After initial introductions – Jack had met James' parents once, and Sam never had – Shawn and his grandparents went into the living room and sat down, the cadet now in the role of comforter as he hugged his grandmother who was mourning the loss of her youngest son. Randy Adams was bleary-eyed and looked incredibly tired, but after about twenty minutes visiting with Shawn, he turned to Jack and Sam, the mournful atmosphere around him suddenly a little intense, instead.

"I spoke with James' and Dotty's attorney, Colonel…"

Everyone looked up when he spoke, and Jack pulled a chair from the dining room into the living room so he could give Sam the easy chair.

"Yeah?"

Randy scowled, and glanced at his wife before looking at Jack once more.

"Apparently, Dotty and James named you as Shawn's guardian in the event that anything ever happened to them."

It should have been a surprise, but it wasn't, really. Jack knew things that Randy and Mae didn't, after all. Knew about Shawn's true parentage, after all, and knew about Shawn's association with the Asgard and other races that his grandparents didn't even know existed. Who else would Dotty want to leave her son with? His life would be far less upended by him being placed with Jack and Sam than it would if he were sent to live with his grandparents.

Jack looked at Sam, who looked at him. They hadn't discussed the possibility of this – after all, Dotty and James had both been fairly young, still, and in good health. No one could have anticipated this happening. It wasn't fair to ask Sam to take the responsibility of an additional child – even one that wasn't going to need a lot more raising – without giving her a chance to talk about any misgivings she might have, and for them to talk it over with Shawn, who might not even want to be with them.

"We don't want you to have him."

Everyone turned to Mae, who still had her arm around Shawn's waist while they sat side by side.

"Now, Mae," Randy said, frowning, "I thought we were going to disc-"

"What's to discuss?" she said, sharply. "Shawn's my grandson. With his father dead…" her voice broke, and she had to take a moment to regain control. "With James gone, he should be with his family. We know what he's going through, and we-"

The phone rang, interrupting her, and Shawn breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn't actually given any thought to who was going to end up being his guardian – his mind had been more focused on what he'd lost than on anything else. He watched as Sam started to get up to get the phone, but Jack put his hand lightly on her shoulder, telling her without words that he'd get it. He was already on his feet and it was a lot easier for him to get up than it was for her.

While Jack went into the kitchen to get the phone there, Mae turned to Sam.

"It's not that we don't think you and Colonel O'Neill couldn't raise him, Major-"

"Sam." She corrected.

"Sam." Mae nodded. "It's just…"

OOOOOO

"O'Neill."

"Colonel?"

Jack recognized the voice immediately.

"River. Is he there?"

"No, Sir. And he hasn't called and said he'd be late or anything… they're not very happy…"

Jack could hear the worry in River's voice.

"Just relax, River," Jack told him. "He might just be running late…" He looked at his watch. It was after 6PM. "If he comes back, let me know immediately. I'll start looking for him…"

He was going to kill Ian for worrying them like this – once he knew he was okay, anyways.

"Yes, Sir."

River hung up, and Jack hit the flash button on the phone, looking into the living room just in time to hear Mae explain to Sam that thought Shawn might feel better living in the house that James grew up in. He couldn't leave Sam to deal with this conversation alone, so he made his next call quick.

"Chu."

"Yeah, Taylor, this is Jack O'Neill."

"Hey, Jack. How's Sam?"

"She's fine. Listen, I need a favor, and I'm kind of in a hurry." Meaning he'd explain it all to him later, and he was really sorry for not having the time to do it just then.

"Sure thing, Jack. What's up?"

"I'm missing someone. Ian Michael Brooks. See if you can find him for me, will you?"

"Military?"

"He's a cadet at the academy – but he's not there right now. Just check… whatever it is you check when you're looking for people."

"Like his credit cards and ATM cards…?" the voice was slightly mocking, and Jack had to smile. Okay, so the guy didn't need his help telling him how to do his job. Of course he didn't – he was probably one of the best intelligence officers Jack had ever met. Too bad he was CIA and not Air Force.

"Yeah, those."

"I'll take care of it, Jack. You at home?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. Tell Sam I said hi."

"Will do."

Chu hung up the phone, and Jack went back into the living room, just in time to hear Mae telling Shawn that they could set up a room for him easily – he could have James' old room, and that they'd paint it whatever color he wanted, and Jack thought Shawn looked almost as bewildered as he had the day before – only for a different reason, now.

"Hey…" Jack said, coming over and putting his hands on Shawn's shoulders from behind the couch. "You don't have to decide anything right now. It's-"

"We want him." Mae said, stubbornly.

"James and Dotty wanted him to stay with us…" Sam said. Jack looked over, surprised by the stubbornness he heard in her own voice. Obviously, she didn't need to discuss this with him. "We'd love to have him with us."

Sam knew that Jack would do what Dotty and James wanted. She also knew that he wouldn't do it if she didn't want to. Even though he'd had no say in the matter when it came to fathering Shawn, Sam knew that Jack took his parentage of the boy seriously, and felt responsible for him. Before, that had simply been making sure that he had what he needed, and watching out for him, but now that Dotty and James were dead, it would mean a lot more. And Sam was willing to back Jack up on this. Shawn wasn't a four year old or anything. He wouldn't be that much trouble and Sam loved him – probably as much as Jack did. She'd willingly take on the responsibility of finishing the job that Dotty and James had started but hadn't been able to complete, and her simple statement to Mae told Jack that she was ready to fight for that right.

"The boy should be-"

"The boy is fourteen," Jack said, interrupting. "In most states if there's a custody battle, that age is an age where the child is allowed a say in where he or she will go." Jack squeezed Shawn's shoulders and then released them; walking over to reclaim the chair he'd been sitting on before River had called. "I suggest we all go out and get some dinner, and give Shawn a chance to think things through without being pressured."

"But…"

"The Colonel's right, Mae," Randy said, nodding. He looked at his grandson. "We want you to be happy, Shawn. That's all. And I'm not going to thrust you into a situation where you have to decide between them and us, because that's not the way it is. If you choose – and I don't mean this moment – to live with the O'Neill's, we'll still be your grandma and grandpa – and we always will. If you choose to live with us, then they'll still love you just as much – and of course you'd still see them."

"As often as you want," Sam agreed, nodding.

"But, you need a chance to think it over, and with all of us staring at you, that's not going to give you much chance." Jack said. "So Sam and I will treat you and your grandparents to a very fine dinner, where we will remember the good times and try to put off any plans of the future until tomorrow."

The next day was already going to be a tough one, since it was the day of the funeral, but Jack wanted Shawn to have as good a time as he could the night before.

"Dinner sounds like a lovely idea," Mae agreed, resting her hand for just a moment on Shawn's arm and then standing up. "Since it's your treat, it's only fair to allow you to choose the restaurant."