Title: Moonlight Lady - Chapter Two
Author: Demelza Watt
Email: stonelight81@hotmail.com
Category: SJ, angst
Rating: G
Season: Any time after 3
Spoilers: None
Archive: Anywhere and everywhere! Just let me know.
Disclaimer: Stargate SG-1 and its characters are the property of Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. This story is for entertainment purposes only, no copyright infringement is intended, and are used here without permission. The original situations, and story are the property of the author, uhm, that would be me *g*.
A/N: My special thanks go out to Shaure for beating this chapter of Moonlight Lady for me.  Thank you so, so, soooo much!!  I owe ya BIG time… ;)

* * * *

Jack's eyes slowly opened, grimacing as the hunger pains in his stomach worsened with his concentration on them. He was lying flat on his back, on what felt like a straw bed. Sitting up and hanging his legs over the side of the makeshift bed, he looked around him. The walls of the room he was in were made of clay; a door ahead of him was made of thin branches bound together with twine. There was one window in the room, above his bed. It was a lopped shaped rectangle, and was only two feet wide, and one foot deep. A flax woven curtain covered it. Flax? Was he back on Earth? The last he could remember was helping Carter with her sprained ankle, "Carter…" He said aloud, looking around, as though trying to find her. But his search was to no avail; she wasn't there. Where is she? I have to find her, he thought, standing up and heading toward the door.

* * * *

Sam had been awake for a few minutes now; she sat on the straw bed rubbing her ankle, wondering how it had become bandaged with the flax and twine. She hadn't wrapped it up herself. Maybe it was the Colonel, she thought.

Carefully climbing to her feet, she limped over to the door and opened it, just as she did her eyes settled on the Colonel, "Colonel!" She exclaimed, he looked straight back at her, relief in his face. "Where are we?" She asked.

"I'm as stumped as you are Carter." He replied, walking over to her, "Foot okay?"

"Yeah." She nodded, noticing that he was dressed in his khaki pants and t-shirt only. Nothing on his feet. They were stripped of their jackets, socks, boots, weapons, instruments and other items they had had with them.

Both their rooms had adjourned to a tiny hallway, only a few feet wide, and the only exit lay to Sam's right. She took in a deep breath, as she always did to ready herself for the situations that may arise in the coming minutes. Jack carefully walked ahead, signalling for her to stay put while he had a look.

He had just partway pressed the crooked door open when a bright and bubbly woman with raven hair swung it wide open, almost taking him along with it. "You're awake!" She shouted. Her smiling round face, large, full body greeted them with curiosity. She looked between each of them, "Oooh, I just bet you're hungry?"

A smile formed on Sam's face, Jack looked at the woman with a raised eye brow before turning to Sam, shaking his head slightly with that 'what's going on?' expression she just loved. Sam limped over to Jack's side, "Starving, actually." She said.

The woman smiled back even wider yet, there was something about her that reminded Sam of Rosie O'Donnell. Her bubbly personality, thick accent and her looks even closely resembled the TV star. It was uncanny. "Right this way then." She told them, swiftly turning around and walking straight to the other side of the large room that much resembled a living area, until they reached what could be perceived as the hut's dining room. There was a large mound in the ground made from clay that, again, was oddly rectangular shaped. On each side of the 'table' were smaller mounds, used as chairs. As they realised when the woman took her seat opposite them. "Sit, sit."

Without hesitation, Sam sat down to the right side of her and Jack's seat. Jack, however, took a moment longer before sitting down. The seat wasn't very wide, so they ended sitting very closely together. Almost squished. Not that either seemed to really mind.

"Oh, I forgot one thing." The woman said, she rose from her set and left the hut.

"Aside from her marbles?" Jack teased; Sam ignored him and examined all the foods on the table. There were apples, grapes, bananas, kiwi fruit, tangelos, pineapples… all very much 'Earth' fruits. Then there were also the meats, what looked like chicken, mutton shanks, pork chops and sushi. She shook her head, they *were* Earth foods. "What is it Carter?"

Sam turned to Jack, "This is all Earth food, sir."

"It is?" He asked, she nodded, then shook her head in amazement at the discovery. "Good, I mean the locals usually have nice foods we've never tried before. But nothing beats good old Earth cuisine."

"But sir. Barely any of the planets we've gone to have had exactly the same foods as on Earth."

Jack picked up a mutton shank and took a bite; it was pink and tender on the inside. Just how he liked it. "Well…" He said between mouthfuls, "This tashest… mmm… mutch better… than Earths." His mouth very full.

Just then the woman came back into the hutch, she took her seat opposite them again, "Oh good. You're eating the Larny. It's better than you would have got at Orian's."

"Orian's?" Sam asked, "Larny?" Jack added.

"Larny.. you know… baaa… baaa." She mimicked the exact sound of sheep. "Orian… my arch nemesis. He and I… we…"

"You what?" Sam pressed her, Jack's mouth full, he nodded and pointed the now almost bare bone in her direction, agreeing and supporting her questioning.

"It doesn't matter. All shall be revealed in time."

Sam nodded, she'd ask her again later. Try for a better answer. "What's this?" She asked, picking up what she had earlier called chicken."

"Arnar, Major Carter." The woman replied.

Her eyes met the woman's straight away, "How did you know my name?"

The woman smiled, "You shall know in time."

"But…"

"Carter!" Jack touched her bare arm with his greasy hands, she turned to face him, "You shall know in time." He mimicked.

"Okay, well since you know our names…" Sam paused, looking at her, "What do we call you?"

"Orian calls me Mesrah. Guests call me EvNrou, my birth name. But others who have come through the blue light call me, Moonlight Lady."

This had Sam's curiosity, and caused her brow to crease, "Moonlight Lady? Why?"

EvNrou smiled, "You shall know in time."

"What does that mean?"

A wider smile, but soon the smile diminished as the pendant she wore around her neck begun to glimmer, "I shall be back at the fall of night, then may you ask me your questions." She spoke to them both, grasping the oddly pear shaped pendant in her right hand. Her eyes closed, and just as they did, the glow from the pendant grew bright and larger, and soon encompassed her whole being. The light faded, and she was gone.

"Guess Mesrah meant disappearing woman." Jack commented, seeing another shank of Larny and taking it in his hands.

Sam was totally amazed by what had happened, and completely ignored the Colonel. She climbed from her seat and found her way around to the other side where EvNrou was earlier. "Her pendant." She said, taking the one-inch in diameter pendant and holding it up in the air, looking at it. The glow from earlier had completely gone from it, and it looked pitch black. So black no shadow or 'darker' black could be seen on it's surface.

"This is absolutely incredible sir, you should see it." Getting no reply, the Major turned to her left only to see the Colonel licking his lips and examining the rest of the food on the table. "Sir." She said louder, firmer.

"Sit down Carter. Eat something." He ordered, without meeting her eyes.

Sam replaced the pendant and sat back down, "You're not even the least bit curious as to what happened, sir?"

Jack had a leg of Arnar now, and shook his head, "Nope." He replied, taking a bite. Almost choking, "This is fabulous!" He soon said after catching his breath. Sam had her hand on his arm, making sure he was okay, when he turned to her. "Try some." He handed her his piece.

Sam gratefully took a small piece of the white meat off the bone and placed it in her mouth. Savouring the heavenly tasting Arnar. "This is the best chicken I've ever had before!" She exclaimed, quickly finding herself a drumstick of her own and 'digging in'.

"I know." Was Jack's wholesome reply before he started eating again. "You know Major, this is kinda like a…" He stopped himself.

Sam turned to him, "A what?"

"Never mind." He responded, "I was just thinking out loud."

"Oh." Was her reply, before continuing eating. She was absolutely famished.

TBC…… hope you enjoyed this lil chapter, more will be on it's way soon. ;)