A/N—turns out I had time for a second post after all.
Disclaimer in chapter 1
28
Sam looked up to see Daniel and the rest of SG-1 running into the room. Jack was slumped forward and she was holding onto his arm to keep him from falling out of the chair.
"Is he okay?" Daniel asked as Kawalsky and Janet moved closer to examine Jack. Performing a quick vitals check-pulse, looking into his eyes, feeling for a temperature-Janet glanced back at her CO.
"He gonna be all right?" Kawalsky asked his team mate.
"I don't know. We need to get him to the infirmary. He's breathing, but his heart rate is elevated. Dr. Brightman will know what to do." Janet gave Sam a confident smile and a nod as she left the room, hopefully in search of some orderlies. Sam hadn't let go of Jack's hand, even though it had gone slack in her grasp. She was worried at his unconscious state, and dangerously close to loosing control, but she wasn't about to in front of Daniel and Kawalsky. Feeling Kawalsky's hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently, tipped the scales and she felt tears starting to course down her cheeks.
"He's tough," Kawalsky said, trying to bolster her. "When we were kids he got a concussion during the State hockey finals. Played the whole game. No one knew until we hit the locker room."
Sam was hard pressed to find comfort in the fact Jack was too stubborn to let his team down. Although, she supposed she should be. If Jack hadn't shown the tenacity to see this to the end, none of them would be standing there to talk about it.
Wiping her eyes and nose on the back of her hand, Sam looked up at Kawalsky. "So what happened?"
"Pretty much nothing. Doc looked at him, told him he was damn lucky to have such a hard head."
She smiled, turning her gaze back to Jack. "He's not seventeen anymore."
"He's still just as tough. Maybe even more so now."
"Why now?" she asked, looking back up at him.
"He's got you." Sam nodded, reaching up to give the hand resting on her shoulder a return squeeze.
Just then Janet arrived with a gurney and two men from the infirmary. "Dr. Brightman's getting ready for him," she assured Sam, pulling her out of the way. "She'll take good care of him." Sam started to follow, but Daniel held her back.
"General Carter wants a briefing ASAP. Then we have to see about getting the mucky mucks back where they belong." Daniel waited a beat then asked Sam, "He got them all, right? I mean it is safe to assume. . ."
"He got them all," she confirmed. "There was some kind of projection, showing the battle. Kind of like a hologram, but more interactive than that. I'm not sure how to explain it," she said, shaking her head. "I watched what he was doing, and I still don't believe it. There were all these 'glowy things' he was somehow commanding. They attacked Reese's ship and blew it up from the inside out."
Daniel's face split into a full-blown grin. "'Glowy things?' Is that a technical term, Dr. Carter?"
"Damn straight," she smiled back at him. "I'll try to come up with a better adjective before the briefing."
"Look, I know you want to get to the infirmary, but maybe you should check on your lab assistants. They didn't strike me as the 'cool under fire' types."
Sam nodded. "I need to let them know it's over."
XXXXXX
Jack was still sleeping when Sam entered the infirmary. Looking around, she noticed how much more compact the area was compared to the medical facility she was familiar with. Probably with fewer SG teams and personnel, this SGC didn't warrant the extra space.
She'd met Alisen Brightman briefly in her universe, and knew Janet thought highly of the woman. That was good enough for Sam. Still, she couldn't help wishing Janet had been a doctor here; she'd feel a little more confident in Jack's recovery.
Walking to his bedside, Sam picked up Jack's hand, hoping in his sleeping state he was aware of her. She traced his fingers, trying to remember if she was as familiar with Colonel O'Neill's hands as she was Jack's. His left pinky jutted out slightly from a badly healed break. Lying in bed one night he'd told her of the baseball game that had caused his broken finger. She recalled him joking how he hoped he never met any Vulcans since he was no longer able to make the hand sign for "live long and prosper."
Sam smiled at the memory as she continued to run her fingers over his. There were so many little things she loved about him. The way he'd light up when he encountered a dog, getting excited over a new flavor of ice cream at the local shop. Such small, inconsequential things, but all part of what made him "Jack" and made her love him even more. Watching him sleep, she hoped it was just sleep as Dr. Brightman had assured her it was. She didn't want to think he'd completely burned himself out like a filament in an incandescent light bulb. She, more than anyone, knew the kind of energy Jack had been called on to direct. It took an incredible sense of self-discipline and focus, and frankly, she was a little surprised he possessed such focus. She was proud of him. He'd saved them all. Saved the planet. There weren't many men who could add that to their resume'.
"Hey, how's he doing?"
Looking up, Sam noticed Janet hovering in the doorway. "Okay, I think," she said, casting a glance back at Jack. "Dr. Brightman says he's not in a coma, just an extremely deep sleep."
"How are you holding up?"
"Me? I'm fine. A little tired perhaps, but I would imagine everyone feels that way."
Entering the room, Janet pulled up a chair to sit next to her. "Yeah, it's a drag when that adrenaline wears off." They sat in silence for a few moments, unsure what to say to each other. Even though she and Janet had been friends for years, this woman had just met her, and it made conversation feel a little forced. "You know, if you want to grab a shower I can sit with him."
Sam's laugh was almost a snort. "Is that a hint, Janet?"
Rather than being embarrassed, the biologist joined in her mirth. "Not exactly," she chuckled. "I just know how much better I felt getting cleaned up." Again, silence descended on them. A few uncomfortable minutes later, Janet added, "Feels kind of surreal, doesn't it?"
"Which part?" Sam asked running a hand through her hair. It felt grimy and now she understood Janet's offer.
"Well, going from the sword of Damocles hanging over our heads to wondering if I have a job tomorrow. I've been so intent on finding a way to stop the Replicators, I don't know what the next step is."
Sam nodded sympathetically. "I know what you mean. When we finally defeated Apophis, the System Lord we'd been battling for years, I was kind of at loose ends. I think we all were. Turns out we didn't have to twiddle our thumbs very long. Surely after this, Kinsey will realize the value of your program."
Now it was Janet's turn to snort. "Did he in your universe?"
"Okay, so you make a point," Sam smiled. Jack moved on the bed, letting out a soft moan. Immediately her attention was back on him, rising to see if there was anything she could do to make him more comfortable.
"So how'd you guys meet?"
"That's a long story," Sam grinned, running her fingers through Jack's short hair. "Do you mean the first time or this time?"
"You should probably start at the beginning," Janet suggested. Sam was quiet for a moment then told Janet of her less-than-auspicious start with Colonel O'Neill and the rest of SG-1.
"He wanted nothing to do with me. Which, ironically, happened this time as well." Janet's puzzled look prompted Sam into giving her the shortened version of her initial dealings with Jack. He moved around in the bed again, and once he settled, Sam retook her seat.
"You love him a lot, don't you?" Janet said. Normally that kind of blunt observation-especially from Janet-had Sam in full denial mode, but this time she was actually relieved she could admit it.
"Yeah, I do."
Sam could see Janet was working up to asking her something else and waited for her to phrase it. "Are you and Jack involved, I mean, back there. . . .?
"No," she stated. "I think you know he's my CO in that universe." She looked down at her hands, starting to twist in her lap. "Neither one of us would step over that line. I hadn't planned on it here either. In fact, at first I had a really difficult time separating them in my head."
"Keeping Colonel O'Neill on one side, Jack on the other," Janet confirmed.
"Yeah. It's weird. Physically they're almost exactly the same. O'Neill obviously has more scars and injuries than Jack, but other than that, I don't know that you could tell them apart. They do share the same sense of humor, but their occupations and experiences are so different it's obvious they're not the same. So, it's weird," she reiterated. "At first I kind of felt like I was cheating on O'Neill with his brother Jack."
"And you don't now?"
Sam took a deep breath, trying to put her thoughts into words. "No, I don't. I can't have the relationship with O'Neill that I have with Jack. That in itself is the biggest difference between them."
Janet shifted uncomfortably on her chair. Again she was struggling to express herself. "I guess I was hoping maybe the two of you-Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter-had found away to make it work within the bounds of the military."
Sam looked up, surprised at the statement. "Is there someone here. . . .?" Suddenly it came to her. "It's Daniel, isn't it?" Janet's slight head nod and rosy cheeks was the only confirmation she needed. "I had my suspicions," she smiled at the woman across from her.
"Were we that obvious?" Janet asked, eyes suddenly wide.
"No! You weren't obvious at all," Sam tried to reassure her. "It's just that I've been in your position for so long, it's easy to spot the signs."
Janet let out a sigh. "We certainly didn't mean for it to happen. I mean who goes out looking to fall for the exact wrong person?"
Reaching over, Sam grasped Janet's hand. "I know." Just then Daniel entered the room, and the two women practically sprang apart. He looked suspiciously at them, no doubt realizing he'd been a topic of conversation. Clearing his throat, he nodded towards the bed.
"Has he woken up?"
Sam stood again, moving over to Jack's bed. "No, he's restless though. I don't think it'll be too much longer."
"Kinsey's chomping at the bit to get back to Washington, but in an uncharacteristic show of goodwill, he wants to thank Jack personally for saving our asses."
"Is that what he said?" Janet asked, incredulous.
Daniel smiled. "I think he used more diplomatic words than that." Sam observed the flirtatious smiles they exchanged and felt her heart twinge. She was surprised she hadn't noticed their attraction sooner.
Daniel looked over to the man on the bed once more. "He obviously had something to do with releasing some kind of weapon on the Replicators, but I'm still completely in the dark what it was." His gaze shifted to Sam. "Do you know what it was?"
"Actually, I've never encountered anything like it. Obviously it was some type of Ancient defense, but I'm just as clueless as you as to what it was. I doubt even Jack knows. He must have had some kind of instinct for it, though."
"Why do you say that?"
"Well, for one thing, he seemed drawn to the chair. When I asked him about it, he couldn't seem to articulate what it was about the device he felt an affinity for, only that he just knew it was something important."
Nodding, Daniel stared sightlessly at the hospital bed. "If we do any testing on it, he's obviously going to have to be involved. Any chance he'd be interested in being a civilian contractor?" The irony of Daniel being in charge of SG-1 and Jack the civilian wasn't lost on Sam.
"I can't answer for him, but I'm sure he'd consider it. He's pretty dedicated to his students, though."
"And what about you?" he asked.
"What do you mean, what about me?"
"Are you interested in becoming a part of the SGC?"
Sam's eyes grew wide. "I. . .I don't know. I hadn't really thought about it." She truly hadn't given much thought to what happened next. She knew she wanted to be with Jack, but the appeal of once again being a part of the Stargate program had an equally strong pull. While her life in Denver hadn't been unpleasant, she was frustrated by feeling underutilized. What if Jack chose not to get involved with the program? Or only on a limited basis? She couldn't see Jack moving to Nevada before Charlie graduated, and perhaps not even then. He had a place in the Denver school system, and he didn't seem to be interested in changing that.
And what about her? Of course the job hadn't been officially offered to her, but she should be ready if it was. Could she live apart from Jack, for two years at a minimum? Would she be a part of the Army? The Air Force? The people on the base referred to her as "Major," but was she one here? Or would she also be considered a civilian? Too many choices to make, especially when Jack was still out of it.
"You should think about it," Daniel said, bringing her out of her musings. "I've already talked to General Carter and he seems very enthusiastic."
Sam gave him a sad smile. "I'm sure being a copy of his daughter has helped in that regard."
"I won't deny it's a factor, but it's not the only advantage to bringing you on board." Sam was confident enough in her abilities to realize what an asset she would be to the SGC.
"It would be great to have another woman around," Janet said. "Not that I don't love my guys, but the testosterone does get a little thick around here sometimes." Sam could relate to that. It was part of the reason she and her Janet had bonded so quickly, and perhaps one of the reasons she was feeling that bond with this Janet.
"I'll think about it," Sam promised them, "But I need to talk to Jack first and at the rate he's sleeping this off, that could be awhile. In the mean time, if Da. . .General Carter wants to make me an offer, I'll be happy to listen."
Jack stirred, took in a long breath and Sam saw his eyelids fluter. Then he was blinking, trying to clear his eyes.
"Can't a guy get some sleep around here?" He croaked. Reaching for a container of water, Sam angled the straw to his mouth. Jack took a sip, nodding at her when he'd had enough. "Did we do it?" he asked. His voice still sounded weak.
Leaning over to kiss him, she didn't care if she had an audience. It was so damn good to hear his voice she wouldn't have cared if the entire base was in the room with them. "You did. It was all you, Jack. Well, you and some kick-ass Ancient technology," she smiled at him.
"I don't really remember. I know there was something about the chair, but I don't remember much after that."
"You unleashed one hell of firestorm on the Replicators," Daniel said, stepping closer to the bed. "We're still not sure what it was, but we're damn grateful." he extended his hand and Jack looked it as if he was unsure what to do with it. Finally, Jack took it, giving it a small shake.
"I didn't do anything," Jack said, and Sam could see he was uncomfortable with the attention.
"Oh, I beg to differ, Mr. O'Neill." Everyone's head turned to see Vice-President Kinsey in the doorway with his ever-present public relations team in tow. The room was already crowded, but he stepped in any way, pushing the current occupants out of the way as he strode to the bed.
Kinsey shoved his hand into Jack's personal space. "Let me be the first to shake your hand, sir."
"Actually, you're the second," Daniel quipped, just loud enough for Sam to hear. Biting her lower lip to keep from smiling, she turned her attention back to the Vice-President. Jack looked totally star-struck, and Sam only wished the man was worthy of such adoration.
"After attending a briefing with our military leaders, I was informed it was you who managed to pull off our amazing eleventh hour 'hail Mary.' Mr. O'Neill, I'm sure I speak for the people of our great nation and the world when I say, 'thank you' from the bottom of our hearts. God was surely in His heaven when he sent you to us in our hour of need." It was all Sam could do not to roll her eyes as Jack hesitantly shook the Vice-President's outstretched hand. Photo flashes lit the room and Jack looked completely overwhelmed.
"Smile, Mr. O'Neill. America loves a hero," Kinsey spoke quietly in an aside Jack's grin looked pained as he struggled with all the scrutiny he was under. Sam knew this was the last thing he wanted. To be bombarded, especially moments after waking. Fortunately, he was saved by Dr. Brightman's pushing her way into the room.
"Everyone out! Until he's been cleared, there will be no more interviews!" Kinsey quickly acquiesced, apparently through dispensing accolades. For the first time, he seemed to realize Sam was in the room. His gaze fell on her and the practiced smile vanished as he recognized her.
"You!" he accused, not even using her name. Sam doubted he even remembered it. Turning to Daniel he barked, "What is this woman still doing running around this facility? I thought I told you I wanted her in custody! Arrest her this instant!"
