Author's Note: Whuffling is the noise a dog makes (horses make it, too) when he or she is sniffing at your face or other parts of your body and they're doing it with a wet noise – usually because horses and dogs both have wet noses. It's like when you have a dog treat in your pocket, and your dog KNOWS you have a dog treat in your pocket, and is damned bound and determined to get it. Do that sometime, and you'll see what whuffling is. (Although it's not in the dictionary, so maybe I made the word up). Kudos to me! Hehe

OOOOOOOO

It took Ian a full three minutes to get himself picked up off the floor. Mainly because Bubba was so excited to see him that the black lab was all over him and wasn't going to let him up. Then, when Jack let Jaffer loose, the bigger black lab had to come over and make sure ole Bubba wasn't hurting Ian – who was in his house and under his protection, after all. Jack (the dog) was only a moment behind Jaffer, and soon the cadet found himself buried under well over three hundred pounds of dog. More to save his skin than because he really wanted to, he wrestled his way out of the literal dog pile and got to his feet, standing face to face with his parents, who had been watching the scene without moving from the entranceway.

If there was any doubt where Ian got his looks, Sam didn't have to wonder any more. His mother – Maggie Brooks, she knew – was beautiful. Dark hair and dark eyes, with a gorgeous face and body that showed no signs of her age – even under the bulky coat she was wearing. Where her perfection was feminine, she'd passed those same traits onto Ian, in a more masculine - although no less perfect - fashion. But she was fairly small – only 5'5 or so – so it was obvious the cadet got his size from his father, who was large and imposing.

"What are you guys doing here?" Ian asked, as his mother pulled him into her arms and hugged him tightly. Sam saw that there was no hesitation when he hugged his mother. No matter what he felt about his father – and she knew there was tension between the two – he truly loved his mother, because he held her close for a long moment while she kissed his cheek repeatedly.

"Sam invited us for dinner," Nathan told his son when his wife released him. The retired General put his hand out and shook Ian's hand – and even then looked uncomfortable doing it. Yeah, those two didn't have the same relationship Ian and Maggie did, it was obvious. "So, since we were in the area, we thought we'd stop by."

"You were in the area, huh?" He looked down at Bubba, who was sniffing butts with the other two labs. Obviously, they weren't just 'in the area'. Not if they had Bubba with them.

"We can't stay for too long," Maggie said, wrapping her arm around Ian's lean waist and propelling him away from the door. "Our plane leaves in four hours. But we couldn't not come."

Realizing that there was a whole room full of people who had no idea who these two were – aside from being his folks – Ian made introductions. He did it fairly randomly, since they were all gathering around, now, but he knew his parents wouldn't have any trouble remembering names in a group this small. He simply gave names as he pointed at each, giving them time to shake hands or bow or nod hello – whatever they wanted to do.

"Mom and dad; this is Daniel Jackson, and his girlfriend Sally – I don't know her last name – sorry – and this is Janet Fraiser, and Teal'c –" Maggie looked up at the huge Jaffa with absolutely no sign of being worried about that hand she was shaking crushing hers, although it obviously could have, which pleased Teal'c, since all too often people showed signs of being intimidated by him when they met him, without even having a chance to get to know him.

"This is Cassandra Fraiser – Janet's daughter – and you already know Sam and Jack..."

Maggie gave Sam a hug. She hadn't actually met Sam before; she'd only talked to her on the phone. "It was wonderful of you to invite us. I've missed him so much – and he never calls." She looked over at Ian. "I know you know how to use a phone – I taught you myself."

Ian looked chagrined, which made everyone in the room grin at his discomfiture, and he looked for a topic to distract her.

"Daniel's an archeologist."

"Really?" Maggie looked over at Daniel, who nodded, but she knew her son, and knew exactly what he was doing. "I bet he knows how to use a phone..."

Jack snorted, and Maggie turned her attention to him, her eyes full of affection.

"Jack, it's been far too long since I've seen you last. Let me guess; you don't know how to call, either?"

"You know us Colonel types, Maggie," Jack said. "We have subordinates to do that kind of thing for us, so we just forget how to do for ourselves."

He gave her a hug – surprising everyone in the room but Sam and Nathan – and then she kissed his cheek lightly.

"It's good to see you. When do I get to meet your son?"

Jack took her coat, unphased. Everyone in the room knew Shawn was Jack's son; after all, so there was no reason to panic.

"He should be by later. Hopefully before you and Nate have to go."

She nodded, and Sam took over.

"Why don't you come in and sit down?" She said as Jack took Nathan's jacket as well. "We were just playing cards, but the turkey's probably ready, so your timing is perfect."

Maggie walked beside Ian, who put his arm around her shoulder, and she noticed the bandage on his wrist for the first time. She stopped, and took his hand, looking at his wrist and then up at him.

"What did you do?"

"Which time?" Jack asked. "One is from Cassie trying to kill him while they were peeling apples, and the other's God's way of punishing him for buying a piece of fruit he didn't know how to eat."

"What?"

Ian tried to pull his hand away, but his mother had a firm grip on it and wouldn't relinquish it. She was waiting for an explanation – one that she understood – and wasn't going to let it go until she had one. Sam liked Ian's mother, already.

"It's okay, mom..." Ian said. "My knife slipped when I was cutting into a pomegranate, and it cut me – how come we never had pomegranates, before?"

"Because they're messy."

She let his hand go, satisfied, and looked up at him, speculatively. Like all mothers, she had a sense that told her when something was up with her child, and all the alarms were going off – although he seemed fine. There was something lurking, though, just in the depths of those dark eyes that she knew better than anyone else. A hurt that was deeper than the simple cut on his hand.

"What else?" She asked. "Any other injuries?"

"Jack tried to take his head off with a shovel this morning," Cassie said, getting even with Jack for blaming the apple cut on her – even though it was her fault. "He's got 14 stitches in his scalp, now."

"It was an accident," Jack said, immediately, much to Sam's amusement.

"It's fine," Ian told her, before she could make a big deal out of it, but Maggie was already pushing him into one of the dining room chairs so she could have a look. "Janet was right there – and she's a doctor."

Maggie looked over at Fraiser, who nodded as she walked over and pointed to the line of stitches, and Ian was forced to sit there while his mother examined his head and Janet told the story of the trip to the hospital.

Nathan – completely used to this kind of thing – looked over at Sam, his blue eyes filled with good humor.

"So? Anything I can do to help out while Maggie interrogates Ian?"

"Do you know how to toss a salad?"

"Where ever you want it..."

Sam smiled. Why did that sound familiar?

"Why don't you help Jack set the table?"