Sally was amazed by the amount of food Jack had on his tray. The guy was hardly a heavyweight, after all, and he had three entire sandwiches, a bowl of soup, a half dozen vanilla wafers, a piece of pie and an entire pot of coffee all balanced precariously on his tray. She couldn't remember seeing him eat that much food any of the few times that she'd been to his house since camp, and knew he hadn't eaten like that at camp. Of course, he'd been so battered at camp; she was surprised he'd had any appetite at all, but still...
"Hungry?" She asked, smiling as she gathered up a sandwich, some soup and a piece of the pie. It looked delicious, and she was suddenly starved.
He smiled, and led her over to a table, followed closely by Jaffer, who knew that a lot of the food on that tray was going to be his.
"I haven't eaten all day," Jack told her as he sat down and poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot he'd brought over, and then poured one for her as well.
"I was just starting dinner when you came over," she told him, adding cream to her coffee and taking an appreciative sip.
"For you and Binky?" He asked, smiling.
She returned the smile. "Binky is too young for stroganoff just yet, Jack. Maybe when she's a little older..." She watched as Jack began ripping one of his sandwiches into pieces, and realized that it wasn't because he was a neat freak; it was because he was going to feed it to Jaffer. "Are you sure that's good for him?"
O'Neill tossed a piece of the sandwich to the black lab who caught it effortlessly. "He's been eating here since he was a puppy, Sally. If he was going to keel over, he would have done it by now. Murray's dog, Jack, eats the food here, too."
She couldn't argue with him. Jaffer was a very happy and healthy looking dog, so maybe the food agreed with him. She took a bite of her soup, and found it to be good, even though it had obviously been sitting in the warmer for a while, since the cafeteria Jack had taken her to was deserted, and looked as though it had been for a while. Of course, she didn't know how late the people on a top-secret military base stayed, so everyone had probably gone home for the night.
"Do you eat here often?" She asked. "Or is that classified?"
O'Neill smiled.
"I eat here more than I eat at home." He admitted, handing the rest of the ripped up sandwich down to Jaffer on a saucer.
"Not much of a cook, huh?"
"No, not really. I prefer to cook when I have someone to cook for, and Jaffer's not all that picky about what he eats." Yeah, wasn't that an understatement?
"What about Sam?"
"What about her?"
"You don't like to cook for her?"
"Sure I do."
"She comes over a lot, doesn't she?"
Jack hesitated, then took a sip of his coffee. "That's classified."
She smiled. "I signed your paper."
"There isn't a paper you could sign to get me to answer that question. Or any like it." His brown eyes were smiling, now, though, so Sally knew it wasn't quite that bad.
"But you'll answer other questions for me?"
"Some." He nodded. "As long as you realize that-"
"It's all classified?"
He nodded.
"Where were you when Daniel and Sam were hurt?"
"Standing beside Daniel and a little behind Sam."
"That's not what I meant." She said. "Were you in South America?"
"No."
"Mexico?"
"No."
"There's no place else you could have been, Jack. Not if you got there and back in one day. It's impossible."
"Ask me another question."
"Meaning you're not going to answer that one?"
"I'll answer that one later, Sally. After we're done eating."
"Who ambushed your friends?"
"Jaffa."
She looked down at Jaffer, thinking Jack had said his name, only mispronounced it. He caught the look immediately, and smiled.
"Not Jaffer. Jaffa. It... they're... a race of... people we've discovered in recent years."
"What kind of people?"
"Fairly alien," He told her, finishing the first of his sandwiches. "Not very nice, though."
"Alien as in odd?" She asked.
"Alien as in from another planet."
"Bullshit."
He smiled and started in on his other sandwich, ripping it in half and tearing up one half for Jaffer, who'd long since finished his.
"You're serious?"
He nodded.
"Aliens? From other planets? On Earth?"
"Some of them."
"We've discovered another race of people and the Military is hiding them?"
"Not exactly... well..." Jack shrugged, chewing his bite of sandwich slowly, trying to gather his thoughts. He knew he was just confusing her, and knew how much he was supposed to be able to tell her – which was far more than he'd expected Hammond to allow. Now it was just a matter of telling her in a way that wouldn't confuse her more. Good luck. He was sure Sam could have done a better job of it – or Daniel – but since they weren't there, and he was....
"It's kind of complicated."
"I bet."
"Okay. A long time ago – during the ancient days – the people of Earth were all just hanging around, right?"
She nodded, suddenly narrowing her eyes as a suspicion started dawning on her. Jack noticed the look and waited for whatever question was coming, wondering how she could have one, when all he'd said was one sentence.
"Daniel's right?" She asked. "About the pyramids?"
"What?"
"I read his books, Jack. I told you. He thinks the pyramids were just landing places for alien spacecraft... He thinks that aliens influenced the people of Earth far back in ancient times."
"Yeah, he's right." Jack told her. "To a point."
"What point?"
"Aliens didn't just influence people in the old days," Jack said. "They kidnapped a lot of them."
"What?"
He shrugged, unsure what else to call it. "They took them off the planet, to their worlds. As slaves." He wasn't ready to get into the Goa'uld.
"In space ships that they used the pyramids to land on?" Her voice was a mixture of disbelief and awe, and Jack wasn't sure if she believed anything she was being told.
"Yup."
"So what do you need an archeologist for? Once he'd figured it out, there really isn't much more he can do, is there?"
"We're occasionally finding proof of these people, Sally," he told her, starting on his pie and tossing the vanilla wafers to Jaffer. "Daniel speaks about a billion languages, so he's the best we've got when it comes to reading the papers and scrolls and whatever else we find. If he can read them, then we can try and get in touch with these people."
"On other planets?" She wondered how he was managing to eat when they were discussing something so amazing. Her own soup and sandwich were both untouched, now. "How are... does the Military have a spaceship?"
"Just the shuttles."
"Then how are you finding these people? Are they coming to Earth? Why would they come after all these years? Not to mention even at light speed, they'd take hundreds of years for them to make it here from any of the known galaxies... much less one we haven't heard of, or don't know about..." She trailed off, noticing his eyes seemed to be glazing over, slightly. "Sorry."
"I'm used to it," Jack told her, taking another bite of his pie.
"Hungry?" She asked, smiling as she gathered up a sandwich, some soup and a piece of the pie. It looked delicious, and she was suddenly starved.
He smiled, and led her over to a table, followed closely by Jaffer, who knew that a lot of the food on that tray was going to be his.
"I haven't eaten all day," Jack told her as he sat down and poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot he'd brought over, and then poured one for her as well.
"I was just starting dinner when you came over," she told him, adding cream to her coffee and taking an appreciative sip.
"For you and Binky?" He asked, smiling.
She returned the smile. "Binky is too young for stroganoff just yet, Jack. Maybe when she's a little older..." She watched as Jack began ripping one of his sandwiches into pieces, and realized that it wasn't because he was a neat freak; it was because he was going to feed it to Jaffer. "Are you sure that's good for him?"
O'Neill tossed a piece of the sandwich to the black lab who caught it effortlessly. "He's been eating here since he was a puppy, Sally. If he was going to keel over, he would have done it by now. Murray's dog, Jack, eats the food here, too."
She couldn't argue with him. Jaffer was a very happy and healthy looking dog, so maybe the food agreed with him. She took a bite of her soup, and found it to be good, even though it had obviously been sitting in the warmer for a while, since the cafeteria Jack had taken her to was deserted, and looked as though it had been for a while. Of course, she didn't know how late the people on a top-secret military base stayed, so everyone had probably gone home for the night.
"Do you eat here often?" She asked. "Or is that classified?"
O'Neill smiled.
"I eat here more than I eat at home." He admitted, handing the rest of the ripped up sandwich down to Jaffer on a saucer.
"Not much of a cook, huh?"
"No, not really. I prefer to cook when I have someone to cook for, and Jaffer's not all that picky about what he eats." Yeah, wasn't that an understatement?
"What about Sam?"
"What about her?"
"You don't like to cook for her?"
"Sure I do."
"She comes over a lot, doesn't she?"
Jack hesitated, then took a sip of his coffee. "That's classified."
She smiled. "I signed your paper."
"There isn't a paper you could sign to get me to answer that question. Or any like it." His brown eyes were smiling, now, though, so Sally knew it wasn't quite that bad.
"But you'll answer other questions for me?"
"Some." He nodded. "As long as you realize that-"
"It's all classified?"
He nodded.
"Where were you when Daniel and Sam were hurt?"
"Standing beside Daniel and a little behind Sam."
"That's not what I meant." She said. "Were you in South America?"
"No."
"Mexico?"
"No."
"There's no place else you could have been, Jack. Not if you got there and back in one day. It's impossible."
"Ask me another question."
"Meaning you're not going to answer that one?"
"I'll answer that one later, Sally. After we're done eating."
"Who ambushed your friends?"
"Jaffa."
She looked down at Jaffer, thinking Jack had said his name, only mispronounced it. He caught the look immediately, and smiled.
"Not Jaffer. Jaffa. It... they're... a race of... people we've discovered in recent years."
"What kind of people?"
"Fairly alien," He told her, finishing the first of his sandwiches. "Not very nice, though."
"Alien as in odd?" She asked.
"Alien as in from another planet."
"Bullshit."
He smiled and started in on his other sandwich, ripping it in half and tearing up one half for Jaffer, who'd long since finished his.
"You're serious?"
He nodded.
"Aliens? From other planets? On Earth?"
"Some of them."
"We've discovered another race of people and the Military is hiding them?"
"Not exactly... well..." Jack shrugged, chewing his bite of sandwich slowly, trying to gather his thoughts. He knew he was just confusing her, and knew how much he was supposed to be able to tell her – which was far more than he'd expected Hammond to allow. Now it was just a matter of telling her in a way that wouldn't confuse her more. Good luck. He was sure Sam could have done a better job of it – or Daniel – but since they weren't there, and he was....
"It's kind of complicated."
"I bet."
"Okay. A long time ago – during the ancient days – the people of Earth were all just hanging around, right?"
She nodded, suddenly narrowing her eyes as a suspicion started dawning on her. Jack noticed the look and waited for whatever question was coming, wondering how she could have one, when all he'd said was one sentence.
"Daniel's right?" She asked. "About the pyramids?"
"What?"
"I read his books, Jack. I told you. He thinks the pyramids were just landing places for alien spacecraft... He thinks that aliens influenced the people of Earth far back in ancient times."
"Yeah, he's right." Jack told her. "To a point."
"What point?"
"Aliens didn't just influence people in the old days," Jack said. "They kidnapped a lot of them."
"What?"
He shrugged, unsure what else to call it. "They took them off the planet, to their worlds. As slaves." He wasn't ready to get into the Goa'uld.
"In space ships that they used the pyramids to land on?" Her voice was a mixture of disbelief and awe, and Jack wasn't sure if she believed anything she was being told.
"Yup."
"So what do you need an archeologist for? Once he'd figured it out, there really isn't much more he can do, is there?"
"We're occasionally finding proof of these people, Sally," he told her, starting on his pie and tossing the vanilla wafers to Jaffer. "Daniel speaks about a billion languages, so he's the best we've got when it comes to reading the papers and scrolls and whatever else we find. If he can read them, then we can try and get in touch with these people."
"On other planets?" She wondered how he was managing to eat when they were discussing something so amazing. Her own soup and sandwich were both untouched, now. "How are... does the Military have a spaceship?"
"Just the shuttles."
"Then how are you finding these people? Are they coming to Earth? Why would they come after all these years? Not to mention even at light speed, they'd take hundreds of years for them to make it here from any of the known galaxies... much less one we haven't heard of, or don't know about..." She trailed off, noticing his eyes seemed to be glazing over, slightly. "Sorry."
"I'm used to it," Jack told her, taking another bite of his pie.