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Chapter 2: Checkmate
After everyone had made their breakfast selections, SG-1 claimed their new normal booth in the commissary and took their normal seats. Without ever speaking about it, Carter, O'Neill, and Teal'c had all relocated their "usual" spot from a table near the center of the room to a booth in the far right corner after Daniel had... gone. It just didn't feel right sitting at that table without him. Carter and O'Neill slid into the booth on opposite sides, followed by Jonas and Teal'c, respectively.
Jack looked around as everyone started doctoring their breakfast. In addition to her giant cup of coffee, Carter had her predictable yoghurt, cup of fruit, and bowl of sensible cereal with milk, which she was now sprinkling very lightly with sugar, as though too liberal of a sprinkling could result in a nuclear explosion of some sort. Teal'c had one of everything and two of several of his favorite items, and a glass of orange juice that looked ridiculously small in the large man's hands. Jack himself had chosen a huge bowl of Froot Loops and several pieces of toast, which he buttered while he watched Jonas applying peanut butter to one slice of his own toast, strawberry jam to another, marmalade to a third, and plain butter to a fourth.
When Jonas caught the older man's curious look, he explained, "I can't decide which I prefer."
"Right," Jack said, as if Jonas was a perfectly normal human being. In addition to the toast and spread feast, he had two bananas on his tray, a plate of eggs that looked much too bright yellow to be real, and three sausages whose origins Jack didn't even dare imagine.
As everyone started eating and chatting, Jack pretended not to notice the looks Carter kept shooting him across the table that plainly said, 'Ask him!' When she kicked his shin under the table and he yelped and she apologized with an all-too-innocent, "Sorry, Colonel, I thought that was the table," he found her less easy to ignore.
Not that she was ever easy to ignore, particularly when she had latched onto some campaign or another.
Finally, he sighed and put down his near-empty cup of coffee. Why was it that no matter what time of day or night, he always ended up with coffee grounds in his cup in the commissary? Putting aside that enigma for the time being, he said, "Ah, Jonas, I've got a couple of errands to run today, if you want to come with, see some of the more mundane parts of Earth."
Jonas looked at him in surprise. Even Teal'c raised an eyebrow, although a glance at Major Carter's unsurprised face settled the eyebrow back in place as he realized she must have finally talked O'Neill into being sociable with Jonas after all.
"Sure, Colonel," Jonas finally said, trying to look unsurprised and casual. It just came off as childish enthusiasm barely restrained. "Where… are we going?"
"To the pet store."
"Do they have animals there?" he asked, unable to keep the excitement out of his voice or off of his face. Carter smiled at Jack with a look that plainly said 'Told you so.'
He mock-glared at the look and said, "Yeah, they've got some. It's more of a supply store, but they do have some pets there. And people are allowed to bring their own dogs on leashes."
"Sounds great," Jonas said, turning to Teal'c and Carter with a puzzled grin. "Why don't you guys come too, if you're not doing anything?"
Jack hid a sneaky smile so fast that Carter wasn't quite sure if she had seen it or not, but at the tone in his voice as he said, "There's a good idea, Jonas. Team outing to Petsmart," she knew that he had been banking on Jonas's friendly nature since he had joined them for breakfast.
That was why he had wanted to ask him in front of the rest of SG-1, so that Jonas would be sure to invite them and not leave them feeling left out. She felt stupid for not foreseeing that one. If this had been a chess game, she would have just lost, no question about it.
"Major Carter?" Teal'c prompted gently. "Will you be accompanying us to the pet store today?"
"Hm? Oh, sorry, Teal'c. Sure. I'd hate to miss Colonel O'Neill babysitting a dog he describes as a futon," she said with a sweet smile. Jack glared at her. Oh well, if they were all coming, they were going to have to meet the dog anyway, that was for sure.