"He woke up?"
Janet nodded.
"Yes. And he was almost completely lucid."
Hammond wasn't the only one around the table to frown at that.
"Almost?" Jack repeated.
"He'd just woken up, Colonel," Janet replied. "From multiple transplants. He's bound to be a little out of it."
"But did he appear to have sustained any permanent damage?" Hammond asked.
She hesitated but then shook her head.
"The sensory tests I managed to run on him were all very promising. He was also able to communicate with me – both before and after I removed the intubations tube."
"So his mind's still there?" Daniel asked.
"As far as I can tell."
It had been a pressing concern for all of them. The deputy hadn't reacted to the antigen that Fraiser had dosed him with quickly enough for it to save most of his critical organs, and only Thor's intervention had kept Ruff from dying within the first twelve hours. Fraiser had called in an emergency transplant team – she was an excellent trauma surgeon but more than willing to admit that multiple transplants were out of her league – and the new organs had been replaced in order of which ones were failing the quickest, with the heart being last to go.
The surgeries had gone smoothly and since the replacements were exactly the same tissue as those being replaced there was absolutely no chance of rejection – although infection had been a very serious concern until Thor had once more offered up Asgard technology and had made a clean room out of one of the isolation rooms.
Anthony had been out several days – and had been showing signs of serious discomfort and delirium – but this was the first time they'd had ay good news delivered to them.
"Can we see him?" Carter asked.
Janet shook her head.
"He's too weak. Give it a couple more days."
"But-"
She raised her hand to stop O'Neill's argument before it could even begin.
"I'm serious, Colonel. He needs to rest. Quietly."
"But surely we could at least bring the baby…" Daniel started, but trailed off at Fraiser's stern look.
"No. He asked for him, and I've already told him no. It won't kill either of them to be apart for a couple more days." She looked over at Hammond. "I'd like a guard on his door, sir, just to make sure he isn't disturbed."
O'Neill scowled.
"You don't really think we'd disobey you, do you, Doc?"
She didn't look at all apologetic.
"Whether it's you, or someone else – or even the Asgard – I want my patient left alone by everyone but essential medical personnel."
"And he will be," Hammond said, nodding. He threw O'Neill a look that brooked no argument.
Jack grudgingly nodded as well and gave his team a similar look to the one Hammond had given him, letting them know that there was to be no sneaking in to visit Anthony until he was stronger.
They all gave him acknowledgements of varying degrees of reluctance and Jack turned back to Fraiser.
"But he's going to be okay, right?"
"We'll see."
She sounded fairly confident, though, which was a relief to all of them.
"Dismissed, people," Hammond said, pretty sure that they'd just start rebelling if they were allowed to dwell on the idea of invading the clean room to check on Ruff any more than they already were.
OOOOOOOOO
"So what do we do now?"
O'Neill shrugged.
"You heard Fraiser. We leave Anthony alone long enough to heal up a bit."
Daniel gave him a knowing look.
"But we hang out close enough to talk to him when he's awake?"
"Exactly."
It wasn't like they were doing anything else just then, after all.
Carter smiled.
OOOOOOOOO
Fraiser stopped short of leaving, allowing the others to file out around her until the room was empty except for her and Hammond.
"How's the baby?"
Hammond smiled.
"I don't think my granddaughters are going to let Deputy Ruff have him back."
"He is a cutie," she agreed.
"How long do you think it'll take for Anthony to recover enough to get back on his feet?"
"Normally it'd be months."
"Normally?"
"Thor is willing to use some more of that flaunted Asgard technology to heal him a little quicker. Now that he's woken enough that I've had a chance to make sure he hasn't received any lasting brain injury we can take that step. Instead of months it'll be weeks – maybe even days."
"And you're sure this thing that Thor's going to do is safe?"
She nodded.
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Keep me informed, doctor."
"I will, sir."
