Chapter Five

Jack's eyes widened and he froze to the spot. "Excuse me?" he said, his eyebrows raised.

Watching Sam, she seemed to be sound asleep. Frowning he looked around the room to see if anyone else had heard – not out of embarrassment or worry, but to see if she had really said what he thought she had.

It was in this shocked and staring state that Janet found him, when she entered the infirmary minutes later. She stopped in her tracks when she saw him just standing there staring at Sam.

"Colonel?… Are you okay?" she asked carefully.

When he didn't respond, her concern began to increase. "Is Sam okay?" she asked, moving to check on her patient.

The mention of Sam's name seemed to wake Jack up from the daze he was in. "Yes. She's sleeping," he replied quickly, quietly adding, "I think."

Janet heard that and turned to look at him, frowning curiously. "You think?"

Jack was shifting slightly from foot to foot, and his hands were in his pockets – behaviour Janet recognised from when he was nervous or uncomfortable.

"She woke up for a few minutes. She had a drink then went back to sleep," he explained.

"You think," Janet added for him, studying him closely. She could tell there was something he wasn't saying.

Jack nodded. "She was drifting in and out of our conversation, I'm not sure she was ever properly awake."

"Ah," Janet nodded, knowing that wasn't the thing he was hiding. "What did she say?"

"What?" Jack said, too quickly, and somewhat defensively.

Inwardly Janet smirked, that seemed to confirm her suspicion that Sam's dream life had somehow seeped into their conversation. "You said you had a conversation. What did she say? Did she tell you anything about the dreams? Say anything helpful?"

"Ah!" Jack said, reprimanding himself for his earlier over-reaction. "She asked what happened, said she was thirsty, and told me she was really tired. That's about it."

Janet smiled and nodded again. A silence enveloped them for a few seconds then she asked: "Did you ask what the dreams were about?"

"Nope. Why would I?" Jack replied, frowning a little.

"I thought maybe you'd want to check that what Mikla told you was true… Or, maybe you were curious?" Janet smiled.

Jack shook his head. "I'm not."

"Not even a little bit?"

"Nope."

Janet nodded. "Oh… Right, well I should get going."

"Me too." Jack nodded once to Janet then turned to leave, before quickly turning back. "Should I be?"

Janet couldn't help grinning widely, but she knew Sam would kill her if she answered that question. "She'll be ready to go at oh-eight hundred hours, Sir," she changed the subject.

Jack nodded once more. "Good… Yes… Night, Doc," he muttered as he walked out of the room.

Janet laughed to herself and shook her head, looking at Sam. "God, Sam, what did you say to him?"


The instant she opened the door, her senses were hit by the scent of food, specifically bolognaise sauce. She smiled and stepped into the house.

"Honey, I'm home!" she giggled, dropping her bag to the floor in the hallway, and removing her jacket.

Jack stepped out of the kitchen. "Cliché!" he exclaimed, but he was grinning from ear to ear. "Welcome home, honey."

She walked into his waiting arms and pressed her lips against his forcefully. He stumbled backwards a little, surprised by the intensity of her impact, but he managed to steady himself and return the kiss.

Her tongue pushed its way past his lips and explored his mouth as she backed him against the wall, her hands starting to undo the buttons of his shirt. Her fingernails grazed the skin of his chest as she moved lower, then she pulled her lips away from his and trailed them along his jaw as she pulled his shirt back to slide it down his arms.

Whilst his body responded automatically to her actions, his mind did register that her behaviour was a little odd. With one hand on each of her shoulders, he moved her away from him, having to use minor force when gentle couldn't break through her determination.

Eyes dark and lips swollen, she pouted at him as she wriggled to fight his hold.

"Hey!" he said, "Just hold on a second."

She stilled in his grasp, glaring at him impatiently.

"Are you okay?"

"I will be," she smiled seductively, running her fingers around the waist of his trousers.

He swept his hands down her arms and took hold of her hands.

"Are you sure?… You haven't been infected with any alien viruses?"

Sam laughed. "I'm sure… I just missed you."

"You've only been gone eight hours."

"Eight hours too many… I don't like spending one minute away from you." She leaned towards him and tried to kiss him but he moved his head away.

"Sam? What's going on?… Did something happen at work?" he asked, stroking the side of her disappointment ridden face.

She shook her head. "I just missed you."

"Sam!" he said, warningly, knowing that she was hiding something.

She met his eyes and considered lying to him, but she never could. "It's nothing."

"It's obviously something, your behaviour is… unusual." He smiled to ensure she knew he wasn't being angry with her.

Her eyebrow raised in a Teal'c like fashion. "I'm throwing myself at you and you're complaining?" she smirked.

He grinned. "I'm not complaining," he said, putting his arms around her waist and pulling her close to him. "I'm just worried about you… What's wrong?"

She shrugged. "I don't know… All day I've had this feeling that something's going to happen… That everything's going to change."

Jack smiled reassuringly. "Things are going to change… We're gonna get married, you'll be Mrs O'Neill, and you will have to spend the rest of your life with me."

Sam laughed a little but still didn't look convinced. "It just… It felt like more than that… After everything we've been through, we know how easily everything can change - how quickly you can lose everything - "

"Sam - "

"I know, this is something we've lived with since we joined the Air Force, but I've never had this feeling before - "

"Not to sound egotistical, but have you been this happy since you joined the Air Force?" he smiled. "It's natural that you would be worried about losing this, but you can't let that fear overwhelm you."

"Even though that means I pounce on you the minute I see you?"

"It's hard to believe I'm gonna say this, but yeah," he laughed. "We can't live in fear, but it'll help us savour every minute."

She snuggled up against him, trailing her index finger down the centre of his chest. "That's what I was doing." She leaned up and brushed her lips across his, testing to see if he would pull away again. When he didn't, she smiled briefly and deepened the kiss.

Her hands found their way back to his shirt and she slid it down his arms, letting it drop to the floor. Returning the gesture, his hands slipped under the hem of her t-shirt and as he lifted it over her head, he manoeuvred so that she was the one pinned against the wall.

Kissing her hungrily, he supported her body between his and the wall as she wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer. Her head fell back with a purr as she felt him pressed against her, and his lips and teeth explored her neck, nipping and sucking, sending tingling rays throughout her body.

Just as his hands swept behind her back to unhook her bra, her head shot up, eyes wide.

"Can you smell burning?" she asked.

Her question was answered by the smoke alarm above their heads.

She dropped her legs down, freeing Jack to see to the burning food. Following him to the kitchen she leaned against the doorframe and watched as he opened the door and window and tried to waft the smoke away from the alarm.

She smiled as his topless, flustered form moved around her kitchen.

"I love you," she stated suddenly.

He stopped and turned to face her. "Even though I almost burned your kitchen down?" he smirked.

"Well, I think I was partly responsible for that," she smiled. "So, yes, I still love you."

He stood in front of her and kissed her once. "I love you too… Always will… Remember that." He kissed her again then pulled back slightly. "By the way, dinner is somewhat ruined."

Sam shrugged. "We can get take-out," she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Later."


Teal'c and Daniel took the lead through the Stargate, closely followed by O'Neill, Doctor Fraiser and the medical team, carrying Sam's still sleeping form.

Mikla and Ji-Rel were waiting for them at the base of the steps from the 'gate. Daniel introduced them to Janet and her team, and as they all made their way to the village, Ji-Rel explained the procedures to Janet.


Sam woke with a start, sitting up in bed, waking Jack when the arm he'd had draped over her fell back onto him.

"Sam?" he asked, sleepily, but instantly concerned.

She was breathing rapidly, her eyes were wide and a sheen of sweat coated her skin.

He sat up beside her and took her hand in his.

"Sam?… Honey…?" He trailed off as she turned towards him.

"I'm okay… It was just - " she stopped, raising shaky hands to wipe her face.

"A bad dream?" he asked, softly, enveloping her in his arms and hugging her close to him.


Two hours later, satisfied that the procedure was safe, Janet and Daniel emerged from the room they had followed Ji-Rel into, and joined Teal'c and Jack in the medical ward where Sam had been settled on one of the beds.

As they approached her bed, Jack stood up, but he didn't leave her side. "Finally!" he exclaimed.

"Patience is a virtue, Jack," Daniel responded as they stopped by the bed.

"During your absence Major Carter became restless," Teal'c explained.

"You should have called for me," Janet reacted, concern creasing her face.

"Dr Kelly checked on Major Carter and assured us that she was in no danger."

"She just doesn't seem to be enjoying her dream life as much anymore," Jack commented, looking back to Sam. "So, is it safe?"


She had drifted to sleep again eventually, the rhythmic beating of Jack's heart a soothing lullaby. And she had been resting peacefully for an hour or so, but then she jumped, and started fidgeting.

Jack stirred from his slumber at the movement against his side, and his eyes opened wide with worry when Sam began thrashing from side to side and mumbling.

At first he couldn't make out what she was saying but, as he was trying to wake her, he managed to clearly understand his name.


"It's okay… I'm here," Jack said, taking Sam's hand and ignoring the attempts to get him to move as Ji-Rel's assistants tried to prepare Sam for the reversal procedure.

As Sam began to squirm on the chair though, the assistants themselves fell backwards allowing Janet to also move to her side. Sam was now calling out "Jack" with increasing distress, but the dream still wasn't waking her up.

One of the assistants ran from the room to get Ji-Rel, and Janet checked Sam over.

"It seems like she is having a bad dream," the Doctor said, feeling assured that Sam wasn't experiencing any medical problems.

"Shouldn't she wake up?" Jack asked, desperately, still looking at Sam, and stroking the side of her face with one hand, trying to calm her down.

Janet realised that Jack wasn't thinking straight at the moment, and therefore didn't point out the obvious fact that Sam being asleep was not normal, and so they couldn't expect a normal response to a bad dream. She just remained silent, hoping that she could get away with acting like she thought the question was rhetorical.


"Do you want to talk about it?" Jack asked softly after Sam had taken some time to calm down.

She shook her head once and snuggled closer to him.

"Do you want to lie down and go back to sleep?" he offered.

This time she shook her head more vigorously and the grip of her hand on his side tightened.

Frowning with concern, Jack hugged her more tightly and joked, "I'm not going anywhere," adding a small laugh for lightness.

Realising what he meant, Sam whispered, "Sorry…" and loosened her hold on him.

He smiled through his worry, and kissed her forehead gently.

They lay in silence for several minutes and Sam's eyes started to drift closed. She fought against it as hard as she could, but ultimately sleep claimed her once more.

Minutes later she screamed. "No!… Jack!… NO!"

Jack immediately rolled her over so he could see her face. "Sam!" he called, trying to wake her. "Sam!"

He caught hold of her shoulders as she thrashed from side to side. "Sam! Honey! It's only a dream!"

She startled awake, tears streaming down her face, and she threw herself into his arms. "Don't let them take you!… Please, don't let them take you!" she cried into his chest.


"Don't let them take you!"

Jack glanced, fearfully, at Janet as Sam's distressed cries began again, but it was Ji-Rel that spoke.

"Major Carter is obviously experiencing bad dreams, the sooner we conduct the reversal, the better."

They had managed to set up around Sam when she had momentarily calmed down, but Jack had stopped them from starting the procedure. He was concerned at Sam's recent behaviour and was slightly suspicious that it might have something to do with where they were. She had said they hadn't touched her originally, yet somehow they had carried out the procedure. Maybe they had done something to her since their arrival.

Janet stepped up beside him and spoke quietly. "Colonel, I know you're worried… I am too… But I'm more worried about the distress the dreams are causing her… I believe the procedure is safe, Sir, so does Daniel… And I believe that they genuinely want to help her…"

Jack nodded and turned to Ji-Rel. "Do it." His look carried all the threat he needed to make about what would happen if she wasn't awake and unharmed afterwards.

Ji-Rel tilted his head in acknowledgement and activated the machine.


"I don't remember the details," Sam finally explained to Jack. "I just know that I was losing you… Something was taking you from me and I couldn't stop it."

Jack kissed her tenderly. "I'm still here…"

Sam managed a small smile. "I know… I'm sorry for being… crazy… You must wonder what you've got yourself into."

Jack shook his head and looked deep into her eyes. "I know exactly what I've got myself into… And I'm looking forward to it…" He took hold of her hand and gently kissed the palm. "Sam, I may not have been allowed to say it, but I have loved you for years, and I always will love you… Nobody can take that away… We are destined to be together."

Sam smiled, tears in her eyes for happier reasons this time, and took a breath to respond…


Ji-Rel shut off the machine, and Sam's eyes shot open. She looked around frantically, disorientated. Jack and Janet were to one side of her, both smiling, and to the other side was someone she vaguely remembered. She knew she had seen him before, but couldn't place where. Deciding she would think about it later, she turned back to Jack and Janet.

"What's going on?… Jack?" she asked, tightening her grip on his hand that still held hers.

"It's a long story," he smiled, learning from what happened after she returned from the Prometheus, and not wanting to correct her use of his name. He did, however, realise that it was perhaps too inappropriate for him to continue holding her hand.

He gently slipped it out of her grasp as he indicated towards Janet. "Doc here's gonna check you over, and then we'll get you home…"

Sam frowned at how quickly he had taken his hand away, but was hit with a feeling that she shouldn't have been holding it in the first place. She looked around the room, the hazy look in her eyes clearly showing that she didn't understand what was happening.

Realizing what might be causing her confusion, Janet thought it might be best if she talked to Sam alone.

"Colonel, could I have a few minutes to examine Major Carter in private, please?" she asked.

Jack looked at the doctor, worry creasing his features, so she simply smiled to assure him that her request was natural.

He eyed her suspiciously, but Jack nevertheless agreed, and, along with Ji-Rel, made his way into the adjoining room where Daniel and Teal'c were eagerly awaiting news.

Janet stepped closer to Sam's chair, a smile plastered on her face.

"Janet?" Sam queried, recognising that the look on her friend's face meant she was avoiding an awkward subject. "Are you going to tell me what's going on?"

Janet hesitated for a second. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Sam was confused, but she answered the question. "I was in bed… I'd had a dream, it woke me up…"

Sam trailed off as if her account was finished, and Janet inwardly cringed at having to ask the next question. She had hoped that Sam's reply would have been more specific for her to figure out whether she was remembering her dream world, or the real world. No such luck.

"This is going to sound… odd… But remember it stays between us… Were you… alone in bed?"

Sam's eyes widened. "Janet!… What kind of - "

"Sam, please. Humour me?"

She had used the word 'humour' but she didn't look like there was anything humorous about the situation. Sam's confusion tripled. "Jan?"

Janet decided it as easier to explain the situation rather than expect Sam to answer that question.

"We are on P3Y-29Z…" She paused to see if Sam showed any recognition. She did, and spoke before Janet could continue.

"Why?… There was nothing of particular importance for us to come back for…" Sam frowned.

"Sam, you've been asleep for over twenty-four hours - "

"What!"

"Last time you were here… The machines they 'scanned' you with actually performed a procedure on you to make you dream of a life you wish you could have… Because the others 'rescued' you before it was complete, there were… complications."

"I slept for a day!" Sam asked, incredulous.

"You woke up occasionally, but essentially you've been asleep the whole time, yes."

"But it's been weeks since we - " A light of understanding flashed in Sam's eyes which then clouded before she closed them and leaned her head back in the chair.

Janet watched her sadly for a moment then quietly asked: "Are you okay?"

Sam nodded and lifted her head again opening her eyes to add conviction to her words. "I'm tired." She laughed a little at how daft that sounded given what she had just been told.

"Ji-Rel explained that might happen… If you feel okay otherwise, we'll go back to the SGC and you can rest… I would like to keep you in the infirmary for a couple of days though… Just to keep an eye on you."

Sam smiled and agreed.

"We'd better let Colonel O'Neill back in before he goes crazy wondering if you're okay," Janet smiled. "And Daniel and Teal'c will be pleased to see you're awake."

Sam nodded and smiled, but as Janet turned away from her the smile slipped away.

TBC…