He sighed, but knew he had to do it. Damn, and everything had been set. He just hoped this didn't ruin things, although - it could end up being a good thing. In fact, if the man behaved it might be great.
Still, you could never predict things with Jacob. He could keep you guessing and on your toes – just like his daughter! Selmac, on the other hand, was pretty predictable. Jack wondered briefly how they kept from killing each other. He frowned. Could they kill each other? He hadn't really thought about the relationship between a snake and his host before – at least as far as the Tok'ra were concerned. He shivered slightly – he didn't really want to start.
No, the more he thought about it, the more he figured that maybe it was a good thing. Of course, that was if he could keep the man from killing him. He sighed again. Oh well, if Jacob got out of hand he'd just sick his daughter on him. He grinned, remembering how she'd dealt with her father. God, he loved that woman.
He continued down the hallway, deciding that he'd better just bite the bullet and go for it. He could only die once. Uh – well, okay, maybe he could die multiple times if there was a sarcophagus close by, or the Nox – but generally speaking it was only once.
As Jack continued in search of Jacob Carter, he had no idea that his memories were flooding back faster than he realized. For the first time since he'd started to regain a sense of self, he wasn't thinking about what he couldn't remember or who he was.
"Jacob!" He caught sight of his future – well, the grandfather of his child – and hailed him. He refused to back down. Hell, he was a black ops soldier, a Colonel, a man who had saved the universe and had lived to tell the tale – and he could also run like hell if need be. Nope – he could do this.
"O'Neill", Jacob nodded his head sharply, looking like he was the one who wanted to run. "What is it?"
Okay – so you haven't forgiven me, Jack thought. Fine! Be like that! "Uh, I just wanted to speak with you for a minute if that's okay Sir?" There- show respect but don't grovel.
"I don't really think there's anything more to say Colonel", Jacob replied, his eyes looking like they were ready to shoot nails.
Okay, Jack was really starting to get pissed off. The man was acting like he'd violated his daughter or something. She'd told him they loved each other and were planning on being together. He'd better just learn to live with it. "Actually, yes there is General", he replied in kind. He would continue to be respectful, but damn it, he was not going to act like he had something to be ashamed of, nor was he going to let the man treat him like he was a worm. He laughed – that was kind of funny – a snake treating him like a worm. "If you would come with me for a moment, I need to speak with you."
Jacob gave another sharp nod and followed Jack into an empty office. The Colonel carefully shut the door and took a deep breath. "I'm not asking this for my sake Jacob, but for your daughter's." He then went on to explain to the man what he wanted. In the end after much cajoling Jacob agreed, although he didn't look happy. Jack was pretty sure that Selmac had given him a metaphorical kick in the ass. He'd have to have a talk with that – snake – one day and thank him.
He was whistling as he drove the rental van towards one of his most favorite places in the whole world. He looked over at the people chatting to each other – his family – and smiled. This was great! He just hoped they all enjoyed his cabin as much as he did. It was a special place for him and one he wanted to share.
He knew Teal'c hadn't cared for it greatly, but he suspected that was because of the mosquitoes. Since it was November now, there were no more of the pesky bugs around so he hoped that the big man would be able to relax and enjoy.
"How long until we're there Uncle Jack?" Cassie asked from the back seat. She'd been thrilled to be invited and had amused all of them with her chatter since they left Colorado Springs, first on the airplane and then in the rental van.
"Just another few minutes Cass", he told her, looking back with a smile. He suddenly grew serious. "By the way – I did tell you that I'd have to put you in the shed to sleep, didn't I? I'm afraid there isn't room for everyone in the main house."
He practically laughed at her horrified look, although it was soon replaced by a speculative one. "You're kidding", she told him.
"Who me?" He did laugh then. "Yeah, you and your mom can share the bed in the second guest room. I'll put Daniel in the shed!"
They arrived shortly thereafter and all six of them climbed out of the van and made their way to Jack's cabin.
"It's wonderful", Sam said, standing on the back porch and looking out over the crystal blue lake. "I can't believe I didn't come here before."
"Yes – well as much as I would have liked you to come", he said, standing behind her with his arms wrapped around her. "You and I both know it would have been too dangerous. Now however", he leered playfully, "Now we can do what we want!"
"Jack", she laughed squirming out of his arms and turning to face him.
"Well?"
"Yes – but later okay?" She smiled and kissed him. After a moment more they returned to the house to help get everything put away and everyone settled. They'd promised themselves that this time was about their friends and family so they were going to play it cool – until the bedroom door closed. They agreed that it wasn't fair to make their friends feel uncomfortable.
"Uncle Jack – we have marshmallows!"
"Of course we do Cass. And chocolate and graham crackers. I mean, you can't go to a cabin in the wilds of Minnesota without making S'mores!"
"Uncle Jack – we have wine!" Janet Frasier said, lifting a bottle of her favorite red out of a brown paper bag.
"Well, you can't go to a cabin in the wilds of Minnesota without wine!" Sam answered with a grin.
They were soon all laughing and talking and having a wonderful time. That evening they played cards and ate popcorn and told stories of their time together on SG1. Of course it was the "G" rated version since Cassie was with them, but it was still fun.
"You seem to be remembering a lot more", Sam said as they lay curled up together under the covers.
"Yeah", he pulled her closer and breathed in her scent. "I think I stopped worrying about it and since then things seem to be – just there. I don't even think about what I don't remember anymore."
"I'm glad", she snuggled into him and gently kissed his shoulder, the part closest to her. "It's nice to see you back."
"Am I?" He face, illuminated by the moonlight snaking through the window, showed his uncertainty. "Sam, am I – different then before?"
She didn't answer right away, taking the time to truly think about her answer. After a moment she started to speak. "In most ways, no", she told him. "You've definitely still got your same sense of humor – which sometimes borders on painful, in case I haven't told you lately! You're still the honorable, strong man I've always known. For the most part I'd say your personality is just the same –"
"But?" he leaned up on one arm so he was able to peer down at her. "I hear a definite 'but'."
"You're happier", she said plainly. "Before – you would sometimes seem – I don't know, like you were surrounded by darkness and you let it pull you down. Now – you're almost exactly the man I remember, without that."
He smiled and pulled her to him, kissing her gently on the forehead. They remained like that, simply enjoying each other and the quiet of the cabin.
The next day dawned bright but chilly. Frost was in the air and a thick and sparkling white blanket covered everything. Jack woke up, feeling like he had finally come home – not just because he was at his cabin, but because everything was falling into place. He smiled as he watched the sleeping woman beside him. God he loved her and he knew she was the one who had brought that happiness into his life.
"Rise and shine", he sang into her ear. She twitched but then quickly returned to a deep sleep. He grinned and began the 'Jack O'Neill' wake up. Tickling her ear he watched as she twitched again. He then assaulted her toes, climbing under the covers to reach them. The shriek she let out told him that she was awake. So did the foot jammed into his nose.
"Hey!" he untangled himself from the covers and glared at her. "What was that for?"
"If you're going to tickle my feet, you'd better know that you will feel swift and painful retribution! No one tickles my feet and gets away with it!"
They eventually pulled themselves out of bed and got moving, knowing that there was a lot to do that day.
"You're sure you're okay with this?" Jack asked for the tenth time. "Cause we coulda -"
"Jack! I can't think of anything better than this. Stop worrying!"
"Okay, okay – just checking."
She sighed slightly, the hitch in her breath letting him know that she was bothered by something.
"What?" he asked gently.
"It's just – my father. I wish -"
He leaned down and kissed her. "I know", he said softly. "It'll be okay."
"But why does he have to be such a, such a -"
"Pain in the ass?"
"Yes, that."
"Sam, he loves you and worries about you. And don't worry – everything will be okay, I promise!"
For the rest of the morning everyone took it easy, reading, relaxing, playing games or taking short hikes around the lake. It wasn't until after lunch that Sam and Jack decided to get things rolling.
"I told you that there was a special event happening in town tonight." They all nodded. Jack had had everyone bring good clothes to see the local 'Thanksgiving' play in the small town a few miles from his cabin. He'd convinced them it was the thing to do at this time of year. They'd all agreed, even though most of them thought it was a bit strange that Jack would be interested in such a thing.
"I need everyone to be ready to go by about 2:30", he told them. "So we should probably start to get ready now."
"You're sure we should dress up in our fanciest clothes?" Janet asked skeptically.
"Oh yeah. This is the major event of the year around here and everyone dresses up like it was New Year's eve!"
It didn't take the guys long to change into their suits. The women, of course, took much longer. Jack helped Sam after he was ready, although he really wanted to get Janet to come in and help. She understood about all those – fashion – things. Still, Sam's smile, which she turned on him in gratitude, was worth every moment of playing the 'lady in waiting'.
There was a slight commotion in the living room and Sam went to look when Jack stopped her. "Nah – I'll look. You stay here. I don't want anyone to see you yet." He gave her a peck on the cheek. "You're too beautiful and everyone will be jealous.
She gave him a gentle shove for his comment but smiled in thanks. Although she was curious about the noise she agreed to stay in the room. He could deal with it. After a few minutes Jack came back. "Nothing", he said. "Teal'c just knocked some books off the table."
She looked at him curiously; sure he was up to something, although she couldn't figure out what. She continued to get ready.
"I'll just go and see if Michael is here yet", he told her with another kiss. "Do you want me to send Janet and Cass in?"
"Yes, I think it's time." She suddenly looked nervous. "Jack, do you think – are we doing the right thing? What about Dad?" Now she was the one beginning to have doubts.
"Sam, I promise, things will be fine! Just relax and I'll tell everyone and get Janet to come in."
As he walked out to the main room he heard a knock on the front door. Must be Michael, he thought. Mike was a friend of his from way back. He was the local priest and served a number of small communities in the area. Jack had known him long enough that he was one of the few people he'd been able to talk to after he'd lost Charlie. He sometimes thought Mike was almost as responsible as Daniel and Abydos for keeping him sane.
"Mike!" he put out his hand and shook the priest's hand. "Come on in. Everyone's here." He invited the gray haired man into his house and introduced him to everyone. "Folks, this is Father Mike, an old friend of mine. He's here to help me out." Jack then looked at the tall man standing a bit apart, a petite woman and two kids by his side. He'd briefly said hello to them when they'd arrived, but now walked up to them and spoke.
"Thank you for coming," he said smiling. "And I guess these two must be escapees from the local jail!"
The little girl smiled, although her face turned beet red. The boy – the older of the two, laughed. "No Sir. I'm Liam and this is Steph. Are you Uncle Jack?"
"That I am", he said. "Or at least I soon will be." He faced Mark again. "I hope you found us okay?"
"Yeah", Mark smiled. "We met up with Dad and Uncle George at the airport. Thank you for inviting us! It's great to meet you finally."
"We're so happy for you both", Terry told him, a big smile on her face. "It's about time Sam had someone in her life."
"Well, we're about ready to start", he told the Carters. "I look forward to spending some more time with you afterward. Just have a seat."
There were a number of confused faces all looking at him, although he was glad to see that General Hammond and Jacob both seemed relatively relaxed. He looked over at Jacob and nodded his head in gratitude. The man had come through for his daughter. For that, Jack would be eternally grateful to him. He also suspected that George had spent a lot of time on their trip together talking to his friend and pleading Jack's case.
"Uh Jack?" Daniel asked, looking around in confusion. "I thought we were going to town. What's going on and why are – all these people here?"
The Colonel looked affectionately at his friends and family in the room. They were all dressed in their finest, with Daniel, Teal'c, Jacob and Mark all in suits and George in his dress uniform. Janet, Cassie, Terry and young Stephanie all looked beautiful in fancy dresses. Jack noticed that Janet had even let Cassie wear a teeny bit of eye shadow and lip gloss. "You all look great", he said. As he was speaking he saw that Mike was putting on his robes and pulling out his bible. He knew it was time to tell everyone.
"Actually", he told his friends, "we kind of – didn't tell the truth. We're not really going into town at all. The reason I asked you all here was to help Sam and I celebrate our wedding. We thought it would be special to have our closest friends and family here with us."
There was stunned silence in the room, broken by a sudden squeal from Cassie, who ran over and threw her arms around Jack. Soon everyone was talking and hugging and congratulating him. He finally managed to catch Janet's eye. "Janet, can you and Cassie go in to see Sam. She wants you both to stand up with her. Stephanie, you wait right here and when Sam comes out you can stand up with her as well. I'd just like you to be a surprise for your aunt." This time the squeal came from Sam's niece.
"George, Teal'c, Daniel, I couldn't really pick one of you as a best man, since you're all the best as far as I'm concerned. I'd like all of you to stand with me."
He smiled as he got the grave nod from Teal'c, the teary eyes from Daniel and the 'I'd be honored son', from George. He glanced at Jacob, who still hadn't said anything although at least the guy gave him a slight smile and nod. "Jacob, you can escort Sam from the bedroom. I just have to put on some music. Daniel, in a couple of minutes you can go and tell the ladies we're ready."
"Does she know I'm here Jack?" Jacob finally spoke.
"No – I wanted it to be a surprise. It'll mean everything to her Jacob. Thank you."
Jacob looked at him speculatively and then walked over to where Jack was standing. He thrust out his hand. "No – I think you mean everything to her. I – this was a shock, and I'm sorry for the way I acted. George and Selmac both told me I was a fool and I'm afraid I have to agree. Welcome to the family Jack – I'm proud to have you as my son-in-law."
Ah crap! He'd been so sure he'd get through this whole thing without blubbering. That was Daniel's job, not his. He cleared his throat as he shook the older man's hand, and finally got out a rather strangled, "thank you Sir."
"Okay campers", he said, after that emotional little episode, "time to get this show on the road." He walked over to his stereo and put on a CD. Sam would walk down the 'aisle' (actually the hall from the bedroom) to the strains of Handel. He started the music and walked to his place in front of Mike, who was standing by the fireplace. George and Teal'c took their places by his side while Daniel and Jacob went down the hall. Stephanie also stood waiting patiently while Mark and Terry stood a bit back, their arms around each other, with Liam by their side.
Daniel knocked on the bedroom door and called in. "It's time ladies." He then smiled at Jacob and returned to the main room.
Jacob stood nervously outside the door. He was so glad he'd listened to the little voice in his head – that of his friend and lifelong companion – and to the voice of his friend George. He would never have forgiven himself if he'd missed this.
The door opened and out walked Cassie, holding a sprig greenery tied with a white ribbon. They couldn't bring flowers, but this seemed more appropriate for the cabin anyway. Cassie gave him a quick grin and walked on. She was followed by Janet, who gave him a brilliant smile. The tiny doctor knew what his presence would mean to Sam.
Then Sam came out and Jacob forgot how to breathe. His daughter was – gorgeous. Attired in a long flowing white dress, its simplicity enhanced her natural beauty. Her hair was done simply, with little bits of greenery entwined through the soft curls. Her lips were rosy and her eyes were a sparking, brilliant blue. Never had she looked more like her mother. Never had he felt so proud.
"Dad!" she breathed. "You came!"
"I couldn't miss my little girl's wedding", he said, leaning forward and giving her a careful kiss on the cheek. "You look beautiful Sammy. I'm so proud of you."
"Oh Daddy!" She leaned forward and hugged him, trying desperately not to cry and ruin her carefully applied makeup. "Thank you!"
"We'd better get going", he said gruffly. "Jack has never been known for his patience!" He held out his arm and she put her hand on it lightly.
"Dad – you and Jack -"
"Don't worry", he grinned as they began to move forward, "I won't kill him." He got serious all of a sudden and looked down at his daughter. "I'm happy for both of you, really Sam. I told him that too."
By the time she reached Jack she was beaming with joy even though a few small tears had escaped and had made a small path down her face. She couldn't have cared about them. She was happy – surrounded by her family and marrying the man she loved.
As they reached the main room she saw her niece standing by a man in robes and glanced over to see the rest of her family. She smiled at them all, feeling the tears well up again. Next she saw Daniel and Teal'c and General Hammond. Finally, her eyes touched the man she loved more than anything in this world.
Jack was looking at her with an expression she'd never seen before. Her breath caught at the wealth of love and – awe – she saw on his face. She was startled as well to see the tears gather in his eyes. He was not someone to ever cry – and it overwhelmed her to see the emotion on his face right now.
When she reached him he glanced at Jacob and smiled, he then put out his hand and took hers in his warm clasp. She had finally arrived.
After the ceremony Jack cracked open bottles of champagne and toasts were made. They let Cassie have a small sip under the careful eye of Janet. The two younger children each had a glass of ginger ale served in champagne glasses.
"I can't believe you pulled this off Jack", Daniel told him. "I didn't suspect a thing."
"Hey, I wasn't black ops for all those years for nothing you know!" O'Neill exclaimed. "We wanted it to be a surprise", he said. "We didn't want to make a big thing of it, especially with the Air Force being a little unhappy with us, although the real reason was we just wanted to share this with a small group of our closest friends and family! And we wanted to party!"
And party they did. Jack had even made sure they had some dance music even though the men outnumbered the women. At one point everyone was dancing except for Daniel and Teal'c, who stood by watching.
Daniel could feel his friend's eyes on him and turned to look. Teal'c was looking at him speculatively. "What?" he said. All he got in return was an eyebrow. "There is no way I'm dancing with you Teal'c", he told the other man. "So don't be looking like that at me."
Teal'c shrugged and then turned his face to the dancers. Daniel shook his head. He really had to find himself a girlfriend or maybe better yet, a girlfriend for Teal'c.
"Where are you going to put everyone Jack", Daniel asked him later on that evening. "Your place is a bit crowded."
"Yeah – well Mark and Terry are going to stay in my room and we've got air mattresses for the kids. They can stay in here. I've arranged for George and Jacob to stay with Michael – he's coming over in a little while to pick them up."
"So where are you guys gonna stay?"
"I've booked a room at a lodge a few miles from here. It's just for tonight but I figured it is our wedding night so we should go somewhere a bit special."
"Good", Daniel grinned and then patted Jack on the back. "We're happy for you guys! It's about time you got your act together and did this thing!"
Everyone stayed for a few days to enjoy time together and to celebrate Thanksgiving. Mark and his family moved into the lodge while Jack and Sam returned to the cabin. It was a time for family and friends – and for a true giving of thanks for what they had all received.
They'd been married now for a couple of months and, at almost seven months pregnant, Sam was really starting to show. She was back to work full-time in the labs even though she no longer went off world. So far she didn't seem to be missing it.
Jack had been filling in at the SGC more and more even though he was still only part-time. His memory, except for a few things, had almost completely returned. Every once in a while things would catch him up, but for the most part he was back to normal. He still felt more content than he could remember feeling for years, and had decided to simply accept all that had happened and take the good that had come from it.
The one bad thing which remained was his lack of self-confidence in his leadership and soldiering abilities. He knew he'd lost his 'edge' and for that reason didn't think he could ever go out in the field again or truly lead a team. For a while it hadn't bothered him, but lately he was starting to feel like he needed something, some purpose in life or he'd start to get bored.
George had been called up to DC for a meeting with some of the Generals there, and he'd asked Jack to hold the fort for a few hours. Some kind of bug was going around and they were short on senior staff. Since few teams were off world, and the universe had been rather calm lately, he figured he would do it. If worse came to worse he could harass Walter for a while or maybe play some golf again through the wormhole.
He grinned at that memory, glad that he hadn't lost it. Of course, he wouldn't actually do it, knowing that this time there would be consequences. Still, it was nice to contemplate. He could also call Sam up to the Control Room and dip her like he'd done before. It probably wasn't the most professional thing to do, but at least he wouldn't get in trouble for it. Except maybe from Sam, he frowned. She might give him a hard time over it since she was very conscious of her position here, especially now that she was pregnant and no longer on the front line.
Oh well, there must be something he could do, he thought as he twirled around on George's chair.
At that precise moment he heard the gate start to dial and the announcement of an unauthorized off world activation. He stopped the chair and frowned. He had to think who it could be. There were three teams off world and none were expected back anytime soon. Hoping that it wasn't anything more serious than that they had forgotten their grocery list, or someone needed to use the bathroom, he made his way to the Control room.
"Who is it, do we know?" he asked Walter.
"Not yet Sir – wait, it's SG9."
"SG9? But they just left an hour ago. What the hell's happened?" he said, more to himself than to Walter.
Jack watched as the chevrons continued to light up. Finally, the wormhole 'kawooshed' open and settled back into its flat and swirling normality. Everything was still in the Gate room as the SF's as well as the two men looking down through the glass held their breaths.
Chaos erupted as uniformed men came running through the event horizon, shouting to 'shut the gate!' Walter's hand was already hitting the control when a whole group – it was impossible to say how many at first count – came running after the SG team.
The sound of weapons' fire filled the room, along with the sounds of men screaming in either pain or rage, Jack couldn't tell which. He hit the emergency klaxon and called for reinforcements. He hadn't needed to say anything to Walter, who had already hit the controls to shut the door to the Gate room.
Unfortunately one of the intruders, who seemed to be winning the battle below, looked up and noticed the men behind the glass. He shouted something to his companions and ran through the closing door, closely followed by one other intruder.
"Crap! Walter, get out of here. I'll try and hold them off. Let the Pentagon know and that we have a wildfire situation."
"Yes Sir", the Sergeant got out of his chair quicker than Jack thought possible. "What about you Sir?"
Jack grabbed a weapon from the weapons cupboard. "Just go Sergeant."
Just then the first alien burst into the room.
"Not a smart move whoever you are", Jack cried as he shot his zat. The man/alien/whatever fell to the ground. He was quickly followed by his companion. "Okay – definitely not smart!"
By this time reinforcements had arrived and he instructed his men to secure the aliens he'd hit. He then raced towards the Gate room, followed by two SF's. Just outside the door he ran into Teal'c and Daniel and – "What the hell are you doing here Major", he practically shouted at Sam. "Get the hell out of here."
Sam looked like she was about to argue when it hit her. What was she doing here? She put her hand on her stomach protectively and retreated back the way she'd come. All she could think of was that she'd put her baby in jeopardy and that Jack was still in danger. God, she hoped he could deal with it.
And he did. Although the battle was messy for a while, they eventually managed to contain the aliens who were, as Jack had said, not particularly bright, although they were ferocious. Unfortunately one man was critically injured, four others received serious wounds and three more just had superficial damage. After everything had been cleaned up, the wounded taken to the infirmary, the Gate secured and the aliens placed in the brig, Jack was able to head back to Hammond's office and sit down. He would have to go to the Infirmary to check on his people, but he needed a moment to recover.
God – this had been the first bit of action he'd had since Mariscola and he felt – exhausted. At the same time, however, he felt like he'd gotten his old self back. He'd reacted quickly and decisively and they'd ended up winning the day. He knew they weren't the most brilliant of opponents, but that often didn't matter. Even stupid people could do a lot of harm.
It took him a moment to identify the ringing in his ears as the phone. He reached over and picked it up, not surprised to hear Hammond's voice – although he was surprised the man was calling on the red phone.
"General. What's up Sir?"
After a few moments Jack sat up straight and coughed. "Sorry Sir! I'm just – well, everything's fine and I was just resting for a moment before heading to the Infirmary. I know – Janet thinks he'll pull through. I was about to head to the Infirmary to check on everyone." There was a pause as Jack listened to the General and then, "thank you Sir. I didn't want you to come home and find things a mess."
After he had hung up Jack took a deep breath, stretched, and went to find out how his people were doing. Next he'd go see Sam. He was not looking forward to that conversation.
"He's asked me to be his XO", he told her. It had been ten days since the attack in the gate room and Jack had been going in every day to check on things and fill out reports. That was one aspect he hadn't missed.
"What?" Sam would have sat up quickly, although she wasn't doing anything quickly these days. They'd talked about her little jaunt to the Gate room and she'd admitted that she hadn't even thought about what she was doing.
"You know I'd never intentionally put the baby at risk Jack", she'd said. "I just didn't think."
"You? Not think?" He grinned slightly but then grew serious. "Carter, you have to think. Not only could you have put yourself and the baby at risk, you're vulnerable right now and that can make it hard for the people around you. They don't need to be worrying about you when they're dealing with an outside threat. Besides that, the enemy can also use you. I – don't ever do something like that again!"
She bowed her head, which surprised him. This is the first time he'd spoken harshly to her, as a superior to a subordinate since they'd returned from Mariscola, and he figured she wouldn't like it. When she didn't say anything more he frowned. "Sam?"
"No Sir, I won't," was all she said. She then gave him a small smile. "It's okay Colonel. You had a right to reprimand me. As long as you leave the Colonel O'Neill in the mountain when we go home I don't have trouble with it."
He came back to the present to see her staring at him.
"His XO? Are you going to take it?" Sam was surprised. She'd kind of come to the conclusion that Jack wasn't going to go back full time. Since the alien incursion though, he'd been a different person. She'd seen the old Jack O'Neill – witty, sarcastic, funny and very much a leader – come back in full force. She was glad – she's always found that side of him to be very sexy.
"I think so", he told her. "I don't want to go off world so much anymore, not with a kid on the way. This will give me a chance to stay involved and hey, I might still get to go off world sometime."
So, in the end, he'd taken the job and was back to work full-time. She knew that Hammond was pleased as could be to have Jack back – and this time the Colonel was able to give more assistance to the day to day running of the place. The General was smart however. He made sure Jack got to do things like training and the occasional off world mission – just enough to keep him happy.
"Jack." He felt something push against his side.
"Hmmm?"
"Jack." Someone was singing, which confused him. Why would anyone be singing Sam's name? "Come on Jack, it's time to go."
He opened one bleary eye and stared sideways at the woman in bed with him. She was sitting up, holding her stomach and she was all dressed.
"What time is it?" he asked finally. Surely it couldn't be morning already?
"It's 2:00 am. Jack, I need you to take me to the hospital. The contractions are coming five minutes apart."
Oh hell! Why didn't she say something? He jumped out of bed, suddenly feeling wide awake. "I'll get your suit -"
"It's already downstairs. I couldn't sleep so I got everything ready. All you have to do is get dressed and drive me there."
He could do that. He could defeat aliens, travel through stargates, ride a horse, make really good pancakes. Yeah, he could drive her to the hospital to have their baby.
"Okay Sam – push." Her midwife helped guide her through the last bit of labor. Jack had stayed by her side the whole time and Daniel and Teal'c and Janet had made the odd appearance, offering support and encouragement. It was Jack however, that made her believe she could do this, no matter how hard.
But that was her husband, she thought as she rested briefly from pushing. He had always given her confidence. She was who she was today because of him. She began to push and with a burning and a rush of fluid, their baby was born. She couldn't help but smile as she heard the tiny but powerful voice of her child. Yes, and because of Jack O'Neill, she was now a mother."
"Would you like to hold your son", a gently weeping Jack O'Neill gently laid the warm little body against her stomach. He covered the baby with a warmed blanket and then reached down to kiss his wife tenderly. "He's beautiful", he whispered. "Thank you."
He watched as he wife fed their new son, her expression one of amazement and joy. He thought back to this long journey and knew now that it had all been worth it. Mariscola was now a distant memory but that was okay. He now had new memories to make. He was home.
The End
Thank you, as always, to my many loyal and wonderful readers. You're amazing! Now, on to 'The Mission' and then to 'Absence of Malice'.