AN - Final chapter, though it's a bit epiloguey than a full chapter and more then a little sugary :P I hope you enjoy and have enjoyed the story as a whole, thanks for reading, let me know what you think, K8 x

Chapter 11

Jack looked down as Sam let out a chuckle. Holding out his hand she wordlessly handed him the photograph from the stack she was looking at as she stifled her laughter. Jacob had taken countless photographs of his and Lexi's time in the time dilation bubble. The photograph in question featured a sheepish looking Lexi clutching a hockey stick beside the smashed remains of a television. Jack chuckled, for once the him in their daughter was showing through, the expression on her face was distinctly an O'Neill expression. It surprised him how much of them he saw in Lexi, considering that most of her life she had been in one room with her grandfather. Yet despite this, she wrinkled her nose the way Sam did and adopted his own blank stare when she didn't want people to realise her intelligence, she definitely had his humour and perhaps best of all she had Sam's laugh. Jacob had definitely imprinted on Lexi and she had more than a few of his mannerisms. Several times he had heard the odd 'Holy Hannah' escape from her lips as she had taken in her new environment and helped with the move, each time she had said it had made him smile.

For the time being the family had moved into a rented house on the other side of town. They had accepted an offer on their house and were mid-way through the process of buying a property in a new neighbourhood across town. The new house was almost a carbon copy of the old one. Built by the same developer only 2 years after their old house. It had seemed perfect, and once it was decorated in their own style Jack was sure he wouldn't know the difference. The rented house where they would be living for at least the next two months, he hated; it was too small, with only two bedrooms that were too close to the living area and there was no office area. Their work was in danger of spilling into family time, whereas before he could shut it behind a door for the weekend now it was in a huge stack by the door. To top it off the yard wasn't good enough for a barbeque and the girls barely had enough space to run around in it, but as he reminded himself it was temporary.

"Jack look," Sam held up another photo. Jack took it and studied it, a picture of he daughter maybe six years old, pieces of paper with other names written on surrounding her. "She was choosing her new name."

"Yeah," Jack gave her arm a squeeze. "What's that one?" he squinted as he tried to make out a name written down, "Bizzy?"

"I think so, but it's Isabel," Sam whispered squinting at the photo herself. "See it's written above, she's choosing names you could turn into nicknames, Bizzy Izzy."

"Ah," Jack whispered softly. "She's a good kid…" he lifted his head as he heard a door open. "Speaking of which," he turned awkwardly, trying not to dislodge Sam from her position resting against his chest. "Hey Ells Bells."

"Hi Daddy," Ellie whispered from the doorway of her new bedroom which she was sharing with her sister.

"You 'Kay?" Jack asked.

Ellie shook her head. "I can't sleep, the house is making funny noises."

"And it's not our house huh?" Jack nodded in understanding. He held his hand out and the small child sprinted across the room. "Easy," Jack caught her before she caused any of them some damage. "You want a drink of water?"

"No," Ellie shook her head and nestled into the small space on the edge of the sofa, her head came to rest on his chest beside Sam while her arms wrapped around Sam.

"You comfy there?" Jack chuckled at her awkward position.

"Nope and Yup," Ellie nodded intently, "You are always comfy, but I fink I'm falling off."

"We can't have that," Sam deftly twisted herself and pulled Ellie across her body so the child was nestled between her body and the back of the sofa. "Is that better?"

"Yup," Ellie snuggled in tightly against her parents. For a few moments she was silent her fingers tensing back and forth as she gripped hold of Sam's arms, telling her mother that she had something she needed to get off her chest. "Mommy?" she finally whispered.

"Ellie?" Sam answered softly.

"Am I the big sister or the little sister?" she asked softly.

"You are both," Sam responded quickly, making Ellie sigh in annoyance. "You are always going to be our first little girl, which makes you Alice's big sister." Sam kissed Ellie tenderly, "but Alice is now Lexi who is bigger than you and we have to pretend she is older then you, so you are the little sister."

Ellie shifted from her position, rolling onto her stomach to regard her parents out of the top of her brown eyes. "So in the house I'm the big sister and outside I'm the little sister."

"Close enough," Jack ruffled her hair.

"So…." Ellie looked thoughtful. "Do I got to look after Lexi or does she have to look after me? Coz that's the big sister's job."

"You both look after each other." Jack told her softly. "We all look after each other that's what family does."

Ellie nodded thoughtfully, "OK," she slumped back down into her little nook in the sofa.

"You feel like you can sleep now?" Sam asked kissing her daughter tenderly on the cheek. Ellie shook her head fiercely, "Ok a few more minutes then I'll tuck you in."

Ellie nodded her consent and snuggled back into the position against Sam's side, she buried her face into the space where Jack and Sam's body met, her soft breath warm against her parents sides. Jack wrapped his arms around his daughter and his wife, before softly kissing the top of Sam's blonde hair. It felt good to be home, even if home wasn't home.

"Daddy," Lexi's sleepy voice sounded from the doorway of the bedroom and Jack looked up to greet her.

"You can't sleep either huh?" Jack asked jerking his head to invite her into the room.

"No, I heard Ellie wake up," Lexi stumbled across the carpeted floor to fall to her knees beside the sofa.

"The house is making funny noises," Ellie told her lifting her head to rest it on Sam's stomach. "I didn't like it"

"Me neither," Lexi wrinkled her nose in disgust. "I miss the hum of the engines," she rested her cheek against Jack's arm. "Maybe we cou…" she trailed off.

"Maybe we could what sweetheart?" Sam asked, sitting up slowly. Ensuring Ellie was safely laid against Jack she slid off the sofa to sit on the floor beside Lexi. She brushed Lexi's sleep mussed hair away from the child's face. "What would you like to do?"

"Build a fort," Lexi whispered, a soft smile pulling on her lips. "Pop Pop would build me a fort when I had my bad dreams. We would sleep in it so we could both be safe." She looked from her mother to her father and then back again. "Do you think we could do that? Build a fort so we can all be safe together?"

"Nice!" Jack exclaimed. "Fort is a great idea!" Quickly he sat fully upright, pulling Ellie properly onto his lap. "Ells Bells, go get the blankets and pillows off you and Lexi Lou's beds."

"We'll need structural support," Sam studied the living room furniture for a suitable candidate.

"Sam, Lexi you work on that," Jack got to his feet and moved towards the airing cupboard. "I'm going to get all the blankets."

Ellie slid off the sofa to the ground beside her mother and wormed her way under Sam's arm. "Mommy," she whispered as she snuggled into her mother's warm embrace. "I think Daddy likes building forts."

"I guess so," Sam kissed Ellie on the top of her curly hair. "But I think most of all, Daddy likes keeping us safe and together."

"Yeah," Lexi mumbled as she snuggled up against her mother. "I like that."

"Me too," Sam kissed Lexi on her nose. She nestled the two girls into her sides and watched Jack as he burrowed into the airing cupboard to find blankets and sheets.

After a few moments he pulled back bringing with him a stack of neatly folded sheets. He blinked in surprise as he took in the three women in his life staring up at him. "What?" he asked, "What is it?"

"Nothing," Sam shook her head with a smile. "I'm just watching."

"Well quit it, and crack on," Jack ordered. "We got a fort to build."

"Uh uh Daddy," Ellie muttered as she got to her feet. "We do got a fort to build, but…" she trotted over to him she wrinkled her nose in amusement and held her arms up to be lifted up.

"But…" Jack pressed her to continue as he lifted her up into his arms. Ellie buried her face into his shoulder and giggled. "Not going to tell me huh?"

"I know," Lexi giggled. The little girl twisted her legs so that she was partially sat on Sam's lap. "Mommy knows too."

Jack quirked his eyebrows. "Well?"

"The only place your in charge is work," Lexi explained. "Here you're outnumbered, right Mommy?"

Sam grinned, "Yup!"

"Oh fercryin out loud," Jack groused good-naturedly. "OK then Ells Bells, how are we doing this?" he moved back over to Sam and Lexi and lowered Ellie to the floor. He couldn't help but smile as the three nearly identical faces smiled up at him. His chest swelled with pride and love and Thor's words echoed round his mind, he had found his salvation and for that he was eternally grateful.