Title: Nothing Gained

Fandom: Stargate

Rating: PG

Pairing: None

Feedback: evil grin

Disclaimer: Nina's mine. That's it.

Archive: At my site when I finally resurrect the thing.

Summary: Okay, so she's not that bad...

Author's Note: For the occhallenge's Replacements Challenge and sequel to Nothing Ventured Still a Children Of The Gods Missing Scene.

"Nothing Gained"
by M.

In the chaos of the return from Abydos, Jack easily lost track of his team members but most were just as easily located. Well, half of them were. Severely injured, Ferretti was in the infirmary for an indefinite period of time and Kawalsky, he knew, would be at his old friend's side and would remain there as long as he could. Nothing short of a nuclear blast would pull him from his friend's side now and Jack wasn't about to try. He checked in, made sure everything was kosher, and then went in search of the other two.

Daniel was somewhere within the bowels of the SGC and nothing short of wandering the halls was going to locate him. Bianco, though, she turned up easily enough. He found her ensconced at the briefing room table with the mission files of the previous mission and a steaming mug of coffee. "Do you ever stop working?"

She lifted her gaze from the file she'd been reading and smiled faintly. "Yes. Just not at the beginning of an operation. I'm behind." She gestured to the files. "Best I catch up now before we go back out." Sitting back, she hesitated before asking, "Ferretti?"

"Stable." He reported automatically. "Kawalsky's in the infirmary with him now."

Bianco nodded once, accepting the brief response as it had been intended. "I'll go by later." She offered. "Give him a chance to catch some rest."

"He won't but, y'know, good of you to offer and all." Jack shifted on his feet, leaning on the back of the chair watching her. "You did all right out there."

She flashed another one of those faint smiles which seemed to be a staple. "Thank you, Sir."

"Forgot to ask though..." He tilted his head slightly. "First trip through. Snowstorm naked or light jaunt through a spring field?"

She lowered her gaze and he thought he saw a grin threatening to emerge on her sharp features. "I have had worse. Though...if I have ever been so nauseous before...I cannot recall it."

"Yeah, Gravol'll make a killing once this place is up and in business. So...no snowstorm?" Jack watched her shake her head. "Ferretti'll be crushed. He was so hoping you'd emerge frostbitten and promptly toss your cookies. Guess he forgot the whole Canadian, raised in the great white north thing...to you that probably is a light jaunt in a spring field."

"Something like that." The Major agreed with a light nod. "So, you believe there will be more beyond the attempt to recover Doctor Jackson's wife and the others?"

"I'm sure of it." He affirmed. "Where there's one...there'll be more and I'd say we've more than royally pissed them off. By the time this is all over..."

"They'll be out for blood." Bianco frowned tightly. "Just when you think things can't get worse..." She bit off her words and got up, taking her coffee with her, going to look out at the Gate. "It's a real kick, non? We can't even take care of ourselves on a planetary scale...now we're moving up to a galactic one?" She turned to face the Colonel, who had moved to stand at her side. "The General's right. We are in way over our heads."

"Nothing new there." Jack returned calmly. "You were a peacekeeper, Major. I don't need to tell you that. We spend our careers rushing from mess to mess, pretending we can fix it when the best we can do is keep our heads above water so the folks back home think we're out saving the world for truth, justice, and Mickey D's. It's all about the illusion for them..."

"Live as though the world were as it should be." She quoted with a nod. "True enough." Bringing the mug to her lips, she took a fortifying sip of the dark liquid then swallowed carefully. A stalling tactic, meant to give them both time to think and he recognized it as well as she did. "Looks like, sir, we're about to play the world's biggest high stakes poker game."

"That we are, Major." Jack agreed. "How're your bluffing skills?"

Nina shrugged eloquently then gave him a grin. A genuine, no holds barred grin. The hardened soldier gave way to the woman beneath and summoned up an answering grin from her commanding officer as she pointed out, "I fooled Ferretti didn't I?"

"That you did, Major. That you did." He clapped her on the shoulder, careful not to disturb her coffee. Another one down and one errant chick to find. "I'm gonna head out...Get some rest, huh? You're gonna need it if we get those co-ordinates."

"Yes, Sir." She agreed crisply, the soldier once again in control. Mostly. "Sir?"

At the door, Jack looked back. "Yeah?"

"I think I saw Dr. Jackson headed toward the surface when I came down from the commissary..." Nina frowned slightly. "I don't think he was aware of where he was going. He was just..."

"Yeah...I know." He waved a hand at her. "I'll take care of him, you get some rest. Scoot." That said, Jack wandered out into the hallway in search of his errant archaeologist leaving the mystified Major Bianco behind.

Like his grandpa'd always said.. Leave 'em laughing or wondering what the hell you were talking about...

Or something like that anyway. Whatever it was. It worked and, as it turned out, looked like Bianco was going to work too. Which was good. The paperwork was messy when you killed people. Well, people the government liked anyway. But details...He had one last chick to pull into the nest and when that was done?

There was beer to be had. Lots of beer. Huh. Another reason to keep Bianco around. Guaranteed access to the good stuff and Jack always loved a silver lining.

Finis