A/N: Well, the updates aren't getting any faster… but I think I'm averaging every ten days or so… I'm currently working pretty much more than full time as I'm going to Europe this summer (which means January…) and so need the money. As a result, I don't quite have as much time as I thought I would. But hey, it's getting done, slowly but surely!

Thank ye all for the wonderful reviews… hope you can find it in your hearts to review again! And yes bookworm I think my reviews should be higher than bloody thirty-something too! But hey, as long as I know SOMEONE is reading! That being said, I'm usually a lot faster at posting… that may or may not be linked in some way to the number of reviews I get (hint to all those lurkers out there!)

Part 8 – One step forward, two steps back

North of Toulouse

Jack had successfully restrained himself from asking "Are we there yet?" for the past hour and a half, but the sheer exhaustion of the entire team and the fact that Élodie looked as if she would collapse prompted him to finally pronounce the petulant question.

As the words left his mouth, however, Sam and Teal'c (who had been leading the procession close to the treeline in their rural surroundings) stopped still, both their arms raised to indicate that the others should do the same. The patches of trees around them as they had moved north had been growing steadily denser, but Jack could now see that not 100 feet away, the trees fell away altogether to reveal a vast expanse of largely cleared land. Standing perfectly still on the spot, his senses were heightened and he smelled the tell-tale fumes of Avgas – there were aeroplanes somewhere in the vicinity.

"I'll take that as a yes then," he murmured quietly, moving without a sound, passing Daniel and Élodie so that he was standing level with Sam and Teal'c. Far off in the distance, he could see a vast collection of army vehicles, their windshields glinting in the sun of the early afternoon. His heart sank as he recognized the formation in front of them.

"So I'm guessing the 'gate's still there… but so is half the French army?" It wasn't really a question, as he already knew the answer.

"That would appear to be an accurate assessment of the situation, O'Neill." Teal'c rumbled. "However it would be wise to verify the presence of the Stargate before attempting an infiltration."

Jack nodded, his eyes still looking to the horizon in front of them. Changing his focus to look at the area immediately before them, he searched hopefully for a place they could find shelter and rest at least until darkness. He and Teal'c would approach the base carefully, but it was imperative that Élodie especially get some rest. Sam could cover them.

"Over here sir." Sam had obviously been thinking along the same lines of Jack. Her outstretched hand pointed to a large oak tree. The trunk was so wide and the tree so old that there was a hollowed out space that was hidden from view to anyone approaching from the base. There was a convenient ledge from where someone could keep watch.

"Ha! I knew lady luck would smile on us eventually." Jack said triumphantly, moving towards the wooden cave. He stuck his head inside, his nostrils pinching slightly at the smell. It appeared that half the animal population of the area used the space as shelter at one point or another. For the moment though, there seemed to be nothing of concern in there, and he motioned for Daniel to approach with Élodie.

"You guys stay here with Carter." He said crisply, standing upright again. "Teal'c and I'll go check it out. Hopefully we'll be able to move sometime tonight.

"Sir!" Sam protested sharply.

"Carter… I don't want any arguments." Jack said without even really looking at her. "We need someone watching our six and you need a rest."

"O'Neill," Teal'c interrupted, looking contemplative, "I believe it would be wise for Major Carter to accompany you, should you have the misfortune to encounter any people."

Jack stopped and looked at Teal'c, blinking with confusion. He looked to Sam, who seemed to be giving him her best "I told you so" expression, and finally sighed as he realized the wisdom of the Jaffa's words.

"Oh yeah… the whole French thing." He nodded. "I'm telling you: I'll be glad when we're back on alien planets… it's so much easier – for the most part they speak English."

"As unlikely as that may be…" Daniel mused to himself with a smirk.

If anyone had heard the archaeologist's comment, they didn't respond. Instead, Teal'c positioned himself so he was for the most part hidden behind the large tree trunk, and fixed his gaze on the area between him and the airbase. He raised the weapon he had taken from one of the milita men back in Toulouse up in readiness for action and nodded sedately to Jack and Sam that they could proceed.

Sam and Jack approached the airbase cautiously, keeping to the scant vegetation that was their only hope for cover. As they got closer, Jack saw with concern that whatever they did, it wasn't going to be easy. There appeared to be a strong and long-term military presence at the base which seemed well organized. Even as they patrolled, they definitely looked alert and on the ball.

"Damn. These guys look a little more impressive than the ones in Spain." He muttered quietly.

"How'd you figure that?" Sam asked incredulously as they continued their slow approach. Considering they'd been captured, beaten around a bit and threatened with death, she didn't see how the Spanish military would qualify as unimpressive in any way whatsoever.

"Well, for starters, they're wearing berets…" Jack looked to Sam as if he was saying the most obvious thing in the world. "Something about those weird hats just kinda creeps me out."

Sam didn't respond, but had to fight hard to suppress a giggle that threatened to erupt from her lips. She ended up smirking in a not entirely unsubtle way, looking away furtively so Jack wouldn't see.

For his part, Jack just looked back ahead of him as they walked towards their target, contented in the knowledge that he had managed to elicit a famous Carter smile and smirk – and even a suppressed giggle. He found himself grinning like an idiot and was glad that Sam was trying to hide her smirk from him by looking away.

The two of them continued walking for the next couple of minutes without saying anything. Their comfortable silence was fast transformed into one of necessity as they approached the outer perimeter of the airbase. There seemed not to be affixed fence in place, as if the perimeter had recently been enlarged to accommodate more facilites. Instead, the manned presence was considerable, and there seemed no chance to get passed them all.

Both Sam and Jack crouched flat to the ground, behind a messy outcrop of rocks that hopefully hid them. They sat and waited for something – anything – to happen. Jack looked at his watch, it was still only 1pm. They had a lot of daylight left to check things out, but so far nothing was really that encouraging.

At that moment, it seemed as if someone had flung a switch somewhere causing a frenzy of action. A short, sharp whistle sounded from one of the buildings and in perfect unison, all the men turned to towards that building and started marching toward it. Jack thought his jaw would drop off he was so shocked. To replace the men, only a skeleton crew came out – and they didn't look too happy about it. He looked to Sam to see what she made of this and was astonished to see she was clutching her side with silent laughter.

"Carter!" he snapped in protest. "What the hell..?"

Sam tried in vain to compose herself in the face of her clearly perplexed CO. What they had just witnessed was to perfect. The French had their quirks, but she never thought it would extend this far. She never thought for a minute it would compromise their security so… maybe it was just this section of the army… either way she wasn't going to question it – she was going to take any luck they could.

"Well?" Jack asked more patiently, as he saw the genuine amusement on her face.

"They've gone off to lunch sir!" Sam gasped. "In France lunch isn't a meal – it's an event. Even in our time schools still close down for two hours in the middle of the day to give kids the time to go home for lunch – and many workplaces do the same!"

"Hang on," as much as Jack wanted to, he just couldn't believe this was actually the case. "So you're telling me these idiots are actually going to compromise their security by putting on a skeleton staff for lunch? They don't do it in shifts?"

Sam had composed herself successfully and was now mirroring Jack's expression of disbelief. "I really do think so sir. That's the only thing that can explain it – and considering we're in France, it makes complete sense."

Jack shook his head, amazed that finally things were possibly going their way. "So how long are they going to be gone?"

"Probably an hour, maybe longer." Sam said, her gaze now returned to their target as she spoke. "Of course, the break for the evening meal won't be as long as this – but it might give us the time we need." She looked at her watch nervously. If they were going to do some reconnaissance work, they'd have to move soon in order to take full advantage of the time given to them.

"Ok." Jack said, his mind working quickly. He surveyed the scene before him and saw that now, instead of nearly a hundred men, there were only 15 guarding the complex. It was now or never. "Let's go have a look then. I'll cover you from here and follow behind. Head to the left over there, the sun's shadow should cover us behind those buildings as we approach."

Military airbase, Toulouse

Sam approached the base from the south-western end cautiously, keeping her senses heightened, searching for any sign of immediate danger. The section of the airbase closest to them housed a cluster of warehouses, one large one, which was probably the site of some experimental craft – and hopefully the stargate as well – and four smaller buildings that appeared to service the main structure. The soldiers had entered the closest building to her position, indicating this was where their mess hall was located. Such close proximity made her approach more risky, but also ensured that she would hopefully be able to hear what was going on given the chance to get close enough.

The men on patrol were pacing in their designated spaces in a lacklustre manner, obviously wishing to be eating lunch rather than guarding their patch. Sam could see how blasé they were as they patrolled, only looking ahead of them, and so turning their back on her position every couple of minutes or so. Each time the man closest to her did so, she assessed the danger posed by the others and advanced quickly across the ground. After three such manoeuvres, she found herself pressed against the building on the outer section of the complex, amazed at how easily she had been able to advance. She waited carefully and watched as she saw Jack performing the same approach she had just done.

As she waited, she could actually hear snippets of conversation from the interior, where it seemed the remaining forces were enjoying a hearty luncheon – apparently it wasn't just military-issue for these guys. She tried to ignore the gnawing hunger in her stomach and listened intently.

"C'est pas étonnant, it's not suprising," one man was saying, "that they haven't tried anything – they've only been at large for a couple of hours."

"Ouais, yeah." Another added. "And there was blood found at the scene – hopefully one or more of them was injured, causing a delay. I don't think they will get as far as here, they'll be captured first."

Sam smiled quietly. These guys were underestimating SG1. It would prove disastrous for them. Little did they know that one of their targets was only a couple of feet away, listening to their conversation.

"Mais s'ils atteignent la base? But what if they reach the base?" the original voice asked, somewhat worried. "These are apparently very skilled warriors – they've posed as both Reds and Cagoule members successfully. Surely they pose a threat…"

"Peu importe. Doesn't matter." The snide reply came quickly. "The device will be in the air by midnight tonight and in Paris early tomorrow. Even if they reach the base, they won't be able to get in undetected."

There were numerous sounds of approval coming from many voices in the mess hall. Sam, for her part, smiled as well. They were now sure that the stargate was in fact at the base and, furthermore, that it was going to be there during the evening meal break that would surely come later in the day. All that was left to do was to find it now.

Jack approached Sam's position carefully and pressed himself against the wall next to her, surprised again to see that she was smiling.

"What is it this time?" he asked, "Don't tell me our luck's actually holding…"

"I don't know about luck sir," Sam replied quietly, "but I'm now sure that the stargate is here, and that we should be able to move during the evening meal – they don't plan on moving it until later in the night."

"Sweet!" Jack grinned, shrinking back into the wall slightly as the patrol came closer to their position, still oblivious to their presence. "However I think we need to move from here – one of these guys is bound to look in our direction sooner or later."

Without waiting for Sam's response, he started edging around the back of the building, stopping at its corner and listening intently for any sign of activity around the blindspot. Sam was close behind him, and he could feel the soft waves of air brush his neck as she breathed, silently waiting for any sign of danger. There appeared to be none, so Jack chanced a look around the corner.

What he saw pleased him intently and he strode confidently around the corner, ignoring the unconscious gasp from Sam. "Relax Carter," he hissed, motioning for her to follow. "See? We're completely hidden here. I don't think I've ever seen a base so insecure as this!"

Sam rounded the corner and saw that indeed there was next to know chance of their discovery from this angle – certainly not with a skeleton staff patrolling the area. The outer building they had been skirting around joined the main warehouse at the corner, making it possible for them to walk around without fear of being seen from the patrols on the southern end of the base. They had yet to see a patrol go by on the northern end, and in any case a couple of tanks would go a long way to obscuring them from view.

She followed Jack, who had moved up to the wall on the main warehouse and was now pressing his ear against it, trying to listen to anything. He pulled away and shook his head at her, indicating that he could hear no activity. Hesitantly, with Jack looking intently behind them to be sure that they weren't discovered, Sam moved to the small line of windows towards the mid-section of the wall and looked in.

Apparently lunchtime included everyone, not just those guarding the complex, as the warehouse was completely empty. There was a large aircraft which looked to be an early incarnation of a cargo plane, whose ramp was down, ready to receive its load. To her immense relief, just to the right of this, Sam saw the truck they had traveled in, and through the open rear door, could see the edge of the stargate and even signs of their equipment.

She looked down to Jack, who was still watching the space behind them intently. Grinning as she crouched down next to him, she gave him the good news. "Everything's there sir, and not a soul to be seen. As long as we catch them at dinner time tonight – we should be fine."

"Ah… no tempting fate Carter." Jack waggled his finger at her playfully. "No counting chickens before their hatched; no-"

"Overusing clichés, sir?" Sam cocked her eyebrow cheekily.

Before Jack could come up with a suitable retort, the sound of approaching footsteps caused them both to flatten themselves along the ground, shuffling towards the tank closest to them, which would hopefully hide them.

"Mais je te jure, but I'm telling you." A soldier was complaining, "there's no point in looking around here – if these traitors managed to get as far as the base, they'll be approaching from the south, not this end!"

"Mais on ne sait jamais, but you never know." Both the men were now clearly visible to Sam and Jack. They were walking lazily around the corner, weapons limp at their sides. They came to a stop before looking around them in a half-hearted manner. "In any case," the soldier continued, "I'm dying for a leak…"

Jack and Sam sat silently, their bodies tensed completely as they pressed themselves against the tank. They were looking at each other intently as they listened to all of this; Jack searching Sam's eyes for any sign of danger in the conversation she was hearing. She just kept shaking her head, indicating that they didn't have to move. Eventually, the men moved away, taking their conversation with them, and both members of SG1 visibly relaxed and Jack clasped Sam's hand.

"We didn't come all this way just to get caught." He moved to stand up carefully, pulling her with him.

"No sir." Sam was slightly breathless with both the relief that washed over her at the departure of the guards, and also at the feel of his coarse skin on hers.

"Let's get out of here – in stages." Jack gently led Sam so that she was ahead of him and, after giving her hand a light squeeze, motioned for her to go first. He retrieved the handgun that had been wedged in his waistband and set himself up to cover her advance.

South of the airbase

Élodie had been dozing on and off for the hour and a half that they had been hidden in the base of the large tree. Daniel was glad to see her finally getting a chance to rest. It had never been their intention for this mission to drag on so long – or to encounter so many difficulties. For someone with no training whatsoever, he was impressed with how well she was coping – especially considering the devastating information they had provided her with concerning the looming war (no matter how much they had carefully not said).

"Daniel?" A small voice interrupted his musings, signaling that Élodie had awoken again.

"Toujours pas de nouvelles, still no news." Daniel turned to smile at her reassuringly. "But I'm sure they're fine, and we'll hear from them soon."

"You have much faith in their abilities." Élodie said, still in French, smiling at Daniel.

"Well I've seen them do some amazing things." Daniel smiled back. "I know I can trust them with my life, and you should feel you can do the same."

"They are very dedicated, yes?" Élodie continued. "Not only to your team, but to each other."

Daniel smiled at what she was saying, he knew exactly where she was going with these questions. "Oh so you've noticed that, have you?" he said, his eyebrows high on his forehead.

"But of course, they can be no denying their affection for each other." Élodie replied, surprised. "Why do you sound so amused?"

Daniel shook his head and looked off to the leaves in the sky above them. It was amazing how people always saw what both Sam and Jack hoped was not visible. Here was this woman, who had essentially known them for only a matter of days, and she could see what they had refused to admit for years – it was only now that they seemed to have turned corner.

He smiled knowingly at Élodie, who was still waiting for an answer. "It's just that we've all known of their 'affection' for each other for years," he began softly. "However they've been refusing to admit to themselves for almost just as long."

"And now it has changed, yes?" Élodie asked, remembering her conversation with Sam.

"Apparently." Daniel smiled. "But it's quite complicated… there are rules precluding them from having this kind of relationship."

"But if it is love, then surely such barriers can be overcome?" The Frenchwoman protested, true to her country's romantic traditions.

"I hope so," Daniel mused, "they deserve to be happy."

Élodie accepted this statement, but her face still demonstrated that she was in deep thought. Her eyes flitted shyly to look at Daniel. "And you? Are you so dedicated to someone back in your time?" She was almost holding her breath in anticipation of his answer, and her heart seemed to be beating incredibly fast.

Daniel had sensed the anxiety in Élodie's question and felt her hand rest gently on his arm. "I was." He said quietly, looking to the ground as he remembered his beautiful wife's fate. "But she was killed by our enemies."

Élodie tightened her grip on Daniel's arm in sympathy. "For that I am truly sorry." She said quietly. Daniel turned his head to look at her in gratitude and they shared a smile just as the silence was broken by approaching footsteps.

"Whoa… easy T, it's just us." Jack said amiably as they emerged from behind the trees to face the Jaffa whose weapon was intently trained on them.

Teal'c lowered his weapon and nodded sagely to them. "It is good to see you are well, O'Neill."

"Good to see I don't have a bullet in my head – you cut quite a scary figure there!" Jack fired back in mock relief before dropping to the ground, sitting comfortably against part of the large tree root. He smoothed the ground next to him and cocked an eyebrow at Sam, motioning for her to join him. They sat together, resting their heads against the rough bark while relaying the intelligence they'd gathered at the airbase to the others.

"So basically, we're going to move at sundown and wait for the illustrious meal break before stealing the gate and all our gear from right under their noses." Jack summed everything up succinctly, bypassing the 'Carter-babble' as he liked to call it. Looking at his watch, he saw with satisfaction that they still had about three hours before sundown. "For now," he said matter-of-factly, "I think I deserve some sleep."

Without waiting for a response, Jack relaxed fully into the tree trunk and closed his eyes, draping an arm around Sam and pulling her towards him. "You too, Carter." He said softly, not opening his eyes.

Sam, for her part, settled gratefully into his side and closed her eyes as well, a faint smile gracing her lips. Had she left them open a split second longer, she would've seen a glint of light reflecting through the trees to the south. As it was, she and the rest of SG1 were unaware that they now had an audience.

To be continued…

A/N: Ok, so we're getting closer. I know there will be some waiting for some definitive s/j action, but at this point it just does NOT fit in with what's going on! They're too busy trying to save the world for the moment… but if you've read my other fics you should know I won't ignore them for too long (I think this is the longest I've ever done so actually). It just depends on the story and what's plausible… that's my main concern.

Please review… and if you're in the Northern Hemisphere, I hope it's not too cold… here it was 34C today (mid 90s F) – ahhh… summer…