Mitchell woke a while later, opening her eyes and looking up at stars that
she'd come to know very well the last month. She looked at the watch on her
wrist and saw that she'd been asleep for more than 6 hours, which was about
right considering the position of the stars above. They'd learned the stars
fairly well. There wasn't a whole lot else to do when you're sitting in the
dark, listening to noises and waiting for the sun to come up. She knew
there was another seven hours or so of pitch darkness before the sky began
to lighten a bit with the coming dawn.
Someone had built a fire, though. It wasn't a big blaze, but it cut through the darkness of the night in ways that they'd only wished for their first time around. Feeling very old, and not a little stiff and sore, Mitchell got up to see about taking over a watch for someone, and maybe getting a bite to eat. She saw that Teal'c was sacked out near by, although he didn't look to be sleeping all that soundly, and there was another empty bedroll nearby. Wondering who had the watches, she decided finding out would wait long enough for her to get something to eat.
The meal was easy enough. There were plenty of MREs and a lot of dried fruit. She avoided the apples, but did grab up a bag of banana chips, feeling too stiff and sore to bother making an MRE.
"Colonel Mitchell?" She turned and saw Daniel Jackson coming over to stand next to her.
"You can call me Melony, Dr. Jackson." It wasn't like he was in the military, after all, and he wasn't in her chain of command. There wasn't any need for formality as far as she was concerned.
"Jack said when you woke up to tell you that you and Major Anderson are excused from watch and that he'd rather you slept as much as possible."
"He did?"
"Yep."
Yeah, that sounded like Jack. However, that meant that he and his team were going to be spreading themselves thin, and they had a long day tomorrow as well.
"Where is he?"
Jackson pointed off towards the darkness beyond the fire somewhat to their left, and she nodded. "Thanks."
She left him and walked out into the darkness, tripping once – which was nothing new for this planet.
"You'd better be sleep walking."
The voice was Jack's. The tone was only half-joking.
"I just woke up."
"Did you get my message?"
"Not to take a watch? Yes."
"Why aren't you sleeping then?"
"Because I'm used to not sleeping."
"You look beat."
"You can't see me."
"You sound beat. Go back to bed."
"I can take a watch, Jack." She told him. True, Hammond had put him in charge of the mission, and Mitchell understood the chain of command as well as anyone, but she also knew that a fourteen-hour night was a long one. "Seriously. It's better on this planet to do a few shorter watches through the night than a couple of long ones. Give me this set, then I'll sleep again after you've had a chance to rest." She paused, knowing he was thinking it through, and then added the coup de grace. "You do trust me to watch your six while you're sleeping, don't you?"
"You know I do," he told her, scowling. She couldn't see the scowl, of course – not this far from the fire – but she heard it in his voice.
"So, go get some sleep. There's nothing out here I haven't dealt with."
"Fine." He'd thought it over and had conceded the fact that she knew this place better than he did, and knew the best way to stand a watch for the weird hours. It was a rare instance when she – or anyone else – could get him to change his mind, but she didn't say that. "Wake me in 4 hours."
"Will do." She looked down at her watch.
"And eat something, before Fraiser comes through the gate and has my hide for starving you."
"I have some fruit with me. I can eat and watch."
He passed her in the dark, but didn't say anything as he went back to the fire. She appreciated that. Jack was a mother hen, and it was a good trait for a commanding officer to have – she knew she had that same streak of protectiveness – but once he told you he trusted you, he proved it by leaving you alone and letting you do your job without him hovering over you. Her brother Mike had been like that, too, she remembered.
Munching on her dried bananas, Mitchell stood her watch, listening to the sound of the creatures that moved out in the night, but knowing that whatever they were, they weren't going to harm her or the people she was with. They hadn't the first time she was here, and she couldn't think of any reason they would this time. She did, however, run her hand along the butt of her Beretta, just to make sure it was loose in the holster. It was always better to be safe than sorry.
~*~
They moved out again as soon as it was light enough to see the ground and make out the trees ahead. Jack had Anderson walking with Teal'c on point once more, but this time it was Jackson that was with Mitchell. The archeologist was taking advantage of that fact and was asking her question after question about the pyramid they were looking for. Mitchell wasn't an archeologist. She didn't know the different styles of pyramid building, and she didn't know the difference between a steppe pyramid and a stone pyramid, so she had the feeling she wasn't as much help as he'd hoped. This was proven fairly quickly when Daniel stopped asking her questions and pulled out the sheaf of notes that she and the rest of SG-2 had made. He could study the drawings and answer his own questions far better than she could.
As Daniel lagged back a little – because reading notes and walking on rugged ground weren't that easy – Jack came over once more to walk with Mitchell, leaving Carter to take rear and make sure Jackson didn't lag too far behind the others.
"Did he suck your brains dry?"
"Doctor Jackson?" She asked, grinning.
"Yeah. He told me he wanted a chance to ask you questions."
"I'm not much help, I think." She looked over her shoulder. "I didn't even understand half his questions."
"Which is about twice as many more of them than I would have."
Mitchell grinned, knowing better. He played dumb, but he wasn't, and she knew it.
"How long until we get to the trees?"
"About three hours at this pace, probably."
"Nothing in there that will eat us?"
"Nah. Lots of trees, some of them are those apple trees I was telling you about, but most are just trees. They don't grow all that close, so we'll still be able to see what's going on around us. It might not hurt to keep everyone a little closer though." You never knew.
"Yeah, we can do that." Jack nodded. "You holding up okay?"
"I'm fine, mom."
"And Anderson?"
"He's fine, too."
"Just checking. Let me know when you need a break."
"I will."
She'd fall over dead first, and Jack knew it. But he figured they'd take a break at the edge of the trees anyways.
Someone had built a fire, though. It wasn't a big blaze, but it cut through the darkness of the night in ways that they'd only wished for their first time around. Feeling very old, and not a little stiff and sore, Mitchell got up to see about taking over a watch for someone, and maybe getting a bite to eat. She saw that Teal'c was sacked out near by, although he didn't look to be sleeping all that soundly, and there was another empty bedroll nearby. Wondering who had the watches, she decided finding out would wait long enough for her to get something to eat.
The meal was easy enough. There were plenty of MREs and a lot of dried fruit. She avoided the apples, but did grab up a bag of banana chips, feeling too stiff and sore to bother making an MRE.
"Colonel Mitchell?" She turned and saw Daniel Jackson coming over to stand next to her.
"You can call me Melony, Dr. Jackson." It wasn't like he was in the military, after all, and he wasn't in her chain of command. There wasn't any need for formality as far as she was concerned.
"Jack said when you woke up to tell you that you and Major Anderson are excused from watch and that he'd rather you slept as much as possible."
"He did?"
"Yep."
Yeah, that sounded like Jack. However, that meant that he and his team were going to be spreading themselves thin, and they had a long day tomorrow as well.
"Where is he?"
Jackson pointed off towards the darkness beyond the fire somewhat to their left, and she nodded. "Thanks."
She left him and walked out into the darkness, tripping once – which was nothing new for this planet.
"You'd better be sleep walking."
The voice was Jack's. The tone was only half-joking.
"I just woke up."
"Did you get my message?"
"Not to take a watch? Yes."
"Why aren't you sleeping then?"
"Because I'm used to not sleeping."
"You look beat."
"You can't see me."
"You sound beat. Go back to bed."
"I can take a watch, Jack." She told him. True, Hammond had put him in charge of the mission, and Mitchell understood the chain of command as well as anyone, but she also knew that a fourteen-hour night was a long one. "Seriously. It's better on this planet to do a few shorter watches through the night than a couple of long ones. Give me this set, then I'll sleep again after you've had a chance to rest." She paused, knowing he was thinking it through, and then added the coup de grace. "You do trust me to watch your six while you're sleeping, don't you?"
"You know I do," he told her, scowling. She couldn't see the scowl, of course – not this far from the fire – but she heard it in his voice.
"So, go get some sleep. There's nothing out here I haven't dealt with."
"Fine." He'd thought it over and had conceded the fact that she knew this place better than he did, and knew the best way to stand a watch for the weird hours. It was a rare instance when she – or anyone else – could get him to change his mind, but she didn't say that. "Wake me in 4 hours."
"Will do." She looked down at her watch.
"And eat something, before Fraiser comes through the gate and has my hide for starving you."
"I have some fruit with me. I can eat and watch."
He passed her in the dark, but didn't say anything as he went back to the fire. She appreciated that. Jack was a mother hen, and it was a good trait for a commanding officer to have – she knew she had that same streak of protectiveness – but once he told you he trusted you, he proved it by leaving you alone and letting you do your job without him hovering over you. Her brother Mike had been like that, too, she remembered.
Munching on her dried bananas, Mitchell stood her watch, listening to the sound of the creatures that moved out in the night, but knowing that whatever they were, they weren't going to harm her or the people she was with. They hadn't the first time she was here, and she couldn't think of any reason they would this time. She did, however, run her hand along the butt of her Beretta, just to make sure it was loose in the holster. It was always better to be safe than sorry.
~*~
They moved out again as soon as it was light enough to see the ground and make out the trees ahead. Jack had Anderson walking with Teal'c on point once more, but this time it was Jackson that was with Mitchell. The archeologist was taking advantage of that fact and was asking her question after question about the pyramid they were looking for. Mitchell wasn't an archeologist. She didn't know the different styles of pyramid building, and she didn't know the difference between a steppe pyramid and a stone pyramid, so she had the feeling she wasn't as much help as he'd hoped. This was proven fairly quickly when Daniel stopped asking her questions and pulled out the sheaf of notes that she and the rest of SG-2 had made. He could study the drawings and answer his own questions far better than she could.
As Daniel lagged back a little – because reading notes and walking on rugged ground weren't that easy – Jack came over once more to walk with Mitchell, leaving Carter to take rear and make sure Jackson didn't lag too far behind the others.
"Did he suck your brains dry?"
"Doctor Jackson?" She asked, grinning.
"Yeah. He told me he wanted a chance to ask you questions."
"I'm not much help, I think." She looked over her shoulder. "I didn't even understand half his questions."
"Which is about twice as many more of them than I would have."
Mitchell grinned, knowing better. He played dumb, but he wasn't, and she knew it.
"How long until we get to the trees?"
"About three hours at this pace, probably."
"Nothing in there that will eat us?"
"Nah. Lots of trees, some of them are those apple trees I was telling you about, but most are just trees. They don't grow all that close, so we'll still be able to see what's going on around us. It might not hurt to keep everyone a little closer though." You never knew.
"Yeah, we can do that." Jack nodded. "You holding up okay?"
"I'm fine, mom."
"And Anderson?"
"He's fine, too."
"Just checking. Let me know when you need a break."
"I will."
She'd fall over dead first, and Jack knew it. But he figured they'd take a break at the edge of the trees anyways.