Author: Jackiwi
Disclaimer: Original characters and story is mine, everything else is MGM,
Double secret's and Gekko's property.
Rating: PG13
Pairing: Jack and Sam
Sequel to: Home for Christmas
Notes: I was asked to write a story to tell you where Jack went, so here it
is. Inspiration hit me yesterday, at work in a woodland park. Hope you like
it, and hope you can understand it, as I am British and have used a few
British phrases. Merry Christmas for next month! Feedback would be loved!
Snow
Tall proud trees, nothing more than bones after the winter's harsh attack, wave bear branches high in the gentle wind. Their leafy-flesh that provided the red gold carpet children wrapped from head to toe in the woollen mittens, scarf's and hats that grandma knit played and sung happily on, long gone, replace by a thick white blanket of crisp snow.
Hand in hand they walk through the park, decorated with Christmas trees and fairy lights and several snowmen with carrot noses and black button noses. In the dusk light of winter children finish snowball fights before taking their chilled body's home too mum for a hot chocolate and stiff telling off for walking in snow and socking the carpet!
Jack's hand grips mine a little tighter, and I can't help but see the little smile on his face as he's inner child surfaces.
"Don't even think about it O'Neill!"
"You know me too well, Carter." He's disappointed tone replies.
I feel a sort of pride at his comment. I do know him well. He still hasn't told me what happened to him all that time he was away though. Its like that whole part of his life just vanished. It's been five days since he's been back, and he hasn't broached the subject. I guess he'll talk when he's ready. But I can do nothing but wonder. He doesn't seem any different, accept maybe a little older, maybe one or two scars that weren't there the last time I saw him. Looking at him I realise neither of us has said anything in a while.
"Penny for 'erm?"
"Hmm?" he looks up from he's ever so interesting feet that he's been staring at for sometime.
"What are you thinking about, Jack?" My face must be showing the worry I have in my heart, coz he smiles and wraps an arm around me.
"That's a big question."
"Not really. Are you going to answer it?"
"I was thinking about.you, actually. How much I love you." He rests he's forehead on my temple, kissing my check lightly. I don't buy it. It's nice for him to say that, but he was lost. Those thoughts had to be deeper.
"Jack!" I prod.
"You don't give up do you?"
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's ok, but give me a little bit of credit; I know when you've got something on your mind. And I have a feeling it has something to do with where you have been for the last six months."
He lets out a long sigh; he's breath creating a swirling cloud of steam as it mingles with the bitter cold air. He spots a bench and pulls me towards it. Sitting on the chilly wood, a tree with a star on the top and hundreds of multicoloured sparkles twinkle in the fading light.
"Sam.I. I don't know where to start. Where I went, they messed me up pretty bad. That last planet we went too, it had underground mines. They gave me this shot and it paralysed me. I was taken down to this guy named Lexa. He tortured me for info, much the same way Baal did, knives, acids, you know the drill." I close my eyes and try with all my might not to picture the scene, I don't want to see the pain on his face when the acid burns his skin, its searing sting forcing a strong man to almost cry. "He had a sarcophagus too. They revived me and revived me until I had forgotten who I was, everything but for one thing, a face. Your face. I kept seeing your face, smiling." He voice shakes slightly and I gently rub his arm. I can't even imagine what it's like to go into one of those things, I don't want to.
"Anyway, when I didn't even know who I was anymore, there was no way I knew what he wanted to get out of me, so he gave up. Put me to work in the mines."
"God, I should have."
"Ut!" He places a gloved finger on my lips, "You did everything you could; I don't even have to ask to know that. The mines were deep underground, hidden in thick walls. There's no way you could have found them if you didn't know they were there."
I nod, not totally reassured, but willing to go along with it. "But how did you get out of there?" I ask with a slight shiver in my voice as a cold breeze hits me, the sun now well sunk and the night rolling in fast, leaving the park all but empty. He pulls me into his chest and wraps he's large coat around us both.
"I meet this man, Kene, in the mines. One day we got to talking about how we had visions of these people we thought we knew. One day I remembered how I'd gotten in there and we decided that we would use the same rout to get out. We waited till 'night' and made our escape. It was risky, but we fought our way out and made a run for it. Once we were out, his memories came back almost all at once. He took me to his house, where he had a wife and two children. I stayed there and helped out as much as I could until one day I saw a glider fly over head and remember the Stargate. Everything came back after that, and I knew I had to come home."
"How did you get the iris open, we had to change the codes?"
"I figured as much. I used stones."
"Huh?"
"I threw stones into the event horizon and hoped to god it would work. I threw three small, three big and three small. I did it four times just to make sure. I hoped it would create a pattern on the computer that you would recognise, dot, dot, dot, dash, dash, dash, dot, dot, dot. S.O.S. It turned out Danny saw it and got Hammond to open the iris. I must remember to thank him for that!"
I laugh a little. "That's quite a story! Promise me you'll never do it again!"
"Oh believe me; the knees aren't up to it!"
"Good. New Year's resolution; no more being tortured. And no more being apart. In fact, and I've been thinking about this for a while now, no more active duty. I mean you're too old now.ow! Hey!"
"Less of the old, thanks very much!"
"Ok, sorry! Jeez! Ok, well you're.seasoned and I've seen enough fighting to last me a life time. Besides, in order to keep my last resolution, I can't be going through the gate for a while anyway."
"Oh yeah, what would that be?"
"I've decided you need someone your own.mental age..to enjoy the snow with." I smile knowingly.
"Huh?"
"Kids, Jack. I want to have a baby. I want to have your baby. If your ok with that, that is?" he face lights up.
"Are you kidding? Of course I'm ok with that; I'm more than ok with that. It'll be great!" there's that smile again, the one that always melts my heart! That cheeky school kid grin. As he kisses me, a fresh dusting of snow falls lightly from the sky, salting us with its delicate flakes. Felling well and truly at peace with the world, and just a little bit frozen through, I stand and pull him to his feet.
"Come on sexy. Let's go make a baby!"
THE END
Snow
Tall proud trees, nothing more than bones after the winter's harsh attack, wave bear branches high in the gentle wind. Their leafy-flesh that provided the red gold carpet children wrapped from head to toe in the woollen mittens, scarf's and hats that grandma knit played and sung happily on, long gone, replace by a thick white blanket of crisp snow.
Hand in hand they walk through the park, decorated with Christmas trees and fairy lights and several snowmen with carrot noses and black button noses. In the dusk light of winter children finish snowball fights before taking their chilled body's home too mum for a hot chocolate and stiff telling off for walking in snow and socking the carpet!
Jack's hand grips mine a little tighter, and I can't help but see the little smile on his face as he's inner child surfaces.
"Don't even think about it O'Neill!"
"You know me too well, Carter." He's disappointed tone replies.
I feel a sort of pride at his comment. I do know him well. He still hasn't told me what happened to him all that time he was away though. Its like that whole part of his life just vanished. It's been five days since he's been back, and he hasn't broached the subject. I guess he'll talk when he's ready. But I can do nothing but wonder. He doesn't seem any different, accept maybe a little older, maybe one or two scars that weren't there the last time I saw him. Looking at him I realise neither of us has said anything in a while.
"Penny for 'erm?"
"Hmm?" he looks up from he's ever so interesting feet that he's been staring at for sometime.
"What are you thinking about, Jack?" My face must be showing the worry I have in my heart, coz he smiles and wraps an arm around me.
"That's a big question."
"Not really. Are you going to answer it?"
"I was thinking about.you, actually. How much I love you." He rests he's forehead on my temple, kissing my check lightly. I don't buy it. It's nice for him to say that, but he was lost. Those thoughts had to be deeper.
"Jack!" I prod.
"You don't give up do you?"
"If you don't want to talk about it, that's ok, but give me a little bit of credit; I know when you've got something on your mind. And I have a feeling it has something to do with where you have been for the last six months."
He lets out a long sigh; he's breath creating a swirling cloud of steam as it mingles with the bitter cold air. He spots a bench and pulls me towards it. Sitting on the chilly wood, a tree with a star on the top and hundreds of multicoloured sparkles twinkle in the fading light.
"Sam.I. I don't know where to start. Where I went, they messed me up pretty bad. That last planet we went too, it had underground mines. They gave me this shot and it paralysed me. I was taken down to this guy named Lexa. He tortured me for info, much the same way Baal did, knives, acids, you know the drill." I close my eyes and try with all my might not to picture the scene, I don't want to see the pain on his face when the acid burns his skin, its searing sting forcing a strong man to almost cry. "He had a sarcophagus too. They revived me and revived me until I had forgotten who I was, everything but for one thing, a face. Your face. I kept seeing your face, smiling." He voice shakes slightly and I gently rub his arm. I can't even imagine what it's like to go into one of those things, I don't want to.
"Anyway, when I didn't even know who I was anymore, there was no way I knew what he wanted to get out of me, so he gave up. Put me to work in the mines."
"God, I should have."
"Ut!" He places a gloved finger on my lips, "You did everything you could; I don't even have to ask to know that. The mines were deep underground, hidden in thick walls. There's no way you could have found them if you didn't know they were there."
I nod, not totally reassured, but willing to go along with it. "But how did you get out of there?" I ask with a slight shiver in my voice as a cold breeze hits me, the sun now well sunk and the night rolling in fast, leaving the park all but empty. He pulls me into his chest and wraps he's large coat around us both.
"I meet this man, Kene, in the mines. One day we got to talking about how we had visions of these people we thought we knew. One day I remembered how I'd gotten in there and we decided that we would use the same rout to get out. We waited till 'night' and made our escape. It was risky, but we fought our way out and made a run for it. Once we were out, his memories came back almost all at once. He took me to his house, where he had a wife and two children. I stayed there and helped out as much as I could until one day I saw a glider fly over head and remember the Stargate. Everything came back after that, and I knew I had to come home."
"How did you get the iris open, we had to change the codes?"
"I figured as much. I used stones."
"Huh?"
"I threw stones into the event horizon and hoped to god it would work. I threw three small, three big and three small. I did it four times just to make sure. I hoped it would create a pattern on the computer that you would recognise, dot, dot, dot, dash, dash, dash, dot, dot, dot. S.O.S. It turned out Danny saw it and got Hammond to open the iris. I must remember to thank him for that!"
I laugh a little. "That's quite a story! Promise me you'll never do it again!"
"Oh believe me; the knees aren't up to it!"
"Good. New Year's resolution; no more being tortured. And no more being apart. In fact, and I've been thinking about this for a while now, no more active duty. I mean you're too old now.ow! Hey!"
"Less of the old, thanks very much!"
"Ok, sorry! Jeez! Ok, well you're.seasoned and I've seen enough fighting to last me a life time. Besides, in order to keep my last resolution, I can't be going through the gate for a while anyway."
"Oh yeah, what would that be?"
"I've decided you need someone your own.mental age..to enjoy the snow with." I smile knowingly.
"Huh?"
"Kids, Jack. I want to have a baby. I want to have your baby. If your ok with that, that is?" he face lights up.
"Are you kidding? Of course I'm ok with that; I'm more than ok with that. It'll be great!" there's that smile again, the one that always melts my heart! That cheeky school kid grin. As he kisses me, a fresh dusting of snow falls lightly from the sky, salting us with its delicate flakes. Felling well and truly at peace with the world, and just a little bit frozen through, I stand and pull him to his feet.
"Come on sexy. Let's go make a baby!"
THE END