Releasing her grip on the edge of the mattress, Penelope swallowed the last bit of Twizzler she had been gnawing on and downed the last of her soda. Her feet dangled off the side of the bed and for the first time she looked down at her shoes and was reminded of how much she hated wearing dress shoes. They were anything but comfortable and she had to wear the most ridiculous looking socks with them.
Carter had finished talking a few minutes now and was still waiting for Penelope's reaction. As of yet, she had to say anything about the situation or whether she would even cooperate. "Penny?" she asked, trying her best not to disrupt the silence in the room by speaking too loudly.
Again, Penelope stared at her feet. She scowled at her socks and then took a look at the rest of her clothes. Black trousers, white dress shirt with a dark jacket, her mother's single pearl necklace hung round her neck and her uncontrollable blonde hair just laying at her shoulders. A single barrette kept the shorter strands from covering her face. And even though she tried to keep her secrets safe behind her eyes, every thought and emotion played over her features like a storybook. A curse she had been plagued with since childhood.
Carter reached for her knee and tried to meet her eyes. "Penny? Are you all right?"
Penelope had heard her both times, but still decided to ignore her. This was all so much to take in. Her head was spinning. And sitting still was making her even dizzier. Sam reached for her knee again, but Penelope stood from the bed and pulled another soda from the case. She snapped the top and chugged half the can before setting it down on the table. She turned and looked at Sam. "I, uh," she said, before the actual thought had formed. "I want to meet Daniel and Cameron—and Teal'c," she said, as though a deal had already been brokered and the details were simply being laid out.
"You what?"
"Daniel, Cameron and Teal'c. You want to keep me from them, I don't know why, but if I'm going to do this, I want to meet them first. And would it be all right if I changed into something else? I can't stand walking around on these cement floors with no padding, I want a pair of tennis shoes." Her hands found their way to her hips, fighting an argument that hadn't even been started.
Sam stood from her seat and pulled Penelope's hands from her hips. "I know this is a lot to take in, Penny but—"
"I'm in, Sam." Penelope said, pulling out of Sam's reach as she picked up her drink again. "Of course I'll do it, I trust you. Even if I think you are all going to get court marshaled if you get caught. I'm in." A smile spread across her face and up into her ears as the devil within her took a breath of fresh air…
"We get to meet the telepath?" Mitchell asked, seeming more like an excited child about to visit Santa Clause.
"Her name is Penelope, Cameron." Carter didn't even glare at him this time.
Daniel stepped forward and noticed that Teal'c had yet to say anything. "Why does she want to meet us?"
"She uh, picked up that I didn't want you guys around her, so now she wants to know who you are." Her own disapproval of the idea was clear as crystal in her eyes, and Mitchell couldn't help but grin at the idea that a kid had over ruled Carter but before he could be scolded into submission, the door opened behind them and there stood Penelope.
More comfortable in her own appearance now, she had changed into a set of green utilities, but the blue high-top sneakers on her feet were a loud affirmation that she didn't belong to the military. Her hair now pulled back at the base of her neck, her face was even younger looking as she stood in the doorway smiling at the group before her. "So these are the boys eh Sam?" Mitchell stepped forward first and almost held out his hand to shake hers when she stopped him. "I'm sorry, Colonel Mitchell. I don't shake hands," she said, holding her hands back. "I uh, can usually keep to myself with the chip, but touching—things seem to…leak through…"
Mitchell nodded, then stepped forward and took her hand in his. Looking her straight in the eye he smiled as they shook hands. "I got nothing to hide…as long as you have clearance."
Penelope smiled instantly and stifled a soft chuckle. "Oh, yes, I do, higher than yours I think." No sooner than Mitchell let her hand go than Daniel followed suit and held out his hand to shake hers. "Oh wow." she said, shaking Daniel's hand as she looked over at Sam in surprise.
"Any friend of Sam's." Daniel said, with his lips curling into a soft smile as he spoke.
From the corner, Teal'c looked on. Penelope couldn't help but wonder why he had remained silent but also thought it better to be respectful of his wishes in this matter…mind reading is a tricky business after all.
"Teal'c will be staying with you while the IOA is here," Carter said, trying to make the last introduction.
The room fell silent as Penelope turned to Teal'c and smiled softly. He stepped from the corner, stopped a few steps from Penelope and bowed his head "Penelope Atkinson, it is a great pleasure to meet you."
Penelope's smile grew even broader and she bowed her head in turn to Teal'c.
Looking about the room, Penelope looked back at Sam, Daniel and Mitchell. They hadn't even been afraid of her. They had even shaken her hand. It had been a while since anyone had done that much to make her feel at ease. At Area 51, she was always around the same group of people and they always kept their distance. It never occurred to her that she would miss the everyday niceties that made living seem normal. The touch of a hand when introduced to someone, brushing up against a strangers shoulder while walking through a crowded hallway, touching another's fingers while handing them a cup of coffee. All these things had been taken out of her life. And being here, where these people weren't scared of her, scared of what she might see in them. These people that, for no other reason than Sam had said so, had come into this with arms open and no fear. It was new and old at the same time, different and familiar, calming and unnerving.
Her own thoughts faded into the background and overwhelming warmth spread over her and a dark grey void silenced everything but it's own voice…
"Penelope? You all right?" Sam had been watching her, and as much as she wanted to pull Daniel and Mitchell back from her, she was realizing how important it was for her to warm up to them. If this was going to work, she would have to be able to trust the people around her. But Penelope had drifted off again, and had been standing silently for a few minutes. "Penny?" she asked, as she reached out for her arm.
As though stepping from a platform, Penelope stepped backward and stumbled. Mitchell and Daniel caught her before she tripped and suddenly Penelope was awake. Staring at the two men as though they had appeared out of nowhere. "Wow," she said, looking straight at Daniel as she balanced on her own. Stepping from the two men, she straightened her shirt. "Was that you?" she asked, smiling up at Daniel.
"I'm not sure." Daniel replied, not sure how to answer.
"All right," Carter said, stepping in. "Let's get you back to your room. You should rest—"
Penelope didn't want to, but she had to agree with Sam. "You're right, if I'm going to be the nefarious spy, I need some down time, and coffee," she said, trying to keep her thoughts straight. This was all going to take some sorting through, especially one as complicated as Daniel Jackson.
While Carter took Penelope back to her room, Daniel and Mitchell waited for Carter in her office. Teal'c had required one thing of Penelope, that when she was ready, she would wait for him before leaving her room and from there, he would be with her where ever she went.
Carter walked to her office and found Daniel and Mitchell waiting quietly. "That went better than I thought it would," she said, closing the door behind her.
"She seems like a good kid. She uh, handles herself pretty well too, with the uh...telepathy and all," Mitchell said.
Carter rested back against the door and looked over to her partners in crime. "I want to thank you two, for what you did. Shaking her hand, I know it seems trivial, but trust is something she's very sensitive to. And when people alienate her because—"
"Sam," Daniel said, cutting her off. It was obvious that she was attached to Penelope. Both of them could see that she saw her as a younger sister, maybe even a daughter. "It's okay. I think we understand what you were trying to tell us before."
"What we mean to say is, we get it now. She needs us just as much as we need her," Mitchell said.
Their understanding put Carter at ease and she let go of some of the fears that had kept her chest twisted into knots.
Chapter FourThe base was quiet, too quiet, and General Landry knew that meant something was coming. He was hoping it would only be the IOA, that much he could handle and when all else failed, he could kick them off the base.
A knock at his closed office door broke his attention from the paper work on his desk and he look up just as the door opened Teal'c walked in looking as somber as ever.
Standing from his seat, as he always did when Teal'c approached him, Landry motioned for him to take a seat. "Mr. Teal'c, what can I do for you?"
Hands clasped behind his back, Teal'c bowed his head. "General Landry, I request to take you into confidence, if only to prevent further complications in the future."
Landry was instantly confused and looked heavenward for a moment, this isn't what I needed today…he thought as he sat back down and looked over to Teal'c. "Close the door."
Darkness had become her friend. When all the voices became too loud, the darkness calmed her own thoughts and everything else fell into place. And for the last hour, she had stared into the darkness above her bed as she laid in the middle of the mattress with a pillow under her feet, for the dizziness. Usually, when she wore the chip, the slight thoughts and emotions that seeped through were simple and meaningless. But Daniel had reached out to her somehow. And the thoughts that she had picked up from him, only from a moment's touch had been filtering its way through her mind. At first, everything was a mess, like a hologram picture that if stared at long enough, the whole picture would present itself on its own.
Usually, it was annoying, waiting for the pieces to fall together. But they didn't, it was like half the pieces were missing and what was left made no sense. A story with the plot taken out, a picture with the faces removed this is what Daniel had shown her so far and it made him just that more interesting.
The next morning, Carter woke early to make sure that everything was still in line for their plan. Penelope would be in a room near by, aided by a security camera view of the IOA and with any luck she would be able to provide the SGC with some answers to their questions about the ever-secretive International Oversight Advisory.
A soft knock on Penelope's door, and Carter waited for an answer. "Penny? Are you awake?" she asked, just as the door opened. Penelope stood before her dressed and ready for the day. "I thought I was going to have to drag you out of bed."
"Oh no, I guess I was rolling around a little in my sleep. The chip fell off and I woke up to some uh…interesting images."
Turning on her heels, Carter didn't know if she wanted more information or not.
Penelope had to laugh at the thoughts running through her mind, "Don't worry Sam, it wasn't you."
"Okay, so where's the chip?"
"Yeah, still trying to find it. I'm guessing it's still in the blankets somewhere."
Looking at the mass of blankets on the bed, Carter started over to the bed and began pulling the blankets apart slowly as she looked for the small metallic chip.
Both silent, Penelope walked to the other side and started looking when she stopped suddenly and looked at Sam. "If I ask you this time, will you answer me?" she asked, Carter didn't look up at her.
"Ask me what Penny?"
"About Jack." The one word made Carter freeze and slowly her eyes met Penelope's.
"We already talked about this."
"Yes we did, and I think we should talk about it more, because you obviously never stop thinking about—" Carter's hand raised and Penelope stopped mid-sentence.
"Please, we don't have time for this. We need to find the chip, and get set up—"
"I know, I know…" Penelope said, as her eyes focused on the small metallic chip on her pillow. "Found it," she said, holding it in her hand.
"It doesn't do any good in your hand Penny."
Carter's edginess brought Penelope's eyes to a narrow slit, "Yeah, yeah, yeah," she said, slipping the metal disc behind her ear. "You know Sam, you should be nicer to me, cause lord knows I got enough on you to black mail you into the next century." That remark made Carter return the glare and Penelope played it off with a smile, "Not that I would ever do a thing like that…"
Chapter FiveThe door closed and Penelope sat down in the hard metal chair in front of the small security screen. The black and white screen had stalled her imagination, but that's not what she was here for. Opening the small notebook in her lap, she clicked the pen and began to write…
Teal'c stood behind her, as he had all morning. Following not too close and yet still there in case of any trouble. He had yet to be told why he was needed in this capacity and hoped that he wouldn't have to find out.
Penelope focused on the screen and the seven people who were sitting around the briefing room table. Right off she picked out Carter, Mitchell and Daniel. Those she could attempt to separate from the others. Prevent any unnecessary blending of thoughts. Next, she focused on the General sitting at the head of the table. She smiled as she gleaned his thoughts, then set them aside and let his thoughts fade into the background.
Those left, the members of the IOA, were murky at best. The blonde haired man, middle aged and British, was paranoid at best. Jumping from one line of thought to the next, trying his own hand at reading those in the room around him, though he failed miserably. Penelope was quickly irritated by his inner most thoughts and tried to push his line of thoughts aside as she moved to the next.
A young woman, older than her yet still youthful looking in her face, sat across from the British man, beside Daniel. Her eyes were honest and Penelope found peace and even tranquility in her thoughts. But as she focused more, she realized that it was a cover. Even thought she was trying to see the people around her in the best light, she couldn't help but think of the past and the events that had brought her to this very room. And that kept her on edge.
Sitting on the edge of her seat now, Penelope reached out for the screen and touched the third person in her line up. A handsome man, middle aged, with eyes that wandered about the room and focused on nothing. It made her nervous and a steady flow of question and doubt hit her all at once. She sat back in her chair and held onto the sides, but still lost her balance.
In a second, Teal'c was at her side, steadying her shoulders as he pulled her gently back into the seat. Penelope gave into his grasp and laid her hand on his hand as he held her shoulders back into his chest. "I'm all right Teal'c," she said, letting her head rest back against his chest. "It's just a little more than I'm used to."
Silently he stood there until she sat forward to focus on the screen once again. Teal'c stayed behind the chair, on the off chance that she might need him to pull her back again. And as he watched the young girl before him knowingly put herself into a danger he couldn't understand himself, he suddenly understood why he was needed here and understood Penelope instantly. She would walk head long into danger, not thinking about herself and it was his job to pull her back when it became too much. He would be the one to steady her when she grew tired and set her limits when she went too far…his friends, as loyal as they may be, would not be able to do such a thing without putting too much of themselves into the equation. And that is why he was here.
A half hour had passed now, and Penelope had nearly filled up her notebook. The base of her neck was tense. It was harder than she had thought to keep the lines of thought separate from the others in the room. She could hardly see straight anymore and was completely relying on her sixth sense. Teal'c stood close, yet didn't interfere with the process.
Suddenly, Penelope dropped the notebook and slid from the chair into the floor. Teal'c was at her side in an instant, but Penelope pushed him away. "Don't touch me!" she screamed, trying to move away from him as she was enveloped into darkness. She saw nothing, heard nothing, felt nothing but the darkness. The once familiar friendly void now scared her as it suffocated her senses. She tried to fight against it, tried to break free but it wasn't in her power to break the connection. This wasn't something she had created, what ever or who ever she was linked with had control and no matter how hard she fought, the connection only grew stronger.
Grasping out around her, trying to grab anything that would keep her from falling further, she felt her arm stop in mid air and fingers grasped her hand. Tightening around her arm and torso, her body began to ease as Teal'c pulled her into his arms. Warmth from his body eased her tense body and soon the darkness began to fade away, paler and paler until she saw a soft grey hue as she opened her eyes. Seeing Teal'c, she reached out for his arm and wrinkled his t-shirt into her hand. "Too much, too much…don't let go."
Before Teal'c could answer her, Penelope passed out in his arms. Sitting in the middle of the floor with her in his arms, he held her tightly as he took the metal chip from her pocket and slipped it back behind her ear. Hoping it would offer her some peace. He stood, still holding Penelope's limp body in his arms and was about to walk for the door when two guards busted in, weapons raised.
"HOLD!" the first guard said, before recognizing Teal'c. He lowered his weapon, the second man followed his example. "Mr. Teal'c? What's going on in here? We heard screaming."
Walking closer, Teal'c let the guards look on Penelope. "She needs medical attention. Escort us to the infirmary." Stepping aside, the guards held the door open as Teal'c walked out into the hall.
In the briefing room, Daniel had stepped to the front of the room and was about to start explaining how the SGC's mission statement had changed since its creation when he was brought to his knees in a heart beat when a searing rush of pain stabbed into his eyes.
Mitchell was to his feet as Daniel fell to the floor. Almost jumping over the seats to get to him, Mitchell rolled Daniel to his back and checked his pulse first. Daniel, snapping back into consciousness, pulled Mitchell's hand away and sat up, suddenly feeling perfectly fine. "I'm okay," he said, as Carter kneeled at his side. "I uh, I don't know what happened. It hurt, but I'm fine now," he said, looking over to Mitchell and Carter.
"All right, on your feet." Mitchell said, pulling him up by his arm.
Stepping forward, General Landry broke up the silence. "Colonel Mitchell, take him to the infirmary. Have Doctor Lamb check him out."
"Yes, Sir," Mitchell said, not waiting for Daniel to answer as he guided him towards the door. Carter followed them, leaving the General to deal with the IOA, who were still standing around completely thrown by what had just happened.
Chapter SixWalking head-long into the infirmary was never easy for Teal'c. In fact, he had always avoided it as much as he could. So when two guards walked into the infirmary with Teal'c behind them, Doctor Lamb knew something was wrong before she even realized that it was a young woman that Teal'c was holding.
"Teal'c?" she asked, rushing in from her office as Teal'c laid the unconscious woman on a nearby bed. Looking down at her, she began to take her vitals. Suddenly, she looked up at Teal'c. "Who is she?"
"We should call for Colonel Carter and Daniel Jackson. They will be—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the doors opened behind him and there stood Mitchell, Carter and Daniel who was looking rather pale.
"What's going on?" Doctor Lamb asked, staying at the bedside of the young woman who still lay unconscious. She also noticed that, while unconscious, she still held Teal'c's hand so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.
Teal'c sat at her side, waiting for the explanations to begin. He focused on his job, staying by Penelope until she released him…and his hand.
Satisfied with the readings she had taken from the young woman, Doctor lamb calmly walked around the end of the bed and took Daniel by the arm. "I'm guessing from how pale you are that you're on the other end of what ever is going on?" she asked, almost pushing Daniel to lie down on the next bed over from Penelope. Handing an empty chart to a nearby nurse, Doctor Lamb pointed over at Mitchell and Carter as the nurse began to take Daniel's vitals. "You two," she said, clearly not happy with the situation. "My office. Now."
Without a word, Carter and Mitchell followed as thought they had been called into the principle's office. The door slammed shut behind them and Doctor Lamb sat down slowly in her chair. "First things first, why is there a young woman out there in my infirmary that I didn't even know was on base? She's not military, who the hell is she? And what the hell happened to Daniel?"
At once, Mitchell looked to Carter. But she didn't hesitate. "Penelope is my responsibility. My guest. She has certain…abilities that we didn't predict could—"
"She's a telepath. And things got out of hand." Mitchell said, cutting her off.
Doctor Lamb was out of her seat in an instant and tried to rationalize what she had just heard. "She's a what?"
"A telepath," Carter said slowly, as though that would help the doctor understand better.
"A telepath? How—"
Knowing this would have come up eventually, Carter stepped up and began to explain. "She worked at Area 51, her telepathy is a result of the ATA Gene therapy."
Doctor Lamb looked at Carter and then to Mitchell. "How could you do this? Put this base, and her, in danger like this?" Almost pacing, she held her hand out to Mitchell as he tried to offer up an explanation. "General Landry will sort this out. At the moment, I have to go make sure Doctor Jackson is all right," she said, reaching for the door, but stopped. "What's her name?" she asked.
"What?" Mitchell asked, a little stunned by her out burst.
Turning to face them, her hand still on the doorknob, she spoke slowly. "The woman Teal'c brought in. What is her name?"
"Penelope, her name is Penelope Atkinson," Carter said, suddenly hearing herself saying I told you so.
Doctor Lamb nodded silently and left the room. She had bigger things to deal with at the moment than bored military Colonels with too much power.
Once Doctor Lamb was back at Penelope side, she couldn't help but glare at Teal'c. "Tell me you weren't in on this, Teal'c."
"He wasn't," General Landry said from the doorway, "where's Mitchell and Carter?"
"Right here, Sir," Carter said, as Mitchell followed her out of the office.
General Landry stood at the end of Penelope's bed and waited for Mitchell and Carter to come into view. "I know everything. Teal'c told me the day you came up with this crazy idea. I wasn't going to interfere. I was going to give you the benefit of the doubt because you're professionals, and you usually know what you are doing." He said, still looking at Penelope. "Do you know what happened?" he asked.
"No, Sir," Carter said simply.
Turning to Mitchell he asked again. "No, Sir," Mitchell answered.
Landry took a deep breath, "When she wakes up, I want a full report," he said, looking over at Daniel. "Doctor Jackson, are you all right?"
"Yes, Sir," Daniel said, through the thermometer in his mouth.
Landry nodded to Teal'c. "Stay with her Teal'c. Colonel Carter, Colonel Mitchell, get your stories straight. And you better pray that when she wakes up she has some explanation that will clear this up." A beat passed and Landry was out the door.
Mitchell exchanged looks between Carter and Daniel. They were clearly at a loss. Not even Daniel knew what had happened. Was any of this connected?