the passenger seat for Teal'c. "Fun."

"Indeed."

"Say hi to Ishta for me."

Teal'c gave him a side-glance. "I shall."

As he started the engine, he looked in the review mirror and caught Carter's eye. She gave him a small smile before looking back at Daniel.

Earlier that morning, the archeologist had appeared in the infirmary while Sam was getting discharged and announced he intended to accompany them to Minnesota and stay for a day before leaving for Antarctica. Teal'c hadn't said anything but the duffle bag slung over his shoulder indicated what he was going to do. Jack knew the Jaffa would only stay as long as Daniel did but…

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

Å

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes, it is."

"Is not."

Daniel blinked. Staring at Jack, he demanded, "How is it not?"

"It's just… not."

Sam looked at the seat across from here where Teal'c sat, looking bemused. "What are they talking about?" she asked quietly.

"I am uncertain," he answered in the same tone. "O'Neill mentioned a sport played on ice; the conversation has changed much since then."

She grinned and looked out the window. All she could see right now were clouds and a bright blue sky- a perfect day for flying. A slight movement made her glance to her right; her husband was lowering himself next to her.

Jack had been acting rather odd the past few days, she mused, but now… he seemed more relaxed, more at ease.

With a small sigh of content, she settled into her seat, letting the voices of her husband and friends wash over her.

She would be home soon.

Å

Jack generally drove to his cabin, so he had never had to worry about a car. His cabin was twenty miles from civilization, about forty from the landing strip. Now that he thought of it, he didn't think there was a 'Rent-A-Car' or an Enterprise around for at least another ten miles.

He pulled out his cell phone once they were off the plane, prepared to dial for a car when a young man stepped up to him and asked, "Excuse me, sir- are you Colonel O'Neill?"

"I am," he said, sliding the phone into his leather jacket pocket. "You are?"

"Kevin Benson, sir." The young man beamed at him and handed him a pair of keys. Pointing to two black trucks he said, "Compliments of a Dr. Weir, sir. She also asked me to secure some groceries- they're in a ice chest in the back, sir."

Elizabeth really had thought of everything, he thought with a small smile. "Thank you, airman."

"You're welcome, sir." He turned to leave and then stopped. "Oh," he began, digging into his pocket, "she also asked me to pass this on to you." He handed Jack a folded piece of paper.

On it were a few lines written in the doctor's neat handwriting. Jack scanned it and then stuck in his pant pocket. "Thank you."

Kevin nodded and left. Jack turned around to see Sam's blue eyes on him, her head cocked. "What was that about?" she asked.

He gestured to the truck. "Weir had a car ready for us."

She looked at him expectantly. He raised an eyebrow.

"The note?" she said finally. "Did she… say anything?"

Jack blinked. Was Samantha Carter… jealous? After a moment, he mentally shook his head. Surely not. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out the piece of paper and handed it to her. "You can read it," he said, sticking his hands in his back pockets and rocking on his heels. He wasn't sure why but the thought that Carter was jealous about him… his grin faded when he realized that she thought that they were married. Of course she'd be jealous.

But still

Sam slowly opened the paper and read the few words written.

Colonel O'Neill, I hope the arrangements made are all satisfactory. If you need anything, I have included Dr. Brightman's and my own cell numbers. Please don't hesitate to call.

Best of luck,
Elizabeth Weir

Slightly flushed, she handed it back. "Best of luck with what?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders. He doubted explaining the true purpose of their visit would go over well. "Need some help with the luggage, T?"

Å

"So this is the infamous cabin you kept threatening to take me," Daniel murmured, gratefully exiting the truck. He looked around, pleasantly surprised by what he saw.

"Not bad, is it?" Jack asked proudly as he closed the door of 'his' truck.

Daniel gave a non-committal shrug. The glimmer of dread and resignation in Teal'c's eyes made him wary of agreeing with the Colonel. "Where do we put our bags?" he asked.

Teal'c slapped his arm, flicked the now dead mosquito off, and reached for the ice chest. Only his love for his teammate (Sam, not Jack) could've ever brought him out here again.

SG-1 entered the cabin; Jack directed Daniel to the guest room while Teal'c made his way to the kitchen. After leaving the archeologist, Jack started back to the living room. Inside there, he mentally groaned.

Sam stood in the doorway. Her face was a blank slate but in her eyes, he could see the confusion as she took in the fairly tidy but obviously masculine room.

"Something wrong, Sam?" he asked; he stepped in front of her. "You okay?"

She barely nodded. "I… I thought we…" She shook her head, determinedly pushing away the nagging feeling that the blue couch had been a brown leather sofa, and that the living room had been painted a different color. What color, she wasn't sure, but it wasn't brown. "I'm fine."

"You sure?" He cocked his head. "You look a little-"

"I'm fine, Jack," she interrupted. Placing her hands on his shoulders, she looked into his eyes. "Really."

He nodded. "Okay."

Sam squeezed his arm. "I'm going to go help Teal'c throw away all the moldy stuff in there," she said, a small smile flashing across her face. A crash coming from the direction of the bedrooms made her smile grow. "Maybe you should go help Daniel."

He nodded again; his eyes followed Sam as she entered the kitchen. A few moments later, he could hear her and Teal'c discussing the condition of a bottle of salsa. He moved down the hallway and stopped in the doorway; Daniel stood in the closet, looking chagrined.

"What'd you do now, Spacemonkey?" Jack asked with a grin as he took in the fallen shelf and closet rod. "Trying to do pull-ups or something?"

"Ha ha," the archeologist muttered. "I just put the suitcase on the shelf and it… collapsed." With a grunt, he pulled the case from the wreckage.

"Let me see that," Jack ordered. Daniel handed to him; the weight of the bag made him stagger. "What the hell is in this? Your entire rock collection?"

Daniel rolled his eyes. "My research on the Ancients, some books I thought might be useful, photocopies of all-"

Jack held up his hand, effectually stopping him. He dropped the suitcase on the bed next to a backpack. "What's in that?" he asked curiously.

Daniel blinked. "Clothes, personal items."

A slow grin spread across Jack's face. Only Daniel would have filled a large suitcase full of papers and tablets while stuffing his clothes in a small backpack. "Of course it is." He clapped him on the back. "Want some lunch?" He checked his watch. "Or dinner, I should say."

Daniel pushed up his glasses. "Dinner?"

"It's six o'clock. Dinner."

The archeologist smiled. "I can't remember the last time I ate," he murmured.

"Come on," Jack invited. "I'm sure Teal'c and Carter are whipping something up."

Å

Jack poked the mass on his plate. "Er… what is this, Teal'c?"

"A dish similar to a Jaffa dish known as Kurmac, O'Neill." The Jaffa looked at the two men. "Is it satisfactory?"

"It's great," Daniel mumbled, stabbing the heap of black… something. "So… what's it made of?"

"Chicken," Sam said wryly. "Chicken and a whole lot of spices and stuff."

"Does it have to be so black?" Jack whispered to no one in particular.

Sam blushed. "My fault," she admitted. "I put the oven on too high." She took a tentative bite of the food. Her eyes widened but she swallowed. "It's uh… spicy."

Teal'c nodded as he finished his own bite. "Indeed."

SG-1 exchanged glances and then, as one, pushed their plates away.

"Chinese?" Jack inquired.

"Sounds good."

Å

"Oh, come on," Daniel objected, looking at the DVD Jack held with distaste. "Let's watch something else!"

"Star Wars," Teal'c suggested.

Jack glanced at his friend. "Sorry, T," he said, not sounding the least bit apologetic, "I don't own any of 'em."

"I brought them with me, O'Neill."

"Of course you did." The Colonel pointed to his left with a plastic chopstick. "Sam? Preference?"

Sam swallowed her mouthful of fried rice. "We watched Star Wars in October, Teal'c. That was only three months ago."

"All of them," Jack muttered under his breath. "Every single second of them."

The scientist hid a smile and looked at the movie Daniel was offering. "We watched Raiders of the Lost Ark last team night," she reminded him.

His shoulders slumped. "So it's-"

"The Wizard of Oz," Jack said with satisfaction. "Excellent," he murmured in his best Bond's imitation.

Daniel and Teal'c exchanged disgruntled looks but settled back into the armchairs, resigning themselves to nearly two hours of singing, evil witches and red shining shoes that when clicked together thrice sent you home.

Å

"Ohhhhh... What a world! What a world!"

"Jack," Daniel complained for the seventh time, "If we have to watch this movie, at least we could do it without you quoting-"

"Shh," Jack dismissed his complaints. "It's almost over."

The archeologist opened his mouth to say something, looked at him, and then turned his attention back to the TV. Jack caught Daniel's quizzical glance and looked down; his eyes widened as he realized that a pair of long jean covered legs were stretched across his lap.
He followed the legs up to a blue t-shirt clad chest (he didn't dare let his eyes linger too long there) and up to a beautiful face that was lit up by bright blue eyes currently studying the TV.

When had that happened? Not that he was Einstein or anything, but he was pretty sure he'd notice if his second-in-command had stretched out across him.

But those were definitely her legs on his lap.

"The sum of the square roots of any two sides of an isosceles triangle is equal to the square root of the remaining side," Sam chanted along with the scarecrow, drawing his attention back to her face. Her brow wrinkled a bit as she said thoughtfully, "Which is inaccurate- an isosceles triangle is a triangle with at least-"

"Ah!" Jack scolded. "No science talk while you're at the cabin. Rule number five."

"What's rule number one?" Daniel questioned curiously.

Jack gave them an evil smile. "My secret." He glanced at Sam. "The one line you can remember from this movie is a math line... Why am I not surprised?"

Her foot dug into his leg, making him jump a bit. "Not all of us have watched this a hundred times," she teased. Before Jack could respond, she rolled off the couch and onto her feet. "Does anyone want beer? A soda?"

"Ginger ale, Sam."

"I would enjoy one as well, Major Carter."

Sam didn't appear to notice the use of her maiden name. "Jack? You want a beer?"

Daniel alone noticed the spark of uncertainty in Jack's eyes before he answered in a slightly strained but cheerful tone, "Yeah, thanks honey."

Teal'c and Daniel exchanged glances and then turned to face the TV.

Å
Several hours later…

Sam fidgeted and glanced at the clock. Nearly twenty-two hundred…

She yawned and stole a look at the couch. Jack sat there, a beer in hand, debating with Daniel about the Simpson's. She yawned again. This time, Jack looked up. "Tired?" he asked with an easy smile.

Sam nodded. "Yeah. I think I'll go to bed…" she trailed off, giving him a meaningful look. To her chagrin, he merely nodded and said,

"Okay, get some sleep."

Sam bit her lip. After a second, she made her way to Daniel and gave him a hug. "Night, Daniel."

"Good night, Sam."

Teal'c bowed. "Pleasant dreams, Samantha Carter."

"Same, Teal'c." She turned to her husband, a bit uncertain. "Good night, Jack."

He set down his beer and rose to his feet; after a second, he opened his arms. "Night, Sam," he whispered in her ear as her arms wrapped around his shoulders.

Sam pulled back, looked at him a moment and then kissed him. Hard. He was unusually slow to respond but eventually he did. A bit breathless, she whispered, "Good night," and slipped out of the room.

Jack looked at the archeologist who was gaping at him and at Teal'c whose eyebrows had reached record height. Dropping onto the couch, he asked slightly dazed, "More beer, anyone?"

Å

"Jack?"

"Yeah?" the Colonel grunted.

"My head hurts."

Jack didn't bother to look over at the armchair. "Daniel, you had a beer."

"It still hurts," came the plaintive reply.

Jack groaned as the grandfather clock in the corner stuck two. "Come on, Danny boy," he said, getting to his feet. "Time for bed."

The archeologist accepted the hand up. "Whoa," he said involuntary as his feet hit the floor. "Is the room spinning?"

"Nope." Jack helped Daniel down the hall; he pushed open the spare room open with his knee. With a grunt, he managed to get Daniel on the bed. He tugged the sheet so it covered most of the archeologist. "Night."

"Jack."

He looked at the dark form on the bed. "Yes, Daniel?"

There was a loud yawn. "Sorry, um… this uh… might sound a bit crazy-"

"It usually does."

"-But try to enjoy this a little."

Jack was quiet. "Enjoy what?" he asked after a minute.

"You're doing this to help Sam out." Two soft 'thuds' were heard as Daniel's shoes hit the floor. "I know that you feel like you're lying to Sam, that somehow you're betraying her trust, but you're not. You're helping her-"

Teal'c sat up on his bed. "I will attend to Daniel Jackson, O'Neill."

"Okay." He hesitated in the doorway a moment. "Night, T."

"Good night, O'Neill."

Å

"Shit!"

Jack opened his eyes and promptly wished he hadn't; the smoke that was starting to fill the room stung his eyes.

"Carter?" he barked, trying to peer through the smoke. "Sam?"

There was a sudden rush of cold air in the room and the smoke noticeably cleared up. He spotted his 'wife' holding the front door open. "What happened?"

She tried to smile. "Making breakfast," she answered, frustration evident in her voice. "Dr. Brightman called to ask how I felt; I was away only for a second but by the time I got back…" Sam gestured to the kitchen. "That had happened." She left the living room door ajar and walked over to the window and pulled it open; she stared out of it. "I can't even make bacon without screwing that up."

Jack looked at Carter with unabated astonishment. "Sam," he started, "you're like… our national treasure. You've saved the collective asses of Earth from the Goa'uld more times than I can count. You've found out important… science… stuff… that I don't understand but you assure me will change the laws of physics forever. And…"

Still looking out, she gave a small smile. "And?"

"You're beautiful. Hot- incredibly hot," he added. "Brilliant. Kind. Good with kids…" He rose to his feet and his way to her side. "Who cares about whether or not you can make a slice of bacon?"

She looked at him, a tear in her blue eyes. "I love you, Jack," she murmured, wrapping her arms around him.

Jack slowly returned her hug. "Yeah," he whispered; unconsciously, he kissed the top of her head, "I know you do."

She tilted up her head and her lips slowly parted. He knew she was about to kiss him…

"Jack," Daniel called from the bedroom. "Do you have any aspirin?"

Sam stepped back. "I'll get him some," she said softly. "Want to see if you can find something for breakfast?"

He nodded, feeling an unexpected twinge of disappointment. "Sure."

When Daniel appeared in the kitchen twenty minutes later, complaining of a massive headache, Jack took a slightly malicious pleasure in rattling pans as loud as he could.

Å

Sam stepped back. "Good-bye, guys. We'll miss you."

Daniel nodded. "I'll miss you too. Don't forget to call me."

"I won't." She hugged Teal'c. "Tell Rya'c I said hi."

"I will do so."

Her cell-phone rang. After glancing at the caller id, she groaned. "I need to take this."

Teal'c bowed. "Farewell," he said as Daniel called out, "Bye, Sam."

Jack watched her until she was out of earshot before turning back to the Jaffa. "You sure you have to go?"

Teal'c gave Jack a sympathetic look but inclined his head. "I must, O'Neill. Dr. Brightman assured me that if Major Carter's memories are to return, they will do so more quickly if I am not present."

Jack sighed. "I was afraid of that." He clapped him on the shoulder. "Take care, buddy."

"And you, O'Neill."

The Colonel turned to Daniel. Despite his earlier annoyance, he couldn't help but wish that he could stay. "And Daniel…try not to have too much fun."

The archeologist, despite his hangover, was already starting to look perky as he remembered what awaited him in Antarctica. "Sure, Jack," he said sarcastically. "I'll try."

Jack smiled and handed him a thermos filled with coffee. "This should keep you going until you hit Ice Land."

Daniel brightened. "Thanks." He carefully put it in the truck's beverage holder and turned to face his friend. "Jack, what I said last night-"

"You were drunk-"

"I know I was but… I meant it." Daniel pushed up his ever-falling glasses. "Relax a bit. Take the time to get to know Sam better. When this is all over, Sam will thank you for it. Do you really think she'd want to live the rest of her life believing that a lie was real?"

Jack, who had been impatiently glancing at his watch, stilled. "No," he said. "I don't think she would."

Daniel hesitated and then gave Jack a quick hug. "Call me if you need anything," he said earnestly.

"There is one thing," Jack said suddenly. "I need you to call Shanahan. Tell him Sam's okay."

The archeologist reluctantly nodded. "Okay." He opened the truck door and sat down as Teal'c started the car. "Have fun, Jack," he called out the window.

Jack shook his head and watched them until they disappeared from view. "Oy." Squaring his shoulders, he made his way back to the house. As he stepped into the living room, Sam snapped her phone closed.

"They're gone?" she asked.

"Yeah," he answered. "They're gone."


Well… they're at the cabin and are now alone…

I'm sorry for any errors/typos/ and the jumpy parts, particularly near the end; the majority of the writing was down around midnight.

I hope you liked it!

Please review!