Notes: I wish I had another way to say 'thanks for the wonderful reviews,' but... I don't. So thanks. I appreciate the interest in Rory's party as well - my daughter behaved perfectly and everyone had lots of fun. The only problem was that it was a Harry Potter party, and my son has very, very light blond hair. One of his friends upset him by suggesting he should be dressed as Malfoy rather than Harry.
I truly appreciate every review. For the last chapter in particular, I was glad that Melbell said my story helped her feel better, as she was home sick. I hope you're better! Also, JamSack, if you could e-mail me from your own address we can talk about your idea.
I wasn't expecting to be able to get a chapter out this week, and honestly have spent the least amount of time on this one, so I do hope it's all right.
Ch 16: Short Stops
"Jack, you're NOT doing that," Sam said firmly, her hands planted on her hips.
"Aw, come on," Jack whined. "The last three times Thor's hologrammed himself in here, he's... interrupted. If I recall, you weren't too thrilled with it either. I've never seen your face that red before, except maybe when you woke up on '595 and remembered the night before, when you drank that stuff and took off your..."
"Exactly HOW many years are you going to continue to bring that up?" Sam asked, flushing slightly even at the memory of the infamous event.
"Only a few more, I promise," Jack assured her sarcastically, picking up source of debate between them: the picture he had spent the better part of the morning drawing and admiring his own artistic abilities. It was raining, so he couldn't fish, and Sam was sleeping late. Bored, he had found a few Crayons in a drawer and made a gift for Thor that Sam was now threatening to destroy.
"Come on, Sam, do you really want Thor to see you naked again?" Jack asked, grinning as he remembered the completely astonished look on both their faces the day before, when Thor had walked... okay, beamed in on them in the living room.
"Okay, well maybe we can refine the system a little bit, but..."
"He says he tried. Come on, he'll think it's funny, anyway."
"No he won't. Neither will General Hammond and the President when they hear about it. Don't you remember what happened when you insulted Freyer's mother?"
"Oh, they won't mind... besides, he's... cramping my style!" Jack insisted.
"I don't care, Jack, you are not giving Thor, the Supreme Commander of the Asgard Fleet, a piece of paper that says 'If this cabin is a-rockin,' don't come a-knockin!'"
"But..."
"And that little drawing you've done at the bottom is just wrong!"
"At least I can draw something besides stick people," he said cheerfully.
"Jack O'Neill, if you give that piece of paper to one of Earth's most powerful allies, it really won't matter because it'll be a moot point anyway," Sam said, crossing her arms resolutely.
It took a second for Jack to understand what she meant, and he finally grumbled, "All right. I was just joking anyway."
"Sure."
"I was! You're hot when you're mad," he said with a winning grin.
Sam sighed and shook her head, trying very hard not to smile. She couldn't quite pull it off. They both knew it was an empty threat, as well as Jack's suggestion in the first place. He was right though. Thor's untimely interruptions were getting really irritating.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Hi Thor… woa, are you okay?" Hammond asked. Thor's shoulders were slightly slumped, giving him a rather droopy appearance. General Hammond thought at this point even Dr. Jackson would be impressed with how well he was able to interpret the little grey alien's slight shifts in body language.
"I am wasting valuable time trying to check on Major Carter and O'Neill while giving them privacy. It is very difficult."
"I can imagine that's not a very good use of your time."
"It is not," Thor agreed. "I am considering giving them a device so that they can merely assure me they are okay once a day whenever they find it most convenient."
"Sounds like a good plan," Hammond agreed, wondering why they hadn't thought of that sooner. "They don't suspect anything?"
"As far as I can determine, not yet."
"Well, that's something at least. The rest of SG1 and Dr. Fraiser are getting a little too nosey, in my opinion."
"Well, they do not have much longer to wait," Thor said dismissively, beaming himself away.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sam was swimming in the lake. The water was starting to get chilly again. Pretty soon she wouldn't be able to stand it, so she wanted to take advantage of it while she could. She came up for air near the dock and noticed that Jack had finally emerged from the cabin and was now stood on the edge of the dock, barefoot, watching her.
"What?" she asked nervously, treading water.
"Have you always had that here?" he asked.
"What?"
"That."
Sam followed his eyes down to her chest and realizing he was talking about the black bikini that she no longer had a reason to be embarrassed and hesitant to wear around him.
"Maybe," she answered with a small smile. "Why? Like it?"
He shrugged, schooling his features to look like he didn't particularly care, and said, "It's okay. You almost done?"
"Maybe," she repeated. "Why?"
"You look cold."
"Come find out," she challenged lightly. She found it funny that he spent what probably amounted to hundreds, if not thousands of hours sitting by the lake but was so reluctant to actually get in and enjoy it. It was a strange quirk she found rather fascinating.
"I still think you're going to get sick in there," he insisted, sitting down with his legs hanging over the edge of the dock. She swam over to him, stopping in front of him and treading water.
Jack had only been swimming twice: when he jumped in after losing the first bet he had made with her ages ago, and the first time he had caught her swimming laps in the middle of the night. Sam, fully aware this was probably one of the last if not the last time she'd be swimming all summer, decided she didn't want to do it alone.
"Well, I'm finished. Give me a hand?" she asked, reaching out for his hand.
He took it, and she promptly pulled him down into the water with a messy splash. He came up spluttering, yelling over her laughter. "Damn, Sam, this is freezing!"
"No it's not. Besides, that was a lesson."
"In what?"
"Fishing," she declared, moving away from him and the dock, hoping he wouldn't get right back out.
While he pulled off his clothes and threw them up onto the dock, where they landed with surprisingly loud thwaps, Sam moved further out into the lake, calling, "You have to admit you've had it coming, Jack. Years of fishing for something in this lake... something was bound to get you back one of these days."
Now stripped down to his shorts, he calmly turned towards her and called, "Sam?"
"Yeah?"
"I'd run if I were you."
Okay, so she couldn't literally run, but she did squeal and take off for the opposite bank when he suddenly started tearing after her.
When he finally caught her, he trapped her to him and said, "Thanks for the lesson, Carter. I figured out what I've been doing wrong all those years."
"What's that?"
"Wrong bait," he said, winking and kissing her nose, which was colder than he expected it to be.
She laughed and rolled her eyes, giving him the look that he now recognized meant he was funny, but borderline on being too cheesy. Hey, she had started it...
"It's freakin' freezin' in here!" Jack declared suddenly in his much-rehearsed Dr. Evil impression, pulling her body as close to his as he could, which wasn't nearly as close as he would have liked, since they had to keep treading water to stay afloat.
"I thought you were a Minnesota boy, Jack, can't take a little cold water?" Sam challenged lightly.
"Cold, yes. Cold water we're smart enough to stay away from, cuz, see, when water gets cold it turns into this stuff called ice..." he said sarcastically.
"And I'm supposed to be the science geek," she retorted, pecking him on the mouth and turning to head back to the dock. He grabbed her around the waist, pulling her back against him, and kissed her soundly, their legs tangling under the water as they tried to keep afloat.
Sam moaned and deepened the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck and forgetting about everything else. Unfortunately, she also forgot to keep swimming, and a few seconds later, so did Jack. The kiss was rudely interrupted when they sank abruptly under the water.
They came up for air laughing. "Race you to the dock, Carter," Jack challenged.
"You're on, O'Neill!" Before he could say 'go,' she had taken off, using his shoulders as extra leverage to push off and get a head start.
"Hey! You cheater!" he yelled after her. He realized the longer he stayed their indignantly, the farther ahead she got, and took off after her.
She beat him to the dock, grabbing the ladder and turning to see how close he was. Too close for comfort. She yelped and started scrambling up the ladder. He caught her up but she slipped out of his arms, scrambling up onto the dock, dripping water everywhere. She was freezing, she realized suddenly, hugging her arms as she broke out in goose pimples.
"Sam, that wasn't fair," Jack said in a dangerously calm voice as he climbed the ladder, water sluicing off his body.
"Hey, you're the one who taught me to fight dirty, Colonel O'Neill," she reminded him, reaching for her towel. Great. His wet clothes had landed on her towel earlier. Everything was soaked.
"In that case, I'll repeat my earlier warning. Run," he advised.
Sam's eyes widened and she took off into the grass.
It was really much too cold for this, Sam quickly decided as she darted out of Jack's reach. They would both be much more comfortable if they continued this under a hot shower. She smiled, congratulating herself at her own brilliant idea, and let Jack catch her.
She wasn't expecting him to dump her over his shoulder.
Yelling in surprise, she squirmed and kicked, her toe getting caught in the elastic waist of his shorts as she struggled. One hand holding her legs firmly, he quickly grabbed her foot with the other and exclaimed, "Careful there, that was close to the primary target!"
"Put me down!" Sam insisted, digging her thumb into his ribs.
He batted her hand away and said, "Nope. Don't want to. I happen to like this new view." He patted her bum, which she was fully aware was sticking straight up in the air, and started walking towards the cabin.
Well, fine, two can play at that game, Sam thought, swatting him through his shorts, perhaps a bit harder than necessary. "This is not funny, Jack!"
"Hey!" he objected, pretending to drop her. She squeaked reflexively and latched onto him tightly. "See, it's not so bad, Sam."
"I figured you'd be over any caveman fantasies after what happened to you last time," Sam pointed out.
"Ah, but last time we were cavemen, you got to have most of the fun, whereas I ended up in a cell with General Hammond," he replied.
"Well, this particular caveman better have hot running water in his cave or we're both going to get sick."
"I've always loved that brain of yours," Jack said, patting her bum again.
"That's not my brain," Sam pointed out, swearing she could actually feel him smiling against her hip as he pushed open the door to the cabin and shut it behind them with his foot.
Jack stopped inside the door.
"Hey!" Sam prompted, squeezing his ass to get him moving again. "We're dripping water everywhere!"
Jack's reply clearly wasn't directed at her. "Er... hey, Thor."
"Greetings, O'Neill. Is Major Carter injured?" Thor asked, sounding slightly alarmed.
"Nope," Jack said with a smirk, adjusting her slightly on his shoulder so she was in a more comfortable position, which clearly indicated that he fully intended to stand there like that and calmly talk with Thor while she, what, just hung there?
"I don't think so! DOWN!" Sam insisted, kicking her legs again and twisting around. She was no longer going to worry about his 'primary target,' and most certainly wasn't going to continue practically mooning Thor.
"Okay, okay," Jack said, chuckling as he set her on her feet in front of him.
Sam glanced down at herself to make sure her top was still in place before turning around to Thor. She smoothed her hair down and tucked it back behind her ears, slightly dizzy from being held upside down for so long. "Hi, Thor. Hey, you're really here!"
"You are correct, Major Carter. I have brought you this communication device," Thor said, handing it to her.
"Thanks," Sam said as she took the device, shivering.
"Why don't you go get warm," Jack suggested, squeezing her shoulders.
"Thor, do you mind?" she asked, barely able to keep her teeth from chattering.
"Of course not, Major Carter. By all means."
"Okay, er… see you later, Thor."
She glanced at Jack suspiciously over her shoulder as she headed off to the bathroom. He was up to something.
Jack turned his attention to Thor quickly, leaning over to brace his hands on his thighs and speak quietly down on the same level with Thor.
"Thor, buddy, you've got to help me out here…" he started.
"The device is so you can contact me daily to inform me of your status. Unless you fail to make contact, I will not have to risk interrupting you again."
"That's great, Thor, really, thanks," Jack said appreciatively. "But I need your help with something else…"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Hey, Janet, do you mind if we join you?" Daniel asked with a smile, taking a seat across from her in the commissary. Teal'c sat down next to him with his customarily heavy-laden tray.
"Hi, guys. Of course not," Janet said over her coffee cup.
"Dr. Fraiser, are you well today?" Teal'c asked politely, lightly salting the macaroni on his tray.
"I'm doing just fine, Teal'c. My infirmary is actually empty, for a change."
"That is good news," Teal'c said.
"Indeed," Daniel said quickly, scooting his chair in closer and leaning over to speak conspiratorially. He was so intent on what he wanted to say that he missed the look Teal'c shot him for stealing his favorite word. "Listen, Janet, do you think Hammond knows something about Sam that he's not telling us?"
"Why, what have you heard?" Janet asked eagerly, leaning in as well.
"Not much, but Sergeant Davis told me that General Hammond sent a message to Jacob asking him to stop by ASAP," Daniel said.
"Yeah, Siler said Hammond actually looked… a little nervous about it," Janet continued. "You don't think he and the President are seriously going to consider asking them to have a baby, do you?"
Daniel shrugged and said, "Personally I don't see what the big deal is. It's pretty much a win-win situation. Everyone would get what they want…"
"Daniel Jackson, it is best not to speak of such things," Teal'c said firmly, noticing that theSergeant who ran the office pools was seated at the next table.
"Anyway, even if they did ask, what about SG-1?" Janet asked.
"Well, I don't know, I guess Sam could still be on SG-1 and sit out the more dangerous missions… maybe we could get a fifth team member, like SG-18. They rotate their scientists."
Teal'c watched them both exchange theories about where their missing friends were, and what General Hammond knew about it, while he ate his lunch steadily. It was amusing. O'Neill liked to insist that Daniel Jackson 'turned into a girl' on such occasions, when he liked to 'gossip' with Cassandra or Dr. Fraiser. O'Neill was careful to only say this if Major Carter was not around. She did not respond well to such comments.
"Teal'c, what do you think?" Daniel asked.
"I am sure there are many things General Hammond does not feel obligated to discuss with us, Daniel Jackson."
"Well, yeah, but… come on, this is Sam, we're talking about. Last time she took a vacation was what… when we got back from Netu? That doesn't even really count anyway, we were on stand-down while Jack's leg healed anyway…"
"She will be back shortly. I am sure she will tell you what she has been doing. Speculation in the meantime will prove fruitless."
"Well… but it's fun," Janet said simply.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sam frowned into her pillow, waking up alone. She felt like she had just gone to sleep. Glancing at the clock, she sighed. Why was Jack up in the middle of the night? She slid out of bed, yawning and taking the comforter with her, wrapped around herself snugly.
Padding into the living room, she stopped. Jack had his back to her, standing in front of the open wall-safe and hadn't heard her enter. He had the picture that hid the small safe in the wall propped up against the sofa. This man was probably never going to stop surprising her.
"Jack?" Sam called.
He jumped and turned to face her, slamming the safe shut and holding a hand behind his back. "Sam! Did I wake you up?" he asked, stuffing whatever was in his hand in the back pocket of his sleeping pants.
"Only by your absence," she said with a smile. "What are you doing, Jack?"
"Nothin'," he said with his patented 'I'm innocent' expression. Sam had often wondered if he and Daniel got together a couple of times a month to practice their faces.
"Come on, let's go back to sleep." He wrapped his arm around her and guided her back to the bedroom, pretending he didn't know she was staring at him, trying to read his mind. What the hell was he up to now?