Author's note:
Just a quick answer to a question in a review: Teal'c has the seal thing on his forehead, which he has to hide. But he also has a large X on his belly from his pouch (where his symbiote is) that they need to hide, since kids would obviously notice it and ask about it. That's what I meant by hiding the simbiote.
Thank you for all the reviews, I'm glad you're enjoying this! I am, too.
~~*~~**~~~
Daniel and Jack entered the cabin, still discussing the kiss, when a large pillow came flying out of nowhere, and hit Jack right in the face. Daniel dodged out of the way, ducking into the doorway with an intense wariness that made it look for all the world as if he'd just gated into the middle of a firefight. The boys had much better aim than Jaffa. Another pillow came sailing from the back of the room, whacking him in the face as well.
"Got him!"
Daniel reached down and picked up the offending pillow, looking towards the source of the gleeful shout. It was Simon, one of the boys who was sleeping closest to his bunk. He'd already rearmed himself with Daniel's pillow, this time holding it, ready to swing to protect himself.
Daniel looked for help, and noticed Teal'c had already been engaged by the enemy; the big Jaffa having been cornered by several pillow swinging assailants. He was putting up a valiant defense, but it was obvious that it wasn't going to be enough. There were just too many of them.
Jack had noticed as well, and was rushing to Teal'c's aid, having armed himself with both his own pillow, and the one that had hit him on the way in the door. Two handedly swinging, it was obvious to Daniel that this wasn't his first pillow fight with youngsters. He was whacking the boys with exactly enough force to knock them back and not enough to hurt them, and the boys were loving it.
Shawn was the first to fall to O'Neill's prowess with a pillow. The boy fell under a flurry of blows that he was laughing too hard to truly defend against, and once the Colonel had him down, it was a simple matter of sitting on him, pinning his body to the floor while swinging at the boys who'd come to rescue him, freeing Teal'c from enough assailants that he was able to gain a little more ground in his own defense.
Daniel had only enough time to glimpse this before he was attacked once more. Simon had taken advantage of his distraction and had come up close enough to swing. It was a good one, hitting Daniel right in the stomach. The archeologist doubled over, pretending that it had nailed him a lot harder than it actually had, and then swung back, hitting the boy's legs out from under him. Simon shrieked with laughter and Daniel took a cue from Jack and pinned him down while he fought off the attack from another boy who'd come to the rescue.
Finally, there had to be an armistice called for. Jack's arms were tired and he'd taken a shot to the groin that had truly hurt, even though he'd never have let the kids known. Teal'c was still backed into the corner, but Andrew had changed sides in the middle of the battle and was now fighting side by side with the Jaffa, using Teal'c's large body to block several blows from their attackers. Daniel had been taken out and disarmed, but he'd managed to trap one boy under his bunk even though the others were desperately fighting to free him. All in all, it had been a quite satisfactory pillow fight from all sides. But it had to end.
Jack let Shawn up, grinning down at the boy and giving him an affectionate hug as he pulled him to his feet. A hug that was returned with a smile. Teal'c relinquished his pillow to one of the boys, and then stood up as well, pulling Andrew to his feet. Daniel was ransomed back to Jack and Teal'c for a candy bar, and the archeologist grinned when Simon gave him back his pillow.
"All right, men," Jack said, sitting on his bunk and waiting until he had their attention. "Get into your jammies and brush your teeth, we have to get to bed. Lights out in ten minutes."
There were assorted groans, but none of the boys argued. There was a rush to the bathroom and another rush to get their pajamas on, and most of them were sitting in their beds under their blankets by the time Jack's ten minutes were up.
"Jack?"
"Yeah?"
"Could you tell us a story?"
Jack grinned, remembering a million times in the middle of the night how he'd hear that very question from his son. He wasn't a very good storyteller, though. Never had been. He didn't have the imagination to make up good ones, and the ones he'd lived through were not suitable for kids to hear. Especially not before bedtime.
"You know..." he said, pulling out a pair of sweats and a t-shirt to sleep in. "Daniel's an archeologist, remember? He knows lots of stories about things and people that haven't been seen in thousands of years. Why don't you ask him to tell you about some of them?"
Daniel had been in the bathroom when Jack was suggesting this, and when he came out, he found himself under siege once more.
"Daniel! Will you tell us a story?"
"Yeah, a Archonimist story?"
"That's not how you say it. It's Archolonist."
"Is not."
"Tell us a story about dead people, Daniel. Only not ghosts, I don't want to hear a ghost story."
Daniel smiled, looking over at Jack, who gave him an innocent look as he pulled on his sweats.
"They asked me for a story. You know how I am with stories. You're much better."
"Uh huh." Daniel walked over to his bunk and pulled a book out from under it. "All right, you guys, I'll tell you a story." He waited until the last boy had settled into his bed, and then opened the book, rifling through it until he found what he was looking for.
"Have any of you heard of Greece?"
"Yeah, it's what's in French fries."
"And hamburgers."
"And it's on my sister's face."
Daniel shook his head, grinning. "No. Greece. G-R-E-E-C-E. It's a place in Europe. There was a guy there named Hercules, a long, long time ago." He stood up and took the book around, showing the boys an illustration of the hero in question, then went back to his bunk and put the book away. Jack turned off the light as Daniel began his story of Hercules, the boys listening in the dark with rapt fascination as the Archeologist described the great deeds of Hercules to them. It had been a long day, however, and one by one they drifted off despite themselves, Daniel's soothing voice sending them to sleep, and dreams of heroes and villains, and pillow fights with Air Force Seals.
Just a quick answer to a question in a review: Teal'c has the seal thing on his forehead, which he has to hide. But he also has a large X on his belly from his pouch (where his symbiote is) that they need to hide, since kids would obviously notice it and ask about it. That's what I meant by hiding the simbiote.
Thank you for all the reviews, I'm glad you're enjoying this! I am, too.
~~*~~**~~~
Daniel and Jack entered the cabin, still discussing the kiss, when a large pillow came flying out of nowhere, and hit Jack right in the face. Daniel dodged out of the way, ducking into the doorway with an intense wariness that made it look for all the world as if he'd just gated into the middle of a firefight. The boys had much better aim than Jaffa. Another pillow came sailing from the back of the room, whacking him in the face as well.
"Got him!"
Daniel reached down and picked up the offending pillow, looking towards the source of the gleeful shout. It was Simon, one of the boys who was sleeping closest to his bunk. He'd already rearmed himself with Daniel's pillow, this time holding it, ready to swing to protect himself.
Daniel looked for help, and noticed Teal'c had already been engaged by the enemy; the big Jaffa having been cornered by several pillow swinging assailants. He was putting up a valiant defense, but it was obvious that it wasn't going to be enough. There were just too many of them.
Jack had noticed as well, and was rushing to Teal'c's aid, having armed himself with both his own pillow, and the one that had hit him on the way in the door. Two handedly swinging, it was obvious to Daniel that this wasn't his first pillow fight with youngsters. He was whacking the boys with exactly enough force to knock them back and not enough to hurt them, and the boys were loving it.
Shawn was the first to fall to O'Neill's prowess with a pillow. The boy fell under a flurry of blows that he was laughing too hard to truly defend against, and once the Colonel had him down, it was a simple matter of sitting on him, pinning his body to the floor while swinging at the boys who'd come to rescue him, freeing Teal'c from enough assailants that he was able to gain a little more ground in his own defense.
Daniel had only enough time to glimpse this before he was attacked once more. Simon had taken advantage of his distraction and had come up close enough to swing. It was a good one, hitting Daniel right in the stomach. The archeologist doubled over, pretending that it had nailed him a lot harder than it actually had, and then swung back, hitting the boy's legs out from under him. Simon shrieked with laughter and Daniel took a cue from Jack and pinned him down while he fought off the attack from another boy who'd come to the rescue.
Finally, there had to be an armistice called for. Jack's arms were tired and he'd taken a shot to the groin that had truly hurt, even though he'd never have let the kids known. Teal'c was still backed into the corner, but Andrew had changed sides in the middle of the battle and was now fighting side by side with the Jaffa, using Teal'c's large body to block several blows from their attackers. Daniel had been taken out and disarmed, but he'd managed to trap one boy under his bunk even though the others were desperately fighting to free him. All in all, it had been a quite satisfactory pillow fight from all sides. But it had to end.
Jack let Shawn up, grinning down at the boy and giving him an affectionate hug as he pulled him to his feet. A hug that was returned with a smile. Teal'c relinquished his pillow to one of the boys, and then stood up as well, pulling Andrew to his feet. Daniel was ransomed back to Jack and Teal'c for a candy bar, and the archeologist grinned when Simon gave him back his pillow.
"All right, men," Jack said, sitting on his bunk and waiting until he had their attention. "Get into your jammies and brush your teeth, we have to get to bed. Lights out in ten minutes."
There were assorted groans, but none of the boys argued. There was a rush to the bathroom and another rush to get their pajamas on, and most of them were sitting in their beds under their blankets by the time Jack's ten minutes were up.
"Jack?"
"Yeah?"
"Could you tell us a story?"
Jack grinned, remembering a million times in the middle of the night how he'd hear that very question from his son. He wasn't a very good storyteller, though. Never had been. He didn't have the imagination to make up good ones, and the ones he'd lived through were not suitable for kids to hear. Especially not before bedtime.
"You know..." he said, pulling out a pair of sweats and a t-shirt to sleep in. "Daniel's an archeologist, remember? He knows lots of stories about things and people that haven't been seen in thousands of years. Why don't you ask him to tell you about some of them?"
Daniel had been in the bathroom when Jack was suggesting this, and when he came out, he found himself under siege once more.
"Daniel! Will you tell us a story?"
"Yeah, a Archonimist story?"
"That's not how you say it. It's Archolonist."
"Is not."
"Tell us a story about dead people, Daniel. Only not ghosts, I don't want to hear a ghost story."
Daniel smiled, looking over at Jack, who gave him an innocent look as he pulled on his sweats.
"They asked me for a story. You know how I am with stories. You're much better."
"Uh huh." Daniel walked over to his bunk and pulled a book out from under it. "All right, you guys, I'll tell you a story." He waited until the last boy had settled into his bed, and then opened the book, rifling through it until he found what he was looking for.
"Have any of you heard of Greece?"
"Yeah, it's what's in French fries."
"And hamburgers."
"And it's on my sister's face."
Daniel shook his head, grinning. "No. Greece. G-R-E-E-C-E. It's a place in Europe. There was a guy there named Hercules, a long, long time ago." He stood up and took the book around, showing the boys an illustration of the hero in question, then went back to his bunk and put the book away. Jack turned off the light as Daniel began his story of Hercules, the boys listening in the dark with rapt fascination as the Archeologist described the great deeds of Hercules to them. It had been a long day, however, and one by one they drifted off despite themselves, Daniel's soothing voice sending them to sleep, and dreams of heroes and villains, and pillow fights with Air Force Seals.