AN: Well it would have been up sooner but MKH had stuff to do on my day off as we share a car so I had to handle the home schooling thing today. Here's chapter 8 a little late in the day but up campers.

Chapter 8

Harm managed to squeak out two solid weeks for Sam to recuperate before the judges were called back in to resume the trial. He'd requested Teal'c as his first witness. He was really hoping Daniel's alien buddy would finally show up with his evidence. Jack still had to take the stand of course and their strategy for redirect was to recall Sam and Daniel both in hopes of subverting their past testimony for Jack's defense.

To say Harm was being cautiously optimistic was putting things mildly. He couldn't talk to his team about the case so he wasn't bothering them by checking in other than to tell them things were going as well as could be expected. He also hoped he'd hear back from Jack's extremely shady friend. Said friend Jack had warned him, would most likely show up someplace odd to give him whatever information he had. Whatever this guy's link was, he was in the wind as fast as Harm could turn his back last time after cautioning Harm not to try to contact him… that he'd get back to him when he had something.

Harm knew better then to even ask at this point.

The morning of the resumed trial the Bailiff announced General Kerrigan was presiding.

"All present and accounted for, Commander Rabb?" Michael Kerrigan asked Harm.

"Yes sir." Harm said with a nod.

"Good. Congratulations, Colonel. I heard it's a girl." He said pleasantly to Jack. Bauer just glowered.

"Thank you, sir. She and her mom are doing well."

"Good. Good. All right," he looked down at his notes, "Docket number five oh six dash one thirty four SM dash twelve. US versus Colonel Jonathon James O'Neill resume session. You may call your first witness, Commander Rabb."

"Yes sir, I would like to call Mr. Teal'c to the witness stand, please."

General Kerrigan made a small sweeping hand gesture to Teal'c to join them in front.

Teal'c got up from his position behind Jack and walked to the designated place, then stood towering over the bailiff.

The man facing Teal'c cleared his throat nervously. "Do you swear that the evidence you shall give in the case now in hearing shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

"I will not swear on false gods." Teal'c told him in his deep rumbling voice.

The bailiff blinked at Teal'c, a bit disconcerted. Behind them, Jack suppressed an amused smile. "Then, do you swear that the evidence you shall give in the case now in hearing shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, according to your religious beliefs?" He said in a way that suggested Teal'c had made him extremely nervous but he was trying desperately not to show it.

"I have no religion to have beliefs in."

"Er… Then do you affirm that the evidence... If so, indicate your affirmation," he said, almost hopefully.

"We do not swear or affirm truth in my culture." Teal'c raised his eyebrow at this man.

Jack had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep a straight face. Even Bauer's representative seemed a bit amused and a small twitter of humor escaped her lips before she pressed them firmly together. Bauer looked like he wanted to spit nails but that was his normal face.

Kerrigan, who looked like he wasn't certain if he should grant the poor bailiff mercy or just see how this played out, leaned over. "Mr. Teal'c, in your culture, how do you assert you will tell the truth in a trial?"

"We do not have trials such as this."

"How then do you ascertain guilt?"

"Combat." Teal'c leans forward with a glint in his eye and makes contact with General Bauer.

Michael Kerrigan ran his hand over his mouth and rubbed hard a couple of times, trying desperately to keep a straight face. "Son, do you promise to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?"

"I will."

"Good enough. Let the record show the witness is sworn in." Kerrigan said. "Proceed, Commander."

"Thank you, sir." Harm approached the bench and faced Teal'c, the only indication that he was holding in laughter was a slight twitch in his eye. "Mr. Teal'c, you are a part of the military team called SG-1, correct?"

"I am."

"Your deposition states your team was captured during an operation while looking for a Goa'uld who was hiding on that planet?"

"It does."

"Could you describe the method your team was captured by."

Teal'c pondered replying with simply, 'I can' but knew that response would not help O'Neill. After the briefest pause, Teal'c spoke in his deep voice. "We were attempting to apprehend a minor Goa'uld named Met'ni who had insulated himself in a cult on the planet known by its people as Orbistus. O'Neill had secured us native clothing so that we might fit in with the common people of the planet. We were unaware the police action clearing us out of an area we were investigating was in fact a trap to capture the homeless until we were ensnared."

"Couldn't you have just overpowered them and escaped?"

"We could not. It would have given away our intent to the enemy. Our plan was to escape once the guards had lost interest in us as guards often do of homeless people."

"So you waited in the hopes of later escape."

"Indeed."

"What happened after that, Mr. Tealc?"

"We were stripped of our clothing and belongings, given disposable clothing and put upon a ship and where we were then taken off planet to another facility."

"Why didn't you resist?"

"It was our initial hope that our quarry was also with us."

"But he wasn't."

"He was not."

"And by that point you were trapped."

"Indeed."

"Dr. Jackson's testimony was that a man none of you knew tried to lay claim to Major Carter."

"Daniel Jackson is accurate."

"What would have happened had Colonel O'Neill not succeeded in getting her away from this unknown man?"

"I would have challenged the man to combat myself."

"What if you had failed?"

"That would not have happened."

"Why not?"

"Daniel Jackson and O'Neill are both formidable warriors. The man who attempted to claim Major Carter would not have been able to withstand all three of us."

"And had you been forced to you also would have had sex with Major Carter?"

"We would do what was necessary to protect each other and remain alive."

"Thank you, Mr. Teal'c. I have no further questions."

"Lieutenant Colonel Saunders, your witness." Kerrigan told her. The attractive prosecution advocate stood.

"What has been the SGC procedure when a man is missing in action in your past experience?" she asked Teal'c.

"He is declared missing within a month."

"And when no trace of him is found, how long is he searched for?"

"Actively for another three months."

"And after that?"

"It is presumed he is dead though some might volunteer to continue the search when it is an option."

"So even though officially a man is declared dead it isn't assumed he is?"

"That depends greatly upon the man in question."

"What about the men and woman on your team, Mr. Teal'c?"

"SG-1 is known for surviving unlikely odds."

"So Colonel O'Neill would have known in spite of his likely legal status that General Hammond believed he was still alive?"

"Objection! Calls for speculation."

"Sustained. Council, redirect your witness."

"My apologies. Mr. Teal'c, did General Hammond inform your team on their return that he knew you would survive?"

"He did."

"I have no further questions for this witness."

Jack savagely tossed his cover across the room and flopped face first on the couch. "Well, that sucked." He grumbled into the seat well worn by his own ass.

"It wasn't that bad." Harm told him following and discreetly averting his eyes from Sam who was sitting on the bed nursing the baby.

"Wasn't that bad… She knew exactly what button to push Harm… Damned Bauer knows I know Hammond wouldn't give up on us and that puts your defense right back at square one."

"What happened?" Sam finally asked, adjusting her shirt to cover herself.

"That slimy insufferable smug overblown piece of turd General and his counsel knew exactly what to ask Teal'c about how the SGC handles MIA."

"Oh." Sam said, her heart sinking in her chest.

"Yah so now the tribunal knows I'd know even declared KIA that there would still be people looking for us."

"Making us still in violation." Sam said softly.

Jack pointed at her and made a shooting motion. "Bingo."

"It doesn't matter." Harm told them.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked.

"Sure it does." Jack told him.

Harm shook his head. "It doesn't matter if your CO still thinks you are alive or that people would still be looking for you. If the government declares you dead, you're dead in the eyes of the law. Get some rest, Jack. You're testifying tomorrow. I need to go talk to General Hammond. Goodnight Sam." He said to her on his way out.

After Harm left, Jack was still prone on the couch. Sam looked at him for a few minutes before taking her next action.

"If you want to hold Gracie for a little bit, I can go grab us some food." Sam told Jack. They had decided calling her Janet was making them both choke up too much. So much had gone on since then. She hadn't even told her brother she was still alive yet. She didn't want him telling Pete. He'd probably long since moved on anyway. It had been almost two years. Jack called her Nugget off and on from the moment he'd first held her in his arms but Sam suspected that was to avoid saying Janet.

Jack got up and shrugged off his dress jacket. Sam pretended not to notice the ripple of muscles under his shirt as he did so. Jack gently took his daughter and looked down into her soft dark blue eyes. "What color do you think they will be Carter? Blue or brown?"

"They seem a bit light but they might darken up, sir." Sam said thoughtfully.

Jack sighed internally at her use of the honorific. He supposed it was habit. He was in his class As after all and she was in her pajamas. He cleared his throat. "You… ah… might want to change first, Carter." He said, his voice thick as he turned his body slightly away from her so he could hide his reaction to her state of undress.

"Huh? Oh! I forgot." Sam blushed. "I'll just um… yah…" She said, pointing at the bathroom and fled, grabbing a t-shirt and a pair of BDU bottoms on her way by.

Once the door was closed, Jack chuckled a little, willing his body to calm. In a conspiratorial soft voice that wouldn't carry, he said to his daughter, "Your mommy is so adorable and I love her almost as much as I love you. Don't you forget that." He told the baby with a little grin. "I hope you get your mommy's pretty blue eyes and her cute little nose." He said and bounced her gently.

Janet Grace cooed at him then burped. Jack chuckled. He couldn't imagine anyone he'd want to have a baby with more than Sam.