A/N: If I owned these shows and characters, I'd quit my job and drink margaritas by the beach while giggling and thinking how to incorporate as little clothes as possible into the storylines. However I don't, so back off to work I go.
A/N 2: We've finally arrived at the last stop in this journey. (Sniff) The 42nd chapter, the magical number that was Mulder's apartment number and the answer to life, the universe and everything. I want to really thank everyone who has reviewed this story, your comments truly kept me going, from the reviews on the first chapter up to this one. For the last chapter, thanks to: TankerMDK, ms8309, theNightEnchantress, Spidey2, Nightwing 509, locodraco, JOSH, TangledPencils, and Heather. Glad you managed to make it this far :)
A/N 3: You can skip this; it's just an ode to everyone who reviewed; ahem: You gave me a chance, though you knew me not; you read my story and reviewed a lot; you gave me suggestions and brightened my day; and glad my story entertained you in some small way; you helped keep me going after my nervous first start, so my thanks to you comes from the bottom of my heart :) Though I'm not listing every single person who reviewed (I wanted to but it would take a page by itself) I do thank each and every one of you for taking the time to let me know you liked the story. I really appreciated it more than you can know. The far-from-award-winning poem is for you :)
You people are the greatest. Thanks again. And finally, on to the last update. It's shorter than the last chapter; consider it a kind of fluffy leave-taking :)
> > > > > > > > > >
"Now that's good coffee!" Daniel exclaimed.
Clark and the team were ensconced in a booth at the Talon, having just received their order. The whole tour of the town hadn't taken very long at all, and now they were waiting for Chloe and Pete to show up. Chloe had said that she'd managed to obtain the keys so she could get into the Torch's office, so she could finish up a few articles for the upcoming edition of the paper. Clark was certain she'd neglected to mention to the principal that the Air Force might be stopping by there.
He looked around and spotted his friends making their way to the table. He'd already added a couple of chairs. Pete plopped down with a sigh. Chloe first went to put in an order for Pete and herself, and then joined them.
"Hey Pete, man, you look down. What happened?" Clark asked after his teenage friends and his military friends exchanged greetings.
"You mean after my mom yelled at me for going on a hare-brained trip?" Pete grumbled.
"Hey, I told you to tell her that you were going on a school trip and you'd get credit for it." Chloe protested.
"Yeah, well, I couldn't look her in the eyes and lie about going to the base. At least she didn't ground me. I think she was just happy I was home safe." At that Pete looked a little guilty.
"At least things turned out okay." Clark commented.
"Yeah, but she expects me to be back in a few hours and I have a ton of chores to 'keep me out of trouble'." Pete quoted.
Clark ducked his head and grinned. He always had a ton of chores to do-he was just able to do them very quickly when he wanted to, leaving him plenty of free time if he needed it.
Chloe smiled when she noticed that Clark did, and excused herself to collect her order. Clark's eyes followed her to the counter, a wistful look in his eyes when the girl that gave Chloe the drinks clearly wasn't Lana.
Pete's gaze followed that of his friend, and he punched Clark lightly on the arm. "Nope, she isn't back yet. You'll have to make do with me for the time being."
"Hey!" Clark exclaimed indignantly to Pete, making an exaggerated show of rubbing his arm, then mock-punching his friend in turn.
The team watched the byplay between the teens and O'Neill rolled his eyes. "Were we ever that young?" he whispered to Daniel.
The archaeologist smiled and lightly punched the Colonel, grinning in delight when O'Neill turned to face him with a bewildered expression. "Don't know about you, old timer, but I'm still young." he said.
A decided glint of humor touched O'Neill's eyes. "Oh you just wait, Danny boy. Your turn will come."
Slightly alarmed, Daniel turned to Maj. Carter. "He's not really going to do anything, is he?" he asked.
Sam fought to keep a wide smile from her face. "Well, you are talking about the man who turned the Stargate into a golfing hole," she said. Though she didn't remember it happening herself, after a particularly grueling mission the Colonel had been knocked up on painkillers, and had let slip some things that had occurred during a time loop after a mission to P4X-639.
The Colonel's eyes widened in horror. He didn't remember telling Carter that. What else had he said?
Reading his expression, Sam leaned forward confidentially. "Don't worry sir, I won't mention it again. You only told me that you learned to juggle and rode a bike through the base. And wasted time learning a translation we didn't need."
O'Neill breathed a sigh of relief. So he hadn't caved and told her everything, good. Some things his second in command just didn't need to know.
"So what's up?" Chloe said as she breezed back into the conversation, dropping Pete's drink in front of him.
"Pete hit me so Daniel hit the Colonel." Clark reported.
Chloe rollled her eyes. "Men." she said, giving Maj. Carter a sympathetic glance.
"Indeed." Teal'c chimed in, having been told to try and blend in.
After finishing their refreshments and bantering back and forth, the seven people got up and exited, Daniel leaving a nice tip. When he noticed Chloe looking at him he shrugged. "I know what it's like to be a student." he explained. She smiled brilliantly at him and then stuck by his side as they all piled into the Land Rover, deciding to come back for her car afterwards.
> > > > > > > > > >
"That's amazing!" Maj. Carter's eyes were wide as she stared at Chloe's 'wall of weird'. "All of these occurences happened after the meteor shower?"
"That's what got me started." Chloe confirmed.
O'Neill gazed at the articles, a frown on his face. 'Why weren't we aware of any of this? Could've meant Goa'uld activity for all we know.' he thought.
"Uh Daniel? Want to take a picture?" he suggested.
"Sure," the archaeologist replied. He'd brought along a camera as a matter of course, after Clark had said there would be a tour.
"Wait a minute, you can't just take pictures without asking. This was a lot of hard work!" Chloe said indignantly.
"I understand. Of course we'll give you proper credit. This kind of research and dedication to a task is an admirable trait. It must have taken you a long time. I'd love to learn more about this." Daniel said smoothly, smiling at Chloe.
She lost her frown and melted, smiling at him as she then excitedly began to point out the highlights. Daniel snapped photo after photo, quickly learning and memorizing the stories behind the pictures he took.
Clark and Pete were happily chatting with Maj. Carter and showing her some articles as well, so O'Neill unobtrusively gave Teal'c a signal and the Jaffa quietly placed a few devices in inconspicous places around the office. He finished as Pete gave a loud groan when he looked at the time.
"I gotta get home or I might get grounded. Sorry," he said apologetically.
"That's all right," Maj. Carter said.
Chloe reluctantly trailed after everyone else as they left the office. "It's a good thing I actually did have extra articles written ahead of time," she mentioned to Daniel as they exited and she locked up.
"Planning ahead is always a good idea," he agreed, deciding to get her email address to keep in touch with the young reporter. Chloe was a gold mine of information, and if any suspicious government types showed up he was certain she would know about it.
> > > > > > > > > >
"Thanks for the notes," Clark said to his friends. "See you on Monday."
"No problem," Chloe replied, and smiled at him as she and Pete walked to her car. She turned as she reached the driver's side and waved before she got in, smiling shyly as her eyes met Daniel's. The she and Pete were off, having already said their goodbyes to the team, and Clark and SG-1 got back into the Land Rover. Clark was grinning.
"What's so funny?" O'Neill asked.
"I think Chloe has a crush on Dr. Jackson." Clark responded, starting the vehicle.
"No she doesn't," the archaeologist replied.
"Actually, I think she does too." Maj. Carter chimed in.
"Y'know, Danny, I wouldn't be surprised. You were being pretty charming to her." O'Neill noted.
"Well, I thought it would be nice to be on someone's good side here. You never know what she might be able to dig up." Daniel said.
"If there's something strange going on around Smallville Chloe will know about it," Clark agreed.
"So where to next?" Daniel changed the subject.
"I guess we could revist the field where the ship came down, that's kinda what you told her you were coming here for, and I think it's a good idea," Clark said.
"Okay, let's go." O'Neill agreed.
> > > > > > > > > >
They reached the area of the burned shed and examined the grounds, but there was nothing exciting to see.
"Well, no mutant cows or glowing ships here, I think we're safe." O'Neill said.
"We could monitor the area, just in case, sir." Maj. Carter said.
O'Neill nodded. "Good idea. Teal'c?"
The Jaffa looked around. "I do not see a place to put the equipment, O'Neill." he rumbled.
The Colonel glanced around as well. "Good point."
Clark cleared his throat. "Um, I have an idea." he said.
The team turned to him. He gulped.
"Uh, I was thinking it might be a good idea to put fencing around this area anyway, in case there was any radiation. That way people would know to avoid it."
Maj. Carter smiled at the teen. "That's a great idea! But that still doesn't help us put the devices somewhere."
"Well, I could do it now. Nobody's around. You can hide a camera and a microphone inside the fencing." he explained.
"I do not see fencing material here, Clark Kent." Teal'c said.
"Just give me a minute." Clark replied with a grin, and literally disappeared from sight.
O'Neill blinked. He'd known Clark had used his speed before, but every time was like a fresh revelation.
Clark was back quickly, dumped some supplies, and disappeared again, the wind kicking up. He made two more trips, and then set to work, positioning a fence post in the ground and then driving it in, using only his hand. SG-1 looked on, amazed, as in short order a sturdy perimeter fence took shape around the area of the burned shed. Clark finished with the last of the material, finally turning around to view the team.
"So, will this do?" he asked.
O'Neill swallowed. "Real useful on some missions." he murmured quietly. Aloud he replied, "That'll do nicely, Clark. Good job." He gently patted the boy's shoulder.
Clark gave him a wide smile and made places for the equipment to rest. Teal'c positioned them and then they were done.
"Want to stay the night again? Or do you have to get back?" the teen asked.
"Actually, we do have to get going," Sam replied. "But thanks for the offer."
"You're welcome back anytime." Clark said, his expression sincere.
"Thank you, from all of us." Sam said, smiling at him.
> > > > > > > > > >
The team drove Clark back home, and said their goodbyes to his parents.
"Will we see you again?" Martha asked.
O'Neill looked at Clark. "Oh, I think you can probably count on it." he replied.
"You did promise to help protect our son," Jonathan said.
"That we did, and we will. We'll also call if we find out anything about Clark's ship or his home planet." Daniel agreed.
"Well, it was nice meeting you, despite the circumstances." Martha added.
"Nice meeting you folk as well," O'Neill said.
They shook hands and then Clark and the team went back to the Land Rover, Clark driving SG-1 to the airport. Sam hugged him, as did Daniel, and Clark surprised Teal'c by giving him a hug as well. The tall alien had a strange expression on his face, and raised a brow. Then taking to heart his instructions to blend in, Teal'c gently hugged Clark back.
The teen turned to O'Neill, who shrugged and sighed, then said "C'mere," in a resigned voice. Clark hugged him, and O'Neill gave him a thump on the back. They said goodbye, and then Clark was gone
The Colonel cleared his throat of the lump that had mysteriously appeared there. "Good kid." he said. His team agreed, Sam grinning at him.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing, sir." The Major responded, smirking.
O'Neill shook his head, and they boarded the plane.
> > > > > > > > > >
Clark found himself in the loft that night, training his telescope on the stars. He wasn't aware of the time passing, but he did hear the footsteps traipsing up the stairs. He turned his head and grinned at Lex, then turned back to looking at the sky.
"So how's it going?" his friend asked.
"Okay. I finished catching up with schoolwork and thought I'd take a break."
"Are they gone?" Lex asked.
"Yeah, they left earlier." Clark turned to look at him. "Did you catch up with your work?"
Lex grimaced. "I know I wasn't gone that long, but you wouldn't know it from the paperwork. I decided to take a break too."
He stepped next to Clark, looking at the sky. The limitless possibilities of the stars reminded him of his entranced moment of gazing at the Stargate. He shook his head and laughed.
Clark turned to him with a puzzled smile. "What?" he asked.
"It's just that, I had all these questions, and in the last week I received a ton of answers, some of them to questions I hadn't even thought to ask." He stared at Clark with an earnest expression. "Clark, thank you. For confiding in me. Our friendship meant the world to me, and it means even more now. I promise to never let you down."
Clark grinned. "I know. And I'm glad we're still friends too. I'm kinda scared of some things that I know are out there now. I mean, I always knew I was from somewhere else, but I didn't know just how many somewhere elses there are, you know?"
Lex gave him a quick grin, and they stood there companionably, looking up at the stars.
> > > > > > > > > >
"So this be our new home?" T'Rog inquired of Daniel.
The team had gotten back to the base without a problem, and after resting through the night returned the next morning to tackle a mountain of work. Part of that mountain had been to find a place for T'Rog and his people to live.
"Yes, this is where the Unas live. We think they are kind of your long-lost cousins. You should be safe there. We'll set you up with plenty of supplies." Daniel replied.
T'Rog turned to his friends and they had a short discussion. He then turned back to the archaeologist. "This is acceptable. We will-what is the term?-keep in touch."
Daniel smiled, T'Rog had already learned a lot of English. He was certain that they would do just fine.
> > > > > > > > > >
Weeks passed, and the SGC returned back to its version of normal. So far no progress had been made with Clark's ship. The Tok'ra were still busy and unable to come and view it themselves, and in O'Neill's opinion that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. The technicians did make some progress with T'Rog's crashed ship, the military having reluctantly parted with the intact ones from his people. Daniel had said that they might need the technology in their new home, and as the Tobos natives had proved to be extremely cooperative allies, freely sharing their knowledge, they were given an olive branch and allowed to keep their ships.
O'Neill called them an 'ace in the hole'. Teal'c had cocked his head and looked at him with the expression he used when the human said something particularly incomprehensible. The Colonel tried to explain, and poor Teal'c simply looked more confused, so O'Neill gave up.
"Don't worry, it's a good thing," Daniel said, walking by the Jaffa.
> > > > > > > > > >
One weekend Clark came for a visit to the base. Dr. Frasier wanted to perform a periodic check up to see how he was doing, and Sam and Daniel wanted to show him some of the objects they had found on recent missions. They had already done exhaustive testing, but a fresh pair of x-ray capable eyes couldn't hurt.
Finished with the doctor, Clark bounded into the room with the artifacts. "So what do you have?" he asked excitedly.
Both team members smiled, and Sam said, "Over here. We think it's a kind of book, but wanted to know if there was anything else to it. We were very careful with it-we've had problems before-but I'm fairly certain it isn't Goa'uld technology. Will you take a look?"
"Sure!" the teen responded eagerly. The object was a flat slab with metallic-looking paper with symbols and designs etched onto it. They made no sense to him so he looked deeper, his vision switching. To his disappointment, there was nothing underneath the slab-it was pure stone.
"I guess it's just a book, but I can't read it. There isn't anything else to it." Clark said, looking at Daniel apologetically.
"That's okay," the archaeologist replied. "We didn't think there was, but we wanted to be sure."
"Don't let them work you too hard Clark, they tend to lose track of time, and forget important things like lunch." O'Neill said, breezing into the room.
"Sir, it's good to see you again," Clark said, smiling at him.
"You too. Ready for some chow? Carter, Daniel, time to knock off. Get some calories in you." the Colonel said.
"But sir, Clark just got here. We had a few more things to show him..." Sam started, but was cut off.
"Food. What a growing boy needs. I could hear his stomach growling from down the corridor. You can ply him with work after he eats." O'Neill insisted.
Sam and Daniel looked at each other and shrugged. Sam smiled, thinking to herself that O'Neill had missed the boy and wanted to spend some time with him. She would never say that aloud, of course.
"All right. Lunch first." She agreed.
Feeling victorious, O'Neill winked at Clark and turned to leave. Just then the alarms went off. The loudspeakers in the room crackled to life. "Unscheduled offworld activation. SG-1 report to General Hammond."
Clark looked with wide eyes at the Colonel.
"Here we go again." Col. O'Neill sighed.
The End
Yeah, yeah, I'm a meanie. But it just seemed like the perfect ending-yet another crisis and time to save the world. With Clark there, I'm pretty sure they succeed :)If you like, you can read the sequel, Unusual Meetings, coming soon (probably a week) to Misc. TV Crossovers. I think I'll post a note here to say when it's up. Thanks again for reading this, and I hope you all have a most wonderful and glorious day. Bye!