Guess who is on Chapter 19? Think I will be done soon. Whenever I'm finished, I will most likely just post the rest of the chapters all at once. Let me know what you think!

Chapter 9

They opened up the car door after what seemed like hours of just sitting and staring. Daniel and Teal'c had decided it would be easier to talk to Colonel O'Neill together. Of course he would be interested in talking to them once they told him about possibly finding Sam, but usually he wouldn't be patient enough to let anyone utter more than a few words. This way, they could kind of tag team him.

"You ready?"

"We are simply talking to an old friend Daniel Jackson, there is nothing to be ready for." Teal'c always had a way of putting things into perspective. Though Colonel O'Neill had clearly hardened his shell, they were still part of something and shared something that was so unique and larger in life. That would never change their bond ultimately.

Daniel hesitated once more, then in a moment of definite courage, he rasped his knuckles on the door, knocking twice. Seconds turned into minutes, before the pair finally heard the tale-tell signs of movement. The door quickly shot open, and the man who stood before them, rendered them speechless before even speaking a word.

His hair was thick and unruly, he had a beard on his face that was evidently unkempt. He had a beer bottle in his hand that looked right at home, as though it was always a permanent fixture. He frowned and stared back and forth, as if debating on whether or not Daniel and Teal'C he was going to accept them being there.

"Look Jack, I know you aren't too happy about seeing us, but I think you will be once we tell you what we found out." Daniel broke the hanging silence before holding his breath. O'Neill's stare could have burned holes in the both of them. Without another word, he turned and started walking back into his living room, leaving the door ajar.

"I thought you had something to tell me, hurry up and come in, you're letting the cold air out." O'Neill stopped short of barking over his shoulder.

Daniel and Teal'c shared a quick glance before going inside, still apprehensive. O'Neill seemed to be no better off than last time they met. Not that there was much reason to be, but time had not healed any of his apparent wounds.

"How have you been?" Daniel didn't expect an honest answer, but this was the first time in months that they had been this close to talk. He had to try something. He knew that O'Neill was still burrowed in there somewhere deep.

"Did you come to do a welfare check, or was there some news to tell me?"

"Right….um…"

"We believe we have located the means of Major Carter's abduction. She may be on a nearby planet that does not possess a Stargate." Teal'c picked up the slack from Daniel. This was not the time to repair friendships. Teal'c feared that if Major Carter was really lost to them forever, so to was their friendship.

"May be on a planet? So you came here for another goose chase? Dammit, I knew I shouldn't have opened the damn door." O'Neill took a swig of his beer and turned the tv volume up. "You know where the door is."

Daniel stood up abruptly. There had to be some way of getting across to him. He wasn't even trying to feign concern. O'Neill sat there with the most apathetic stare. Daniel was standing in front of him, but it was as if O'Neill was staring straight through him. He no longer cared about anything, not even himself. He was stuck in a heavy fog. That might have been behavior they were willing to ignore in the past, but now that there was a slight chance at finding Sam, that was unacceptable. She deserved all of their efforts. And Daniel knew that O'Neill would never forgive himself for not trying had he ever come out of his funk.

"Jack! We have all put up with your bullshit for long enough! We have all been having a hard time dealing with Sam's disappearance but you do not just get to check out on life. You do not get to check out on us! We didn't even have to come here and include you. So the least you can do is turn the tv off, and stop drinking that damn beer!" Daniel finally exploded, grabbing the beer out of O'Neill's hand and unceremoniously flung it across the room. It shattered on the adjoining wall into a hundred pieces. Something that surprised even Daniel as though he wasn't the one who threw it..

Clearly shocked, O'Neill looked at his hand that was holding the beer Daniel just threw and the spot that it shattered. He looked back and forth between Daniel and Teal'C, then closed his eyes for a moment in thought. This wasn't what Sam would have wanted. The team broken apart, and for what? For him to wallow in misery and self-pity? She would have wanted the same thing he would have wanted for her if he had been the missing one. To keep on living and fighting.

Running a hand across his face, he felt an overwhelming sense of disgust over what he had allowed himself to turn into. A cold, shadow of the man he once was. He can't say he was surprised. This man was the same one who made his appearance with the death of O'Neill's son. The same man who had pushed his wife away when she needed him the most. He had failed his wife then, and now he was failing Sam. Not only her, but Daniel was right. He was failing his team who were the last family he had left.

"You're right. I'm sorry. I was too blinded by my pain to see anyone elses, and that wasn't fair to you all."

"We forgive you O'Neill. Although we do not forgive your lack of personal hygiene being maintained." Teal'c spoke up, offering a moment of levity. O'Neill allowed himself a moment to do something that he hadn't done in many months. He laughed.

"Was that a joke T?"

"A lot has changed Jack. I understand how you felt, having lost Sha're, but you can't just stop talking to us Jack. It's obviously not healthy for you. And we have missed you too." Daniel answered O'Neill's question. He knew that was at the root of his actions. Not that he lost just a team member. Not that he lost just a friend. But, not that he would admit it out loud, O'Neill had lost his soul mate. And that could be devastating. He barely came back from losing Sha're himself. So if anyone could have sympathized with O'Neill, it was Daniel.

"Right. Well you know me and talking. I'm more of an actions guy, and when I couldn't do anything, I didn't know what to do, ya know?"

"Yeah I get it, but let's talk about what we found now that the air is cleared?" Daniel and O'Neill finished making amends. The first step in healing being taken.