"How is she, Doc?" Jack asked when Fraiser met them at the door of the infirmary to keep them from coming in.

"We're still examining her, Colonel."

"So, how is she so far?"

"So far... broken leg, a lot of bruising and cuts, I think a broken rib – maybe just cracked – and a lot of pain. She really took a whack to the head, too, but I don't think she has a concussion. I'll know for sure in a bit."

"Will she be okay?" Daniel asked.

Fraiser nodded.

"She should be. Just really sore for a few days, and probably in a cast for at least six weeks. No promises, yet, though. I've got more to check."

Jack nodded, feeling relieved. Just because he'd thought Sam would be okay, it sure made it a lot more certain when Fraiser told him. And he knew she wouldn't have said she'd be okay if she weren't certain that she would.

"That's good."

Fraiser looked at the rest of SG-1 intently, obviously looking them over for injuries of their own.

"Are you guys all okay?"

"We went down the cliff of our own choosing," Jack told her, smiling slightly. "Sam's the only one that took a nose-dive."

"Then get out of my infirmary until I'm done with Major Carter."

"Can we see her?"

"Not yet, Colonel. You can see her when I'm done checking her out."

"But-"

"No. She's not in any danger. She's just bloody and bruised. You can see her when I'm done."

"Doc-"

"Colonel." Janet's hands went to her hips. "I said no."

"Come on, Jack," Daniel said, pulling on O'Neill's shirt. "We'll go get cleaned up and come back. By then-"

"Only if you take a long time to clean up," Fraiser interrupted. "At least a couple hours."

"A couple of hours!" Jack scowled.

"Maybe more if you keep me standing here arguing."

"Doc-"

"Colonel. Get out of my infirmary before I decide you need new vaccinations. With great big needles."

"Let's go, Jack." This time Daniel pulled a little harder, and Jack really scowled as he allowed Daniel and Teal'c to pull him out of the infirmary.

"Some day I'm going to get me a big needle and carry it around so I can threaten people with it..."

"Just don't get me involved," Daniel told him as they headed for the locker room, and a much-needed shower.

.......................

An hour and a half later, Jack was back at the door of the infirmary. This time he had more company with him. Daniel was with him, as was Teal'c, of course, but there were also two rather large dogs with them. One was Teal'c's yellow lab – Jack – and the other was Jack's black lab – Jaffer. Both dogs were standing at perfect heel beside their respective owners (and with Daniel in between them) when Fraiser came over. This time it was the doctor who scowled.

"What are they doing here?"

"They want to see how Major Carter is doing." Jack told her.

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

He ignored that.

"Can we see her?"

"No."

"Doc..."

Fraiser scowled, and looked down at the dogs. They were a little over a year old, now, and both had grown large, although Jaffer was showing every sign of having even more growing to do, and they both still had a lot of filling out to do. Even so, they were big. And Jaffer wasn't the best-behaved creature on the base, although he usually did what Jack told him to. That was a recipe for disaster in her infirmary, and Janet knew it.

"You stay here," She told them. Jack took that as a yes, and walked past Fraiser, with Jaffer muscling past Janet to stay right beside him. Teal'c and Daniel following with Jack right next to Teal'c. Fraiser scowled again, and started to say something, but just threw up her hands as an outlet for her irritation, and followed them.

Carter was awake, and looked up at them when they all crowded around her bed, concern evident on all their faces. With good reason, too. She was bruised and bandaged, and her eyes had a slightly glazed look in them that told Jack she wasn't going to be allowed out of the infirmary that day.

Jaffer couldn't see. He didn't like not being able to see. He could smell Sam – who was his second favorite person in the world! – but he couldn't see her, so he eyed the bed, and made an easy jump up onto it. For a dog his size, the black lab was far more agile than he looked.

"Jaffer!" Fraiser was practically sputtering. "Colonel! Get him down!"

Sam reached out and slid her fingers along the black lab's sleek side, smiling, and Jack smiled in return. She looked awful, but she was awake, and she obviously wasn't so out of it that she didn't recognize those around him.

"Jaffer," Jack said, softly.

His dog looked from Sam over to him, and Jack motioned for him to get off the bed. At the same moment that Teal'c's yellow lab decided that he wanted to see, too, and jumped up beside his brother.

"Teal'c!"

"Jack, down." Teal'c's voice was just as soft as Jack's had been.

Both dogs jumped off the bed, and Sam looked up at Jack, who was studiously ignoring the glares Janet was sending his way.

"Hi."

Sam reached her hand out, and Jack took it, wincing when he saw the bruise on her forearm. The others gathered close as well, and Sam smiled drowsily up at them.

"Hi. How do you feel?"

"Oh... a little sleepy..."

"She's on pain medication, Colonel." Janet told him and the others. "She'll be drowsy all day."

"Can I take her home?"

"No. Not tonight. I want to keep an eye on her."

"Can I stay?"

"No. She needs sleep."

"I won't be in the-"

"Colonel? Is there a reason you have to argue with everything I tell you?"

"No, it's just instinct, I suppose."

Janet didn't find that particularly amusing, but Daniel and Sam both smiled.

"Take your dog, and go home. Better yet, go do some grocery shopping."

"What?"

"Major Carter can go home tomorrow, but she'll need someone to keep an eye on her for a few days, at least, until she gets used to the cast, and we can get her off the pain pills. I assume you'll want to be the one who does it?"

"Of course."

"Then you're going to need groceries."

"I have-"

"Cereal, spoiled milk and beer are not groceries."

Jack scowled.

"I have-"

"Jack..." He looked at Sam, who'd interrupted him, and she squeezed his hand. "Just do what she says." Carter was too tired and miserable to listen to Jack and Janet argue. She wanted to sleep. Jack realized that, too, and sighed, but nodded.

"I'll be back first thing in the morning for you, okay?"

She nodded, and closed her eyes.

Janet ran her hand gently along Carter's cheek, then shooed them all away from the bed, before ordering them out of her infirmary once more. They went, but Jack kept looking back, trying to get one last glance of Sam before he went out the door. And ran face first into the doorframe. Muffling a curse, and scowling at the others, who were all grinning, he gathered the shattered remains of his dignity, and told them he was going home for the day. He had shopping to do.