Chapter 11 - Slumber Party

"Doctor Jackson?"

Daniel turned away from the now blank screen at the sound of the guard's voice. "Marcus."

"I trust you were able to contact your teammates?"

"I was, thank you." Daniel watched as the man entered the room. Like the rest of the people he had seen throughout the city, Marcus was dressed in what he assumed was the standard guard uniform, a one piece jumpsuit made of out the same material that Abbie's, and now his, outfit was made of. When Lalida had said he would be getting cleaned up, he had a sneaking suspicion he'd end up in an outfit like Abbie's.

And, on principle, he had nothing against the clothes – he was used to dressing according to the culture he found himself in. And he was comfortable with his own body – deascension had given him some different and much less nervous or embarrassing views of the human form. But it wasn't his body he was worried about. When he had been brought into the main room of the dome, his initial fear for Abbie's safety had been replaced with his curiosity about the statue and the possibility of finding out what the Power of the Gods was. But now, having had some time to think, he couldn't put the image of Abbie out of his mind. The way the blue material matched her eyes, the way she stayed so calm until his comment had made her blush, the way the material clung-

"Doctor Jackson?"

Daniel dropped his head and gave a little smile. "I'm sorry, Marcus, repeat that for me."

"You will need to pay attention, Dr. Jackson," Marcus scolded as he approached Daniel and deactivated the communication system. "It was difficult to get permission for your team to enter the city, you would do well to at least show some appreciation."

"I am sorry, Marcus, and please know that I am grateful," Daniel assured the man. "It means a great deal to both Abbie and I that diplomatic relations between our people go well. You've made the first step in that, to allow the rest of our team in the city. I am sure that we will be able to make a similar gesture."

Marcus gave him a patronizing smile. "Yes, well, I doubt your planet will have anything we need."

Daniel gave him a thoughtful look. Although Lalida had not expressed a direct interest in trade, it was implied that, once Abbie had been shown the Power of the Gods, trade relations were naturally to follow. "You feel that there is nothing my people can offer you?"

"Nothing of value." Marcus continued his sweep around the room, pulling it back into the immaculate order it had been in before Daniel had bathed and changed. "We are a proud society, Doctor Jackson, one that has survived for thousands of years, thanks to the wisdom and knowledge passed down to us from Ezchoi. She was truly a remarkable woman, the likes of which we have never seen since. She guided us through many tough times, protected us when our own planet turned against us. It is only because of her that we were able to survive."

"Survive?" Daniel asked.

"Suffice it to say, Doctor, that this planet has not always been the safe haven that we once thought. It has been many thousands of years since we have experienced any dangers, and it shall remain that way, so long as the spirit of Ezchoi sees fit to protect us."

Daniel let Marcus' words roll around in his mind. "Your people believe that Ezchoi continues to watch over your planet as a spiritual being? It was my understanding that Abbie's presence here was considered a second coming of sorts."

"No doubt that is what Lalida lead you to believe." Marcus' voice was muffled behind all of the blue glass that enclosed the bathing area.

Daniel was starting to see where this was going. "You have doubts that Abbie could be this remarkable woman that your people have been waiting for."

Marcus did his best to hide his disgust, which wasn't all that much. "It is not my place to have doubts, Doctor Jackson. Lalida speaks for us, and she is convinced Abbie with be of great help."

"You didn't answer my question," Daniel pointed out.

Marcus gave him a sly smile as he gestured to the open door. "And I won't. These guards will show you to the Nystdet Library, Doctor."

Daniel turned to the now open door and saw two men who could challenge Teal'c's bench press record standing just outside of the room. Marcus continued to speak as he moved to leave the room. "I suggest you keep these questions to yourself for the time being. But remember this – the library is a place of great knowledge. From what I understand, you are one who, by nature, is curious about the past of others. I suggest you use that skill, Doctor. It will not fail you."

Daniel was slightly puzzled by the cryptic message Marcus had left him with as he allowed the guards to guide him down the corridor. But the question is, was it a message or a warning?

xxxxxxx

"Yes, thanks so much for the extra shove, it really helped me to make those last few steps."

Daniel's voice filtered through Abbie's thoughts, surprising her with uncharacteristic harshness. The guards in the city had been ruthlessly efficient with both of them, never causing them harm, but making sure they both knew who was really in charge. The strain of the day was starting to catch up with him if he was letting something as small as being forcefully guided around the city get under his skin. She raised her head from the text she was reading as Daniel approached her side, ready to distract with a few ideas she wanted to bounce off of him. But the second he stepped into view, placing his forearms on the books to her right to get a good look at a particular text, something inside her snapped.

She clapped her hand over her mouth in a vain attempt to keep for bursting out laughing.

"Don't even think it," Daniel threatened as he kept his gaze on the words written on the page.

"I wasn't . . . I just . . ." Abbie's voice trailed off, unable to get enough air to her lungs from suppressing what she would later claim was not a giggle.

"Just say it."

"Say what?"

"You know what."

"I don't, actually."

"Abbie."

"Daniel."

Daniel let his head drop on his arms. "Just get it over with."

"I have absolutely nothing to say." Abbie's voice was as innocent as she could make it. Then she broke out in a brilliant smile. "Other than I didn't take you for a closet 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy' fan."

Daniel let his head fall to rest on his arms. "Yes, well, at least mine aren't as shiny as yours are."

Abbie used that comment as an excuse to give Daniel the once over. He was wearing pretty much the same thing she was, a sleeveless top and pajama pants made out of the same silk like material, but his were a blue so dark it was almost black. And, just as he had said, it had less of a sheen then her own clothing did. However, like her own attire, it fit like a glove, molding to his skin and following every movement of his muscles as he picked his head up to look her in the eye.

Daniel watched as Abbie's head jerked up and, unless he was mistaken, her eyes fixed on a point as far away from him as possible, the skin on her neck and face tinting a furious shade of red. "Abbie? You ok?"

"Yeah, um, I'm fine, uh, fine," Abbie stuttered out the words, again thanking whatever deity was listening that this wasn't a mind reading planet.

Daniel nodded. He doubted she was going to tell him what was actually going on in her mind, despite the sneaking suspicion he would share her thoughts. "I guess now I really know how Sam felt all those years ago on Simarka."

"That's true," she agreed. "And from what she told me, the shade of blue is alarmingly similar," she frowned as she examined her own top.

"Oh, I don't know," Daniel said as he ran a casual eye down Abbie's body. "Sam's didn't bring out her eyes quite as much as that top does yours"
The blush returned with a vengeance, causing Daniel to smile in what he knew was his most charming manor.

"Yes, well, you're just lucky I don't have my camera anymore," she said in a vain attempt to distract herself from the way Daniel was looking at her. "There are a lot of people back at the SGC who would pay good money for pictures of you dressed up like Hugh Heffner."

Daniel clasped his hand over his heart. "Ouch!"

"Sorry," amusement clear in her voice. "It's just that . . . finding out you're the person this planet has been waiting a millennia to share a secret with can play tricks with a girl's mind."

Daniel sobered immediately. In the midst of their playful banter, the reason why they were there had been pushed to the back of his mind. "I almost forgot. How are you dealing with that?" he asked softly.

"Better than expected, actually," Abbie admitted. "Most of which probably has to do with this place."

Daniel took a moment to sweep his gaze around the archives. A massive room, again glassed in with the now familiar blue tint, filled to brimming with rows and rows of books and scrolls, stretching farther then he could see.

"It actually reminds me of 'The Beauty and the Beast'," Abbie admitted.

Daniel nodded absently. "The library in the Beast's house."

"Exactly!" Abbie turned and gave Daniel a challenging look. "Wait. When have you seen 'Beauty and the Beast'?"

"Uh, Cassie made me watch it?" Daniel gave her his most dazzlingly smile in a desperate attempt to avoid any and all parts of this conversation.
Abbie stared him down. "You watched it with Teal'c, didn't you?"

"Um . . . "

"Several times."

"Not recently or anyth-"

"At last week's movie night."

Daniel dropped his head back down on his arms. "Ok! It's Teal'c favourite movie, and Jack's a pushover for the "Be Our Guest" song. Now, can we get back to the mission, please?"

Abbie smiled triumphantly. "Whatever you say."

"Thank you."

"Lumiere."

Daniel lifted his head enough to glare at her, but she just smiled and started to dig through her notes. He couldn't remember any woman he had ever known that could push his buttons so effectively to get him to say things he didn't really want to admit out loud. And what bothered him the most wasn't that she had gotten under his skin so easily – it was the fact that he liked it that kept him up at night.

"While you were getting dressed, I managed to find out a few things." She gently pushed Daniel over so she could reach the book he had been leaning on. "This one goes into a little bit of history about Ezchoi."

"The woman whose statue we just saw wearing your hat."

"Yup. Turns out she was an assistant of one of the Ancients who was using this planet as a home base." She slid the text over so he could do a quick read through of his own. "Apparently they were conducting experiments on the soil here."

Daniel took a minute to skim through the information. "It says here that they discovered some," he mumbled to himself as he translated the text, "'unusual explosive properties'?".

Abbie nodded. "That's really all that's said about Ezchoi herself, other that she also chose the area for the city to be built on, but this one," she grabbed a scroll to her left, "explains a little more about the soil and the Power of the Gods, with a strange reference to some climate readings. Essentially, the Power of the Gods is a claylike soil that explodes when it comes into contact with heat or even the smallest amount of energy."

"Sounds like plastique to me."

Both Abbie and Daniel turned to see Jack, Sam, and Teal'c standing in the doorway.

"You just want to be able to blow something up, Jack." Daniel accused.

Jack smirked. "I fail to see the problem with that."

Abbie laughed at the easy banter between the two of them. "I'm just glad to see you all. How much trouble did you get in to find us?"

"It was no trouble at all, AbbieWebber," Teal'c explained. "MajorCarter was able to locate your pimp hat using the unmanned aerial vehicle."

"Yeah, good idea by the way. The blue really did show up against the sand with no problem," Sam said.

Daniel rolled his eyes. "Great, Sam. Now I owe her ten bucks."

"American," Abbie reminded him. "Not Canadian – learned that the hard way with McKay."

Sam gave Daniel a mock frown as the three of them made their way to the opposite side of the table. "Daniel, I thought we agreed you'd stop betting against the women of the SGC?"

"I know, I know – I always end up losing," Daniel smiled. "Did you have any problems getting into the city?"

"Nope. That little drone led us straight to you." Jack unclipped his P90 and set it down on the table in front of him.

"Drone?" Abbie asked.

"DanielJackson instructed a drone to guide us to your location, AbbieWebber," Teal'c informed her. "It proved to be a most effective means to gain access to this city."

"Yeah, yeah, we came, we saw, we followed the drone," Jack waved his hand in a dismissive motion. "Can we get back to the part about the explosives?"

"Well," Abbie said, "I was just telling Daniel that I found a few references to the Power of the Gods, and, as you said, Jack, it sounds a lot like our plastique back home." She reached out and pulled a book out of the pile Lalida had provided and slid it over the table to Sam. "This one gives a description of the basic chemical composition. I figured my high school chemistry wouldn't cut it, so I though you could take a look at it."

Sam started to flip through the pages. "This is a lot of work. I couldn't do this much research if I had a lifetime."

Daniel nodded. "That makes sense. It was one of the Ancients, someone named . . ."

"I have no idea," Abbie admitted. "But, I am sure that he or she had a human assistant, a woman named Ezchoi-"

"Bless," Jack interrupted.

"-who was entrusted with keeping the secret of the Power of the Gods and making sure it was passed down to each generation." Abbie smiled at Jack as she continued her explanation.

Sam nodded her head in understanding. "So that would explain the statue we passed on the way here. The detail on the hat was frighteningly accurate."

"Who knew it was such an intergalactic fashion statement?" Jack deadpanned.

"AbbieWebber, is it your belief that the Keeper will allow you to obtain a sample of the powerful substance for our study and analysis?" Teal'c asked.

Abbie gave him a smile, grateful for the reprieve from Jack's teasing. "I think so, Teal'c. Lalida, the Keeper, said that the decision was not completely up to her, but that I was to remain here until she came back with the final word. She was confident it would be in our favour"
"How long ago was that?" Sam was unable to hide her eagerness to get her hands on this explosive substance.

Abbie took a quick look at her watch. "I'm not entirely sure."

"Well, would it have been before or after the slumber party?" Jack asked innocently.

Sam covered a snicker as Daniel and Abbie flushed red. In their excitement at discovering something new, both seemed to have forgotten their unusual attire, something Sam didn't point out for exactly that reason. She thought it was cute when they got worked up over something, even if the end result was often some random translation breakthrough that no one but the two of them understood.

"That colour is most befitting, AbbieWebber," Teal'c broke the silence. "Perhaps you will be permitted to retain the outfit for your own personal use back on Earth."

"Thanks, Teal'c," Abbie said wearily, desperately looking anywhere but at Daniel. "I'll keep that in mind."

"Actually, Jack, we didn't have much choice about these," Daniel gestured to his own clothes. "Before we were allowed access to the library, we had to bathe."

"Together?"

"Sir!"

"What?" Jack's eyes sparkled as he teased his teammates. "I'm the team leader, I need to know these things."

"I can assure you, Colonel, that your team conducted themselves in a thoroughly professional manner."

The group turned to the sound of Lalida's voice as she entered the room. "Although I'm not sure I'll be able to say the same for you."

Abbie felt the need to make some formal introductions – even if it was as much to calm herself down as it was to inject some normality into the strange situation. "Lalida, this is Colonel Jack O'Neill, Major Samantha Carter, and Teal'c."

"Your Highness," Jack gave her a nod.

Choosing to ignore Jack, Daniel turned to Lalida. "Has a decision been reached?"

"Yes, it has." Lalida turned to Abbie. "We have decided that Abbie shall be allowed to view the Power of the Gods, along with one other team member of her choosing. We will also permit you to retain a sample of the soil for your own analysis."

"We appreciate this opportunity, Lalida," Abbie thanked her. "I hope that this is the beginning of formal diplomatic relations between our people."

Lalida gave Abbie a tight smile. "As do I. Now, time is of the essence – who will be accompanying you?"

"Sam. And don't say a word, you two, because she's the one with the chemical and technical skills to be able to understand all of this." Abbie didn't need to turn around to know that both Jack and Daniel had their mouths open, ready to protest her choice.

Jack turned to Daniel. "She's right, you know."

Daniel gave a reluctant sigh. "She usually is."

"And that's why you end up losing as many bets as you do, Daniel," Sam teased. "We'll be fine."

"I can vouch for their safety, Dr. Jackson," Lalida promised. "I get the distinct impression I will be held directly responsible for any foreseeable dangers by Teal'c."

Teal'c inclined his head. "Indeed."

Jack clasps his hands and rubbed them together. "Well, since that's all settled, is there a game room around here somewhere?"

"Actually, Colonel, as we were talking I took the liberty of arranging a bath for you, as well as a set of clothes like Dr. Jackson's, since you expressed such an interest in our traditional dress," Lalida smiled. "And it is your choice if Teal'c joins you or not."

Even Teal'c couldn't prevent a smile at the look of pure panic etched across Jack's face.

"That, uh, that won't be necessary," Daniel assured Lalida for a tongue tied Colonel. "But thank you."

"Very well then. Abbie, Major Carter, if you will come with me."

Sam and Abbie followed Lalida out of the library, both women shooting Be Good looks at the boys.


A/N: Sorry about the length of this chapter – it just kept going and going and going and . . . well, you get the point! Hope everyone enjoyed – some of my favourite funny moments are in this chapter. And, again, major thanks to E. Nagrom, katejones2005, starjems88, and Aedammair, all who reviewed the last chapter, and to USDA-Certified Organic for the link to more Fic terms. Really appreciate it, guys!