Jack had to hand it to Ian. The boy could keep his head when he needed to. Once he was sure they were really stuck in the ravine and it wasn't some kind of elaborate trap to get him in some whacky spot that left him open to some kind of attack from a mass of snowballs.

"You really can't get out?" He called down to them, suspiciously.

"Ian, get some rope!"

He turned and headed back for Sally's Christmas tree at a trot – which was all he could do in the heavy snow. If this was a trick, they were both going to find themselves tossed off the cliff again, he promised himself. And a mountain of snow dumped on them, too, just for good measure.

He gathered up all the rope they'd brought – which was really more than they'd needed for a couple of trees but all the better now as far as things were concerned – and looped it over his neck and chest, freeing his arms so he could run back. It was a good thing he ran so much at the academy, he thought wryly as he trotted back through the same tracks that he and the others had made, otherwise he'd probably be ready to drop. As it was, he was out of breath, but not incapacitated by the time he reached the ledge.

"Daniel's not going to be able to pull himself up, is he?" He called down to Jack.

"Not a chance."

Since Ian knew he wasn't strong enough to pull that much dead weight – so to speak – up on his own, he was going to need help.

"I'll throw the ends of a couple of ropes down, Jack. Tie one around Daniel, just to make sure he's secure, and then I'll help you climb up. Then you can help me get him up."

Jack nodded, looking over at Daniel. He was holding up well, but his face was pale with pain, although Jack didn't see any signs of serious shock.

"You okay?"

Daniel nodded.

"You understand the plan?"

It was important to Jack that Daniel understood he wasn't going to leave him alone in this situation. Daniel knew that, too. Which he proved only a moment later.

"You're going up, and then you're going to pull me up."

Jack nodded, pressing his gloved palm against Daniel's cheek for just a moment.

"Yup. I'll make sure the rope around you is good and tight before I go, though, so you won't have to worry about anything, okay?"

"I'm fine, Jack."

"Good."

Jack looked up, waiting for Ian to drop the ropes, and a moment later he was catching the first end, which he wrapped snugly around Daniel, being careful of the shoulder, but making sure it wasn't going to slip off when they pulled him up. The second rope simply hung there, ignored for the moment.

At the top of the cliff, Ian wasn't taking any chances, either. He was tying the other end of both ropes around a sturdy tree near the edge of the lip, making certain that his own strength wasn't going to be all that was keeping Jack from falling and making sure that they wouldn't lose the rope holding Daniel and end up starting all over. Then he went over to the edge, and looked down and saw Jack looking up at him.

"Ready?"

"Yeah, Jack. You got the rope around Daniel tight?"

"It's good to go. Tie it off, though, just in –"

"I already did. Come on up."

Ian grabbed the rope, figuring he could pull while Jack climbed – to give him what help he could, and a minute later the rope tightened in his hands as Jack's weight came onto the rope and he started climbing up the steep incline, more using the rope for support than using it to actually pull himself up.

When his head came up over the edge of the cliff, Ian noticed he had managed to cut the bridge of his nose. It didn't look serious, but it probably hurt. It was a bit swollen, anyways.

"You okay?" He asked Jack, grabbing him by the back of his coat and hauling him up and over.

Jack nodded.

"Yeah, just a bit banged up. Let's get Daniel up, eh?"

Ian nodded, and untied the end of the rope that was attached to Daniel. They wouldn't need the tree this time – he and Jack would be plenty to get Daniel up – it wasn't like the guy was a heavyweight, after all.

"I'll anchor, Jack," Ian said, wrapping the rope around his waist and bracing himself against the tree. "You keep him from bumping things on the way up."

"We're pulling you up, Daniel," Jack called. "You ready?"

The archeologist waved a hand, and staggered to his feet, using the taut rope to brace himself. He was as ready as he was ever going to be.

It worked smoothly. It wasn't the first time Jack had ever rescued Daniel, of course – just the first time Ian had. The two of them pulled him up slowly, careful not to jar him with sudden jerks and giving him time to move around rocks or to use his legs to push away from any obstacle. When Daniel's head came up over the edge, Ian stepped back to hold the rope tight, and Jack grabbed Daniel's coat and pulled him up and over, bringing him down carefully on his good side so he could have a chance to catch his breath.

"Thanks," Daniel said, taking deep breaths and looking up at the two of them.

"You're welcome."

Ian untied the rope Jack had used to pull himself up, and O'Neill untied Daniel.

"How's the arm?"

"It hurts. Don't you know how to put it back in place?"

"Of course I do," Jack said, pulling the rope off. "But if I do it out here, it's going to really hurt, and there's a good chance I'll tear the muscles that hold the shoulder in place – in which case it'll take weeks or longer to heal – and it'll increase the likelihood that you'll dislocate it again."

"Oh."

Since it sounded like Jack knew exactly what he was talking about, Daniel didn't argue.

"Then I guess we'd better go have it taken care of by professionals."

"Let's hope they're not the same professionals that were going to shave my head," Ian said. "Who knows what they'll remove to take care of a dislocated shoulder..."