Chapter 6
Sam meanwhile, was on a tour of the factory (which wasn't a factory at all, but actually a humongous lab) looking at all the cool stuff the Johet had.
-This place is...amazing.
Rokell smiled, slightly confused.
-Do you not work in a place such as this on your world?
-Yes, but not on such a large scale as this. And I'm hardly ever there
to work. Most of the time we're off world on missions like this one,
visiting other planets.
-Does it not distress you that you are not being able to work when you
want to?
-Sometimes. But, it's just as rewarding going off world, just in a
different way.
-I see.
But Sam could tell that she really didn't understand
-So uh, explain to me how this works.
She held up a complex looking piece of equipment
Rokell smiled.
-This could take awhile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
45 minutes later SG-1 met up in the room where they had first found the cloaks. Sam was sitting on the couch, looking like she had a hangover. Jack and Jonas sat at the table discussing the room's décor. Why the décor you ask? Suffice it to say, they were bored out of their minds. Katie was the last to arrive. She walked over to Sam and sat down next to her on the couch.
-Well, Sam, we got ourselves hitched for nothing.
-What?
-We didn't have to be mated.
Jack and Jonas got up immediately and walked over to join the conversation. Jack, who was thoroughly enjoying being 'mated' to Sam, turned to Katie in confusion.
-How's that?
Katie took a deep breath and began to explain.
-Well, in their culture there are four different levels for the women.
From the time when they are just weeks old they wear a chartreuse
colored cloak. Then when they reach the age of 18, they stop wearing
the cloaks and men can begin courting them. So, if a woman isn't
wearing a cloak she's fair game, which explains our encounter when we
first got here. When a woman becomes engaged, she wears a white cloak,
up until the wedding. At which time she puts on one of these lovely
urple cloaks and wears it for the rest of her life.
-You'd think they'd go with peridot instead of chartreuse...
The comment came from Jack, who of course did not grasp the significance of what Katie was saying, and so chose to focus instead on the Johet's color choices.
Sam, unlike the colonel, was quite startled by what she has just heard.
-Where did you find this out?
-Remember the girl I was with when you and Rocky went off to explore?
-Vaguely.
-I noticed she was wearing a white cloak and asked her to explain
their customs. Apparently the women are very pressured to be mated
once they turn 18 and love is not usually the deciding factor of whom
they marry.
-Really?
-Yeah. Although Jelsina has been engaged to her uh, riija for almost
three years and no one is forcing them to be mated. It seems that it's
the fact that she is engaged that's important in their culture, not
the marriage itself. Oh and age doesn't seem to matter as far as the
guy is concerned. Jelsina thought that dad was my mate.
-Whoa there!!
Jack stared at Katie in shock.
-She thought you and I were...ugh...
A shiver ran up his spine at the thought.
-Are you telling me that this young gal is engaged to a...well, to a
significantly older gentleman?
Katie nodded.
-And from what I hear, she didn't exactly have a choice in the matter.
Her riija Kalonctu, was the first one to complete a ritual that was
held to decide who she would marry.
Jonas looked at her queerly.
-What sort of ritual?
-She didn't say. I'm not really sure she knows.
Sam meanwhile, was on a tour of the factory (which wasn't a factory at all, but actually a humongous lab) looking at all the cool stuff the Johet had.
-This place is...amazing.
Rokell smiled, slightly confused.
-Do you not work in a place such as this on your world?
-Yes, but not on such a large scale as this. And I'm hardly ever there
to work. Most of the time we're off world on missions like this one,
visiting other planets.
-Does it not distress you that you are not being able to work when you
want to?
-Sometimes. But, it's just as rewarding going off world, just in a
different way.
-I see.
But Sam could tell that she really didn't understand
-So uh, explain to me how this works.
She held up a complex looking piece of equipment
Rokell smiled.
-This could take awhile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
45 minutes later SG-1 met up in the room where they had first found the cloaks. Sam was sitting on the couch, looking like she had a hangover. Jack and Jonas sat at the table discussing the room's décor. Why the décor you ask? Suffice it to say, they were bored out of their minds. Katie was the last to arrive. She walked over to Sam and sat down next to her on the couch.
-Well, Sam, we got ourselves hitched for nothing.
-What?
-We didn't have to be mated.
Jack and Jonas got up immediately and walked over to join the conversation. Jack, who was thoroughly enjoying being 'mated' to Sam, turned to Katie in confusion.
-How's that?
Katie took a deep breath and began to explain.
-Well, in their culture there are four different levels for the women.
From the time when they are just weeks old they wear a chartreuse
colored cloak. Then when they reach the age of 18, they stop wearing
the cloaks and men can begin courting them. So, if a woman isn't
wearing a cloak she's fair game, which explains our encounter when we
first got here. When a woman becomes engaged, she wears a white cloak,
up until the wedding. At which time she puts on one of these lovely
urple cloaks and wears it for the rest of her life.
-You'd think they'd go with peridot instead of chartreuse...
The comment came from Jack, who of course did not grasp the significance of what Katie was saying, and so chose to focus instead on the Johet's color choices.
Sam, unlike the colonel, was quite startled by what she has just heard.
-Where did you find this out?
-Remember the girl I was with when you and Rocky went off to explore?
-Vaguely.
-I noticed she was wearing a white cloak and asked her to explain
their customs. Apparently the women are very pressured to be mated
once they turn 18 and love is not usually the deciding factor of whom
they marry.
-Really?
-Yeah. Although Jelsina has been engaged to her uh, riija for almost
three years and no one is forcing them to be mated. It seems that it's
the fact that she is engaged that's important in their culture, not
the marriage itself. Oh and age doesn't seem to matter as far as the
guy is concerned. Jelsina thought that dad was my mate.
-Whoa there!!
Jack stared at Katie in shock.
-She thought you and I were...ugh...
A shiver ran up his spine at the thought.
-Are you telling me that this young gal is engaged to a...well, to a
significantly older gentleman?
Katie nodded.
-And from what I hear, she didn't exactly have a choice in the matter.
Her riija Kalonctu, was the first one to complete a ritual that was
held to decide who she would marry.
Jonas looked at her queerly.
-What sort of ritual?
-She didn't say. I'm not really sure she knows.
