A/N: (general spoiler for Feb 10 episode)

Okay, so that's three really bad command decisions in a row for Mitchell. I don't care how much backstory they cram down our throats telling us he's a good guy - put Carter back in charge!

Ch 33

Generals Hammond and Carter listened to Sam's speculations on the nature and purpose of the device. It didn't really offer much practical progress, however, since if she was right there wasn't much anybody else but Daniel could do with the device, and nobody was about to let a two and a half year old try randomly interacting with the trunk in the hope that he didn't accidentally trigger something harmful. "Maybe when the translations are more complete, knowing more about the context in which it was created and intended to be used could…" Sam started hopefully.

Hammond nodded, but her dad shook his head. "You're just making assumptions, Sam. And there's a hole in your theory anyway. If what you say is true about this device being similar to various others you've encountered, and it was intended to extend life, why isn't Daniel still Daniel, with all his knowledge and memories, just in a younger body?"

"Well… again, it's an assumption, but if it were me, I wouldn't volunteer to have to grow up all over again, and I don't know a lot of people who would, with the memories and connections to people and everything they'd have to give up… but what if the device wasn't meant to be used alone? I mean, we've had experience with the Ancient repository of knowledge, a way to pass on their 'legacy.' Maybe this device was created to extend the natural lives of the Furlings or whoever while they tried to come up with a better solution… by their definition of better, of course. Sort of like technology-assisted reincarnation, without the whole dying part. So they make themselves young, then download some collective knowledge back into their brains…"

"Like the people of Orban?" Hammond asked.

"Yes, sir, exactly!"

Jacob shrugged. "It's a good guess, Sam, but it really doesn't help us at the moment. We need everyone who can working on the translation. That means you."

"Dad, I'm lousy at that, all it's doing is frustrating the hell out of me…"

"You're a lot more useful at it than Colonel O'Neill would be." He turned to Hammond. "George, I think Sam should stay here for the rest of the day. O'Neill can keep watching Danny…"

"Sorry, Jake. I know she's your daughter but they're my officers. Colonel O'Neill has his own responsibilities. They're all taking their turns with Daniel. It's been working so far. Major Carter, you're free to go. You're welcome to take your notes with you if you like."

"Thank you, sir. I will."

"I'll go with you," Jacob said, nodding goodbye to Hammond and following her out of the briefing room.

They went back to Danny's lab, which had already been cleaned up, although the air still wasn't very fresh. As she gathered her things, Jacob said, "What about tonight?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you coming back up here or not?"

Sam sighed as they headed out of the lab, not wanting to linger in the smelly room. She set a brisk pace that her dad easily matched. "Dad… that didn't work out so well before, if you recall. Look. I wish I could do more up here. But I can't. The only Goa'uld I know is kree. That means everything I do has to go through one more step than it does for you and Teal'c and the linguists we have that speak Goa'uld. When all this started, I reacted exactly as you are now. General Hammond had to order me to take half days working and half with Danny - which by the way is most definitely still working. But what he said from the start was completely right - I'm most helpful to everyone at the moment by helping take care of Danny. Those are my orders. That's what I'm doing. And nobody is making any progress as we keep having this conversation over and over. Go complain to General Hammond again if you want, but I'm following my orders."

She couldn't remember being this frustrated with her father since before he became a Tok'ra. She opened the door to the VIP suite with much more force than was necessary, but burst into laughter as Jack and Danny turned to look at her with similar 'caught' expressions and her frustrated mood and frustrating father were instantly forgotten.

Danny was wrapped head-to-toe, minus his face, in toilet paper, walking around with his arms outstretched, 'chasing' Jack, who was dodging around all the furniture in his attempted escape. "We were just…" Jack started, embarrassed.

"I'm a mummy, Sam, raaawr!" Danny explained, making his hands like claws and starting to come after her instead, making growling noises that were evidently intended as a mummy impersonation.

"He ah… started it by himself in the locker room while I was changing my shirt and… yeah."

"Wun, Sam, I gonna get you!"

She held up her hands as claws as well - just generic claws, she supposed, they really could be dinosaur, mummy, monster… whatever. "I'm going to get you and take you back to Jack's house!"

He stopped stalking both of them, pleased with the plan, and said, "Okay. Mon, Dack."

"Sorry, little buddy, I'm staying here," Jack explained, picking up the loose end of the toilet paper and starting to unroll the little boy. Danny didn't mind, it was fun to twirl around and around and watch the paper come off.

"Be careful there, his stomach might still be upset," Jacob warned from the doorway, making sure to stay clear, just in case. Sam started gathering up the things that had been scattered around the VIP room and packing them into the diaper bag as Jack finished getting the toilet paper off Danny.

"Okay, weady to go!" Danny declared.

"Good. Oh - I need to move the car seat," Sam realized as she picked up the diaper bag.

"Wouldn't it be a lot easier if you just took my truck?" Jack asked.

"Sure, but when Teal'c asked if he could drive it you said you never let…"

"Are you Teal'c?" he asked rhetorically, peering into the diaper bag. "Keys are in there… somewhere."

"Thanks. Mine are in my locker."

"Okay. Danny?" Danny looked up at him, awaiting instructions. Jack glanced back at the adults and gestured towards Danny with both hands. "Now, see, he's so much easier to get along with like this. He listens and obeys much better."

Sam and Jacob both rolled their eyes in sync.

"What, did you guys practice that expression at the dinner table when you were growing up, Carter?" Jack asked absently before turning his attention back to Danny. "Behave yourself. No wild goose chases for lost dinosaurs, okay?"

Danny nodded seriously and hugged Jack around the legs. "Bye-bye Dack I wuv you."

"Yeah, backatcha."

Jacob raised both eyebrows, amused at the exchange.

Sam smiled at both of them as Danny took her hand to go. "Bye, sir. Bye, Dad. Come on Danny, let's go." They both said goodbye - Jacob's a bit mumbled and forced. He obviously still believed the wrong person was leaving with Danny.

Danny started off after her but peered over his shoulder in the doorway. "Bye-Bye Day-cup!" he offered with a cheery little wave.

Jacob chuckled in spite of his mood - true, Danny's presence was responsible for all this mess with his daughter and her CO, but it really wasn't the little guy's fault… and he was awfully cute. "Bye Danny."

As soon as she was out of insubordinate-eye-rolling range Jack called, "Watch that lead foot, Carter!"

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

"Sam, wet me do it," Danny insisted as she got out her pass card to swipe at the elevator.

She sighed as she handed it to him and knelt to wrap an arm around him awkwardly and lift him up to swipe it through. Usually she didn't mind - he apparently thought it quite amazing that he could make the doors open up that way, but between the diaper bag and her overstuffed laptop case, which had several of Daniel's notebooks wedged into it to the point where it wouldn't close all the way, her arms were already full.

"I feel like a packhorse," she muttered as she stepped onto the elevator and tried to get him close enough to press the button. "Press the G this time, sweetie."

"G?" He asked. Her arm was shaking by the time he found the proper button - the strap from her laptop case had slid off her shoulder down to her elbow. The doors finally started to close, just as Siler squeezed in.

"Hi Major Carter."

"Oh, hi Siler."

He leaned past Daniel and pushed the button he needed. "Hey!" Danny objected. As far as he was concerned, he was in charge of any and all button pushing.

"Um, Major, could I give you a hand?" Siler offered. "Take a bag… or a kid?"

"Thanks," Sam said gratefully. He took both bags so she could set Danny back on his feet. She took the diaper bag back and set the other at her feet and said, "Who knew the stuff that goes with a kid weighs more than the kid, right?"

"Yeah, you look like you could use some help. Hi Daniel, how's it going?"

"Danny," he corrected firmly before patting Sam's leg insistently and asking, "Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"What's a wed foot?"

It took Sam a moment to translate, and she laughed. "That's just Colonel O'Neill trying to be funny."

"Oh." Danny nodded and accepted the explanation, although she noticed that he was studying both of her feet carefully for several moments before he asked, "When Dack is coming home?"

"Er… I don't know, he's got a lot of work to do," Sam said, avoiding making eye contact with Siler, who was trying not to look interested and failing miserably.

"For dinner?" he asked hopefully.

"Um… we'll see. Probably." Sam started rummaging in the diaper bag for the keys and glanced at Siler, noticing the butterfly bandage above his eye and seizing on the change of topic. "Hey, you got your stitches out, congratulations!"

"Yeah, this morning," Siler said. "Would you like me to help you get all this stuff to your car?"

Guessing that helping her into Jack's precious truck rather than her own car would only give Siler more to report to the other gossipy Airmen and technicians than he already had, she smiled politely and said, "No thanks, I can handle it."

Thankfully, they finally reached Siler's floor. He said goodbye to both of them, patting Danny on the head on his way out. Danny wrinkled his nose and looked up at Sam as the doors slid shut again, as though he wasn't really sure what to make of the man who hadn't let him push the elevator button.

"Danny?" Sam asked conversationally. "Remind me to see if I can make this elevator go a little faster when I've got a spare minute, okay?"

"Ohhh…kay Sam," he agreed, nodding seriously.

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvv

A/N: I know, it ends in a weird place, but it was part of a really long chapter and I didn't have time to edit that much tonight, so I had to split it up in order to get one up tonight. More tomorrow.