Chapter 2
A week had passed and the family had settled into their new home. Sarah had gone to work leaving Jackie and Charlie to tend to the household chores. Today they decided to tackle the attic on the third floor that doubled as Paul Langford's private office. They had removed all the dust covers and began to clean and sort. Jackie came to the mirror and sprayed it down with some cleaner. She wiped it off expecting to see a clear and shiny image of her own reflection. Instead, she saw the reflection what appeared to be the inside wall of a cave. She made a confused face. "Hey Charlie! Look at this."
Charlie stopped what he was doing and went over to the mirror. He found no reflection which was odd. "Man…that's strange."
"Weird." she agreed. She reached up and touched the mirror again and suddenly she and Charlie were both standing in a cave. The looked about rather alarmed.
Charlie asked, "What just happened?"
"I don't know." she shrugged. She looked at the mirror and this time they saw their reflections. She looked around her, "We're not in the attic anymore." She started towards the mouth of the cave and Charlie followed.
They quickly found they were on the side of the large hill over looking what appeared to be stone ruins below. Not far from the ruins was a large round stone ring standing on a stone platform.
Charlie smirked, "I don't think we are in Kansas anymore." He referred to a movie line.
"No shit, Toto." she smirked back. She looked about, "I don't see anyone else around, do you?"
"I don't see anyone." he agreed.
"Let's go check it out." she suggested.
Charlie warned, "We don't even know where we are."
"Only way to find out is to look." she reminded him.
The pair carefully made their way down the side of the hill to the ruins below. They looked upon the stone structures. Charlie noticed strange markings. "What ya think of this?" he pointed.
She guessed, "Maybe a language? Greek, Latin…something like that." She continued to walk about gazing at the ruins.
As the pair explored they heard a grinding noise coming from the nearby ring. They walked closer to see the commotion. They noticed the inner ring move back and forth and chevrons on the outer ring would lock into place. Suddenly, the from the middle of the ring a wave water erupted and then fell back into the stone ring creating what much like a swimming pool but standing on its side.
Jackie and Charlie traded glances. Charlie stated, "Hide!"
The pair quickly ran for cover near a tree line at the base of the hill. They then watched as four figures emerged from the event horizon before them.
Colonel Jack O'Neill was the last one to emerge after Major Samantha Carter and SG-1. Jack looked about the scene and sighed, "More trees, Carter."
"Trees are good, sir." she reminded him. "Means we can breathe." She started towards the ruins with Daniel mere steps before her.
Teal'c paused for he got a strange feeling. He felt as if he was being watched. He said nothing and instead began to walk a perimeter.
Jack figured it would be another boring trip through the Gate to another planet where he would spend his day guarding Sam and Daniel as they did the actual work. He looked at his wristwatch hoping he could get back in time to see the next game on television.
From behind the trees Charlie and Jackie observed. Charlie whispered, "That guy looks just like dad. That can't be dad, can it? Dad died."
She agreed, "He looks like him and that other guy looks kind of like that professor who came to the house last week bugging mom about Professor Langford's books."
Charlie squinted hard, "You're right! He does!"
From behind they heard a voice, "Do not move. Stay where you are or I shall open fire." It was Teal'c as he discovered the two teens.
Jackie and Charlie looked behind them at the same time. They spotted the large Jaffa standing over them with a military grade rifle leveled upon them.
Jackie held up her hands and Charlie followed. She stated, "Don't shoot. We are unarmed."
"Rise." he ordered. He found they were dressed like teenagers from earth sporting jeans and t-shirts with sneakers.
Both slowly rose to their feet unsure what to do next.
"Walk." Teal'c ordered and motioned for them to march towards the ruins where Jack stood on guard.
They began to walk still with hands in the air. As the pair got closer they could see Jack's face clearer. He looked just like their father but in their minds he could not be for they were told their father died in war.
Jack looked over as he found Teal'c walking towards him with two teenagers before him. He cocked his head for he noticed the clothing was from earth and not off world. As the two got closer he squinted at the young man. He sucked in a breath for the boy had the face of his dead son.
Teal'c reported as they stopped before Jack. "I found these two in woods."
Jack stood motionless for a moment as he looked upon Charlie. He was at a loss for words.
Charlie noticed the name badge of O'Neill. He cocked his head and asked, "Dad! Is that you?" He then looked at Jackie who was also looking at Jack intently.
She agreed, "He looks just like him."
"Ch-Charlie?" Jack stuttered in disbelief.
Jackie sucked in a breath, "It's him! What they hell? Did the military lie to us? You're alive!" she asked him bewildered.
Jack looked at the girl and asked, "Who are you?"
Charlie balked, "What do you mean who is she? That's my sister, Jackie! What the hell, Dad! They told us you were dead. Mom is devastated. Are you one some top secret bull shit mission where they faked your death or something?"
"What?" he gasped a bit confused himself.
Sam and Daniel came to see the situation. Sam looked upon the distressed teens and asked, "How did you kids get off world?" She noticed Jack seemed in a near state of shock. "Sir!"
Jackie replied to Sam's question. "We found a mirror in our attic and it brought us here." She looked at Jack and asked, "What is going on, Dad?" Her eyes began to tear our of joy, confusion and some anger. She could only assume they were lied to about their father's death by the military.
He asked her, "Is your first name Jacqueline?"
She nodded, "Yes. You know my name, don't you?" Now she wondered if perhaps the military did something to him and erased his memory of his family.
"You two came through a mirror?" he asked as his mind put the situation into perspective.
They nodded.
Charlie repeated, "We found it in the attic of our new house. We bought a new house after you died."
He asked, "How did I die?"
"In combat in Afghanistan." he reported. "Least, that's what we were told." The boy swallowed his tears and held himself together.
Sam looked expectantly at Jack, "Sir!"
He told her, "They are my kids. That's Charlie and that…" he paused as he looked closer at her face. "So, that what you would have looked like." He began to tear up himself as he realized the daughter that was lost to a miscarriage was standing before him.
Daniel asked, "You two kids found a mirror in your attic and it brought you here?"
They nodded.
Jackie mentioned, "You came to house the very day we moved in. But your hair was longer. You wanted to see Professor Langford's books. The house used to belong to him, some guy you knew."
"Professor Paul Langford?" Daniel asked with raised eyebrows.
The pair nodded still confused themselves.
Sam soothed the kids, "The mirror! There has to be one here too. Where is the mirror that is here?"
They glanced behind them up the hill.
Jack looked up and squinted as he spied the mouth of a cave. "There is a cave up there, Carter."
She let out a deep sigh, "Least they are safe. No cascade failure for Charlie at least." She then asked Jack, "You said the girl is yours, sir?"
He nodded, "Three years before Charlie was born Sarah lost the first baby in a miscarriage. It would have been a girl. Sarah picked out a name for her. Jacqueline."
She told him, "It's Jackie and what miscarriage? What am I missing that you know? Cascade failure!"
Sam explained, "The mirror your found has quantum abilities. It can move a person or object to an alternate universe. Are you familiar with multi universe theory?"
She nodded, "Different versions of earth in the same space, like layers of a cake."
A grin crept across Sam's face, "That's right. In this reality you were never born and your brother died seven years ago in an accident. Since neither one of you are here, you are safe from cascade failure because same matter cannot occupy same space."
Jackie nodded, "I got that."
Charlie remarked, "I didn't get that."
Sam explained, "You died in this reality. In your reality, you said your father died."
He nodded, "Two years ago in Afghanistan."
"In this reality your father is alive but you died and your sister was never born due to a miscarriage." Sam explained. "In your reality, your father did die. Here, he did not. Once we send you back through the mirror, your father will not exist in your reality." She then added, "Which means he could actually go with you…" she then shook the thought from her mind.
Daniel concluded, "So, I'm alive in your reality?"
The two nodded.
"Damn!" he huffed.
Jack looked at him with a cocked eyebrow.
He explained, "Now I can't go to the attic and see what Professor Langford was working on."
Jackie gave a funny look, "Everything is based on vibration. Just alter you body frequency slightly and you should be okay."
All eyes fell on Sam who stood thinking of the suggestion. She concluded, "That would work if I could come up with a device." She cocked her head in thought, "I wish I thought of that." She looked at Jackie, "You're pretty smart."
She shook her head, "Not really."
Charlie rolled his eyes, "My sister is real smart but she dumbs herself down so she can get a date with a boy."
Jack understood why she did so. "Otherwise you come off too smart and scare everyone off."
She agreed, "Exactly." She began to understand that the man before her was an alternate version of her father. She asked him, "How is mom in your reality?"
He shrugged, "She divorced me. I can't blame her."
Charlie balked, "Mom is a widow."
Jackie explained, "That mirror brought us to another plane of existence, Charlie. We are…" she looked about. "Where are we?"
Sam informed, "You are on another planet in another reality. The only back to your home is through the mirror. Which is in that cave up there?" She pointed.
They nodded.
She figured, "Then we need to secure the mirror and bring it back to the SGC with you two and we can send you home from there."
Charlie asked, "What is the SGC?"
"Star Gate Command." Sam told him.
He asked, "Does that have anything to do with that big ring thing you came through?"
She nodded, "Yes it does."
Jackie looked at her wristwatch, "Will this take long?"
Sam replied, "Not that long. Why do you ask?"
"I got a pizza coming in twenty minutes." she explained. "We were just in the attic cleaning. We didn't know that mirror do all that."
Sam assured, "We will get you home in time for your pizza."