"Jack," Sam called absently as she made her way into the house. "I grabbed lunch while I was out!" Sam moved into the kitchen and began to unload the various sandwiches and pasta's.
"Colonel?"
Sam looked up from the task at hand to find General's Hammond, Amos, and Schwartz coming in from the back deck. "Sirs?"
"Colonel," Hammond began softly. "Why don't you join us for a moment?"
"Oh, uh, of course," Sam offered nervously. She automatically followed them out of the kitchen and out on to the deck to find Jack sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in hand. Sam bit her lip as she moved to the table before she sat down beside him.
The General's followed suit and took up their seat's across from the two Colonel's. "The President has come to a decision about your continued presence at Eleftheria," Hammond offered softly.
"We asked to speak with Colonel O'Neill," Schwartz began. "Because the President's solution may affect him as well." Sam tilted her head in confusion as she looked from Schwartz to Jack and back. "As you mentioned previously, which Doctor Frasier has confirmed, the Stargate poses no threat to your unborn child. For good measure General Amos and I also took the liberty of speaking with your staff, particularly Lt. Colonel Tutor, Mal'tec, and Ead'ogar. As we understand it, you don't typically leave the outpost do you Colonel?"
"For the most part, no Sir. Generally, the furthest I travel from the Ha'tak itself has been to the Gate. I have visited areas further out that we're in the process of exploring or cultivating though."
"But you do travel through the Gate," General Amos offered. "On what sounds like a rather regular basis."
"I have always kept the Joint Chiefs and the President informed on my Gate travels," Sam offered hastily. She didn't want them thinking that she was hiding her activities from them.
"But, you haven't informed General Hammond or the rest of the SGC about your endeavors." Sam said nothing as she continued to study Amos. Her expression did not waiver as she met Amos' eyes without flinching. "The President," Amos offered as he continued to match Sam's glare. "Was very impressed with your work Colonel. It's not every day that a human can play mediator in establishing an alliance between the Tok'ra and the Free Jaffa. Especially when many on both sides have died by the other's hand."
"And come to find out," Schwartz offered. "You have taken it upon yourself to meet with the leaders of the Free Jaffa on Dakara and the leaders of the Tok'ra on a weekly basis, not including the monthly meetings that the Jaffa and Tok'ra hold to maintain their alliance. Rumor also has it that the Tok'ra leaders have entrusted you, the only outsider in history, with the location of their hideouts each time they relocate."
"Rumor's are a fickle thing Sir," Sam offered coldly.
The two Joint Chiefs simply spared Sam a knowing smile before Amos started again. "The President would like you to continue at Eleftheria until you take maternity leave. If you choose to continue then he insists that you restrict your Gate travel, for his piece of mind if nothing else. Once you take maternity leave than we will revisit the issue; is that suitable for you?"
Sam looked to Jack quickly before looking back to the Generals. She had told them and the President that she couldn't spend her pregnancy away from Jack, that she wouldn't cut him off that way but she so wanted to keep her command; and Jack was acting awfully calm … "Yes Sir," she offered. Hopefully someone would explain what was really going on here.
"Good, now that means we just need your answer Colonel O'Neill," Schwartz said.
"I'm in. I'll need to ask the rest of SG-1 if they're up for it."
"Of course. Well then," Schwartz sighed. "General Hammond will keep us posted. Thank you for your time." The Generals all stood up and Sam and Jack were quick to follow. "We'll show ourselves out," Schwartz offered with a smile before he and the others left the deck.
Sam sat back down quietly as she waited for the sound of the front door closing. Once she heard the click she looked back to Jack to find him smiling. "Please tell me I didn't just agree to spend the rest of my pregnancy separated from you."
"You didn't," Jack offered as he leaned forward, took her face in his hands, and thoroughly kissed her.
"Jack," she asked again. Clearly he and the General's knew something she didn't and not knowing worried her.
"The President wants to expand the SG team operations. He's authorized five teams to transfer to Eleftheria on a trial run and he wants the flagship team to take the lead."
"What?"
"Apparently Eleftheria is more of a colonization than the Alpha site or something and he wants it to stay that way. The Alpha site remains hidden and Eleftheria becomes the base of operations for true colonization. Apparently he wants SG teams there for security in case anyone does learn of Ba'al's hidden location."
"But, how will SG team operations work?"
"It's your outpost Sam; you'll command SG teams too."
"But," she tried to protest.
"Somehow you and I need to work out guidelines for how we're supposed to command the SG teams together. But this is your outpost, it's your command." Jack smiled at her dumbfounded expression before he kissed her again, this time taking her breath away. "I was also told that your request for special dispensation was granted."
