I do not own anything. If you recognize it, it is not mine.
Hope you are doing okay.
Response to reviews: No, Laura cannot see Sam's dreams, that was a suggestion in one of the reviews, but there is something Laura is still hiding (there was a hint a while back) and the story will get darker as we go along.
Please review and Happy New Year!
"Good morning, how did you sleep?" Laura asked, handing Sam her coffee and then sitting on the chair next to her.
"Good, good." Sam murmured in response, looking down into her cup.
"Any interesting dreams?" Laura asked, raising an eyebrow.
Sam immediately looked up, her eyes wide in shock as the blush started creeping up her cheeks. A frown appeared on her forehead as she tried to find the words. "Uh-ehm…What?"
"You might have been talking in your sleep." Laura said carefully, knowing very well she was threading on dangerous ground.
"Right…" Sam whispered, taking another mouthful of the delicious coffee. "About?" She whispered softly.
"You don't remember?" Laura asked, clearly worried.
"Ah…" Sam hesitated for a moment, not wanting to talk about it, but at the same time refusing to put Laura through more stress. "I do. I'm just not sure how to interpret what I remember."
"Go on." Laura tried to encourage her, but Sam still looked very unsure. Squashing down the urge to speak, Laura tried to give Sam the space to say something. There was a long silence.
"I don't know where to start." Sam finally admitted, laying her hands on the table, her eyes glued to them. "I'm just so confused."
"Why don't I bring us something nice to eat and we have girls' night out, well, more like girls' breakfast in?" Laura offered, quickly standing up.
"Sure." Sam shrugged, not moving a muscle until she heard Laura's footsteps getting closer. A plate of muffins landed in front of her as Laura took seat again. "Thanks." Sam said with a sad smile.
"You okay?" Laura wanted to know, laying her hand over Sam's, giving it a little reassuring squeeze.
"Yeah." Sam breathed out, still not looking at Laura.
"Sam?" Laura grabbed one of the chocolate muffins and took a bite. "Hm. It's good. You should try some. Sam, hey, look at me." Laura said, in a gentle warm tone.
When Sam finally did make eye contact, Laura's heart jumped at the sadness that was displayed in those bright blue eyes. She knew something was up, but couldn't imagine Sam felt so hopeless.
"What is it, Sam?" Laura put the muffin down and washed the last bite of it down with some tea. "Talk to me, Sam, please."
"I'm not sure… The memory is all jumbled up, but I can feel enormous sadness and guilt." Sam took a little sip from her cup, her hand visibly shaking. "The colonel, I mean, the general was lying on the floor, unresponsive. We were dressed for a mission, but were standing in this odd empty room. I felt scared, but I'm not sure exactly why. I just know how horrible I felt."
"It must have been very scary to see someone so close to you unconscious. Not knowing if he's alright or what to do."
"Yeah." Sam reached for one of the muffins, broke off a little piece and put it in her mouth. "You're right, they taste really good." She said, her smile still only half genuine. It was obvious she had a lot on her mind.
"Sam, don't avoid talking about your memories. It'll make your recovery easier and smoother."
"But that's the thing, I don't even know which are my memories and which are only my dreams or nightmares. What if I were to share something that hadn't happen and made everyone uncomfortable?"
"Sam, you've known each other for a long time. Been through so much together. They won't run away." Laura said. "And you can't." She added, in a stern tone of voice that made Sam shiver slightly. "And by the way I won't run away either. I'll always be here for you."
Sam gave Laura a little smile, calmed down by the change of Laura's tone. She took a deep breath and continued. "In the memory, or the nightmare, he wasn't just unconscious, but catatonic." Sam clarified, her voice betraying how upset she felt. "Seeing someone in such state, not moving, just staring into space, it was… He looked like he'd died." Sam closed her eyes at that image. When she felt for his pulse, she found it racing. Still scared for his life, she instructed Daniel to dial them out immediately and helped Teal'c with getting O'Neill back to the SGC. But that was nothing compared to the panic she felt when he was leaving to the eight-chevron address and Hammond refused to give him the remote code device.
"I'm sorry you went through that." Laura said, hugging Sam tightly. Sam's sharp gasps and soft hitches in her breath made Laura freeze in her place, as the realization that Sam was crying hit her. "It's okay, I'm here for you." She assured Sam.
"It might have been just a nightmare, I don't remember what happened to him and why he was leaving. As I said, it felt like a nightmare." Sam pulled away from Laura, brushing off her tears and sniffling a little.
"I can still be sorry you went through that, no?" Laura whispered, looking into Sam's teary eyes.
Sam chuckled, the happiness finally reaching her eyes. "Yeah, I guess."
"Want another muffin? Or a doughnut?" Laura asked with a mischievous smile on her face.
"I haven't even finished this one. So no, thank you."
"So you won't even want another cup of coffee?" Laura said, getting up to get herself more tea.
"Oh no, I definitely want some more coffee." Sam giggled, hurriedly finishing her coffee and handing Laura the cup.
"What a surprise!" Laura rolled her eyes.
"Hey I don't drink that much coffee. Definitely not as much as my dad used to before Selmak…" Sam retorted, speaking more to herself than to Laura who was quite far away now.
"You see, you're remembering things." Laura shouted to her.
"Oh yeah. I guess I do." Sam took a deep breath and relaxed, waiting for her coffee. Maybe she'd be alright. "Hey, how much longer do you think the guys are going to be?"
"Don't know. Why? Are you missing him?" Laura asked, careful of the two cups she was carrying.
"Hm…" Sam answered, absent-mindedly before the question properly caught up with her. "What?"
"Are you missing them already?" Laura pretended to repeat the question.
Sam narrowed her eyes, slightly suspicious and equally confused. "I like your company if that's what you're asking. I'm just wondering about Earth and SGC. I mean, they have all the reports the col- the general was sending, why does the briefing take so long?"
"Bureaucracy, right?" Laura shrugged her shoulders and picked up her half-eaten muffin. "Let's just enjoy the meal. Oh!"
A loud beep emanating from her bracelet caught their attention.
"Speaking of the devil…" Laura smiled, quickly scanning the device. "They're sending a message, asking to be beamed aboard."
"Just in time for food and coffee? Why does that not surprise me?" Sam laughed out loud, waiting for them to appear in the room. They both looked less relaxed than she expected them to.
"Hello, ladies! How are you doing?" O'Neill's voice rang loud through the kitchen. He was dressed in a black version of SG uniform, his posture exuding charisma and confidence.
"Hello." Sam greeted them as Laura ran towards them to steal a hug.
"Greetings." Teal'c offered, obviously surprised by Laura's embrace as his eyebrow showed.
"How did the meetings go?" Laura inquired, after a short hug with O'Neill. She'd thought he was reserved and tense, but maybe he was just exhausted. Or she was mistaken.
"You were gone for longer than we'd thought you'd be." Sam noted, then continued drinking her coffee.
"Yeah, everyone just kept talking and talking." O'Neill threw his hands in the air, looking increasingly more annoyed. "Anyway, what were you doing up here?"
"Sleeping and eating and drinking." Laura smiled, with a smirk on her face.
"Want to join us?" Sam offered, finally finishing her muffin.
"There's some coffee left." Laura told them, pulling the plate with the muffins closer to her and Sam.
"Just coffee?" O'Neill asked, already salivating at the prospect of something sweet.
"For you? Yes!" Laura raised both her eyebrows, giving her father a smug smile.
"That is most unfortunate, Laura." Teal'c answered in a very serious tone, slowly walking towards the table.
"Maybe there is something left in the fridge, I don't know." Laura added, in a non-committal, casual way and locked eyes with Sam. Both women shared a smile.
"Let me see." O 'Neill was rubbing his hands together as he walked towards the fridge. The day finally got a little better.
"Teal'c, there are those doughnuts with sprinkles you like. You interested?"
"Indeed." Teal'c bowed and took his place at the table, next to Laura.
"What were you doing when general was in the top secret meetings, T?" Laura asked, making an effort to continue the conversation. Something seemed off, but she didn't know what.
"I paid Daniel Jackson a brief visit. He seemed extremely busy." The Jaffa said, shaking his head in disapproval.
"How is he?" Sam asked, holding the cup of hot coffee close to her chest. For some reason she suddenly felt very cold.
"Disappointed he couldn't come with us." Teal'c explained, accepting a mug from O'Neill.
O'Neill put his cup down as well, going back for the food. In a minute he returned with a plate of doughnuts for Teal's and a piece of cake for himself.
"Why couldn't he come?" Laura said, frowning.
"He's buried under some much paperwork and so on… He couldn't make it." O'Neill said, his eyes locked with the chocolate cake on his plate.
"That's too bad." Sam interjected, studying the general's face.
"He sends his regards." Teal'c said, taking another doughnut.
"Yeah, he was looking forward to seeing you again as well, Sam." O'Neill said, wanting to make absolutely sure Sam knew that. It still felt odd calling her that, even though he used to call her that in the early days of SG-1. It brought smile to his face that she looked so healthy now. He'd seen her too close to death too many times.
"What else you learned?" Laura asked, but noticed the general didn't seemed to realize he was asking him. "Jack, what else you learned on Earth?" Their eyes met, both clearly uncomfortable at the first name basis.
"They want to talk to you, in person." O'Neill told Laura, his attention on the cake. His shoulders were slightly slumped and there was a definite tension in the air.
"Sure." Laura nodded, expecting this.
"And they want Sam to go to their infirmary." The general shrugged, taking the last mouthful of his cake. He seemed desperate at that thought.
"She still needs to be here..." Laura said, and seeing how Jack was preparing to object, she quickly spoke again. "I'll explain it to the SG leadership when I meet them, if necessary."
"Right." Jack said, in a very short, stern manner.
"Oh, Teal'c, let me get you some tretonin, while you're here." Laura finished her coffee and got up.
"I'll go with you, Laura. I'm actually quite full and I think a walk is in order."
"Bye, kids." O'Neill shouted after them, turning to Sam afterwards. "How are you feeling, Sam?"
"I'm okay." She said, avoiding his gaze. Throwing the ponytail over her shoulder, she grabbed a few rogue strands of her blond hair and hooked it behind her ear. She liked having her hair so long, she could do that, but now she'd really welcome the opportunity to hide behind a few locks. She still teared up very easily.
"Laura doesn't think so…" O'Neill pointed out.
Finally she looked at him, his brown eyes looked sad and on top of that, he was frowning.
"It's just one of those things…" Sam fiddled with one of the buttons on her jacket, feeling pretty talked out after the conversation with Laura.
"Tell me." He saw her surprise at his approach. He knew he was the one usually avoiding this kind of talks, but Sam seemed on edge. Or maybe he was on edge due to the day he'd been having.
"There was this thing that grabbed your head and hurt you really badly." Sam whispered. "I think." She added, very scared she analyzed her memories wrong or made up something and he'd think that she way going crazy.