Author's note: Sorry this one took so long, I'm nursing a nasty paper cut.
(See what I'm doing for you folks?)! Hehe, again, thanks for the reviews,
it's fun to see what you like most about the story!
~*~*~*~~*
Daniel was the only one of the adults that was sad to see Arts and Crafts time end. Teal'c couldn't leave the room fast enough, and Jack had to admit he was pretty bored with braiding and gluing, and the smell of burning leather from Daniel's end of the table was beginning to make him a little nauseas. He had the boys help clean up, and then admired all their wallets and bracelets as they walked back up to China to get cleaned up for lunch.
"Can I see the bracelet you made Sam?" Asked one of the boys, for the fourth time. Sam's bracelet had been the talk of the cabin. That and the Egyptian hieroglyphs Daniel had put on all their wallets. They were more excited about it than Jack was. He pulled the bracelet out of his pocket again and handed it over, smiling at the comments, and feeling a little impressed with himself by the quality of the craft he'd done.
"That's so cool!"
"She's going to like it, I bet!"
"I'd like it, if it was for me, and I was a girl!"
"It's not for a girl, it's for Sam!"
"Sam's a girl!"
"She is not. She's in the Air Force."
"That doesn't make her not a girl. Sam's a girl, right Jack?"
"She most definitely is," Jack agreed, glad his 2IC wasn't around to hear this particular conversation.
"See? She's just special, is all."
"It's a great bracelet, Jack," Shawn told his counselor, grinning from ear to ear. "When are you going to give it to her?"
Jack shrugged. "I'm not sure. Lunch time, I suppose?"
"That's a good idea."
"When are you going to let me see what you made?"
Shawn shrugged, looking pleased with himself. "Lunchtime?"
"Fair enough."
The boys handed Jack back his bracelet, then ran on ahead to help get Teal'c's fingers unglued from the door.
"Well, that was a lot more fun than I expected it to be," Daniel told Jack as they walked the rest of the way alone.
"You had your doubts?"
"You didn't?"
"Come on," Jack scoffed, "What could possibly have happened to us while we were doing Arts and Crafts?"
"Oh, a million things, including kids choking on beads, eating glue, having glue spilled all over and sitting in it without realizing it, slipping on-"
"Okay okay, so a few things could have gone wrong," Jack agreed, holding up his hand to stop Daniel's litany. "But they didn't. Because we're good counselors."
"Uh huh." Daniel had to admit that he was feeling pretty confident about his abilities as a counselor, despite his earlier misgivings. None of the boys were even scratched, and they'd been in their care for almost two days. Jack was the only one who'd suffered injury, and that had been a fluke accident. And it looked like Teal'c might lose a little skin from the way the boys tugging on his arm to try and free him from the door.
~~**
About ten minutes before lunch, Jack, Teal'c and Daniel led their brood of youngsters into the cafeteria. It'd taken them a long time to get Teal'c cleaned of all the glue, feathers and other odds and ends that had become stuck to him, but the Jaffa was now ornament free, and feeling a little better about this whole camping experience. He even had a new wallet to show for his morning, after all. A wallet that was made even more special by the fact that Andrew had helped him with it. He was finding the time spent with human children a definite learning experience. And was rather enjoying them.
"Sam isn't here, yet," Shawn noted when they walked through the door. There was a bit of disappointment in his voice, and Jack felt an echo of that disappointment as well, which surprised him.
"She'll be here." Jack assured him, walking over and sitting down with the rest of the cabin. Much to Daniel's relief, none of the girls from France were there yet, either, so he didn't have to suffer a multitude of stares. Not yet anyways.
The boys were playing rock paper scissors to decide who was going to be Runner when Carter and her cabin finally came through the door, shouting and giggling.
"Hi, guys," Sam greeted them, smiling and looking far better after he morning of sailing than Jack had.
"Hi Sam!"
"Hey Sam."
All the boys stopped what they were doing and looked pointedly at Jack, who tried to ignore them. And did, right up until Shawn elbowed him in the ribs.
"Jack made you a present, Sam."
Shawn couldn't have looked more impressed if he'd made it himself.
"You did?" Sam looked at O'Neill curiously, and Jack squirmed.
"Yeah. You know, Arts and Crafts and all. Who else would I make something for?"
Looking decidedly uncomfortable at all the eyes on him, Jack pulled the bracelet out from his pocket and handed it over to Carter, who smiled, touched, despite herself. It was made of black leather, braided with the occasional tiny white bead in a pattern that looked chaotic until you looked at it closely and saw that they swirled together in a pattern if she moved her hand.
"Wow. You made this?"
"Yep."
"For me?"
"Yep."
"Thanks, Jack." Sam was aware of all the eyes on her, including her girls who'd come in with her, but she couldn't help feel a little misty-eyed. "It's beautiful."
"So are you, Sam." There was utter devotion in O'Neill's voice and expression, and Carter felt her stomach flip-flop.
Daniel couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wondered how much of what was being said was for the benefit of the show that Jack and Sam were putting on and how much was actual emotion that had finally been allowed to show. Either way, it was far more than he'd ever expected from Jack. Especially from Jack.
"Put it on, Sam," One of the girls whispered.
"Help her, Jack," One of the boys whispered.
Jack took the bracelet back from Carter, who held out her hand, and watched as her CO carefully tied the leather bracelet onto her wrist. Then she flushed when Jack leaned over and kissed her cheek softly. An action that sent the kids in the area into pandemonium.
"I'm glad you like it," Jack murmured over the bedlam that ensued, squeezing Sam's hand gently before he leaned back into his chair, leaving Daniel and Teal'c to get the China boys under control.
Once things were a little quieter, and Sam had regained her composure, Jack turned to Shawn, who hadn't stopped grinning.
"So? Do I get to see what you made yourself this morning?"
"I didn't make myself anything, Jack," Shawn said.
"Sure you did."
"Nah, I made you something." The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out his own craft project. One that floored Jack just as much as his bracelet had floored Sam.
The leather was black. Three very thin thongs that had been intricately braided into one long one. Far longer than a bracelet, it was a necklace, and hanging from the very center, surrounded by three small white beads on either side, polished and shining, was the arrowhead that Shawn had found on his Nature Walk.
"Shawn, that's yours..." jack started to say, stunned by the gift.
"I know. Which means I can give it away if I want to. And I want to, Jack." The boy stood up and tied the ends of the necklace around Jack's neck, then grinned when he saw how well it fit. He'd only guessed at how long it should be.
"Do you like it?"
Jack couldn't say anything. His own voice was completely gone; clamped down under a lump in his throat the size of a watermelon. He merely pulled the boy into a hard bear hug, one that Shawn returned just as hard.
"Just look at it as a thank you gift if you end up saving me from a wild bear, okay?"
~*~*~*~~*
Daniel was the only one of the adults that was sad to see Arts and Crafts time end. Teal'c couldn't leave the room fast enough, and Jack had to admit he was pretty bored with braiding and gluing, and the smell of burning leather from Daniel's end of the table was beginning to make him a little nauseas. He had the boys help clean up, and then admired all their wallets and bracelets as they walked back up to China to get cleaned up for lunch.
"Can I see the bracelet you made Sam?" Asked one of the boys, for the fourth time. Sam's bracelet had been the talk of the cabin. That and the Egyptian hieroglyphs Daniel had put on all their wallets. They were more excited about it than Jack was. He pulled the bracelet out of his pocket again and handed it over, smiling at the comments, and feeling a little impressed with himself by the quality of the craft he'd done.
"That's so cool!"
"She's going to like it, I bet!"
"I'd like it, if it was for me, and I was a girl!"
"It's not for a girl, it's for Sam!"
"Sam's a girl!"
"She is not. She's in the Air Force."
"That doesn't make her not a girl. Sam's a girl, right Jack?"
"She most definitely is," Jack agreed, glad his 2IC wasn't around to hear this particular conversation.
"See? She's just special, is all."
"It's a great bracelet, Jack," Shawn told his counselor, grinning from ear to ear. "When are you going to give it to her?"
Jack shrugged. "I'm not sure. Lunch time, I suppose?"
"That's a good idea."
"When are you going to let me see what you made?"
Shawn shrugged, looking pleased with himself. "Lunchtime?"
"Fair enough."
The boys handed Jack back his bracelet, then ran on ahead to help get Teal'c's fingers unglued from the door.
"Well, that was a lot more fun than I expected it to be," Daniel told Jack as they walked the rest of the way alone.
"You had your doubts?"
"You didn't?"
"Come on," Jack scoffed, "What could possibly have happened to us while we were doing Arts and Crafts?"
"Oh, a million things, including kids choking on beads, eating glue, having glue spilled all over and sitting in it without realizing it, slipping on-"
"Okay okay, so a few things could have gone wrong," Jack agreed, holding up his hand to stop Daniel's litany. "But they didn't. Because we're good counselors."
"Uh huh." Daniel had to admit that he was feeling pretty confident about his abilities as a counselor, despite his earlier misgivings. None of the boys were even scratched, and they'd been in their care for almost two days. Jack was the only one who'd suffered injury, and that had been a fluke accident. And it looked like Teal'c might lose a little skin from the way the boys tugging on his arm to try and free him from the door.
~~**
About ten minutes before lunch, Jack, Teal'c and Daniel led their brood of youngsters into the cafeteria. It'd taken them a long time to get Teal'c cleaned of all the glue, feathers and other odds and ends that had become stuck to him, but the Jaffa was now ornament free, and feeling a little better about this whole camping experience. He even had a new wallet to show for his morning, after all. A wallet that was made even more special by the fact that Andrew had helped him with it. He was finding the time spent with human children a definite learning experience. And was rather enjoying them.
"Sam isn't here, yet," Shawn noted when they walked through the door. There was a bit of disappointment in his voice, and Jack felt an echo of that disappointment as well, which surprised him.
"She'll be here." Jack assured him, walking over and sitting down with the rest of the cabin. Much to Daniel's relief, none of the girls from France were there yet, either, so he didn't have to suffer a multitude of stares. Not yet anyways.
The boys were playing rock paper scissors to decide who was going to be Runner when Carter and her cabin finally came through the door, shouting and giggling.
"Hi, guys," Sam greeted them, smiling and looking far better after he morning of sailing than Jack had.
"Hi Sam!"
"Hey Sam."
All the boys stopped what they were doing and looked pointedly at Jack, who tried to ignore them. And did, right up until Shawn elbowed him in the ribs.
"Jack made you a present, Sam."
Shawn couldn't have looked more impressed if he'd made it himself.
"You did?" Sam looked at O'Neill curiously, and Jack squirmed.
"Yeah. You know, Arts and Crafts and all. Who else would I make something for?"
Looking decidedly uncomfortable at all the eyes on him, Jack pulled the bracelet out from his pocket and handed it over to Carter, who smiled, touched, despite herself. It was made of black leather, braided with the occasional tiny white bead in a pattern that looked chaotic until you looked at it closely and saw that they swirled together in a pattern if she moved her hand.
"Wow. You made this?"
"Yep."
"For me?"
"Yep."
"Thanks, Jack." Sam was aware of all the eyes on her, including her girls who'd come in with her, but she couldn't help feel a little misty-eyed. "It's beautiful."
"So are you, Sam." There was utter devotion in O'Neill's voice and expression, and Carter felt her stomach flip-flop.
Daniel couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wondered how much of what was being said was for the benefit of the show that Jack and Sam were putting on and how much was actual emotion that had finally been allowed to show. Either way, it was far more than he'd ever expected from Jack. Especially from Jack.
"Put it on, Sam," One of the girls whispered.
"Help her, Jack," One of the boys whispered.
Jack took the bracelet back from Carter, who held out her hand, and watched as her CO carefully tied the leather bracelet onto her wrist. Then she flushed when Jack leaned over and kissed her cheek softly. An action that sent the kids in the area into pandemonium.
"I'm glad you like it," Jack murmured over the bedlam that ensued, squeezing Sam's hand gently before he leaned back into his chair, leaving Daniel and Teal'c to get the China boys under control.
Once things were a little quieter, and Sam had regained her composure, Jack turned to Shawn, who hadn't stopped grinning.
"So? Do I get to see what you made yourself this morning?"
"I didn't make myself anything, Jack," Shawn said.
"Sure you did."
"Nah, I made you something." The boy reached into his pocket and pulled out his own craft project. One that floored Jack just as much as his bracelet had floored Sam.
The leather was black. Three very thin thongs that had been intricately braided into one long one. Far longer than a bracelet, it was a necklace, and hanging from the very center, surrounded by three small white beads on either side, polished and shining, was the arrowhead that Shawn had found on his Nature Walk.
"Shawn, that's yours..." jack started to say, stunned by the gift.
"I know. Which means I can give it away if I want to. And I want to, Jack." The boy stood up and tied the ends of the necklace around Jack's neck, then grinned when he saw how well it fit. He'd only guessed at how long it should be.
"Do you like it?"
Jack couldn't say anything. His own voice was completely gone; clamped down under a lump in his throat the size of a watermelon. He merely pulled the boy into a hard bear hug, one that Shawn returned just as hard.
"Just look at it as a thank you gift if you end up saving me from a wild bear, okay?"