Prompt #061 – Winter

Summary: Winter days are short and dark, but perfect for sharing with a loved one

Pairings: Sam/Daniel, mention of Teal'c/Ish'ta

Rating: T

Season: post-Continuum

Category: Established Relationship

Genres: A/U, Fluff, PWP, Relationship, Romance

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

It was too cold to venture outside, or even elsewhere in the cabin. How Daniel had managed to get up and do things was something Sam couldn't understand. Hearing the steady thwacking noises from outside, she began to feel guilty for not getting up to help him. But it was too cold, and they were on vacation.

It was times like these when, amongst the guilt, she felt relieved that she had let him be 'the man'.

She coughed as she began to feel a chill in her chest, and she burrowed further beneath the covers. She peeked out, seeing nothing but white through the window. She coughed again, giving him a couple more minutes.

Finally, the door opened, and, from her vantage point, she could see Daniel enter the cabin, a pile of freshly cut albeit snow-topped logs in his arms. Shivering a little, he shook his head to get rid of the snow from his hair, and he stamped his boots. Closing the door with a kick of his foot, he put some of the logs into the fireplace. As he worked on lighting a fire, Sam coughed again, and he glanced in her direction.

He said, smiling a little, "Hey, morning to you too."

She groaned, feeling guilty yet again. She said, "Sorry."

He smiled again. "No worries." As he got the fire started, he said, "This way, at least we get a proper fire started... instead of an explosion."

As he stood up, she threw a pillow at him in retaliation for his remark. He chuckled as he caught it, and she peeked out at him again. She said coyly, "You know, it'll be warmer if we share body heat."

He raised his eyebrows and feigned innocence. He said, "Well... it's freezing, and you're the only one around... so I might as well."

This earned another projectile pillow, this time knocking his glasses. He straightened his glasses, and remarked, "Keep that up, and you're going out tomorrow."

She grinned under the covers at the sight of his pout. As he began to shed his outer clothes, she retorted, "Not much point when we've got plenty of wood here."

She hid a smile as he promptly reddened, the double entendre not lost on him. She looked at him with a warm smile as he joined her under the covers.

Taking his glasses off, he shivered a little as he said, "It should warm up soon." He smiled into her shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her close to him. He said, humming a little, "You're toasty."

She closed her eyes and rubbed the arm that was around her. She smiled again as a snug warmth embraced her. She asked quietly,

"Did Jack call?"

He hummed tiredly into her shoulder, and said, "Oh yeah... it was the usual about threatening to come up here. I think he gets lonely." He hummed again. "Mitchell too... Teal'c's gone to see Ish'ta again, and Vala's driving our Colonel No-Pants up the wall." He paused. "I feel sorry for him."

Sam chuckled at his nickname for Cam. She then said, sighing softly, "Well, I guess it makes a change from her bugging you."

She laughed again on not getting a reply, instead hearing a soft snoring noise right next to her. She kissed him gently, and then rested her head against his, falling asleep herself.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

In front of a crackling fire, they lie on the floor under blankets, the two of them facing one another. Between them was a chess set. From outside could be heard a howling wind as a heavier blizzard took hold, ensuring that they would be incommunicado until at least New Year... unless the SGC were desperate enough to beam them out.

Sam sighed as she made a move. She picked up one of Daniel's rooks that she had won earlier in the game, and she looked at it, turning it in the firelight. She said, glancing at Daniel, "You know, I played this with Ronon once."

Daniel took a sip of his coffee, and frowned at the board. He said, surprised nonetheless, "Really?"

"Mm-hm." She moved another piece, and said, "Turns out Sheppard had taught him... but he rarely has the patience to sit down and play a full game without shooting it." She chuckled softly. "That explains the abnormal number of chess sets requisitioned to the Expedition."

He shrugged a little as he made a move, stealing one of Sam's pieces in the process. He said, "Hmm, I didn't get to talk to him the last time I went, but he does seem like the strong, not-so silent type."

She laughed. "He growls when he gets bored... and he physically injures his sparring partners." She shook her head a little at a memory. "He and Teal'c really didn't get on when they first met."

"Well, nothing like adversity to bring the growling warrior types together." He grinned triumphantly. "Check."

She shook her head again, this time at the tendency for Daniel's ego to surface whenever he was playing better than she was. As she made another move, she said cheekily, "I bet you a dollar that I win this game."

He chuckled softly, and retorted, "Way to break the bank, honey." He smirked at her innocently as he moved another piece. "Check."

She moved a piece before leaning over the board to kiss him. As he got over the initial shock, he smiled as his hand came to rest on the side of her neck. Sam grinned when she pulled back to see a dazed expression on Daniel's face. Taking advantage of the situation, she quickly looked down at the board once he had made his move, and she made what was to be her final move.

She grinned as he looked surprised, and she said, "Check..." She knocked over his King with her Queen. "... and mate."

He frowned down at the board, checking that she wasn't mistaken. He then pouted, and said, "You cheated."

As she put the pieces away, she continued to grin. She said, shaking her head, "Nope, taking advantage of your typical maleness isn't cheating. It was a tactical manoeuvre."

"Bah, I let you win."

"Yeah, you keep believing that." Her smile faded as she looked down at the set pensively. She said with a sigh, "You know... we're gonna have to teach Cassie's kids one day."

He nodded solemnly as she eventually looked at him. He gently caressed her cheek, an expression of a mutual regret in their shared past. Trying to lighten the moment, he said, "Well, you might not want to teach them to kiss their opponents..." He cleared his throat and glanced downwards. "Not like that anyhow..."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Out in the freezing cold, they stood with their faces tilted towards the heavens. Surrounded by piles of snow, they gazed up at the dark cloudless skies in awe at the sight of bright sparks shooting across the sky in varying sizes. Sam snuggled in Daniel's embrace, glad of the heavy outdoor clothing they had both brought on the trip.

As though afraid to disturb the silent majesty of the moment, he spoke quietly. He said, "I missed this when you were gone."

She hummed a little as though concentrating on something. As a particularly bright meteor streaked across the heavens, she looked up at him with a soft smile. She said, "I missed it too. I missed you." She wrapped her arms around his waist, partially to warm herself up some more. She rested her head on his shoulder, and said, "Do you want to go to San Diego? It feels like I haven't seen Mark in forever."

He rubbed her back through her coat, and said, "Sure." He frowned a little. "I don't think he likes me though. When you were gone, he kept sounding suspicious every time he called."

Sam smiled slightly as she thought of how much like their father her brother was. They looked up as more meteors shot across the sky, and she said, "Oh... no, he does like you. He just has a hard time showing it." She grinned up at him. "I like you though. I think that counts for something."

As she kissed him, he smiled happily, knowing how much she did in fact like him. She finally let him go, leaving him standing there with a dopey smile on his face. Grinning, she bent over to scoop up some snow, and the next thing that Daniel knew, a handful of snow had smashed into his face, and a giggling Sam was running away from him.

Shaking his head a little, he called after her, "That's it! No more Mr Nice Guy!"

He laughed as he heard her voice from somewhere in the distance. She replied, "Oh please, you're always Mr Nice Guy! Come on, Doctor J, catch me if you can!"

He shook his head again in partial despair on hearing her blow a raspberry at him. Scooping up a handful of snow in his gloved hands, he ran in the same direction that she had. He fashioned a crude ball shape out of the snow, calling as he did so, "Right! You asked for it, Colonel J!"

Throughout the night, they darted between trees, each simultaneously pursuing and evading the other. As the meteors continued to shoot and soar, now forgotten, the night was filled with squeals and taunts, and the sound of snowballs missing or reaching their intended target. The odd curse-word, too, was thrown in as one or the other fell into a snow drift or tripped over a branch.

Hours later, two very cold, but still laughing, people, walked hand-in-hand back to their cabin. On reaching it, Sam remarked breathlessly, "Oh, we have so gotta do that with the rest of SG-1."

In front of the fire, they helped each other out of their now wet clothing. As they did so, Daniel replied, "Are you kidding... it would be like the time we went paintballing with Teal'c. It ended up with Teal'c against everyone else. I don't think I've ever seen Mitchell that scared... ever."

"... or coated in that much paint..."