~~~o0o~~~
Jacob Carter looked up at the sound of a woman's laughter and watched as his daughter entered the Control Room. Her head was turned towards her CO - who was walking into the room half a step behind her and grinning madly - as she laughed at something he said. Because her head was turned, she didn't see him immediately and he took the opportunity to study her, before she caught him doing so.
He found it hard to reconcile the happy person in front of him, with the picture George had painted of a woman working herself to death, when he had first suggested that Jacob come and visit his daughter. Dressed in black pants and a red top, she looked good - even in the low light - and she seemed as... cheerful as he'd ever seen her. Watching the pair carefully as they laughed and joked, he wondered how much of her present good mood was due to the presence of the man beside her.
'He is good for her Jacob, I have told you this.'
'Selmak, we've been over this before. Please don't bring it up again. Not now.'
The Tok'ra lapsed back into silence, letting him know that he wasn't happy with his behaviour. Jacob sent him a silent apology. But he simply wasn't ready to handle the idea that there was something more between his daughter and her CO, than a working relationship and simple friendship. He didn't know how to deal with the idea. Hell, he didn't know if he *could* deal with the idea....
So he simply stood there and watched as O'Neill looked up and saw him. A wide grin split the man's face and he tapped Sam on her shoulder. She looked up at him.
"Hey Dad!" He called, pointing across the room with the hand that had got her attention. Her head whipped round and a huge smile of her own split her face.
"Dad!"
In a few strides, she was across the room and in his arms.
"Hey kiddo!" He said, giving her a big hug. Hmm...now that she was close to him, he could tell she'd lost a bit of weight. She'd always been skinny, but now she seemed almost fragile in his arms, as if she'd break in two if he hugged her too hard. He felt her chuckle against him.
"I'm not gonna break, Dad." She said, her voice muffled against his chest.
He sighed. 'Found out again. She always knew. Just like her mother....'
He hugged her tighter for a minute and then let go. Or at least he tried to.
'What the - ?'
Tugging harder, he managed to peel his arms away from her back with a tearing sound. Placing her hands against his chest, she pushed and the cloth of her top stretched between them and then pulled free with the same noise.
Looking down, he found himself now covered in lots of small sticky blobs of various colours. It looked like...Jell-O?
He looked up at his daughter. She was staring at him with a sheepish expression on her face.
"Sam?"
She blushed. "Sorry about that, Dad."
There was quiet snigger from beside them that was quickly turned into a cough, as Sam glared at her CO.
Looking over at him stood there with his hands in his jeans pockets, Jacob realised that he was covered from head to foot in Jell-O as well - just like Sam.
'What the hell had they been doing?'
"Why are you covered in Jell-O?" He asked the obvious question, addressing both of them.
They avoided his gaze, staring down at their shoes like a pair of kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
"Well?" He asked again, utilising the 'I'm waiting' tone of voice used so often with recalcitrant children. Being a parent had it's advantages.
Jack cleared his throat. "Uh, well Jacob - it turns out tonight was the 10th Annual Jell-O Free-For-All at Jo's Jell-O Emporium."
Jacob blinked. "You took my daughter to a Jell-O fight? I thought you were going to dinner!"
Jack cast a sideways glance at Carter Junior. "Well actually, she took me, sir."
Sam sent him a filthy glance. "You drove, sir."
"But you were the one who knew where we were going."
"You're the one who wanted dessert."
"Yeah, but it was your idea. "
"I didn't know it was going to be a 'Free For All' did I? I just thought you'd like some Jell-O after having had none for three months! Besides, you weren't complaining earlier - "
"Alright!" Jacob intervened. He was starting to get that niggling feeling that signalled the start of a headache.
"It doesn't matter. Just so long as you had a good time Sam."
He didn't miss the glance they shot each other.
"Oh yeah." Jack grinned.
"It had it's moments, Dad." Sam said her eyes sparkling as she gazed back at her CO. Jacob didn't miss Jack's slight flush in response to her words.
He shook his head. 'What was he going to do with those two?'
'Give them your blessing?'
'Selmak...'
'What? Just because you are in denial.'
'No I'm not.' Jacob thought back firmly. 'De Nile is simply a river in Egypt.'
There was a pause then Selmack said: 'Mother of all Tok'Ra, Jacob! That was *terrible*! Even for you...'
"So Jack, I hear you took a little unscheduled vacation. Glad to be home?" Jacob asked, ignoring his constant companion's indignant complaints - there was *nothing* wrong with his sense of humour - and changing the subject.
"Ya sure ya betcha." Jack answered cheerfully. "All thanks to Carter here."
Jacob didn't miss the affectionate look he exchanged with his daughter.
"Hence the...Jello incident."
Unfortunately Selmak didn't miss it either.
'Ooo...so that's *why* she was working so hard! It was to bring him home to her! How adorable!'
'Selmak! Quit it!'
Not for the first time, Jacob wished that Selmak hadn't spent so long in a female host. It had turned him into an insufferable gossip.
'I resent that...'
Jacob was beginning to feel besieged on all sides.
"So Jacob," Jack continued, filling the sudden silence that had occurred whilst Jacob exchanged words with his in-head partner. "What brings you by?"
Jacob shrugged. "I was in the neighbourhood. Thought I'd drop in and see how my favourite daughter was doing."
Though it did seem he'd been worrying over nothing, even if it did make him wonder what he might have found if he'd arrived just a few days earlier.
Jack turned to Sam. "Surprise!"
"This is what that phone call was all about?"
"Yes." Jacob said. "I couldn't get through to you on your cell phone, George mentioned that Jack had taken you out to dinner, to say thanks for getting him home - so I got someone to call him."
Sam flushed. "Guess I must have forgotten to charge it up. Haven't had much use for it recently."
She stepped forward, intending to give him another hug. "Thanks for stopping by, Dad."
"Gah!" He said, hastily stepping back. "Don't you dare!"
She stopped. "Oh yeah. Sorry, Dad."
"Don't worry about it. Why don't you go get cleaned up? I'm gonna be around for a few hours yet, so we'll have plenty of time to get caught up on things."
Sam nodded. "Okay Dad."
"Let me know when you're done, Carter." Jack said.
She frowned for a minute. "Dad, if it's alright with you, I'll go get my gear from the locker room and then go use the infirmary showers. I'll meet you in the commissary afterwards. Colonel O'Neill can use the locker room showers then, without worrying about me using all the hot water."
She grinned cheekily, looking at her Dad's now Jell-O be-spotted clothing. "And if you go with the Colonel, Dad - he might even lend you some clean BDUs."
Jacob glared at her. That man was definitely a bad influence on her.
Jack looked at her. "You sure, Carter?"
She nodded. "Yes sir."
"That's great!" He grinned. "Thanks Carter."
"That's okay, sir."
With that they all walked out, leaving a wide-eyed and extremely confused Sergeant Davis in their wake.
~~~o0o~~~
"Oh and Jack?" Jacob said as they walked with Sam down the corridor to the elevators.
Jack turned to look at him.
"George wants to see you as soon as you're cleaned up. Something about vanishing paperwork?"
"Doh!"
The corridor echoed with the sound of Sam's laughter, long after the elevator doors had closed behind them.
~~~The End~~~
Jacob Carter looked up at the sound of a woman's laughter and watched as his daughter entered the Control Room. Her head was turned towards her CO - who was walking into the room half a step behind her and grinning madly - as she laughed at something he said. Because her head was turned, she didn't see him immediately and he took the opportunity to study her, before she caught him doing so.
He found it hard to reconcile the happy person in front of him, with the picture George had painted of a woman working herself to death, when he had first suggested that Jacob come and visit his daughter. Dressed in black pants and a red top, she looked good - even in the low light - and she seemed as... cheerful as he'd ever seen her. Watching the pair carefully as they laughed and joked, he wondered how much of her present good mood was due to the presence of the man beside her.
'He is good for her Jacob, I have told you this.'
'Selmak, we've been over this before. Please don't bring it up again. Not now.'
The Tok'ra lapsed back into silence, letting him know that he wasn't happy with his behaviour. Jacob sent him a silent apology. But he simply wasn't ready to handle the idea that there was something more between his daughter and her CO, than a working relationship and simple friendship. He didn't know how to deal with the idea. Hell, he didn't know if he *could* deal with the idea....
So he simply stood there and watched as O'Neill looked up and saw him. A wide grin split the man's face and he tapped Sam on her shoulder. She looked up at him.
"Hey Dad!" He called, pointing across the room with the hand that had got her attention. Her head whipped round and a huge smile of her own split her face.
"Dad!"
In a few strides, she was across the room and in his arms.
"Hey kiddo!" He said, giving her a big hug. Hmm...now that she was close to him, he could tell she'd lost a bit of weight. She'd always been skinny, but now she seemed almost fragile in his arms, as if she'd break in two if he hugged her too hard. He felt her chuckle against him.
"I'm not gonna break, Dad." She said, her voice muffled against his chest.
He sighed. 'Found out again. She always knew. Just like her mother....'
He hugged her tighter for a minute and then let go. Or at least he tried to.
'What the - ?'
Tugging harder, he managed to peel his arms away from her back with a tearing sound. Placing her hands against his chest, she pushed and the cloth of her top stretched between them and then pulled free with the same noise.
Looking down, he found himself now covered in lots of small sticky blobs of various colours. It looked like...Jell-O?
He looked up at his daughter. She was staring at him with a sheepish expression on her face.
"Sam?"
She blushed. "Sorry about that, Dad."
There was quiet snigger from beside them that was quickly turned into a cough, as Sam glared at her CO.
Looking over at him stood there with his hands in his jeans pockets, Jacob realised that he was covered from head to foot in Jell-O as well - just like Sam.
'What the hell had they been doing?'
"Why are you covered in Jell-O?" He asked the obvious question, addressing both of them.
They avoided his gaze, staring down at their shoes like a pair of kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
"Well?" He asked again, utilising the 'I'm waiting' tone of voice used so often with recalcitrant children. Being a parent had it's advantages.
Jack cleared his throat. "Uh, well Jacob - it turns out tonight was the 10th Annual Jell-O Free-For-All at Jo's Jell-O Emporium."
Jacob blinked. "You took my daughter to a Jell-O fight? I thought you were going to dinner!"
Jack cast a sideways glance at Carter Junior. "Well actually, she took me, sir."
Sam sent him a filthy glance. "You drove, sir."
"But you were the one who knew where we were going."
"You're the one who wanted dessert."
"Yeah, but it was your idea. "
"I didn't know it was going to be a 'Free For All' did I? I just thought you'd like some Jell-O after having had none for three months! Besides, you weren't complaining earlier - "
"Alright!" Jacob intervened. He was starting to get that niggling feeling that signalled the start of a headache.
"It doesn't matter. Just so long as you had a good time Sam."
He didn't miss the glance they shot each other.
"Oh yeah." Jack grinned.
"It had it's moments, Dad." Sam said her eyes sparkling as she gazed back at her CO. Jacob didn't miss Jack's slight flush in response to her words.
He shook his head. 'What was he going to do with those two?'
'Give them your blessing?'
'Selmak...'
'What? Just because you are in denial.'
'No I'm not.' Jacob thought back firmly. 'De Nile is simply a river in Egypt.'
There was a pause then Selmack said: 'Mother of all Tok'Ra, Jacob! That was *terrible*! Even for you...'
"So Jack, I hear you took a little unscheduled vacation. Glad to be home?" Jacob asked, ignoring his constant companion's indignant complaints - there was *nothing* wrong with his sense of humour - and changing the subject.
"Ya sure ya betcha." Jack answered cheerfully. "All thanks to Carter here."
Jacob didn't miss the affectionate look he exchanged with his daughter.
"Hence the...Jello incident."
Unfortunately Selmak didn't miss it either.
'Ooo...so that's *why* she was working so hard! It was to bring him home to her! How adorable!'
'Selmak! Quit it!'
Not for the first time, Jacob wished that Selmak hadn't spent so long in a female host. It had turned him into an insufferable gossip.
'I resent that...'
Jacob was beginning to feel besieged on all sides.
"So Jacob," Jack continued, filling the sudden silence that had occurred whilst Jacob exchanged words with his in-head partner. "What brings you by?"
Jacob shrugged. "I was in the neighbourhood. Thought I'd drop in and see how my favourite daughter was doing."
Though it did seem he'd been worrying over nothing, even if it did make him wonder what he might have found if he'd arrived just a few days earlier.
Jack turned to Sam. "Surprise!"
"This is what that phone call was all about?"
"Yes." Jacob said. "I couldn't get through to you on your cell phone, George mentioned that Jack had taken you out to dinner, to say thanks for getting him home - so I got someone to call him."
Sam flushed. "Guess I must have forgotten to charge it up. Haven't had much use for it recently."
She stepped forward, intending to give him another hug. "Thanks for stopping by, Dad."
"Gah!" He said, hastily stepping back. "Don't you dare!"
She stopped. "Oh yeah. Sorry, Dad."
"Don't worry about it. Why don't you go get cleaned up? I'm gonna be around for a few hours yet, so we'll have plenty of time to get caught up on things."
Sam nodded. "Okay Dad."
"Let me know when you're done, Carter." Jack said.
She frowned for a minute. "Dad, if it's alright with you, I'll go get my gear from the locker room and then go use the infirmary showers. I'll meet you in the commissary afterwards. Colonel O'Neill can use the locker room showers then, without worrying about me using all the hot water."
She grinned cheekily, looking at her Dad's now Jell-O be-spotted clothing. "And if you go with the Colonel, Dad - he might even lend you some clean BDUs."
Jacob glared at her. That man was definitely a bad influence on her.
Jack looked at her. "You sure, Carter?"
She nodded. "Yes sir."
"That's great!" He grinned. "Thanks Carter."
"That's okay, sir."
With that they all walked out, leaving a wide-eyed and extremely confused Sergeant Davis in their wake.
~~~o0o~~~
"Oh and Jack?" Jacob said as they walked with Sam down the corridor to the elevators.
Jack turned to look at him.
"George wants to see you as soon as you're cleaned up. Something about vanishing paperwork?"
"Doh!"
The corridor echoed with the sound of Sam's laughter, long after the elevator doors had closed behind them.
~~~The End~~~
