One year later
Jack came flying into the embarkation room as his very favorite snake-head walked down the ramp. "Jacob!" he said exuberantly, flinging his arms wide.
"Jack," the older man said, grasping his hand. "Congratulations on your … promotion. You deserve it."
Jack smirked modestly. "Yes … well …," he said.
"So … what's the big emergency?" Jacob asked, following the younger General along the corridors.
"Oh … just …". Jack waved Jacob into the Infirmary. "Just thought you'd like to meet your grand-children, Dad."
"Dad?" Jacob's head swung from Sam, who was cuddling two tiny babies, to Jack, who was now standing next to Sam with the biggest shit-eating grin he'd ever seen. And that was saying something for Jack O'Neill. He sighed and ran a hand through his sadly thinning hair. "Jack; you'd better damn well explain yourself," he barked.
"Dad; Jack retired a year ago," Sam said tiredly, handing one of the babies to Jack and the other to Jacob. "We tried to find you, but since the split in the alliance …".
"I know." Jacob hated that the split had kept him from his daughter for so long. "I'm still trying to mend fences with the High Council, but it's a slow business. So …" — he looked at the baby in his arms, then over at Jack — "you retired, then knocked up my only daughter."
"Jacob; I thought you knew me better than that by now." Jack blew a tiny raspberry to his daughter's pudgy cheek and caught at a minuscule flying fist. "Whoa, there, slugger!" he said. "Let your grand-dad beat me up first, huh?" he teased. He looked up from the tiny girl. "Sam and I got married just after I retired."
Jacob now saw the matching wedding bands on Jack and Sam's left hands and sighed heavily. "Sorry, Jack," he said. "You're right; I should know you better than that." He looked at the little boy he cuddled, seeing both Jack and Sam in the little guy's delicate bone structure and the shock of brown hair that stuck up madly in back. "Poor little bugger inherited your hair, I see, Jack," he offered.
Jack attempted to smooth down his own hair, without success. "Better the O'Neill hairline than the Carter one, Dad," he taunted.
Jacob closed his eyes briefly against Jack's wide grin. "Don't suppose you'd let me kill him, would you, Sam?" he inquired.
"Nope. Sorry, Dad," Sam said. "I've still got uses for him yet." She put her hand out to Jack's free one and tugged him to sit down next to her. "Give me my daughter, you," she instructed, opening her oh-so-flattering hospital gown and guiding the baby's lips to her nipple.
Jacob watched Sam and Jack as she fed the baby, and shifted his grandson in his arms. They look well together, Selmak decided. Why do you fight this?
I'm not really, Jacob admitted. No guy will ever really be good enough for her, but Jack's the best there is. Just … don't let him know that, huh?
He'd never seen his daughter look so happy, so contented. She'd always been a beautiful woman, but now … Call it a big honkin' cliché — he'd known a certain Jack O'Neill way too long! — but she truly glowed. This was what he'd always wanted for her. He was happy for her. And for Jack. But that didn't mean he couldn't give Jack a hard time.
He suppressed the evil grin that rose to his lips. Heh. This was going to be one fun trip.
THE ACTUAL END!