O'Neill Residence
Colorado Springs, CO
November 28, 1999

Jack chuckled as he watched a giggling Ife throw snow in the air. The little girl had her face tilted up at the darkening sky and giggled as the snowflakes hit her cheeks. Earlier, he'd taught her how to make snow angels and she'd enjoyed it, even though he was pretty sure she didn't understand the end result. She just liked playing in the snow.

"Okay, Ife," he said, after making sure his snowman's head was properly attached to its body. "I'm gonna need your help to give this guy a face."

"Face?" She asked, turning to look at him with a pensive little frown on her face.

Jack beckoned her over and hunkered down to be at her level. "C'mere, munchkin."

Ife walked over and let him pick her up, wrapping her little arms around his neck. When he brought her eyelevel with the snowman's head, she reached out and poked the ball of snow. "Cold."

"Here," he handed her a carrot from his pocket and got the couple of potatoes he'd slipped in there earlier too. "I'll go first. See? These are his eyes."

"Tatoes," she said, frowning.

Jack finished pushing the potatoes into the snow to give the snowman a smile. "These are the eyes and that's his mouth. See? Now all it needs is a nose."

She looked down at the carrot he was pointing at. "Nose?"

"Yeah," he said, grabbing her little hand holding the carrot. "We'll just stick it in there like this. See, that's a nose! Good job!"

Ife didn't look convinced. She sighed and rested her head against his shoulder. "Where's Momma?"

Jack figured she'd had enough excitement for a day and turned back to the deck. They'd had an early meal because of his mission briefing at oh six hundred the day after and Sam had begged off when he proposed going into the yard to play in the snow. "Your mommy is inside, remember?"

"Want Momma."

"Okay, okay, let's go back inside." He lowered her to the ground as she'd started squirming and watched her dash off to the deck. The deck lights gave enough illumination that he wasn't worried she'd trip or anything, but he kept an eye on her regardless. A week ago she'd barely been walking around and now she was running all over the place…

He followed more sedately and caught up with Ife at the sliding doors which she couldn't open, so he did it for her. Before she could dash off again, he grabbed her by the puffy coat the Fraisers had dropped off two days ago. The Doc had come over under the pretext of dropping off more leftovers but he figured she'd wanted to check on Sam after the dinner conversation on Thanksgiving. Cassie had apologized again and also gave them the cute winter outfit Ife was all bundled up in at the moment.

"Not so fast, munchkin," Jack said. "Don't wanna get snow all over the living room, now do we?"

Ife sighed almost theatrically and rocked on the balls of her feet while he removed her hat, scarf and undid the puffy coat. The clothes Sam had ordered for herself and her daughter were supposed to arrive next week and the Fraisers hadn't included boots or shoes in their outfit, so Ife was wearing some sort of leather socks. Apparently, Bra'tac had bought them on some off-world market and Jack had to admit they were pretty neat. Ife's feet were warm and dry when he removed them, too.

He let Ife go and kicked off his own boots before taking off his gloves, scarf and coat. When he finished hanging their wet things on the radiator, he turned back around and saw Ife standing in front of the sofa. Sam was lying on it, his afghan covering her up to her waist and dead to the world. "I guess Mommy is tired and took a nap," he whispered.

"Nap," Ife said, nodding. "Me too."

"You want to put on your PJs first?"

She shook her head and moved as if to climb onto the sofa, "Momma."

Jack scooped the girl up in his arms before she got a chance to disturb Sam. "We don't wanna wake Mommy. Let's get you into PJs first."

In the bedroom he realized her pants were wet from the snow and put them on a radiator while Ife went to the bathroom. He'd used some old wood he'd had lying around to make small steps for the toilet, so that Ife wouldn't need anyone to lift her up to use it. The pajamas were laid out on the bed when Ife came back, sans clothes.

She wasn't used to Earth clothing yet and he'd learned early on that she preferred taking it all off – and leaving it somewhere on the floor, most likely the bathroom in this case – and walking around as naked as the day she was born. He helped her into the soft PJs and carried her into the kitchen where he made some hot cocoa. By the time he'd poured two and a half cups, Ife was nodding off against his shoulder.

Ife sleepily reached for him when he placed her in the armchair in the living room. "Net't," she mumbled.

It took Jack a moment to realize what she was asking for but then he recalled that was what she called the fur blanket they'd brought back with them from off-world. It was on the chair in the bedroom, so he went back and retrieved it.

"Dack," Ife said when he covered her with it.

"'Dack'?" He questioned, unsure what she meant.

She reached for him and tugged on his hand when he grabbed one of hers. "Dack. Nap."

He swallowed hard when he realized she meant Jack and that she wanted to nap with him. "Sure," he said, after clearing his throat. Lifting her up, blanket and all, he got into the armchair and let her settle in his lap. "Sleep tight, munchkin," he mumbled, pressing a kiss to her crown.

It didn't take long for Ife's breathing to even out and then he was the only one awake in his house. Jack glanced to Sam's sleeping form and caught a glimpse of her toned abdomen where her sweater had ridden up. He hoped she wasn't cold. But then the central heating was on and she'd started a fire in the fireplace, so he doubted she was.

He let his gaze move around the rest of the room and took in all the small changes compared to before Sam and Ife had come home with him. There were a few baby items on the table and a playpen in the corner of the room, but that was it. If not for Ife, Sam's presence wouldn't even have been noticeable in his house. Well, aside from the fact that she wore his clothes and slept in his bed…

Jack looked up when he heard a change in Sam's breathing and noticed she was awake, blinking slowly. Her whole frame was tense though, unlike the relaxed pose she'd been sleeping in. "Hey," he said softly.

Sam looked around warily before slowly getting into a sitting position. "Hey."

"Nightmare?"

"Hm?"

Jack watched as she ran a hand through her hair and knew from the way she was avoiding his gaze that she'd heard him. "You looked a little tense there, waking up."

She pulled up her knees and tucked the afghan under her feet. "I'm fine."

"I'm not saying you're not fine," he said.

"You know, your sofa is pretty comfortable. I didn't mean to fall asleep."

He shrugged and indicated the sleeping child in his lap. "Nothing wrong with taking a nap."

Sam looked at Ife with soft eyes and a sleepy smile. "She wore herself out?"

"We played outside in the snow and when we got back in, she decided she wanted to take a nap just like her mom."

"Thanks," she said, a strange look on her face. "For taking her outside to play, I mean. Hell, for taking the time to do anything at all with her. I know you didn't sign up for any of this."

Jack felt he sort of did, by offering them his house to stay in, and he didn't regret it. Just being with them, playing and taking care of Ife... he liked it. The Doc was right that the Carter girls - especially Sam - still had a long way to go, but he wanted to be there with them every step of the way. "I don't mind."

Sam snorted and reached for one of the full cups of hot cocoa. Well, it probably wasn't hot anymore, he thought. "There's probably a dozen things you'd rather be doing than babysitting or functioning as Ife's chair."

"I wouldn't be sitting here if that was the case," he said, stroking Ife's hair.

"Jack…"

Hell, he couldn't even remember the things he used to do in the weekends. It wasn't like having a beer and watching The Simpsons, a game or a movie trumped the time he spent with Sam and Ife. Besides, he could always introduce them to his favorite TV show. "I wouldn't have offered you a place to stay if I didn't mean it, Sam."

She shifted on the sofa and rubbed a hand over the back of her neck, grimacing. "Still, you've already given up your bed for us, so there's no need to let her sleep on you."

"I don't mind," he repeated. "She can nap on me whenever she likes. Guess she needed it. Both of you."

"I don't know why, it's not like I've been running marathons or traveling from planet to planet," Sam said, frowning.

Jack had a pretty good idea, though. "You've been through a lot, Sam. Emotionally and physically. Your body finally has a chance to catch up."

She didn't look convinced. "Maybe."

"Going to the Doc's Thanksgiving dinner probably took more out of you than expected, too."

"I guess."

He waited until she was looking at him again before he spoke, "There's also nothing wrong with having nightmares. I'd be more surprised if you didn't have them, to be honest. Look, Sam, we don't have to talk about them if you don't want to, but I want you to know that I'm here for you if you do."

She nodded and a small smile appeared on her face. "That's very sweet of you."

"And you know, if you don't feel comfortable talking about it with me, you could always talk to someone else…"

"Like Doctor MacKenzie?"

The hostility in her tone surprised him, but he didn't comment on it. "Yeah. He's not my favorite person, but he knows what he's doing. A few sessions with him really helped Daniel."

"I told you, therapy is not for me."

He raised his hands in supplication, "Okay, that's fine. I just figured I'd mention it."

Her shoulders sagged and she sighed. "I'm sorry, I know you mean well."

"It's okay, Sam," he said. "Why don't you go get a nice hot shower to clear your head while I put the little one to bed?"

"A shower sounds good," she said, a genuine smile on her face.

Jack had quickly figured out that showers were something she'd missed off-world – and if that meant all the hot water was gone by the time he took a shower, then so be it.

Downtown
Colorado Springs, CO
December 3, 1999

They'd left home about half an hour ago to go grocery shopping and Sam couldn't quite believe how little had changed since her first mission. Everything looked pretty much the same from her car window. There were a few car models – she liked cars – she'd never seen before, but that was about it. People had continued to live their lives while she'd lived hers on the other side of the galaxy.

She sighed and looked over her shoulder to check on Ife. Her little girl seemed to be adjusting just fine to life on Earth, except for her dislike of confining clothes. She'd gotten used to the glass windows and doors at the house, was using forks or spoons with meals, enjoyed showers and had become a bit more talkative. But today was the first time they went out into the world, not counting the Thanksgiving dinner because Ife had slept through most of the trip and knew most of the people already.

Getting groceries was something those people outside did all the time, but Sam hadn't set foot in a shop or supermarket in almost two and a half years. The only thing coming close was an off-world market and even then Ife had almost always been hidden under her robes. Sam certainly hadn't let go of her for fear of what could happen if anyone recognized her or grabbed Ife because of her light coloring.

"She'll be fine," Jack said, as if reading her mind.

"She's never been in crowds before, not like this."

He briefly looked her way before focusing on the road, "Don't worry so much, Sam. It's not rush hour."

She knew he was right and she appreciated that he was willing to take them grocery shopping on his morning off, but she couldn't help worry. "It's just… you saw what she was like at the SGC with all those strange people around. It was different off-world. The few times there were a lot of Jaffa or humans around, she had time to acclimate and had the freedom to move around when she was uncomfortable."

"Well, we're not sending her in there on her own or anything. She's a little too young for that."

"Just a little?" Sam noticed the little smile tugging at his lips and smiled herself, appreciating his attempt at levity.

He flashed her a wide grin, "A few years at most. Gotta start 'em young."

She chuckled and felt herself relax a bit. Maybe he was right and everything would go off without a hitch. Ife made a noise as if agreeing but Sam was dismayed to see she'd pulled off her woolly hat again. It was a little below freezing outside and Sam didn't want Ife to get cold.

Then again, she could hardly blame her daughter for not being used to Earth clothing when she'd ditched her newest sweater – made of organic cotton – for one of Jack's more comfortable and less itchy old hockey jerseys and she'd gone back to the SGC sports bra Doctor Fraiser had given her because the new nursing bra didn't fit well. Even her jeans felt strange to her. The leather pants she'd made herself off-world had been far more comfortable.

Jack pulled into a parking lot and parked the truck, turning off the engine. "Ready?"

"Sure," she said, although she could feel nerves creeping over her again.

"Okay." He moved to open the door before turning back to her, "Almost forgot: could you hand me my cell phone? Hammond insists on taking the damn thing with me everywhere."

Sam was still amazed at the changes some of the technology on Earth had undergone in the time she'd been off-world. During her time at the Pentagon she hadn't had a cell phone yet, but she'd seen some of her coworkers with them. They'd been large, at least twice the size of her hand, black, bulky, heavy and with internal antennas that were still an inch or two long. Jack's cell phone was smaller and more compact, lighter, colorful, had better graphics and no visible antenna.

Jack smirked when she handed him the phone. "You know, if all goes well today, maybe I should take you to one of those computer stores next time."

A few days ago, she'd expressed her surprise at the advancements and he'd been thoroughly amused by seeing her science-y side, as he'd called it. So, she simply rolled her eyes and didn't bother commenting on his offer, although she knew she wouldn't say no if he was genuine. "We'll see."

"So, how do you wanna do this?" The confusion must have shown on her face because he gestured at Ife. "Do you want to carry her in the car seat? They probably have those little child seats in the shopping cart but-"

"I'll just carry her," she said, interrupting him. Ife wasn't one to sit still, although she had no problems being quiet when being carried around. Over the past two weeks, Sam had seen Jack fidget all the time and she was pretty sure he'd passed that on to Ife.

Jack met her at the other side of the truck and watched as she unbuckled Ife. "It'll be fine, especially if you're holding her the entire time. Stop worrying."

She knew her doubts about the shopping trip were showing again and sighed. "I can't help it."

"Well, stop it," he said. "You're making me nervous."

"You? Nervous?" She asked, raising a brow.

He waited until she'd lifted Ife in her arms to close the door and turned back to them with a cheeky little grin on his face. "Oh yeah."

His demeanor was infectious and she suppressed a smile. "I didn't think the infamous leader of SG-1 got nervous."

"You have no idea."

"Clearly."

Jack locked up the truck and placed a hand on the small of Sam's back. "Let's go."

She took a deep breath of cold winter air and tried to shake off her concern. So far, Ife was simply looking around, blinking big blue eyes at her surroundings. Nothing to indicate any discomfort at all. Sam put the woolly hat back on Ife's head before the cold could get to her and pressed a kiss to her little girl's cheek.

"Momma," Ife giggled and snuggled closer.

"See, she's fine," Jack said in a low voice.

They entered the store and Ife gasped when they were greeted by loud noises and a rush of warm air from above the entrance, her little fingers grasping Sam's coat.

Sam simply rubbed her daughter's back in a soothing manner and hoped not paying too much attention to her initial reaction would help her calm down. Jack threw her a questioning look when he returned with a shopping cart, but Sam just shrugged in response.

"We're just gonna get some food, munchkin," he said, reaching out and squeezing one of Ife's feet.

"Where?" Ife craned her neck to look around, a puzzled expression on her face.

Sam chuckled as Jack tried to explain the concept of a grocery store, gesturing at the products in the aisles. Ife had already been perplexed by the fridge from which Jack kept getting food at home, so this was no surprise. The use of the stove and oven – rather than the fireplace – had confused her at first, too. All Ife knew was that fruit, vegetables and nuts came from plants and trees, while meat came from animals.

As they moved through the store, Jack kept talking and explaining various things to Ife who was listening attentively, but Sam started tuning him out. There were more people milling about than she'd expected and she found herself scanning her surroundings for any threats. Other than some precariously balanced groceries she saw nothing dangerous around her… just people doing their groceries.

They were oblivious to everything – the Goa'uld, the evil out there – and simply minding their own business. Seeing them walking around without a care in the world was disturbing.

"Sam?"

"Hm?" Jack's voice pulled her from her thoughts and she realized she'd just kept walking when he stopped. "Sorry, just thinking."

He shrugged dismissively, "Somehow, that doesn't surprise me. Which one do you want?"

She eyed the two vegetables he was showing her and had to admit to herself that she couldn't even identify one of them. "Doesn't matter."

"Well, you've got to eat it, too."

"I really don't care," she said. "You pick."

Jack shot her an indecipherable look before moving his attention to Ife. "What about you, munchkin?"

Ife held out her arms and when he walked up to them, put her hands on his to pull him closer and admire the vegetables. "That one!" She pointed at the unidentifiable one after sniffing both vegetables.

"You got it."

Sam watched as he collected some more things and placed them in the shopping cart, just like everyone around them. The normalcy of it all felt strange to her. Almost alien, ironically enough.

"Do you have any preferences, Sam?"

"You made the grocery list," she reminded him.

Jack frowned and leaned his arms on the shopping cart. "Well yeah, but this is a democracy. We don't have to get everything on the list. And if there's something you want that isn't on the list we can also get it."

"It doesn't matter to me," she repeated, shrugging. "It's just food."

"But what if I got you something you don't like?"

Sam checked the contents of the shopping cart again. "It's fine. Besides, I'm pretty sure you're more familiar with the diet Doctor Fraiser prescribed than I am."

Jack started pushing the cart again and they headed down a different aisle. "Well, if this little trip doesn't end in disaster, you'll probably become the one doing most of the groceries considering my upcoming missions," he said. "Maybe it's time to familiarize yourself with the Doc's list."

"Maybe."

"Butcher?"

She nodded in agreement and stopped to watch him load all kinds of meat in the cart. It made her wonder if he was stocking up for Christmas already. There was no way they were going to eat that much anytime soon. Then again, after experiencing scarcity of food off-world, she had found a renewed appreciation of refrigerators and freezers, and wasn't about to stop him.

The people around them all had a shopping cart that was even fuller than theirs, so perhaps it was just her. After all, before her mission, she worked a lot and ate most of her meals at the Pentagon. The few times she actually went home at a decent hour she just popped into a store on her way home to get some basics – and often takeout. She'd never even bothered with a shopping cart before.

"Okay, last on my list was the chicken," Jack said, as he placed it in the cart. He raised his brows when Ife erupted in giggles and even Sam had to smile. "Something funny, ladies?"

"I guess that'd be an in-joke," Sam said with a shrug. "I may have made a few comparisons to chicken when eating new and strange things out there."

"Ah, say no more. Daniel is convinced all MREs taste like chicken."

"Well, I haven't put it to the test yet and as a scientist I don't like drawing conclusions without sufficient evidence, but somehow that wouldn't surprise me at all."

Jack's lopsided grin reminded her of the first time they met and she had to look away when she felt a sudden rush of heat. "So…"

When she looked back she noticed the grin had been replaced with a slightly puzzled expression and she knew that was her fault. The atmosphere between them had changed and it was thick with tension and confusion. "So, if that was all, then maybe we should head for the checkout and go home."

"Yeah, sure," he mumbled. "Unless there is something else you need? Something that wasn't on the list."

"Candles." The word slipped out but it had been on her mind for a while; it had been a long time since she'd last kelno'reemed and she knew it'd help find her balance. "To meditate."

"I have about a dozen of those colored candles. Some may even be scented."

She chuckled at the face he made with the surprising revelation. "You do?"

He shrugged, "I got them for Teal'c and his meditation stuff. Sometimes he stays at my place and it seemed easier to buy him his own set rather than expect him to take them from his quarters every time he went out."

"Oh." That was actually kind of thoughtful of him…

"So, if you don't mind using those candles, we can go to the checkout. Otherwise we'll have to stop by a different store before we go home."

She shifted Ife on her hip and indicated the checkout. "I'm sure those candles are fine. Let's go."

Jack appeared amused by her suddenly calling the shots but went along with it anyway, "Yes, Ma'am."

"Oh, look at that little girl!" The woman behind the register exclaimed, eying Ife, as Jack unloaded their shopping cart. "Isn't she precious?"

Sam automatically took a step back, her grip on Ife tightening at the woman's remark.

"Let me tell you, it's nice to see a young couple out shopping together with their beautiful little girl. These days everyone is rushing off to work and no one takes the time to do things together anymore. If they're even together. In my day, a family was raised by a mother and a father. Nowadays, there are far too many single parents."

Sam and Jack exchanged glances and she could read his discomfort with the situation, although she couldn't tell whether it was the implication that they were together or that he felt bad for her and Ife – or perhaps it went deeper, back to his own late son and ex-wife. "Um-"

Jack unexpectedly slid and arm around her waist and interrupted her. "You're absolutely right, Norma," he said, after peering at the woman's nametag.

"Look at that charming smile," Norma said to Sam, blushing. "He's a keeper, honey."

Sam forced a smile at the woman as he paid for the groceries. The bagboy was packing up everything and she mentally urged him to hurry up when Ife started squirming in her arms.

Jack took the change and receipt with another charming smile, before grabbing the shopping cart and heading for the exit with his hand on her back. "Relax Sam, or you'll squeeze her to death."

"Sorry sweetie," she mumbled to Ife, pressing a kiss to her cheek. She turned to Jack and loosened her hold on the girl, "And I'm sorry about that, too."

"What, Norma? Not your fault," he said, shrugging. "Let's just avoid this store from now on."

Sam laughed at the mischievous look he threw her way. "Deal."