Title: "Out of the Darkness"
Author: Jackie W.
Email: jackiesfica...
Rating: PG-13
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Jack had brought his Gameboy and several games along to keep himself busy during the long trip and Sam's recovery. Luckily Sam had come a lot more prepared than that. The General's attention span was about that of a seven year old, and so after a couple of hours that first afternoon when he started to get grouchy she pulled out the first of many distractions.
She had brought a chessboard and put that to use now while her sight was still good enough to play. Once Thor's buddies did their thing there would be at least a week before she would be able to enjoy the game again. She had also brought several other board games, including Battleship, which was a team favorite. Braille playing cards would be able to be used the entire trip. Crossword puzzles were stored away for Colonel to work on while she recovered, and for herself she had several books on tape.
She pulled out the real surprises after dinner. Thor had beamed several larger items (along with food supplies) up for her and after dinner Jack was thrilled to find a TV with DVD and VCR set up along with a microwave for making popcorn and other snacks. Both were hooked up to some funky Asgard generator that Thor had modified to Sam's specs to work with the Earth technology. Next to the TV was a box chock full of tapes and movies, including all of the available Simpson DVDs, the Monty Python movies and several of Jack's other favorites.
"Carter, this is great! This little vacation might just be more fun than fishing!" he exclaimed while going through the box. "Thanks!"
"No problem, Sir," she smiled. "I figured if I left you to wander around the Asgard's ships without entertainment you would get bored. I didn't want you to break something and start an intergalactic war."
"Carter, you aren't going to call me Sir the entire time we are gone are you?" Jack whined. "It's not like I'm your CO anymore."
"I don't know. Depends," Sam teased.
"Alright, what is it going to take to get you to finally call me Jack?" he asked with a sigh.
"Stop calling me Carter," she demanded firmly the smile momentarily departing.
Jack felt like an idiot. Of course it bothered her to be called that now that she had been medically discharged. It probably reminded her of everything she had lost every time he opened his big mouth.
"I'm sorry. I promised I would work on that didn't I?" was his only response, but he was no longer teasing either.
"So what movie do you want to watch?" Sam queried deftly changing the subject.
"You pick," Jack offered. After all, in a few days she would be without her sight again while she recovered from the Asgard version of surgery.
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The next couple of days passed by quickly. When they weren't talking to Thor, they were kept well entertained with everything Sam had brought. They even got Thor to watch 'ET the Extraterrestrial' with them, something Sam had brought along just for the occasion. Their small gray friend was mesmerized and thoroughly enjoyed the story. He asked if he could join them again for another movie on the return journey.
"So what do you think, Ca.. Sam? What would Thor enjoy?" Jack asked as they walked back to their quarters that night.
"I don't know. I brought a variety, but we could always just go with 'Close Encounters'," she offered with a grin causing Jack to laugh at the thought.
As Jack said goodnight to her he was overwhelmed by the knowledge that he couldn't live without that smile and wicked sense of humor in his life. When things settled down he was definitely going to have to do something about this second chance he'd been given.
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The day they met up with the 'Urlic' Sam was a bundle of nerves. She trusted the Asgard, but she couldn't help but worry about the outcome of this procedure. Realistically this would determine how well she would see for the rest of her life. Jack watched as she pushed her breakfast around on the plate.
"Come on Sam. I spent three whole minutes nuking those reconstituted eggs. They really are quite tasty," he coaxed.
It earned him a wan smile. "I appreciate the effort, Jack, really.
I'm just not hungry," she admitted.
"You know at worst you will be able to see just as well as you can right now," he reminded her.
"I know. And even this much is such a relief," she agreed.
"But? There is definitely a 'but' hanging there," Jack pushed her to continue.
"I want to be able to work in the lab again," she admitted. And then as if the flood doors had opened she let it all out. "I want to be able to drive so I'm independent again. I want to at least have good enough vision that I might be able to go through the gate again, even if it's just on scientific missions," she admitted. "But mostly I just want it all to be decided one way or the other. Every time I just about get acclimated to my new condition it changes again. Once this is done then that will be it, and I can move on and put my life back together again knowing this will be as good as it gets."
She'd gotten up and started pacing as she spoke and now she stood with her back stooped, arms crossed in front of her facing away from him. He knew it was because she was on the verge of tears she didn't want him to see. He walked over to her and turned her around gathering her into a hug.
"It's ok, Sam. Do you know how incredibly brave and strong you have been over the course of this whole thing? Daniel keeps expecting you to crumble at any moment but Teal'c just proudly reminds him that you are one of the most courageous warriors he had ever known. High praise indeed," Jack told her as he held her tightly in his arms.
Despite the firm grip he had on her she leaned back slightly to look into his eyes. "And you, what do you think?" she wanted to know.
He paused, taking the time to push a stray hair away from her face to try to find the words. He really was terrible at expressing himself. He was more a man of action and his instinct was to grab her and kiss her until she was in no doubt of what he thought of her. But now was not the time. Now she needed a friend to lean on so he shut those feelings away and stammered out a reply.
"I've gotta go with Teal'c on this one. But I've got to wonder if Daniel doesn't have a point. It's probably a lot healthier for you to let out some of the anger and frustration," he counseled.
Sam had been watching his face carefully hoping to see a sign that he still cared for her 'more than he was supposed to'. But it was impossible to read anything in his closed-off expression. Regretfully she had to admit that they'd probably left it too long, and that her relationship with Pete had most likely put an end to any romantic feelings the General had ever had for her. Still, he was a good friend, and she knew she could count on him to be her rock over the course of the next several weeks.
Little did she realize how much she was going to need him.
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The first day was taken up with final test and exams that the Asgard scientists needed before they were ready to begin. They told Sam to get a good night's sleep. The procedure was scheduled for first thing in the morning.
At what her watch told her was 04:00 Earth time, she finally gave up any pretense of trying to sleep, threw on some clothes and wandered out into the corridor. She followed a path she remembered from several hours earlier and found herself in an area of the ship that opened up into a wider room with a wonderfully large portal looking out into space. She slid down a wall and curled her knees into her chest as she sat mesmerized by the view.
Jack found her there several hours later, his internal body clock having woken him up despite the approximately five hour time difference between the 'days' on the 'Urlic' and those on Earth.
"Carter, you should be sleeping," he chastised.
"Sorry, Sir," she replied absently not even noticing that they had both slipped back into old habits.
Jack did though and corrected himself before replying. "So what's keeping you awake, Sam?"
Sam shrugged. "You know me. Thinking too much," she admitted.
"Ah, well then I guess I'm not overly concerned. The day you stop thinking, then I'll be worried," Jack told her with a smile. "Come on, let's go find out what you can eat and get some breakfast."
Jack kept her distracted until the Asgard were ready for her. Then with a squeeze of her hand and a promise that he would be there when she woke up he handed her over to the alien scientists, for Sam's sake pretending a confidence he didn't feel. Thor must have sensed his disquiet because suddenly a thin gray hand grasped his arm and a familiar calm quiet voice was telling him that Sam was in good hands.
"I know Thor. I just can't help but worry. She's been through a lot lately. I just don't want anymore setbacks or disappointments for her sake," Jack confessed.
"The procedure is quiet safe, I assure you O'Neill," his friend repeated. "It will take about two of your hours and I have instructed Gwn to update us when it is complete. Samantha will be kept sedated for another six hours while the medical pod begins to heal the tissues. We will review the progress the tissue is making each day. She will probably need additional time in the pod tomorrow and possibly the day after. We will need to keep her eyes bandaged to keep out all light until the healing process is complete. Then she can begin to adjust her eyes to low levels of light," Thor explained.
Jack had heard it all before when they had walked Carter through the procedure, but it was comforting to go over it again. It all sounded so simple when Thor described it, but Jack O'Neill was a firm believer in Murphy's Law. He wouldn't rest easy until the bandages were off and Sam was bugging the Asgard to let her play with all of their cool toys.
As promised, almost two hours later one of the other Asgard, most likely Gwn although they all pretty much looked alike to O'Neill, found them and told them the procedure was complete.
"She should have normal vision from the right eye. Unfortunately we were unable to restore peripheral vision in the left eye, but she will be able to see perfectly well straight ahead," the scientist reported.
Jack was relieved. And disappointed at the same time. The lack of peripheral vision in one eye would probably be enough to keep Sam from going through the gate again, except possibly on the safest of scientific mission. And he wasn't sure if she would get her driver's license back. But it meant that she would be mostly self-sufficient and certainly could resume her work in the lab.
Thor convinced him to get some sleep. Sam would be out for hours and he would want to be there when she woke up. Since he had woken up in what equated to the middle of the night here and spent hours talking to Sam, he didn't argue too strenuously. He really was exhausted.
After a nap and a meal he had to admit he felt much better. He hadn't realized how the worry and stress had been effecting him until now that Sam was on the road to recovery. Eventually he found his way to the medical bay, and since it lacked even the uncomfortable chairs usually found in the infirmary he slid down a wall and sat waiting for Sam to wake up.
The pod opened before she regained consciousness and Jack anxiously watched for the first signs of her stirring. With no vision he didn't want her to become disoriented. Several minutes later a slight change in her breathing signaled her awakening, and Jack moved to her side.
"Hey sleepy head. Time to wake up. You're on one of the Asgard's ships and they've just finished fixing your eyesight," he reminded her.
Sam was still floating pleasantly from whatever the Asgard had used to knock her out, but she heard him and understood what he was saying. Were her eyes fixed? She raised a shaky hand to the bandages.
"Gwen says it should be almost 100. You'll just be missing some peripheral vision in the right eye," he told her sensing the question.
"Gwn," she corrected automatically. The hand that had been hovering around her bandaged eyes hesitated slightly then moved to find him.
Realizing that despite the procedure being successful she was totally blind at the moment he reached out a hand and grabbed hers. "Thor said you could get up when you felt like it," he informed her.
"I feel like it," she concurred, and he gently helped her out of the pod and steadied her as she found her feet. "Thanks. Can I get something to drink?" she asked.
"Sure, let's take a walk down to the rec room," Jack suggested, heading them to the small room in the same corridor as their quarters where Jack had set up all of their gear. There was bottled water and pop (both regular and diet) in a small fridge there, so he got Sam settled on the couch that they had brought and got them both water. "You are supposed to take it easy for the rest of the day. So why don't you make yourself comfy and let me know what you want," Jack offered.
"Honestly, I'm still pretty groggy. Why don't you just put in a movie and I'll curl up and listen in," she suggested. "Then later we can eat and maybe I'll feel up to a card game."
He was slightly surprised when halfway through the movie Sam snuggled into his side with a sigh. After a minute he gave in to the temptation and wrapped an arm around her to pull her in close, and he turned back to the movie with unseeing eyes.
He still was resolved to give Sam space, but if nothing ever happened between them, and she went back to Pete when they got home, he knew he would remember this one perfect moment for a long time.
tbc
Author: Jackie W.
Email: jackiesfica...
Rating: PG-13
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Jack had brought his Gameboy and several games along to keep himself busy during the long trip and Sam's recovery. Luckily Sam had come a lot more prepared than that. The General's attention span was about that of a seven year old, and so after a couple of hours that first afternoon when he started to get grouchy she pulled out the first of many distractions.
She had brought a chessboard and put that to use now while her sight was still good enough to play. Once Thor's buddies did their thing there would be at least a week before she would be able to enjoy the game again. She had also brought several other board games, including Battleship, which was a team favorite. Braille playing cards would be able to be used the entire trip. Crossword puzzles were stored away for Colonel to work on while she recovered, and for herself she had several books on tape.
She pulled out the real surprises after dinner. Thor had beamed several larger items (along with food supplies) up for her and after dinner Jack was thrilled to find a TV with DVD and VCR set up along with a microwave for making popcorn and other snacks. Both were hooked up to some funky Asgard generator that Thor had modified to Sam's specs to work with the Earth technology. Next to the TV was a box chock full of tapes and movies, including all of the available Simpson DVDs, the Monty Python movies and several of Jack's other favorites.
"Carter, this is great! This little vacation might just be more fun than fishing!" he exclaimed while going through the box. "Thanks!"
"No problem, Sir," she smiled. "I figured if I left you to wander around the Asgard's ships without entertainment you would get bored. I didn't want you to break something and start an intergalactic war."
"Carter, you aren't going to call me Sir the entire time we are gone are you?" Jack whined. "It's not like I'm your CO anymore."
"I don't know. Depends," Sam teased.
"Alright, what is it going to take to get you to finally call me Jack?" he asked with a sigh.
"Stop calling me Carter," she demanded firmly the smile momentarily departing.
Jack felt like an idiot. Of course it bothered her to be called that now that she had been medically discharged. It probably reminded her of everything she had lost every time he opened his big mouth.
"I'm sorry. I promised I would work on that didn't I?" was his only response, but he was no longer teasing either.
"So what movie do you want to watch?" Sam queried deftly changing the subject.
"You pick," Jack offered. After all, in a few days she would be without her sight again while she recovered from the Asgard version of surgery.
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The next couple of days passed by quickly. When they weren't talking to Thor, they were kept well entertained with everything Sam had brought. They even got Thor to watch 'ET the Extraterrestrial' with them, something Sam had brought along just for the occasion. Their small gray friend was mesmerized and thoroughly enjoyed the story. He asked if he could join them again for another movie on the return journey.
"So what do you think, Ca.. Sam? What would Thor enjoy?" Jack asked as they walked back to their quarters that night.
"I don't know. I brought a variety, but we could always just go with 'Close Encounters'," she offered with a grin causing Jack to laugh at the thought.
As Jack said goodnight to her he was overwhelmed by the knowledge that he couldn't live without that smile and wicked sense of humor in his life. When things settled down he was definitely going to have to do something about this second chance he'd been given.
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The day they met up with the 'Urlic' Sam was a bundle of nerves. She trusted the Asgard, but she couldn't help but worry about the outcome of this procedure. Realistically this would determine how well she would see for the rest of her life. Jack watched as she pushed her breakfast around on the plate.
"Come on Sam. I spent three whole minutes nuking those reconstituted eggs. They really are quite tasty," he coaxed.
It earned him a wan smile. "I appreciate the effort, Jack, really.
I'm just not hungry," she admitted.
"You know at worst you will be able to see just as well as you can right now," he reminded her.
"I know. And even this much is such a relief," she agreed.
"But? There is definitely a 'but' hanging there," Jack pushed her to continue.
"I want to be able to work in the lab again," she admitted. And then as if the flood doors had opened she let it all out. "I want to be able to drive so I'm independent again. I want to at least have good enough vision that I might be able to go through the gate again, even if it's just on scientific missions," she admitted. "But mostly I just want it all to be decided one way or the other. Every time I just about get acclimated to my new condition it changes again. Once this is done then that will be it, and I can move on and put my life back together again knowing this will be as good as it gets."
She'd gotten up and started pacing as she spoke and now she stood with her back stooped, arms crossed in front of her facing away from him. He knew it was because she was on the verge of tears she didn't want him to see. He walked over to her and turned her around gathering her into a hug.
"It's ok, Sam. Do you know how incredibly brave and strong you have been over the course of this whole thing? Daniel keeps expecting you to crumble at any moment but Teal'c just proudly reminds him that you are one of the most courageous warriors he had ever known. High praise indeed," Jack told her as he held her tightly in his arms.
Despite the firm grip he had on her she leaned back slightly to look into his eyes. "And you, what do you think?" she wanted to know.
He paused, taking the time to push a stray hair away from her face to try to find the words. He really was terrible at expressing himself. He was more a man of action and his instinct was to grab her and kiss her until she was in no doubt of what he thought of her. But now was not the time. Now she needed a friend to lean on so he shut those feelings away and stammered out a reply.
"I've gotta go with Teal'c on this one. But I've got to wonder if Daniel doesn't have a point. It's probably a lot healthier for you to let out some of the anger and frustration," he counseled.
Sam had been watching his face carefully hoping to see a sign that he still cared for her 'more than he was supposed to'. But it was impossible to read anything in his closed-off expression. Regretfully she had to admit that they'd probably left it too long, and that her relationship with Pete had most likely put an end to any romantic feelings the General had ever had for her. Still, he was a good friend, and she knew she could count on him to be her rock over the course of the next several weeks.
Little did she realize how much she was going to need him.
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The first day was taken up with final test and exams that the Asgard scientists needed before they were ready to begin. They told Sam to get a good night's sleep. The procedure was scheduled for first thing in the morning.
At what her watch told her was 04:00 Earth time, she finally gave up any pretense of trying to sleep, threw on some clothes and wandered out into the corridor. She followed a path she remembered from several hours earlier and found herself in an area of the ship that opened up into a wider room with a wonderfully large portal looking out into space. She slid down a wall and curled her knees into her chest as she sat mesmerized by the view.
Jack found her there several hours later, his internal body clock having woken him up despite the approximately five hour time difference between the 'days' on the 'Urlic' and those on Earth.
"Carter, you should be sleeping," he chastised.
"Sorry, Sir," she replied absently not even noticing that they had both slipped back into old habits.
Jack did though and corrected himself before replying. "So what's keeping you awake, Sam?"
Sam shrugged. "You know me. Thinking too much," she admitted.
"Ah, well then I guess I'm not overly concerned. The day you stop thinking, then I'll be worried," Jack told her with a smile. "Come on, let's go find out what you can eat and get some breakfast."
Jack kept her distracted until the Asgard were ready for her. Then with a squeeze of her hand and a promise that he would be there when she woke up he handed her over to the alien scientists, for Sam's sake pretending a confidence he didn't feel. Thor must have sensed his disquiet because suddenly a thin gray hand grasped his arm and a familiar calm quiet voice was telling him that Sam was in good hands.
"I know Thor. I just can't help but worry. She's been through a lot lately. I just don't want anymore setbacks or disappointments for her sake," Jack confessed.
"The procedure is quiet safe, I assure you O'Neill," his friend repeated. "It will take about two of your hours and I have instructed Gwn to update us when it is complete. Samantha will be kept sedated for another six hours while the medical pod begins to heal the tissues. We will review the progress the tissue is making each day. She will probably need additional time in the pod tomorrow and possibly the day after. We will need to keep her eyes bandaged to keep out all light until the healing process is complete. Then she can begin to adjust her eyes to low levels of light," Thor explained.
Jack had heard it all before when they had walked Carter through the procedure, but it was comforting to go over it again. It all sounded so simple when Thor described it, but Jack O'Neill was a firm believer in Murphy's Law. He wouldn't rest easy until the bandages were off and Sam was bugging the Asgard to let her play with all of their cool toys.
As promised, almost two hours later one of the other Asgard, most likely Gwn although they all pretty much looked alike to O'Neill, found them and told them the procedure was complete.
"She should have normal vision from the right eye. Unfortunately we were unable to restore peripheral vision in the left eye, but she will be able to see perfectly well straight ahead," the scientist reported.
Jack was relieved. And disappointed at the same time. The lack of peripheral vision in one eye would probably be enough to keep Sam from going through the gate again, except possibly on the safest of scientific mission. And he wasn't sure if she would get her driver's license back. But it meant that she would be mostly self-sufficient and certainly could resume her work in the lab.
Thor convinced him to get some sleep. Sam would be out for hours and he would want to be there when she woke up. Since he had woken up in what equated to the middle of the night here and spent hours talking to Sam, he didn't argue too strenuously. He really was exhausted.
After a nap and a meal he had to admit he felt much better. He hadn't realized how the worry and stress had been effecting him until now that Sam was on the road to recovery. Eventually he found his way to the medical bay, and since it lacked even the uncomfortable chairs usually found in the infirmary he slid down a wall and sat waiting for Sam to wake up.
The pod opened before she regained consciousness and Jack anxiously watched for the first signs of her stirring. With no vision he didn't want her to become disoriented. Several minutes later a slight change in her breathing signaled her awakening, and Jack moved to her side.
"Hey sleepy head. Time to wake up. You're on one of the Asgard's ships and they've just finished fixing your eyesight," he reminded her.
Sam was still floating pleasantly from whatever the Asgard had used to knock her out, but she heard him and understood what he was saying. Were her eyes fixed? She raised a shaky hand to the bandages.
"Gwen says it should be almost 100. You'll just be missing some peripheral vision in the right eye," he told her sensing the question.
"Gwn," she corrected automatically. The hand that had been hovering around her bandaged eyes hesitated slightly then moved to find him.
Realizing that despite the procedure being successful she was totally blind at the moment he reached out a hand and grabbed hers. "Thor said you could get up when you felt like it," he informed her.
"I feel like it," she concurred, and he gently helped her out of the pod and steadied her as she found her feet. "Thanks. Can I get something to drink?" she asked.
"Sure, let's take a walk down to the rec room," Jack suggested, heading them to the small room in the same corridor as their quarters where Jack had set up all of their gear. There was bottled water and pop (both regular and diet) in a small fridge there, so he got Sam settled on the couch that they had brought and got them both water. "You are supposed to take it easy for the rest of the day. So why don't you make yourself comfy and let me know what you want," Jack offered.
"Honestly, I'm still pretty groggy. Why don't you just put in a movie and I'll curl up and listen in," she suggested. "Then later we can eat and maybe I'll feel up to a card game."
He was slightly surprised when halfway through the movie Sam snuggled into his side with a sigh. After a minute he gave in to the temptation and wrapped an arm around her to pull her in close, and he turned back to the movie with unseeing eyes.
He still was resolved to give Sam space, but if nothing ever happened between them, and she went back to Pete when they got home, he knew he would remember this one perfect moment for a long time.
tbc