The small group arrived at Teegan's village early the next morning. Sam and Jack had sat up for several hours talking. Neither one was for sure what to expect, but they'd agreed they were in this together. Sam wondered how long it would take for them to start noticing symptoms of the bonding. Intrigued, Jack convinced her to try and read his mind. After making her try for the tenth time, Sam finally told him to go to sleep.
Sam wasn't for sure what to expect once they reached the village, but something out of the the legend of Robin Hood's Sherwood Forrest was certainly not it. Several small cottages had been designed to blend into the forest. Had they not been traveling with Teegan and the other villagers, she would have walked right past. But then, that was the point.
Bettany had shown them to a small cottage slightly away from the others. During their time here, this was the space she and Jack would share. Bettany had also asked several of the women to loan Sam a few dresses. Taking a few minutes to wash up, Sam changed into a pretty red peasant-style dress. Jack also washed up, but opted to change into the spare fatigues he kept in his day pack. She laughed at his look of relief from being back in his own clothes.
Currently, they were on their way to talk to several of the village elders about the bonding process. Teegan met them outside of what Sam considered the community gathering place.
"I trust the accommodations are acceptable?" Teegan asked.
"Very," Sam answered, "thank you."
"So what happens now?" Jack asked.
"Now the elders grant you permission to marry. Assuming there are no objections, we will complete the ceremony this evening, so your slave cuff may be removed," Teegan said.
Wow, that's fast.
"Having second thoughts?" Sam asked Jack.
"What? No," he replied giving her a weird look.
She cocked her head at him, but let it go. Stepping back, Jack let her step through the door first.
Damn, you ass looks amazing in that dress.
"Sir! Jack!" She sprang around.
"What?" He looked surprised and confused at her outburst.
"You just said my butt looks amazing," She told him in a hushed tone.
"No I didn't!" He protested.
"Yes, you did! I heard you," she placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.
"No I—" his eyes grew round, "thought it."
"That's a little inappropriate, don't you think?" She was still glaring at him.
"Sam," he shook his head at her. "First, we are going to be married by the end of the day, and you're upset I think your ass looks good? And second, you just heard my thoughts, how cool is that!" Jack looked like a kid on Christmas morning. "Can you hear me now?" He asked her.
"No," she said in an exasperated tone, but was slightly disappointed that she couldn't.
"I can see the bonding has already begun," an elderly male voice said behind them. Turning around Sam came face-to-face with three older Creetions. Teegan stood to their right; trying to hide his smile.
"I suppose it has," Sam admitted with a shrug.
"Hello," Jack waved his fingers at them.
"You are correct, Teegan, she is bold," the same elder said.
"Thank you," Sam told him.
"It was not meant as a compliment," he pinned her with a cool stare.
"Hey now," Jack took a step forward, "that's my future wife you're talking about. I happen to like her boldness."
"You are also right about him; they do seem like a perfect match," another elder said. "I am Simao, this is Jalen and Onack," he introduced them. "We are the civilian leaders of this village."
"We are the ones who approve or deny a request for marriage," Simao, the first elder, said, "however it appears that you have already began the bonding process." He cut his eyes at Teegan.
"Fortunately," Onack said, "you appear to be a good match."
"That's good," Jack said, but his voice sounded wary.
"You still must complete the first part of the of the ceremony and allow the gods to assess your compatibility," Onack told him.
"How do we do that?" Sam asked cautiously.
"Come, we will show you," Teegan motioned them all further into the structure.
At the very front of the large area sat two chairs placed a few feet apart, facing one another.
"Please sit," Onack instructed them. He handed them each a white sphere. "These are Creetion truth orbs. They are designed to detect when you are telling the truth, a partial truth, or a lie. In order to gain our approval to continue with the bonding, you must turn the orb green with your answers to each question. The orbs detect conscious and unconscious thoughts, so you may be facing some of your own personal truths and lies as well."
"What happens if we don't pass?" Jack asked.
"Then we cannot approve the marriage ceremony." Was Onack's answer.
"Got it, no pressure," Jack tried to smile at Sam, but she could tell he was nervous. So was she.
"Let us begin," Onack nodded to Simao.
"What are your names?"
"Jack O'Neil."
"Samantha Carter."
Both orbs turned a vibrant green.
"Have you slept with one another yet?"
They both answered "no" and the orbs turned green again.
It was Jalen's turn, "Do you wish to enter into this bond with the other?"
"Yes," Jack's orb turned green.
"Yes," Sam's orb turned green.
"Why?" Jalen asked.
"To save Sam," Jack's orb turned yellow.
"That is a half-truth," Onack told him.
"To save Sam, but also because I like the idea of being her husband," the orb turned green.
Sam eyes clouded as she saw the truth in Jack's answer. He really was bonding with her because he wanted too.
"Sam?" Onack prompted.
"Because I want to be his wife," her orb turned yellow. "Also to save myself," her orb stayed yellow.
"You need to be completely honest with yourself and us," Teegan told her.
"Sam," Jack told her softly, "just tell the truth, I can take it."
"I'm tired of dealing with the rules and regulations, and I think this will be our way of getting around it," her orb still remained yellow. "For crying out loud," she muttered drawing a small smile from Jack at her use of his favorite expression.
"Fine," she huffed, "I really want to experience the fire at the end of the bonding, but only with Jack," she felt her face heat as she spilled her most intimate secret. Her orb turned a vibrant green.
When she finally gained enough courage to look at Jack, he had the biggest, stupidest grin on his face. Then he winked at her and she felt her face inflame again. This was so not the fire she was talking about.
Onack cleared his throat to regain their attention and continued. "What is the one thing you are afraid to tell the other?"
"I think I just answered that," Sam's orb turned green.
"Really?" Jack looked shocked. "You were afraid to tell me you wanted me?"
Sam just nodded. The look on Jack's face was a mixture of incredible tenderness and understanding.
"Jack?" Onack prompted.
"What happened to me while I was a prisoner," his orb turned red.
"Either you are lying or not being honest with yourself," Onack told him.
"Everything that Ba'al did to me while he held me captive," his orb turned yellow.
"Jack?" Sam asked questioningly.
"While Ba'al had me, killing me over and over, I wanted to stay dead. Every time he revived me, my first thought was of you," he looked at Sam, and the sadness she saw made her breath stop. "Eventually, I started dreading thinking about you because it meant Ba'al was going to inflict more pain. At the very end, right before I was able to escape, I started to hate the thought of you," he said softly. "Ba'al sullied the one pure thing I was willing to fight for." Jack's orb turned green as Sam felt a single tear fall down her cheek.
"I don't feel that way now," Jack hurriedly told her, his orb remaining green.
"It's okay," she told him gently. "I understand."
Glancing at the council, Sam realized that they had all been moved by Jack's answer.
"What is the one thing you want the other person to know?" Jalen asked.
"How much I love him," Sam's orb flashed green. Gone were the remnants of pain in Jack's eyes, and in its place was a look of happiness. It did not escape Sam that this was the first time she had said she loved Jack aloud.
"Jack?" Jalen prompted him.
"That what I told her last night was the truth. I'd bond with her even if I didn't need to," Jack's orb also flashed to green.
"You are doing well," Onack told them. "What is your greatest regret?"
"Charlie," Jack choked out at the memory of his son. His orb flashed green.
"Who is Charlie?" Onack asked.
When Jack didn't immediately respond, Sam answered "his son."
"He died several years ago," Jack said sadly. "His death was why I took the first mission through the Stargate."
"Is it safe to say that if Charlie had not died, you would never have met Sam?" Onack pushed.
"Hey!" Sam glared at Onack as she realized where his question was leading, "watch it."
"I only meant to point out that the death of his son set him on the path to you; perhaps some good came from it," Onack reasoned.
"I'd give anything to have my son back," Jack's voice was filled with emotion as his orb turned green.
"So would I, Jack, even if it meant giving you up," Sam's orb turned green.
Jack nodded at her, letting her knew he understood what she was saying. No matter how much she loved him, because of how much she loved him, she'd always wish for the life he could have had with his child.
"Sam, What is your greatest regret?" Onack continued the questioning.
"I don't know," her orb turned yellow. "I think I'm afraid that I haven't realized my biggest regret, yet. What if I didn't take an opportunity because I was chasing something, someone who was unattainable." Her orb turned green. The look on Jack's face told her he knew she was talking about him.
"What do you think is each other's greatest strength?" Simoa asked.
"Her intelligence," Jack said without hesitation, his orb turning green.
"His mind," Sam said, her orb also turning green. At Jack's stunned expression, she just shrugged. "It's your mind that gives you your sense of humor, your compassion, your intelligence. I couldn't pick just one."
"Can I change my answer?" Jack asked and Sam laughed.
"What do you think is each other's greatest weakness?"
"She doesn't have one," Jack's orb turned red.
At the same time Sam said, "he doesn't have one." Her orb turned red.
"Interesting that this is the question where you would both try to hide your feelings," Jalen looked intrigued. "This is typically one of the easier questions."
"Ok fine," Jack said, "it's that she sometimes forgets that those of us with normal intelligence can't keep up with her. I hate always having to ask for a dumbed down explanation." His orb turned green.
"I didn't realize I did that," Sam said trying to hide how much she was angry at herself for not realizing what she had been doing. Unfortunately, her orb turned yellow. "Crap," she muttered, drawing a chuckle from Jack.
"It's okay, Sam," he told her. "I've learned to deal with it." His orb flashed to green.
"I guess deep down I know I'm doing it. I think I use my intelligence as a type of buffer," she said as her orb turned green. Huh, maybe she'd actually learned something from all of this, she thought.
"Sam?" Jalen drew her attention back as she realized she still hadn't answered the question.
She took a deep breath as she realized there was no use in trying to hide. "His stubbornness, especially when he makes a command decision that I question," her orb flashed yellow. "Sometimes he lets things get in the way of his good judgement, but his stubbornness prevents him from realizing it until it's too or almost too late." Her orb flashed to green.
The look on Jack's face was guarded. Sam knew that by revealing the truth, she was questioning his command capabilities in front of people. Given the fact that he was her commanding officer, it was almost crossing a line.
"It's okay," Jack finally said, but his orb flashed red. "Dammit."
"Jack, I'm sorry," her orb flashed green.
"Before we will authorize your marriage, you must work through this," Onack told them.
Jack took in a deep breath and released it slowly. Looking her straight in the eye he said, "I'm not happy about what you said, and as my subordinate it was out of line. However, as my future wife, I want you to call me out whenever you think I'm being too stubborn. Just not in front of anyone in our chain-of-command." He orb flashed green.
Before Sam could say anything, Onack spoke. "We have seen enough," Taking the orbs from both of them and motioning them to stand up. "You two are approved to continue the bonding by completing the marriage ceremony."
"That's it?" Jack asked, taking Sam's hand and exiting the structure. She could feel how tense he was, but whether it was from their conversation or just the situation in general, she couldn't tell. Dang now would be a good time to hear his thoughts.
"For now," Teegan clapped Jack on the back.
Bettany ran to them and pulled Sam into a tight hug. "I'm so happy for you," she said.
"If you knew we had to be approved for the bonding, why'd you give us your cuffs last night?" Sam asked her.
"Since you are not from Creetia, we didn't want to risk the council turning you away. Once you began the bonding, it made it much harder for them to disapprove," Teegan explained. "The council is strict, but they are not cruel."
"So what next?" Jack asked.
"Now we get you two married," Teegan grinned.