A/N: Thank you again for the reviews! I finished my second semester of graduate school today, so I am hoping to have the time to respond to all of my reviewers from here on out. Thank you so much for the support and feedback! Please forgive me in this one…I have Landry as a character, but I left Carter as a Major. I hadn't come up with a timeline for this, so please forgive me for that. I don't intend to use her rank much more, it just seemed like the way Teal'c would refer to her. With any luck I will try to have another chapter tomorrow or Thursday. Enjoy!

The pagebreak isn't work for me right now, sorry about that!

Chapter 9

Jack paced back and forth in his office for about the hundredth time that day. He had a flight leaving in three hours so that he could go back to Colorado. The only reason he was going (or so he told himself) was because he didn't want to pass up to the chance to see Teal'c.

Even after he had booked the flight he had argued back and forth about whether or not to actually go. His insides still felt torn up, and he was utterly confused. He was still angry at Daniel and Sam for what he thought was betrayal and he was mad at himself for not getting over it yet.

Of course, if she was happy with Daniel, wasn't she better off?

At the same time, he wasn't sure that Daniel and Sam had even done anything. In which case he felt like a jerk for assuming that they had.

If he was wrong…well, he was sure that Sam would probably be furious with him for his reaction. At this point he barely dared to hold out any hope that she might still care, but at the same time couldn't make himself give up that hope.

Once he had gotten Daniel's message the confusion had resurfaced. He went back to sleepless nights and frustrating days. Finally he decided that the only way to fix this was to see it with his own eyes.

And that was what he was trying to convince himself of again.

He turned to the desk and grabbed his keys. If he was going to make this flight he needed to go pack now…

break

Sam and Daniel stood eagerly in the gate room. They had just received word that Teal'c should walk through any moment. The blue event horizon shimmered in the companionable silence until finally their jaffa friend emerged.

Daniel smiled and walked towards him. "Teal'c, you're back!"

Teal'c bowed. "Indeed I am Daniel Jackson. It is good to see you." The gate closed behind him.

"We've missed you Teal'c!" Sam walked towards him as well.

"I have missed you as well Samantha Carter."

Sam looked around. "I figured you would bring Ry'ac or Bratac along with you."

"I have not. They chose to remain in Dakara. Ry'ac has nearly completed his training."

"That's wonderful news." Daniel motioned for his friend to follow. "Let's go, Landry is dying to know whatever news you have been hearing about the dangers of the galaxy recently." The three friends left the gate room together.

break

Two hours later, after Teal'c had given Landry as much information as he knew with Daniel and Sam asking persistent questions, Daniel and Teal'c ended up alone in Teal'c's quarters. As Teal'c unpacked the few belongings he had brought with him, Daniel paced around the room.

"It is really good to see you again Teal'c. This place is not the same without you."

"Thank you Daniel Jackson. It is good to be back, and I intend to stay for a while. Dakara is not currently in need of my assistance, and it would be nice to be in the company of my friends again."

Daniel looked up in surprise. "That's wonderful news Teal'c!"

Teal'c bowed. "I am concerned about Major Carter. She does not look well."

Well, I guess we were going to have to get into this at some point. Better now then never. Daniel took a deep breath. "I don't think she has been sleeping well recently. I know that she has been spending even more time in her lab than usual."

"Why?"

"Actually Teal'c, she and I had a falling out with Jack. He called me while I was hanging out with Sam and got the completely wrong impression that she and I were on a date. Since then she has been alternately angry, upset, and sad about the whole ordeal."

Teal'c looked at his friend oddly. There was nothing in his and Major Carter's actions that implied that the two had been dating. "You are not dating though."

"No, we're not, and we never were. Jack didn't want to listen to the explanation though, and we haven't heard from him since. We're both hoping that he shows up to see you so that we can get this whole thing straightened out."

"Indeed. Do O'Neill and Carter still care for each other as they did before I left?"

"I know Sam does, and considering how jealously Jack is acting, I would guess he does too."

"The fraternization regulations no longer apply to them."

"That's true Teal'c, but Jack didn't act on anything before he left. Now he's in D.C., and Sam doesn't think that he wants to come back. She thinks he is gone for good."

Teal'c did not understand why his two friends refused to act on so natural a feeling. "Then we must change his mind Daniel Jackson."

Daniel face broke into a grin. "I was hoping you might say that. I could use the help. Now we just need a plan."

Just then there was a knock on the door. Teal'c opened it to find General Landry. "Oh good, Teal'c, Daniel, you're both here. I was hoping we could do a barbecue at my house tonight. That way anybody who wants to come see our favorite jaffa can. Carter already said she'd be there, can you guys make it?"

Both men nodded their heads.

"Great, see you at 1600."

Teal'c looked at Daniel. "If O'Neill is indeed coming to see me, this could be our opportunity."

Daniel looked up and laughed. "Indeed Teal'c, indeed."