Okay, this came along a little later than I expected, but I got it finished! Yay! And I'm proud to announce this story has now passed the 20,000 word mark! Hooray!

No real Daniel/Vala in this chapter either... But please, no rotten veggies!

Next update should be: 4/29 (I know, that's quick!)

Erudite

Taking his now-full tray of food from the buffet line, Daniel strode over to the small table where Sam was already sitting, and took a seat on the opposite side. The commissary was bustling around them, but neither really seemed to notice. Ever since Sam had come back to the SGC from Area 51, they'd been having lunch together at least once a week.

Daniel was very glad for it this week, as he hadn't been able to speak with Sam since her shopping trip with Vala and Jameson a few days ago. Hadn't had an opportunity to verify Vala's story with Sam.

"So… you took Vala to the mall?" he asked.

Sam looked up at him with an extremely surprised expression on her face. "She told you about that?"

Confused by his friend's reaction, Daniel's eyebrows rose. "Was she not supposed to?" he asked.

"No," Sam answered a bit too swiftly. "No, no. I just didn't think she would."

"Oh," Daniel said, covering his skepticism at her answer by looking down to his tray. "Well, as I was going to say, whose bright idea was it to take Vala to the mall?"

That made Sam's mouth quirk into a smile. "Colonel Jameson. They all say she's such a brilliant strategist, but she wasn't smart enough to know taking someone like Vala to the mall was a bad idea."

Daniel smiled faintly. "Was it her idea to take you?"

She shook her head. "I think that was more of Vala's idea."

"Probably," he agreed. After a moment of silence, he went on. "Vala told me she got a few things." At this, Sam's eyes went wide as they had a moment before, and Daniel clarified, "Clothes, and the like. She apparently thought that some our 'fashion-less' clothing was worthy of her wardrobe."

"Yeah, she decided that after quite a bit of complaining and groaning about the ugliness of it all." Though Sam rolled her eyes, she smiled lightly.

"That's Vala," Daniel mumbled. After a moment of hesitation, he pressed on. "Vala told me that Jameson paid for it all. Is that true?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah. Jameson was actually happy to pay for it all." A sudden frown creased her face. "Wait, are you saying you didn't believe Vala?"

"Well—" Daniel started.

"Daniel, I know she doesn't have the best track record, but haven't you noticed how much she's changed since Jameson brought her back?" Sam went on before Daniel could fully answer. "Can't you see it?"

"Yes, Sam, I can but still…" Daniel sighed. "She stole from Jameson," he said purposefully. "I'd say that would mean she hasn't changed all that much."

"It was a penny, Daniel," Sam pointed out.

"Yeah, but Vala didn't know it was worthless. Wait—" Eyebrows raising, he stared at his friend in disbelief. "You knew about that?"

"Yes, and so did Jameson. In fact, she practically handed it to Vala."

His reply was short. "Oh." It was then that Daniel realized how awfully he had underestimated not only Vala, but Sam and Colonel Jameson as well. He really should've known better than to assume…

Slowly, he sighed. "It's just so hard to think of Vala differently than the thief, liar, vixen and con-artist."

"I know, but as I said, she's changing, Daniel," Sam said slowly.

He nodded, and the friends fell silent for a moment.

Unnoticed by Daniel as he was looking down at his food, Sam's eyes focused past him towards the doors of the commissary.

"So… Have you talked to Jack lately?"

As she was apparently absorbed by whatever she was staring at past Daniel, Sam gave no reply to the question. So he glanced up to see her eyes slowly and diligently tracking someone behind him.

"Hello?" Daniel asked after a moment. When she still didn't answer, he waved a hand in front of her face. "Earth to Sam. Come in, please. Earth to Sam."

Suddenly, she snapped out of her trance and quickly apologized. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

"Nothing important," Daniel replied, taking interest in whatever had so captured Sam's attention. "What were you staring at?" The moment he chose to turn his head in an attempt to find out himself, Jameson walked by and he had his answer. "Oh. I see."

After she nodded, Sam's head turned discreetly as her eyes tracked Jameson's movement. They followed her all the way to the buffet, at which point Sam would have had to seriously and obviously crane her neck to see.

Daniel, however, was able to watch her easily, staring past Sam. "Is anything about Colonel Jameson particularly interesting today?" he asked quietly.

"Not today in particular, but something's wrong with her," Sam replied.

"I think more than one thing's wrong with that woman," Daniel retorted.

Sam gave him an exasperated look. "I mean something recent. Lately she's been… acting oddly. More so than she used to."

"How so?" Daniel asked.

For a moment, Sam thought about the question while her eyes focused on nothing in particular. "She's distant," she finally answered. "Acts strange, and reacts to some things in the oddest ways."

Carrying a sparse tray in her good hand, Jameson passed Sam and Daniel's table. After self-consciously glancing around herself, she sat down at an empty table in the very vacant corner of the commissary.

"And doing things like that," Sam added. "I guess you could probably chalk it up to mourning for her team…"

"It's more than that," Daniel said slowly as the idea dawned on him. "More than just losing her team… She's lost something more."

"Friends?" Sam suggested skeptically. "I've never known Jameson to be friendly. Even with her team… Well, except Major Grouper."

Daniel barely even heard her as he was intently watching Jameson, as everything he'd glimpsed and then wondered about her for the past week and a half suddenly falling into place. "I think she lost more than a friend," he said slowly. If what he thought was actually true, Jameson was very lucky no one else had noticed before now… But he'd been through it, and he knew the symptoms.

For the past five minutes she'd been sitting at that deserted table, she hadn't taken a bite of the food on her plate. Only stared at it.

As if something about it just turned her stomach.

Perhaps, something about it did. Something no one besides Jameson could see. Like a special memory, prompted by the food, but not centering on it.

A memory centering instead on the "friend" and comrade she had lost…

"More than a friend?" Sam asked, her surprise amply evident in her tone. Suddenly, her voice was almost silent and her eyebrows rose. "You mean like…?" She trailed off suggestively, suddenly conscious of the people around them and the trouble she could get the colonel into.

Daniel nodded, and Sam's eyebrows rose even higher.

"Jameson? Break regs?" she asked disbelievingly.

He shrugged. "Why not?"

"This is Colonel Never-Break-A-Rule Jameson we're talking about, Daniel."

"The very same one that disobeyed an order quite thoroughly not two weeks ago," he pointed out.

Sam conceded the point with a gesture of her hand. "Yeah, but still… I have a hard time believing Jameson would break the regs. Even after seeing her with Major Grouper. Especially after seeing her with Grouper. They never seemed to be more than friends. Good friends, yes, but still friends."

"A lot of couples seem that way," he replied pointedly.

As a slight blush rose to Sam's cheeks, her gaze turned away, and happened to rest on Jameson. For a moment, she contemplated the lonely colonel, and the way she stared blankly at the tray in front of her.

"Vala seems to have a cheery effect on her at least," she said after a moment.

As Jameson stood and emptied everything off of her tray into a trash can before leaving the commissary, Daniel nodded. "That's a good thing. Jameson could probably use some cheer."

And now I have a bone to pick with you readers...

This story is on the favorites list of 10 people, and the alerts list of almost 30, but I only have around 6 loyal revewers.

And that sucks.

No, that REALLY sucks.

What, you don't have any concrit (constructive criticism) to offer? Then tell me so! Say anything, just review! I love feedback!