TITLE: "The Comfort of Recovery" Part III
AUTHOR: Verb
RATING: PG, I would think
CATEGORY: Humor, some Daniel/Janet, slight Jack/Sam pre-relationship
SUMMARY: Sometimes, you just needed a place to crash and wait it all out. Part 3 of 3.
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognizable Stargate SG-1 characters and places are the property of MGM, World Gekko Corp and Double Secret Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment only and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks was intended. This story and other publicly unrecognized events therein are copyrighted to the author.
DEDICATION: Again to Dessert Blossom-by-the-Sea, for encouragement and beta'ing; and to krysalys, because apparently obsessed minds think alike. This chapter is also dedicated to Darth Tater, for fear that if I did not, I'd be roasted over an open flame :) (And don't worry about unfinished stories with me – I hate those as much as the next person.)
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank you again to everyone who left a review – it's no great to see that a little story like mine can find some people who enjoy it.
Jack spun around to face Sam.
"Please tell me I'm experiencing some kind of alien dreamworld here."
"Um, Jack?"
Closing his eyes, Jack slowly turned back around to face the room. He knew it was Daniel who had spoken, but he was still convinced he was under the influence of some kind of alien virus. "Over here, Jack."
He opened his eyes. Crap. Not dreaming.
Sam slowly begain pushing her C.O. into the room. "Come on, sir – can't keep them waiting any longer. Teal'c went to a lot of trouble for this."
"I can see that." A quick glance around the room told Jack that there was definitely a party of some kind going on. The infirmary was covered in streamers, streching across the ceiling and all matter of medical equipment. Balloons were weighted down along the walls, the colours varying from a bright yellow to a deep metalic green. Loops of ribbon were tied to every avaliable surface.
But the strangest thing in the room was the sheer number of people surrounding Daniel's bed. Janet, Teal'c, Davis, Siler, and SG teams 2 through 13 had somehow managed to squeeze themselves amongst all the decorations that crowded the small space. Sam joined Teal'c at the end of Daniel's bed. Daniel, for his part, was grinning from ear to ear. "Surprised, Jack?"
Jack cleared his throat. "Um, yeah. What's going on here, exactly?"
"We felt that a celebration was in order," Daniel explained. "You see, I was sitting here, under duress I might add," He shot an amused look at Janet, "and I was thinking about how many times I'm in the infirmary."
At that, Jack couldn't help the smirk that made its way to his face. "Well, Danny, I'd say that the plaque next to your head makes that quite clear."
Daniel smiled up at the man. "Yes, well, all joking aside for the moment, the thought occurred to me that whenever I wake up from various comas and injuries, it's always you who's sitting by my side, waiting for me to wake up."
Janet cleared her throat, a sound that immediately caught Daniel's attention. "Ok, so you're one of the people who are always there to see that I'm ok," he said as he smiled at Janet and took her hand.
"DanielJackson, I believe that it would be prudent to approach the sharpness of your intentions," Teal'c intoned from his place at the end of Daniel's bed.
"Good idea, Teal'c." Daniel shifted, reaching around to the small table next to his bed, and placed his glasses on their usual perch atop his nose. "Teal'c, Sam, Janet and I thought that, if I got my very own infirmary bed, you should get something as well." He pointed to the rather large object on his right.
Surprised at himself for not seeing the giant giftwraped package, Jack approached it and tried to figure out what in the world he would need while waiting for Daniel to wake up from whatever had caused him to land back in the infirmary.
Daniel continued his story as he watched Jack size up his gift. "Teal'c had to do most of the work, since I couldn't leave here and Sam had to spend most of the day keeping you from finding anything out."
Jack glared at his 2IC. "I knew there was something going on." Realization dawned on his face. "Is that why I was forced to sit in on that briefing with McKay?"
"I'm afraid that was my idea, son."
"General Hammond, you sly dog!" Jack acknowledged the man as he entered the infirmary. "You were in on this too?"
Hammond smiled. "Had to, Jack. How else could we have planned this without you knowing?"
"Very sneeky, sir."
"Why don't you go ahead and open that gift."
Nodding absently, Jack again turned to his gift. He slowly began to pull the wrapping paper free, reavealing something he was not expecting.
He looked up in surprise. "A chair? You got me a chair?"
"Not just any chair, O'Neill." Teal'c stepped towards Jack and his gift. "It is the SuperComfort Deluxe, a chair with superiour cushioning and elevation. The salesperson at the furniture store assured me it would be most comfortable."
Sam smiled at the Jaffa. "Teal'c suggested that getting you your own chair to sit in when Daniel's in the infirmay for long periods of time would help keep the pressure off of your knee, sir. The infirmary chairs don't offer much in the way of back support, sir."
"And," Janet interjected, "I was tired if having to keep you from hovering around and getting in my way."
"Hey, I do not hover," Jack protested.
Teal'c allowed himself a shadow of a smile. "Indeed."
"I don't!"
"Uh, Jack?" Daniel cut off what he was sure to be another one of Jack's rants about being special ops and as such would never be caught hovering over anything. "Notice anything . . . special about the chair?"
"Don't hover," Jack muttered as he stepped closer to the SuperComfort Deluxe. He ran his hand over one of the chair's armrests, and looked up when he saw the material covering the cuisions. "Is that . . . ?"
Daniel smiled. "Teal'c thought you might like that."
Jack looked over at Teal'c. "How in the world did you get them to use The Simpsons fabric?"
Teal'c inclined his head. "It was not difficult. I had only to remind the store manager that the chair was being procured for a great warrior who had fought in many battles." Teal'c paused. "But I suspect that it was mostly due to what Doctor McKay refers to as my mastery of something called 'The Force'."
Jack grinned and clapped Teal'c on the back. "Thanks, T. This is great!" He walked back over to his chair and flopped down, wiggling around to get himself comfortable.
"How does it feel, Jack?" asked General Hammond.
"It's great, sir, although I could use a beer . . ."
A loud noise caused everyone's attention to focus on the entrance to the infirmary. The doors flew open, revealing one Dr. Rodney McKay.
"That is not what I ordered," Jack grumbled when he saw the scientist.
"What?"
"Nothing, McKay. What's up?"
McKay took a few breaths. "Well, I was invited to this little shindig of yours, but it seems I'm a bit late."
Jack stared at the scientist. "Uh, yeah."
"Oh, well, congradulations and all that. Did I miss the cake?"
Jack sat up straight in his new chair. "Cake? Carter, you didn't mention there would be cake."
Sam chuckeled. "Yes, sir. We set it up in the commissary before we came here. I believe Teal'c decorated down there as well."
"Well, let's get going!"
Sam smiled and watched as all of the SG teams started to exit the infirmary, Daniel complaining the entire way about being pushed by Janet in a wheelchair.
"Janet, I'm perfectly capable of walking on my own."
"I just like being able to push you around, that's all." Janet winked at Sam as she, Daniel, Teal'c, Hammond and McKay made their way towards the elevator.
Jack took the near empty infirmary as an opportunity to get comfortable in his new chair. He closed his eyes and enjoyed the quiet.
"Surprised, sir?"
Jack opened his eyes to look at Sam. "Yes, I am. It's a really great gift. It almost makes up for making me sit through McKay's briefing on the dangers of Stargate travel."
"Almost, sir?"
"Almost. But I think cake will make us even."
Sam smiled and held out her hand to help Jack out of the chair. Jack stared at her hand, then seemed to come to a decision and allowed her to help him make his way out of his brand new chair.
"There is one more thing, sir."
Jack raised one of his eybrows at his 2IC. "Spill, Carter."
"We bought you a chocolate lemon cake." She waited for him to make the connection.
"Did anyone tell McKay?"
"Not yet."
"Sweet."
THE END