Chapter 20 – Awakening

Opening his eyes, Methos immediately knew he was lying in the infirmary. The scent surrounding him was typically antiseptic.

"Hey sleeping beauty," Jacob's gentle voice sounded from his right side.

Turning his head was the most difficult task he'd ever had to master. Looking at his lover, lying reclined on the bed beside him he replied, "Hey…" His voice was broken and hoarse. He coughed. Suddenly a spoon with ice ships appeared in front of him. As Methos followed the hand holding it he saw Jack's face on his left.

"Here." Jack raised the spoon to his lips, which he opened, welcoming the soothing fluid running down his parched throat.

After settling down again, Methos looked around and saw his team mates lying on the other beds, still in their BDU's. 'So they aren't hurt.' He sighed in relief.

Jack followed his gaze. "They're sleeping, just exhausted. You should probably rest some more yourself!" He grinned as Methos yawned.

"How long was I out? What happened?" Methos asked, stubbornly fighting the urge to fall asleep.

Smirking at the childish act, Jack answered, "Four hours. What do you remember?"

"I remember transporting all of you back to the Odyssey. Then I just let the power guide me…" Hesitating he continued, "It was incredible, Jack! I felt time and space, I felt their flow, their pulse!"

Jacob and Jack locked their gazes over Methos head. "What then?"

"I pulled everything in the vicinity of the planet into myself. Otherwise I wouldn't have been able to defeat them. They tried to disappear, but I closed the space around them. Then I sent everything I had through them… What about the Ancients? Are they okay?" Methos suddenly remembered seeing his father and talking to him.

"Moros told us they were okay. Most of them anyway! Seems like Anubis thought it was a trap and stayed ascended! You destroyed him too!" Jack told him gleeful.

"Oh, that's good. Anyway…I think I may have pushed too much of my own life-force into the attack. I lost all feeling and felt myself floating when suddenly someone called my name." Methos looked at Jacob. "I heard your voice and came back, didn't I?"

"Yes, but you were too weak to become corporal again. Moros reminded us of our bond and I gave you some of my energy to bring you back. As you can see, it worked." Jacob stood up from his bed and came over to Methos. Leaning down he kissed him, pouring his longing and fear into the kiss.

When they broke the kiss Jacob swatted him angrily on the head, "NEVER ever do anything like that again! You hear me? I thought I'd lose you for good!"

Pouting at his upset lover he looked at the smirking face of his cousin. "I'll try my best. But, as you know, I'm part of SG-1. And problems seem to follow them wherever they go!" He laughed and pulled his lover beside him in the bed.

Laughing at the shocked look on Jacob's face, Jack turned around to go back to Daniel's bedside. Seeing his lover awake, he smiled at him.

"So, we won? The Ori are dead?" Daniel asked Methos.

"Yes, I can't find a trace of them in the whole universe." Extending his powers, he felt the presence of his lover; their bond stronger and more noticeable than ever. He felt his lover's bond with Sam, which was equally strong to theirs. He felt Jack and, as an extension, the bond between his cousin and Daniel. He could feel the gentle blooming bond between Cameron and Teal'c. Far away in another galaxy, he felt the presence of his father and the other ascended. "They're gone for good."

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"Commander, set course for Earth," Jack ordered a few hours later.

"Yes, sir." Emerson was glad that his ship hadn't been damaged due to the explosion, and now happily set the course to get them home.

Jack went back to the cafeteria and saw his lover sitting with the rest of SG-1 and Jacob. Methos still rather looked pale, but had more color in his cheeks than before. Jack knew that Methos had received a couple additional energy bursts from himself and Jacob. Now that they knew of their respective bonds, they could help him get better.

"So, kiddies, that means we are on our way back to Earth. It'll take us about two weeks to get to the Supergate." Grinning slyly he winked at his lover. "That also means that we're on vacation time!"

"For real, sir?" Cameron asked disbelievingly.

"For real, Mitchell. So grab Teal'c and go do whatever you would do on Earth. But…" He stopped himself from laughing at Teal'c's warning look. "But don't do anything I wouldn't do! And remember to keep it discreet from the rest of the crew." Jack started laughing as Teal'c grabbed Cameron and almost ran out.

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After calming down he looked at Sam and asked, "So, Carter… what about you? What'll you do with your free time? There isn't any handy Naquada-reactor here to fiddle around with, is there?"

"I'm meeting with Lieutenant Marks, sir," she told him with a delicate blush on her face.

Groaning Jack chided her, "Carter, this is your free time. So no projects, no nothing. Capiche?"

"We're having dinner tomorrow, sir," she answered while enjoying the way his thoughts seemed to come to a screeching halt. Looking over at her father she saw his eyes light up in recognition.

"A date, Sam? I'm happy for you!" Jacob leaned over and hugged her gently. "Jack? Can I look into his personnel file?"

Sam laughed before swatting him on the arm "Dad!"

"No sweat, Jacob. I looked at all of them a few months ago. Just to know who was here, ya know?" They laughed and, after finishing their meal, Daniel and Jack vanished into their own quarters. Jacob and Methos stayed to talk to Sam for a bit before going to Jacob's room.

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Slowly the Odyssey made her way back home. One week into the journey, Methos asked permission to use a laboratory for research.

"Would you please explain to me what you're doing here, while on vacation, Methos?" Jack asked him, irritated after not finding him with Jacob.

Methos almost jumped out of his skin. He had been so immersed in his notes, that he hadn't heard Jack enter the lab. "I'm trying to find a solution for Thor and the other Asgard's problem. I want to pay them back for everything they've done for me."

Jack gaze softened. If it was for Thor it was alright in his book. "So what ya doin'? As far as I know they've tried everything possible to stop their degeneration…"

"I know. But maybe a new perspective could help discover something they haven't thought of yet."

"Okay, what's your idea?"

"I'm thinking that, with our healing power, we might be able to stabilize their metabolism far enough, that they could clone themselves again. But this time during the cloning process I could provide them with some of my genes to change them enough to stop them from being stagnant. It wouldn't change them much, but at the same time it would give them new genetic material. And seeing as I'm immortal, they could experiment further with my genes."

Indicating his notes Methos continued, "Now I'm just trying to combine the different genes, without my healing power destroying their genes."

Jack's eyes had glazed over hearing all that medical babble. Now he saw the excitement in his cousin's eyes and knew he couldn't forbid it. "Good enough, Pierson. Just take care of your lover. Otherwise he might become a little angry. Then he'd talk to Carter, which would make her angry, because it would cut into her time with Marks. Then she'd come to me, making me cranky because I'd have to leave Daniel alone long enough to find you and yank your ass back to your lover. You see my problem?"

Methos laughed. "What, not involving Teal'c and Cameron in that?"

"Are you crazy?! Teal'c would probably kill me for interrupting his quality time with Mitchell!" Viciously shaking his head, Jack remembered the look on Teal'c's face, when he and Danny had visited them yesterday.

----Flashback----

Jack knocked a third time slowly becoming annoyed. "Come on, Danny. Let's leave them to it!" Jack pouted at his lover.

"No, they haven't come out for days, and nobody's even seen them eating!" Daniel stated firmly. Not that he was worried. He knew that Teal'c would take care of Mitchell, but…

Suddenly the door opened with a very disgruntles Teal'c standing in the doorway. Looking at him, the visitors registered the fact that Teal'c only had a towel wrapped around his waist. His chest was peppered with hickeys and bite marks.

"O'Neill, Daniel Jackson, is there an emergency?" Teal'c asked with a forced calmness.

"No, no, we were just a bit worried. Nobody's seen you all week…" Daniel trailed off as Teal'c opened the door further, letting them catch a glance of the naked man on the bed. Obviously asleep, Mitchell didn't register the gazes traveling over his sparsely covered body.

Just as suddenly Teal'c moved back into their field of vision. "That's what I've been doing the whole week. I assure you, we are getting enough to eat and enough sleep between our lovemaking. Now, please excuse me." With a glare Teal'c shut the door leaving two very dumbfounded men standing there.

"Did you see…"

"Yeah. Did Teal'c just…?"

"Think so. Wow…"

"Yeah, who would have expected that…"

"True. You hungry?"

"Not for food."

"Me too."

"Back to your quarters?"

"After you, general."

----End Flashback----

Methos was howling with laughter. He could just see Teal'c in a pissing contest with Jack and Daniel! Staking his claim on his colonel again and again…

Thinking of Jacob, he left the lab without a backwards glance at the now laughing Jack. He had a lover to find!

tbc