A/N: And here we go! I'm about to go to bed, and the reviews I've been getting have been so plaintive that I just can't hold out on you guys. :)

Enjoy!

There was something missing.

Samantha glanced around her, searching as though whatever it was would be within reach. But of course, if that were truly the case, then it wouldn't be missing, now would it?

She stared at the crockpot in front of her, racking her brain for the answer. Her lips spread into a grin as the light clicked on. Thyme. It needed thyme.

Within moments she was rummaging through the spice drawer for the elusive herb, and crowed in triumph when she found it. She was just throwing a pinch of it into the crockpot when a knock on the door caught her attention.

She hesitated only a moment, wiping her hands on a towel before going to investigate. She was a little wary, ever since the press release—the last thing she wanted was to be hounded by reporters in her own home. They'd been lucky so far, but it would only last so long, and every additional day of privacy they had put her a little more on edge.

But it was only Charlie.

"Hey!" she said brightly, honestly glad to see the younger man. She met him with a smile as she opened the door to him. She stood aside to let him enter, which he did with his hands tucked modestly into his pockets. "What are you doing here? Your dad's not here, he's at a meeting…"

Charlie blinked, but then shrugged. "That's okay, actually… I was looking for you."

"Really? Is something wrong?"

A laugh answered her. "No, nothing's wrong. It's just—well, you know how you mentioned red shift theory the other night at dinner?"

"Yeah," she hedged carefully. She remembered. Their second attempt at having a family dinner had been everything the first hadn't—easy, familiar, and thoroughly enjoyable. She honestly couldn't remember the last time she had laughed so much in one night.

"Well," Charlie delivered, his tone edging into pride, "there's a film about it going up at the local Imax theater that's supposed to be really good. I was wondering if you might want to get out of the house for a few hours to go see it with me."

Samantha blinked in pleasant surprise. But as soon as the warmth of excitement came it was gone again. A movie would mean going somewhere crowded. With lots of people. They would stare. And then they would know. They would know she lived in the area, and after that it would only be a matter of time before the press found the house, and then it'd be over. The quiet little life they had would be finished.

Except it was already over, wasn't it? She wasn't happy here anymore. Not really. Little by little the comfort she'd found here had slipped away until she was left feeling like she was strung as tight as a piano wire. Even with Jack, her happiness felt more nostalgic than it felt true.

Maybe this quiet little life wasn't what she wanted after all. Maybe it would do her good to get some fresh air, and some fun. Besides, the theater would be dark, right? No one would stare at her there, at least.

She made the decision silently, sure in her choice when she did answer him. "Sure? Why not?" The stew she had going would be all right in the pot until she got back. "Just let me call your dad and let him know, all right?"

Charlie nodded agreeably, his features spreading into a beaming grin. To be honest, her call served multiple purposes. She did want to let him know where she'd be, so that he didn't panic when he came home and found her gone. But she also wanted his permission. Not to leave the house, necessarily, but to spend the time alone with Charlie. She didn't want to step on any toes.

But it turned out her concern was irrelevant. She was able to detect the smile in his voice as he quipped a "Make him buy you dinner after!" and it was only then that she embraced her newest mission completely. And Charlie was the perfect gentleman.

He waited patiently until she could put on some fresher clothes, and throw on a baseball cap and a pair of Ray-bans. Again, her actions served a double-purpose. The hat and shades would not only help stave off potential migraines, but protect her identity as well. Maybe not by much, but maybe enough to make a difference.

Charlie got her to the theater without incident—she'd grown familiar with the neighborhood in the past weeks. It was smaller than she'd originally anticipated, insular and self-contained in that she was soon able to recognize faces. Sometimes she earned stares, but she'd never gathered enough courage to break the stigma that was her identity. She remained separate from them, reluctant and afraid to risk cueing the unwelcome intrusion of curious press and news seekers.

In the end, it was waiting in line for tickets that got her into trouble. Charlie was wonderful, keeping her occupied with tales of his college exploits so that she didn't get overwhelmed. But even his efforts were for naught when she felt a tug on her sleeve.

Swallowing her sudden apprehension she glanced over her shoulder at the intruder—only to find empty space next to her. Confusion washed over her briefly, before the tug on her sleeve came again. She looked down, discovered that the source of her trepidation was none other than Lily, the girl from Mrs. Anderson's fourth grade class.

"Hi!" she breathed in relief. "Lily, what are you doing here?"

"Who's he?" Little eyes glanced up at Charlie in curiosity, who shrugged to allow Samantha to keep the situation in hand.

Samantha reminded herself to thank him later. "He's a friend of mine," she answered, before kneeling down to the little girl's level. "Lily, where are your parents?"

The girl glanced around, but inevitably shrugged. The lack of concern told Samantha all she needed to know. "Do they know you came to say hello?"

Lily shook her head no. "Miss Carter, we had to do a project on you this week in school. I drew a picture of you—my mom put it on the fridge with a spaceship magnet. I got an A!"

"That's great, Lily," Samantha said warmly. But her eyes continued to scan the milling crowds. The previous movie had just let out, and the chaos was growing. "But your parents are going to be worried about you. Let's go find them, okay?"

"But I'm not with any strangers!" Lily countered. "I'm with you!"

Samantha's cheeks flushed. "I know that, and you know that… but your parents don't—"

"Lily!" A frantic shout interrupted her, and the sound of running feet approached. "Lily, don't you dare run off like that again! I am so sorry she bothered you—"

Samantha rose to her feet, placing her hand on Lily's shoulder. A woman slowed to a stop in front of them, her eyes wide with worry. "It's all right," Sam delivered smoothly. "I visited her class a few weeks ago…"

She trailed off as she saw Lily's mother's eyes widen even further, and her features flush with shocked embarrassment. The spark of recognition made Samantha's stomach fall out from under her.

"You're—" The woman stuttered, as though she couldn't catch her breath. "Oh my—" A nervous laugh spilled from her throat. "My goodness, she hasn't stopped talking about that afternoon since!"

Lily tugged on her mother's hand. "Mom! Mom, where's Dad? He's gotta meet her!"

"Your father is currently getting security, young lady. You scared us half to death!" Her mother met Samantha's gaze with an apologetic grimace. "I do need to let him know she's all right. I'm sure you have things to get to today—I'm so sorry…"

"Please, it's fine—"

She felt Charlie approach her from the side, leaning in close to whisper in her ear. "The movie's about to start…"

"Please Miss Carter, you have to meet my dad! He'd want to see you, I know it!" Lily was pulled aside by her mother, a scold quick in coming. But Samantha looked at the little girl, and found herself hesitating.

"We can catch the next one, though," Charlie's low rumble amended. She looked over at him to see an easy grin on his face. "You know, if you want to."

The man was as perceptive as his father. A dangerous quality for him to have, but one that made her decision easier.

"Miss Carter has better things to do than follow you around, Lily—"

"Actually," Samantha cut in politely, pulling the woman's attention back up to her, "we have some time to kill. And I'd like make sure there isn't any misunderstanding. I really don't mind that Lily came over to say hello."

By now, her baseball cap wasn't doing much to hide her identity. Between Lily's loud exclamation and the growing proximity of the crowd, she could feel the stares growing, and leaving the general vicinity wasn't too bad an idea.

"Oh, well…" Lily's mother hesitated, surprised by her offer. "All right then. I'm Laura, by the way. Laura Garrison."

Samantha smiled, suddenly at ease. She didn't know why, but her words left her lips with the greatest of ease. "Samantha Carter," she returned. "Pleased to meet you."

The way Charlie's hand brushed hers as they turned away from the theater made her think that maybe he read into the situation more than anyone else might have. But when she looked up at him as Lily caught hold of her other hand and began to pull her along, he only grinned. "You didn't tell me you had your own fan club."

She smiled lightly in response, her hand coming up to brush lightly against his arm. "Thank you," she said softly.

A shrug answered her. "Ah… something tells me this is more important than some movie, anyway."

Somehow… she couldn't help but agree with him. For the first time in her memory, she was meeting someone new—as herself.

When Jack got the text from Charlie alerting him that plans had changed—ice cream instead of a movie—he didn't think anything of it. But when he finally managed to escape the endless round of meetings on base and went to join them, what he found was certainly not what he expected.

Well, he hadn't really had a fully formed idea of what he'd discover. Perhaps the two of them in a secluded corner, munching on sundaes while they spoke in low tones so as not to attract unwanted attention. Or the two of them sitting outside, with Samantha's cap low over her eyes in a pretense to shield herself from the sun.

Instead he was faced with a scene out of an after-school special. Samantha and his son were munching on sundaes, yes. But it wasn't in a corner or on a lonely bench. It was a table in the center of the dairy parlor—or rather, several tables joined together to accommodate the large party they were a part of.

Charlie reclined in a chair across the table from Samantha, who had attracted the younger element of the crowd. A girl sat on her lap—a girl from the class they'd visited. What was her name… Lavender, Jack thought. Maybe.

The girl was bouncing in the way kids do, excited and rambling at a hundred words per minute. On either side of both of them were more kids, some recognizable, some not. The parents lingered on the periphery, more as chaperones than anything else. Most of them wore the same t-shirt, declaring them as some kind of field trip group. But what caught Jack's eye the most was the easy grin that split Samantha's features, both as she fielded questions from Lilac and the other kids, and spoke with the nearest adults.

She was comfortable, more so than he would have thought possible. And the adults, to their credit, seemed respectful. He imagined that they might have begun aloof, wary. But Samantha had that charm, and no doubt they'd gravitated to her just as inevitably as the kids had.

After a long moment of staring, Jack shuttered his awe away and entered the fine dining establishment, making a beeline for the conglomerate of tables. Blue eyes tracked his movements from the second he stepped through the door, and he raised a single brow in question as he approached.

Her only answer was a sheepish grin and a shrug. The blush to her cheeks didn't escape his notice either. A few of the parents perked up at his arrival, recognizing him from his trips around town in the early months. He greeted them, but didn't pull to a stop until he was up behind Samantha, and she was looking up at him with that same guilty smile.

He stared for a moment, thinking of a quip, but the best he could come up with was to bend down and peck her quick on the lips. He lingered on her level for a moment, eyeing the kid on her lap.

"She found me at the theater," Samantha explained lightly. "Wanted me to meet her parents, and it kinda… turned into this."

He bet the story behind this one was gonna be good. But he let it slide, content to wait until they were home before pressing her for the juicy details. He leveled a cock-eyed grin at her. "Kid's a good judge of character," he told her smoothly. The kid in question turned and caught his eye. "You know you have the best seat in the house, right?"

The kid nodded jauntily, her sticky lips beaming in a smile. "Uh huh!"

Jack returned the nod in approval. "Good." He turned back to Samantha, shooting her a knowing look. "No, we can't keep her."

She smacked him lightly on the arm, her lips twisting into a smirk. "Funny."

Jack pulled up a chair, and settled in to scoop up a bite of a hot fudge-slathered sundae he assumed was hers. And then he let himself get sucked into the conversation, both kiddie and adult alike. Neither of them felt the eyes watching them from across the square.

Daniel rocked back on his heels, trying to remain inconspicuous. When he'd first seen Sam, he'd been amazed. She looked great, in the sense he hadn't seen her in person for almost eight months now. And she wasn't limping anymore, and in the natural light of day, her scars didn't seem so bad. The nagging concern of how she got those scars hadn't faded since the national broadcast, but for now he could focus on the way she smiled.

But whom she smiled at made his gut churn. A kid, barely more than twenty. But after following that kid for two weeks, there was no doubt who it was. Charlie. A kid he'd only before seen in pictures, his life arrested at age seven, existing only in memories and old photographs, but never forgotten. His heart hurt, seeing the young man that Jack—his Jack—could only ever dream his kid could be become. The knowledge that the real Jack could only be proud of what would have been was a bittersweet comfort.

Cam didn't really get it. He knew the facts, the truth of the matter was that he didn't really know Jack O'Neill, and therefore really didn't understand the gravity of the situation. So when they had devoted themselves to first sitting on the Kawalsky household, and waiting for Charlie to visit, Daniel had to deal with his own jangling nerves as well as Mitchell's innocent, yet grating antics as he tried to keep himself occupied.

"Something's fishy," Cam said now, low over Daniel's shoulder. Daniel bit back a sharp retort. Ya think?

Instead he kept his gaze focused on the ice cream parlor, and the crowd within. They'd followed Charlie expecting him to lead them to Jack—instead they saw him emerge from the quiet house on the quiet street in suburban Chicago with a figure that was decidedly not Jack. It was Sam. And there wasn't any of the awkward reverence he would have expected her to exhibit in the presence of the prodigal son.

She was smiling, bumping up against Charlie like she used to bump elbows with Daniel himself. It reminded him of the old days, of the real timeline, and it wasn't long before the nostalgia turned to anger. For months he'd been alone, rotting in some one bedroom efficiency in the pits of Los Angeles. And she's been here, playing family with Jack and his son.

If it was safe for her to know Jack, why hadn't she sent word? Why hadn't she tried to contact them? It just didn't make any sense.

"What do you want to do?" Cam asked.

What Daniel wanted to do was storm in there, grab her by the arm and shake her until she spilled everything, but he knew they couldn't do anything so brash. They'd seen how the little girl had immediately attached herself to Sam's side, and then how the rest of the kids had been drawn in. It had happened gradually, until the field trip had shown up. By then Sam had resigned herself to her fate, and had welcomed everyone who had approached her.

It was weird, seeing it unfold. Sure, Sam was friendly, but she was usually more guarded. That same guardedness had been present at the theatre, before she'd taken the leap to join the girl's family. But by the time they hit the ice cream shop, it had evaporated, leaving Sam more open than ever before. It was… bizarre. And it made him wonder.

But regardless of why she was acting the way she was, the fact was that her current circumstances prevented them from doing anything. What were they gonna do? Barge through the kids to assault her in front of a dozen parents to boot? Not a chance. They needed to do this subtly. Sam might be different, but so was Jack. They couldn't trust him. Not yet.

"We wait," Daniel said finally. "We can't approach her now. We need to wait until we can get her alone."

Cam sighed, his impatience tangible. "Fine. We wait."