The couple returned home early the next morning to find the house entirely empty. Whatever had been made for breakfast was cleaned up as not even a crumb was left in the kitchen. All the beds were made and the living room vacuumed, any tile floors washed.

"Well, this is odd," Jack said as he walked back into the living room after checking the upstairs.

Sam had let herself rest on the couch. Carrying twins really was tiring, even after having one of the best night's sleep in months. She held out her hand to pull him down next to her and handed him the note she'd found on the coffee table when she first sat down.

"They went to breakfast?"

Sam giggled at the indignant look Jack got reading the note.

The door opened as the couple sat and cuddled on the couch. Five little kids came running in, standing in front of their Aunt and Uncle. The rest of the family came trudging in after them, the mothers and Seamus running after their troops to take off their snow covered boots.

"Kids, you have to keep Uncle Jack's house clean!" Sea admonished the children.

"Hey, it's Aunt Sam's, too!" Bridget scolded him.

Jack and Sam laughed as the little girl stared down her aunt's brother-in-law and put her hands on her hips. Sam reached out and pulled the girl into a hug.

"It's okay, Bri. Nobody's used to me living here yet, that's all."

Bridget nodded and looked around the room. The adults had all situated themselves around the living room and into the kitchen. It was crowded, but the atmosphere was friendly. The little girl noticed her Grandpa Jake and Nate were hanging back away from everybody else.

One of the babies kicked and brought her attention back to her aunt. "Auntie Sam, where are the babies gonna sleep?"

Jack and Sam just stared at each other. Neither had had a chance to think about it yet, much less do anything. There were plenty of rooms in the house, they just hadn't picked one yet.

"Well, at first they're going to sleep with us, in our room," Jack answered for them.

Stacy had smooshed herself on the other side of Jack and stared at them, her brow scrunched in thought. "In your bed?" she asked, suddenly confused.

Sam smiled and Jack shook his head. "No. While they're little enough they'll share a crib in our room. When they can sleep through the night, we'll put them in their own room, in their own cribs."

"Ooooh," both girls said with sudden understanding. They hopped up and Stacy led Bridget off into the back of the house where Jack kept a small playroom for his nieces and nephews.

Jack turned to Sam, still holding her in his arms, and said, "I suppose we should decide which room's gonna be the boys'?"

Sam just shook her head. "Don't worry about it. I'll figure it out while you guys are gone."

Mark just about went through the roof when he heard that. Blood seemed to boil in his face and Jack thought if he looked hard enough he could see steam coming out of the man's ears. "GONE!"

The three boys jumped at Mark's booming voice and Nick hurriedly ushered his new "cousins" out of the room. He'd seen that look on his father's face and had been the recipient of that tone before and knew what it meant. He was glad he wasn't in Uncle Jack's shoes just then.

"You guys just got married and you're leaving her?" Mark shouted pointing a finger at Jack.

Jack jumped up ready to defend himself. "Well it was either that or postpone the wedding! Where would Sam and the boys be then? At least now if something happens to me she won't be left out in the cold!" He sank back down into the couch and pulled Sam into his chest. He hated thinking of anything happening to him, but it was always a possibility, especially with how dangerous their upcoming mission was.

He'd seen the tears well up in his wife's eyes and dreaded bringing up such serious subjects and a fight with her brother was not on the top of his to do list.

At least Mark's anger seemed to deflate almost immediately. He realized just what Jack had meant and though he knew from watching his new brother-in-law that the man would do anything for his little sister, it still sent a bile taste through his mouth realizing she'd be alone when Jack went off to wherever he was going.

"Mark, I won't be alone." Sam reached out and rested her hand on her brother's knee, hoping to calm him.

Sea reentered the room from putting the kids' coats and boots away and sat in one of the few extra chairs around the room. "That's right. I've just been transferred to the mountain and until we find a house, Tommy and I are staying here."

Mark nodded and seemed to accept that, for the most part, but Jack could tell he wasn't fully satisfied. "The kids have to get back to school, but I'll get everybody home and come back."

Jack looked like he was about to argue, not because he didn't like Mark, but because he thought it would take Mark away from his job for too long. Sam laid a gentle hand on his thigh to placate him and nodded to her brother.

"That will be fine for a while, but Jack could be gone for over a month. You can't afford to take that much time off."

"I've got over a year's worth of sick leave, I think I'll be okay."

Sam glanced at Jack who just shrugged while he got up off the couch. Now looked like a pretty good time to take Nate aside and tell him what the Joint Chiefs had decided. He had to admit he was surprised they'd allowed Levi to stay on Earth, but Nate was pretty adamant about his snake, something he'd never understand.

He cocked his head down the hall, signaling for Nate to follow, leading him to one of the spare rooms currently filled with junk. He pulled out a chair and motioned for Nate to sit. The teen normally would have taken him up on it, but he was too nervous to sit still long enough to hear what Jack would say, so he just stood behind the chair, his hands resting on the back.

"So, do I have to go back with Jacob?" He gave a lopsided grin to try and hide his nervousness, but Jack had lived too long to be fooled by Nate's little display.

"Only if the Tok'ra make you. Levi doesn't have to leave under one condition." Jack stopped, drawing out the suspense, knowing it wasn't anything the boy should be worried about.

Nate was getting exasperated, rolling his eyes at the older Colonel. "Well?"

"Sam and I become your legal guardians."

The young man smiled, relief showing brightly in his features. "That's all? You had me scared shi- uh, to death."

"Nice save. You don't mind?"

"Hell no. I mean, of course not. What about Neal, though?" With the hard part of the discussion over, Nate finally relaxed and came around the front of the chair to sit. He threw his right ankle over his left knee and leaned back into his folded hands behind his head like he hadn't a care in the world. In all actuality, he was scared for his little brother, but relief that he wouldn't have to leave let him relax just enough.

"My ex-wife works for Social Services. She's going to track him down. Sam and I would like to adopt him, keep you guys together," Jack answered.

Nate's head dropped, and Jack knew immediately the snake was going to start talking. He'd hoped the news would be a good thing. Guess not.

"I am sorry, Colonel. Nathan has told me many times he wishes I would not talk while we are on Earth, but no one is in this room, and he is too overwhelmed to speak. He has missed his brother very much. This is most enjoyable news. I am holding his emotions in check, but I wish you to know we are both very grateful for what you and your wife have done."

Nate's head dropped again, and his face colored slightly with embarrassment. "I don't see the point in having a snake hide the tears for you if he's just gonna announce it anyway," he said, sniffing.

Jack smiled and looked into the young man's eyes. "Hey, it's okay. No matter how old you are, it's acceptable." He rested his hand on Nate's shoulder and squeezed gently.

"Thank you, Jack. This really means a lot to me." Nate started to calm down and let a smile show through. He'd been doing a lot of thinking lately and knew that if someone wouldn't take him, he would fight for Neal when he turned 18. He didn't have to worry about that, though. Sam and Jack were probably the best couple he could think of to take in his little brother. Then another thought struck him.

"What about the twins? I mean, you have the boys coming soon, and Neal's not even a year old. Won't that be too much?"

"We'll have lots of help if we need it, but we honestly don't care. You're his brother, you shouldn't be separated."

Nate nodded, thankful they'd thought of that. He really didn't want to be away from his brother so soon after the death of their parents, but circumstances had prevented him from staying with the child. Now that he knew he was going away for school, he was reassured he could trust the people who would be taking care of Neal.

"Are they going to change our names?" he asked.

"Yours, no. You're almost eighteen and you only need us for a few more months. We figured we'd let you decide what to do about Neal."

Nate thought for a moment, determined to make a rational decision based on what would be best for Neal. If they kept his name as is, he'd always be connected to his real parents, but there was the possibility that when he got older he'd feel disconnected from the O'Neills, not being their real son. If they changed his name, he'd be part of their family. Though he knew Sam and Jack would never treat him any different than the twins, it was the younger boys he was worried about. Little kids can be mean. And with a name like Neal O'Neill, he'd probably get the snot kicked out of him.

"Change it."

Jack looked up at how quickly Nate had made up his mind.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. Poor kid'll probably get the crap beat out of him when he starts school, but yeah. Change it. I don't want him feeling like he doesn't belong when he gets older."

Jack nodded in understanding. "All your family's personal affects: photos, home movies, journals, things like that, were all kept in a storage locker. You were still out there and everybody believed we'd find you again after that first encounter. With your permission, I'd like to take some of the photos and movies and anything else you think he should have for Neal."

"Thanks. I'll go through it all decide what to keep and what will go to each of us."

Jack and Nate stood up, deciding it was time they got back to the rest of the crew. There was plenty of time once they got back from their mission to make the big decisions, but for now they were just going to enjoy the time they had with their family. Jack was just glad Nate was accepting the situation as well as he was. He was determined they would help the young man through whatever life would throw at him.

A/N: Okay, so i know it was really short, and I'm REALLY sorry it took so long, but i've had a really crappy month and a half. i was totally sick and couldn't get better, then a whole buncha crap just kept happening to me and life threw up in my face, then just general writer's block totally sucked everythin out of me. again im sorry and this chap was mostly just to get the convo w/ Jack and Nate outta the way. Please review, i love it sooo much.