Chapter 4- Safety
"Of course, you are always welcome in the Land of Light. Accommodations will be prepared for you."
"Thank you, Tuplo." Daniel bowed, serving in his role as the teams diplomat.
"In the meantime, would you care to join us for evening meal?"
"We'd be honored."
They moved into the Dining Hall, with it's low table and cushions arrayed around it for everyone to sit. Sam moved to sit to Jacks right, as she usually did on offworld missions, but found that Sarah had already occupied the seat. She ended up sitting next to Cassie, who was on Jacks left. Teal'c, Daniel and Sara Gardner sat across from them. Tuplo and his family arranged themselves further down the table. Most of the group ate in silence, save Sarah, who was enthralled to meet a race from an alien planet, and Danny, who was *always* talkative.
"So this disease made half of the people, the 'touched,' go crazy?"
"Yes, that is so. Thanks to our friends here, however, we were able to overcome the curse."
"So, how did you guys get involved?"
Daniel had had a little to much of the local drink, and so he answered animatedly. "Well, first a couple of members of another SGC team got it, and started acting like animals. After a little while, Sam, and then Jack got it, too. Teal'c and I turned out to be immune, so we set about figuring out why, and came up with a cure."
"How did you two get it?"
Daniel answered before anyone else could. "Well, Sam got it when she tried to help the others who had it, and then Jack got it from her when she went crazy."
"How?"
Daniel didn't notice the glares from both Jack and Sam that sad *No!* "She tried to seduce him, rather forcefully, actually."
"Seduce?" Something caught in Sarah's throat.
"Yeah, I um... jumped him in the locker room." There really was no pleasant way to say it. Sam blushed with embarrassment. Sarah, on the other hand went pale.
An awkward silence ensued. Nobody looked anyone else in the eye for several seconds.
Jack finally broke the silence. "Danny, you've had enough of that stuff, you should get to bed. I wouldn't want to be you in the morning." Rising, Jack led him to the room that had been prepared for the men.
The ladies headed off for their own room.
The males settled down for the first long, comfortable night sleep in way too long. The females, on the other hand, talked for several hours before finally going to sleep. Sarah pressed Sam for more details about her relationship with Jack. Sam found herself relating the time they had been trapped in Antarctica, the whole business with the mind stamps, and even the Za'tarc incident, something she had *never* expected to speak of.
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Jack woke early, well rested. Rising, he walked outside the palace to savor the quiet dawn.
Sam also woke at about the same time, and had the same idea as Jack. She found him sitting on the low stone wall with his back to a pillar. She approached quietly and sat a few feet away.
Often on offworld missions, the two of them would rise before dawn and watch the sun come up. They never said they watched it come up *together*, because that somehow sounded wrong. Sam secretly treasured the times they spent together early in the morning, sometimes speaking, sometimes not saying a word, but just being there with each other.
"Morning, Carter."
"Morning, sir."
"Sleep well last night?"
"Yes, we all did. You?"
"Best sleep I've had in a while."
A comfortable silence passed for a few minutes as the planets sun came up. It was more white and a little less harsh to the eye as Earth's. It fit perfectly with the feeling of peace that pervaded the atmosphere on this planet.
It was Sam who broke the silence. "Sarah seems pretty happy, given that she just left her whole planet behind." It was the closest she could come to broaching the subject that had been on her mind since her conversation with Sarah the day before.
"Yeah." Jack winced. He had known that this was going to come up eventually. He could ignore it when there was action, like rescuing Cassie and Sara Gardner, but now that they were relatively safe... The problem was that he just didn't know. He loved Sarah, always had, always would. On the other hand, he'd be lying to himself if he said that he didn't still care about Sam. A lot. Of course, he had no idea how she felt about him. He knew she still cared, but after Pete, he wasn't sure if she cared in the same way.
There was one way to find out. He looked straight at her, and their eyes met. The silent communication thing still worked, so that was a good sign. It had gone away briefly when she wet out with Pete.
Crap. She *did* still care, of that he was sure. It was a distinctively great and at the same time scary thing. What do I do? With Sarah here, and Sam here, things were gonna get sticky.
Before he could come to a conclusion, however, Daniel stumbled out of the doorway into the courtyard nearby.
Jack laughed, glad that a distraction had appeared to save him from this awkwardness. "I warned you, Danny."
"Two. I only had two drinks last night. You're not supposed to feel this bad after two, are you?"
"You are if you can barely handle one back on Earth." Jack was always ribbing Daniel on his inability to handle alcohol.
Gradually, the rest of SG-1 and their band of followers woke up and came outside as well. The Sara(h)'s were talking about something or other, both none the worse from the few sips of drink they had had the night before. Cassie, though she was to young to drink, was as grumpy as any teenager who had just woken up. Teal'c, as always, was fresh as a daisy.
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For most of them, the next few days were spent relaxing, eating, sleeping, and healing. Cassie made good friends with a couple of the young boys her age, something that SG-1 noted with some amusement. Sam spent the afternoons swimming, trying to get rid of the last bits of weakness in her arm that had come from getting shot back on Earth.
Jack sat on the beach and watched her for the first two days, so that he could keep an eye on her in case her arm gave out. Once it was clear that she was fine, he went with Teal'c for a little exploration of the surrounding area.
Daniel and Sara spent most of the time together, talking about Archaeology. That naturally led to a conversation about the Goa'uld. Sara was a veritable treasure trove of information, and Daniel was determined to get it all, while at the same time continuing to help her recover from her ordeal with Osirus.
Sarah bounced back and forth between Jack and Teal'c, and Daniel and Sara. The bond that was between the members of SG-1 was incredible to behold. Cassie was like family to them, and Sara had a history that drew her into the group as well. Sarah felt as though she had nothing. There was no bond, except with Jack, and she questioned even that, now that she realized there was something between him and Sam.
On the third day she confronted Jack.
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"Jack, can we talk?"
"Sure." They got up and began walking down the path leading to the Stargate.
"Jack, what's with you and Sam?"
His eyebrows furrowed. "Ah, I don't know. I kinda figured that, you two being women and all, that you'd know as much about that as I do. More even, since I don't know much."
"Sam told me about the Za'tarc incident."
Jack head shot around at that. "She did?!" So much for 'keeping it in the room.'
"Yeah. And she also told me about her boyfriend. I don't remember his name."
His look became guarded. "Pete. And...?"
"I'm just saying, I know a little about your history with each other. Do you still care about her after she went out with him? I think I have a right to know."
Jack sighed. He couldn't play dumb, not with her. "Yeah, I guess so." She seemed to deflate in front of him, so he said hurriedly, "Sarah, listen too me. I'm really sorry I got you into this. You had to leave behind everything you ever knew. I know it must be hard."
"Hard? No. I hadn't even known there *were* aliens on other planets until a week ago. Now I'm living with them. What's so hard about that?" Jack smirked. She was just as sarcastic as he was, sometimes.
"Yeah, well listen. No matter what, I promise I won't leave you on your own. Okay?"
"Okay." It wasn't quite what she wanted, but it was something. She looked up when she heard a sound. They had arrived at the Stargate, and the chevrons were moving.
"Sarah?" Jack had drawn his pistol, as he had left his P-90 back at camp. "Hide in those bushes. If something bad happens, run back to camp as fast as you can and tell them. Go." He gently pushed her on her way. He took up a position by the DHD just as the wormhole engaged.
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Bit of a filler chapter, this one. The pace is going to pick up soon, though, so keep reading!
"Of course, you are always welcome in the Land of Light. Accommodations will be prepared for you."
"Thank you, Tuplo." Daniel bowed, serving in his role as the teams diplomat.
"In the meantime, would you care to join us for evening meal?"
"We'd be honored."
They moved into the Dining Hall, with it's low table and cushions arrayed around it for everyone to sit. Sam moved to sit to Jacks right, as she usually did on offworld missions, but found that Sarah had already occupied the seat. She ended up sitting next to Cassie, who was on Jacks left. Teal'c, Daniel and Sara Gardner sat across from them. Tuplo and his family arranged themselves further down the table. Most of the group ate in silence, save Sarah, who was enthralled to meet a race from an alien planet, and Danny, who was *always* talkative.
"So this disease made half of the people, the 'touched,' go crazy?"
"Yes, that is so. Thanks to our friends here, however, we were able to overcome the curse."
"So, how did you guys get involved?"
Daniel had had a little to much of the local drink, and so he answered animatedly. "Well, first a couple of members of another SGC team got it, and started acting like animals. After a little while, Sam, and then Jack got it, too. Teal'c and I turned out to be immune, so we set about figuring out why, and came up with a cure."
"How did you two get it?"
Daniel answered before anyone else could. "Well, Sam got it when she tried to help the others who had it, and then Jack got it from her when she went crazy."
"How?"
Daniel didn't notice the glares from both Jack and Sam that sad *No!* "She tried to seduce him, rather forcefully, actually."
"Seduce?" Something caught in Sarah's throat.
"Yeah, I um... jumped him in the locker room." There really was no pleasant way to say it. Sam blushed with embarrassment. Sarah, on the other hand went pale.
An awkward silence ensued. Nobody looked anyone else in the eye for several seconds.
Jack finally broke the silence. "Danny, you've had enough of that stuff, you should get to bed. I wouldn't want to be you in the morning." Rising, Jack led him to the room that had been prepared for the men.
The ladies headed off for their own room.
The males settled down for the first long, comfortable night sleep in way too long. The females, on the other hand, talked for several hours before finally going to sleep. Sarah pressed Sam for more details about her relationship with Jack. Sam found herself relating the time they had been trapped in Antarctica, the whole business with the mind stamps, and even the Za'tarc incident, something she had *never* expected to speak of.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Jack woke early, well rested. Rising, he walked outside the palace to savor the quiet dawn.
Sam also woke at about the same time, and had the same idea as Jack. She found him sitting on the low stone wall with his back to a pillar. She approached quietly and sat a few feet away.
Often on offworld missions, the two of them would rise before dawn and watch the sun come up. They never said they watched it come up *together*, because that somehow sounded wrong. Sam secretly treasured the times they spent together early in the morning, sometimes speaking, sometimes not saying a word, but just being there with each other.
"Morning, Carter."
"Morning, sir."
"Sleep well last night?"
"Yes, we all did. You?"
"Best sleep I've had in a while."
A comfortable silence passed for a few minutes as the planets sun came up. It was more white and a little less harsh to the eye as Earth's. It fit perfectly with the feeling of peace that pervaded the atmosphere on this planet.
It was Sam who broke the silence. "Sarah seems pretty happy, given that she just left her whole planet behind." It was the closest she could come to broaching the subject that had been on her mind since her conversation with Sarah the day before.
"Yeah." Jack winced. He had known that this was going to come up eventually. He could ignore it when there was action, like rescuing Cassie and Sara Gardner, but now that they were relatively safe... The problem was that he just didn't know. He loved Sarah, always had, always would. On the other hand, he'd be lying to himself if he said that he didn't still care about Sam. A lot. Of course, he had no idea how she felt about him. He knew she still cared, but after Pete, he wasn't sure if she cared in the same way.
There was one way to find out. He looked straight at her, and their eyes met. The silent communication thing still worked, so that was a good sign. It had gone away briefly when she wet out with Pete.
Crap. She *did* still care, of that he was sure. It was a distinctively great and at the same time scary thing. What do I do? With Sarah here, and Sam here, things were gonna get sticky.
Before he could come to a conclusion, however, Daniel stumbled out of the doorway into the courtyard nearby.
Jack laughed, glad that a distraction had appeared to save him from this awkwardness. "I warned you, Danny."
"Two. I only had two drinks last night. You're not supposed to feel this bad after two, are you?"
"You are if you can barely handle one back on Earth." Jack was always ribbing Daniel on his inability to handle alcohol.
Gradually, the rest of SG-1 and their band of followers woke up and came outside as well. The Sara(h)'s were talking about something or other, both none the worse from the few sips of drink they had had the night before. Cassie, though she was to young to drink, was as grumpy as any teenager who had just woken up. Teal'c, as always, was fresh as a daisy.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX
For most of them, the next few days were spent relaxing, eating, sleeping, and healing. Cassie made good friends with a couple of the young boys her age, something that SG-1 noted with some amusement. Sam spent the afternoons swimming, trying to get rid of the last bits of weakness in her arm that had come from getting shot back on Earth.
Jack sat on the beach and watched her for the first two days, so that he could keep an eye on her in case her arm gave out. Once it was clear that she was fine, he went with Teal'c for a little exploration of the surrounding area.
Daniel and Sara spent most of the time together, talking about Archaeology. That naturally led to a conversation about the Goa'uld. Sara was a veritable treasure trove of information, and Daniel was determined to get it all, while at the same time continuing to help her recover from her ordeal with Osirus.
Sarah bounced back and forth between Jack and Teal'c, and Daniel and Sara. The bond that was between the members of SG-1 was incredible to behold. Cassie was like family to them, and Sara had a history that drew her into the group as well. Sarah felt as though she had nothing. There was no bond, except with Jack, and she questioned even that, now that she realized there was something between him and Sam.
On the third day she confronted Jack.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Jack, can we talk?"
"Sure." They got up and began walking down the path leading to the Stargate.
"Jack, what's with you and Sam?"
His eyebrows furrowed. "Ah, I don't know. I kinda figured that, you two being women and all, that you'd know as much about that as I do. More even, since I don't know much."
"Sam told me about the Za'tarc incident."
Jack head shot around at that. "She did?!" So much for 'keeping it in the room.'
"Yeah. And she also told me about her boyfriend. I don't remember his name."
His look became guarded. "Pete. And...?"
"I'm just saying, I know a little about your history with each other. Do you still care about her after she went out with him? I think I have a right to know."
Jack sighed. He couldn't play dumb, not with her. "Yeah, I guess so." She seemed to deflate in front of him, so he said hurriedly, "Sarah, listen too me. I'm really sorry I got you into this. You had to leave behind everything you ever knew. I know it must be hard."
"Hard? No. I hadn't even known there *were* aliens on other planets until a week ago. Now I'm living with them. What's so hard about that?" Jack smirked. She was just as sarcastic as he was, sometimes.
"Yeah, well listen. No matter what, I promise I won't leave you on your own. Okay?"
"Okay." It wasn't quite what she wanted, but it was something. She looked up when she heard a sound. They had arrived at the Stargate, and the chevrons were moving.
"Sarah?" Jack had drawn his pistol, as he had left his P-90 back at camp. "Hide in those bushes. If something bad happens, run back to camp as fast as you can and tell them. Go." He gently pushed her on her way. He took up a position by the DHD just as the wormhole engaged.
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Bit of a filler chapter, this one. The pace is going to pick up soon, though, so keep reading!