So this one took on a mind of its own when I was writing so it's a little longer than I usually write for a single chapter. Hope you like it.
Prompt 9 – Grandchild's First Christmas
Jacob sighed as he came through the gate, he almost hadn't made it back in time for the holiday, but he'd managed it and he was glad. I am very much looking forward to this Selmak said within the confines of his mind I have enjoyed the Christmas' I have spent with you, and you're memories of Christmas past, but this one will be different and I'm looking forward to it.
Me too Selmak Jacob replied.
He looked up at the control room as he made his way down the ramp and smiled at Walter. "Hello Walter," he greeted, "Guess you pulled the short straw this year huh?"
"Yes sir," Walter replied with a smile, "I hope you have a good few days."
"I'm sure I will Walter," Jacob replied with a smile.
He then left the gate room and headed towards Daniel's office. The Doctor had agreed to come in and meet him with some more appropriate clothes for Earth than his current Tok'ra robes, and to provide him with a lift to his final destination.
The door was open when he reached the office. "Doctor Jackson," he greeted.
"Hey Jacob," Daniel responded with a smile, "Good trip?"
Jacob shrugged and watched as Daniel got to his feet, grabbed a bag, and walked towards him. "Here," he said, giving him the bag, "And I apologise in advance."
Jacob took the bag with a frown. "And why do you need to apologise?" he asked.
Daniel shook his head. "You'll see," he said in a resigned tone, "But just so you know it was all Jack's idea."
"Well I'm not sure I like the sound of that," Jacob muttered.
Daniel shrugged and gave him a half-smile. "I'll be here when you're changed and ready to go," he then said.
Jacob nodded and headed towards the locker rooms. The room was empty, not that he had been expecting anything different, and he dropped the bag on one of the benches. He then sat beside it and rifled through what had been packed. "Damn it, Jack," he muttered when he pulled out the item that Daniel had obviously been referring to. He emptied the rest of the bag and searched through it. He shook his head and looked back at the offending article, knowing he had to wear it, there was nothing else in the bag he could use the take its place.
He got dressed and stuffed his Tok'ra robes into the bag and then headed back to Daniel's office. The few people he met in the hallways only nodded in greeting, the thunderous look on his face telling them that talking to him probably wouldn't end well for them.
"Let's go," Jacob said, throwing his bag into the corner of Daniel's office and standing in the doorway as he waited for Daniel to finish up what he was doing. He noticed that Daniel was trying his hardest to keep a straight face, and he appreciated it, but didn't acknowledge it in any way.
"Do we need to get Teal'c?" Jacob asked as they headed for the elevator.
Daniel shook his head. "Everyone else should already be there," he said, "I wanted to get some last-minute things done so I volunteered to pick you up and drive you over. Everyone else got there this morning I believe."
Jacob grunted in response. Cheer up Jacob Selmak chided him It's Christmas, and I like it.
You would Jacob responded. He looked down at his front and scowled. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw as Daniel bit his lip to keep from laughing.
"Do you not have one as well?" Jacob asked him.
Daniel nodded. "I did, but it met with an unfortunate accident."
"How did Jack take that?"
"Oh, he promised he'd have a replacement for me."
They carried on in silence and then made their way towards Daniel's car. "About the other thing," Jacob then said to Daniel, "Did you manage to sort it?"
Daniel nodded. "It's wrapped and under the tree."
"Perfect," Jacob said with a smile, "Thank you."
They got in the car and Daniel turned on the radio and the two listened to Christmas songs as they drove away from the mountain and towards Jack's house. They reached his street and Jacob stared out of the car window at the Christmas lights, a small smile on his face.
He was immensely thankful to the Tok'ra, they were after all the reason he was still alive to even see this day, but they didn't do anything even remotely close to Christmas and he'd missed it.
Daniel pulled up at the curb and they both got out of the car. Daniel lead the way up the path to the front door and rang the doorbell but then let them in without waiting for anyone to come and open the door.
"Hi Dad," Sam greeted as she came down the stairs at the same time as Jacob walked through the door.
"Hi kiddo," Jacob said, sidestepping Daniel and pulling Sam into a tight hug, "Merry Christmas."
"I'm so glad you could make it," Sam said as she pulled away, "Nice jumper by the way." She had a massive smile on her face as she spoke.
Jacob looked down at his jumper and then back at Sam, a look of disgust on his face. "And where did your dear husband find this delightful gem?"
"No idea," Sam said, "But if it makes you feel any better, we've all got one."
"Your's isn't anywhere near as bad as mine," Jacob said.
"Well Dad," Jack's voice came from behind them, "I have to live with her, you I only get to see occasionally."
Jacob looked round to see his son-in-law standing leaning against the doorway to the front room.
"And I think it suits you," Jack continued.
Jacob looked down at his front again and shook his head. His chest was emblazoned with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and there was also a button that Jacob had been avoiding pressing as he suspected it made the nose light up.
Until now Daniel had done a great job of not laughing but now he couldn't help it as a chuckle burst forth. Jacob turned to glare at him even as Jack reached to the side and grabbed something. "Laugh it up Danny-boy," he then said, as he threw what he'd grabbed at Daniel, "I get you a new one too."
Daniel looked down at the jumper and sighed. "Really Jack?"
"Really," Jack said, "And you've got to wear it. Everyone else is."
Daniel shook his head but pulled off his jacket and then pulled the sweater over his head.
"Everyone else is in the front room," Sam said softly, "Except the guest of honour. She's taking a nap."
Jacob nodded and then they all made their way into the front room where he found Teal'c, Cassie, and Janet, who were also wearing Christmas jumpers, sitting and talking.
"General," Janet greeted.
"GeneralCarter," Teal'c said with an incline of his head.
Cassie just jumped off the sofa and ran to Jacob and hugged him round the middle.
They all sat and caught up about everything that had been going on since the last time they'd all seen each other until Sam looked up at the ceiling of the room and smiled. "I'll be right back," she excused.
"I still say it's freaky how she does that," Daniel said matter of factly as Sam left the room.
Jack shrugged. "You get used to it," he said, "And it does come in handy."
They all carried on chatting quietly but weren't really paying all that much attention, they were all watching the doorway, waiting for Sam to return. When she did she wasn't alone.
"Gwampa," the small child called happily as she toddled towards Jacob, holding on tight to Sam's hand to keep herself upright.
She reached Jacob and threw herself onto Jacob's lap.
"Gracey," Jacob said as he gave her a bear hug, "I've missed you little one."
"I too," Grace replied with a smile. She snuggled into Jacob's side, completely ignoring everyone else in the room. The adults all watched her with soft smiles on their faces and Jacob couldn't help but stare down at her in wonder. He hadn't expected to have another grandchild for a long time, Mark and his wife had decided that the three they had was enough, and Sam hadn't been in a position where she would be having kids, but now that she was here Jacob was completely smitten, as was Selmak.
As Grace chatted about what she'd been doing, helping Daddy pick out jumpers for everyone Jacob learnt, Jacob thought back to when he'd first heard about his daughter's pregnancy.
-/-
He'd just gotten back from a mission with two other Tok'ra when Anise came to find him in his room.
"You are needed on Earth," she told him, "Immediately."
"Is something the matter?" he asked, jumping to his feet, "Has something happened?" He had never been summoned to Earth on such short notice before. He usually had at least a few hours notice, but usually knew days in advance.
"I do not know," Anise told him, "Only that you need to go through as soon as you can."
"I'm meant to be going on a mission tomorrow," Jacob said even as he grabbed some things from around the room and threw them into a bag. He didn't need much, he had a collection of things in Sam's house, as well as stashed away in a draw in her lab, for when he visited.
"Someone else will be dealing with it," Anise told him, "General Hammond spoke with Garshaw and it has been arranged." She handed him a GDO.
Jacob nodded and after one more look around the room he turned and left, brushing past Anise, and making his way through the tunnels to the transporter rings. As he walked Selmak spoke to him I'm sure everything is fine Jacob she reassured him.
You can't know that Jacob retorted, Something big has to have happened for me to be recalled to Earth like this.
Selmak hadn't had an answer for that and Jacob had just continued in silence. He'd reached the rings, stood while they transported him to the surface, and then made his way towards the gate. He dialled Earth and sent his iris code and waited for that to be accepted before he stepped through the gate.
On the other side, he was greeted by Hammond, who was waiting for him at the bottom of the ramp.
"Jacob," he greeted.
"George," he responded, "What's going on?"
"Let's go to my office," Hammond suggested.
Jacob nodded and did his best to ignore the looks that he was getting from the airmen who were guarding the gate room. There was something going on that they clearly knew about, but he wouldn't have even been able to hazard a guess. He had thought that something had happened to Sam, she'd been badly injured or possibly had died, but Hammond seemed too calm for that to be the case so he kept quiet and followed the other man up to his office.
-/-
Jacob was jolted from his thoughts by Grace pressing the button on his jumper and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer blaring out of his chest, along with the nose starting to flash.
Jacob glared at Jack, who was laughing, while Grace clapped her hands happily and sang along in baby talk. The other adults in the room also laughed as the song ended and Grace pressed the button again.
"Sing Gwampa," she ordered sternly.
Jacob sighed but he couldn't deny his granddaughter anything and started singing.
"Eryone sing," Grace then demanded, looking around the room.
Everyone started singing along, some better than others, and when the song finished Grace pressed the button once again and started the song for the third time. This time everyone sang along from the beginning while Grace snuggled against Jacob's side and giggled.
When the song finished Grace reached the press the button again but Sam shook her head. "That's enough sweetie, leave it alone for now."
Grace nodded and then burrowed her head in Jacob's side. Jacob looked between his daughter and granddaughter and smiled. "So are you enjoying your first Christmas Grace?" he asked the little girl.
As Grace answered Jacob let his mind wander once again.
-/-
"So what's going on George?" Jacob asked as the two sat in Hammond's office, "Did something happen to Sam?"
"I want to preface this by saying that every member of SG1, including your daughter, is fine," Hammond started. Hammond stopped talking, clearly struggling to find the words he wanted to say.
"What's going on George?" Jacob demanded, "Just tell me what's happened." Even with Hammond's assurance that everyone was fine, he was beginning to get worried and even Selmak's calming thoughts weren't enough.
Hammond sighed. "They were off-world on a standard first contact mission," he began to explain, "And everything appeared to be going well, they'd made contact with the locals who were welcoming and friendly, and who told them about some ruins that were nearby. The locals had minimal interest in them, mostly they were just used as a playground for the children, but unsurprisingly Doctor Jackson thought it might be worth having a look as they sounded ancient."
Jacob nodded at his words, that made sense, but he knew there was more to the story so he didn't say anything, just waited for Hammond to continue.
"There were indeed ancient ruins not far from the village so they set up and started to explore them, while also getting to know the locals," Hammond continued. He was staring past Jacob, focusing on a point just behind him, avoiding Jacob's eye at all costs.
Jacob was getting more and more nervous about what was happening but he stayed quiet, Hammond would get there when he got there, and until then he was just going to have to sit and wait, which Selmak was helping with.
"As I'm sure you're aware," Hammond said, "Colonel O'Neill has a potent ancient gene." Jacob again nodded. "Well, none of the locals had it so they had no idea that some of the artefacts in the ruins were, in fact, machines that were still running, just waiting for a gene holder to activate them."
"What did Jack do?" Jacob asked, finally breaking his silence.
Hammond winced slightly. "It's not entirely his fault," he was quick to say, "But he and Major Carter were exploring one-half of the ruins while Doctor Jackson and Teal'c explored the other half."
"What happened George?" Jacob asked, his patience was really getting thin now.
Hammond looked Jacob in the eye. "We're still not sure on exactly what happened," he said slowly, "But Jack somehow activated one of the machines and it affected both him and Sam." Hammond looked away and then back to Jacob. "There's no easy way to say this," Hammond said, "But I can assure you that even with what's happened, the powers that be are aware of the," he paused, as if searching for the right words, "Circumstances around your daughter's current condition and no disciplinary measures will be taken against her, against either of them in fact."
Jacob frowned. "George," he said, "Please just tell me what's going on with my daughter."
Hammond didn't answer, just looked past Jacob out into the briefing room. Jacob turned in his seat and followed his gaze and saw that SG1 were all sitting around the briefing table, looking towards the office.
"It might just be easier if you go and find out for yourself," Hammond said.
He got to his feet as he spoke and Jacob followed his lead. As the two left the office Jacob only had eyes for his daughter. She looked ok to him, there were no obvious signs of injuries, but clearly, something was going on. Even though he only had eyes for Sam he could still see Jack, because Jack was sitting so close to Sam that Sam was practically in his lap. That brought Jacob up short, what on earth was going on here.
"GeneralCarter," Teal'c greeted with an incline of his head. Daniel also greeted Jacob but Jacob ignored them, still watching Sam closely.
She smiled at him. "Hey dad," she said in a quiet voice.
"Hey kiddo," Jacob replied, his voice equally as soft. He looked between Sam and Jack. "So what's going on?"
"Maybe you should sit," Jack suggested, gesturing towards the chairs on the opposite side of the table.
Jacob frowned but did as Jack suggested, never taking his eyes off Sam as he moved. Once he was seated he finally took his eyes off Sam and looked around the room, studying the faces of everyone else present. Teal'c was as stoic as usual, while Daniel looked happy but nervous. Hammond looked like he had in his office, composed but slightly unsure. It was Jack who held his attention though. He was looking at Sam with such open affection that Jacob was suddenly worried that he and Sam had finally crossed that line. But then he thought about what Hammond had said, that no disciplinary measures were going to be taken.
With a feeling of trepidation growing he turned his attention back to his daughter. She was smiling softly, her eyes darting between Jack and himself, and there was a glow about her that Jacob had never seen before.
"So," Sam said, "As I'm sure General Hammond has already covered we went to a planet, found some ruins, found some ancient tech, and Jack managed to activate said ancient tech." The use of her commanding officer's first name threw Jacob for a moment but he nodded along. "So it turns out that the machine Jack managed to activate was some sort of ancient fertility-boosting machine," Sam explained, her eyes now downcast and studying her clasped hands that were resting on the table.
"Ok," Jacob said, drawing out the word.
"It also had the effect of increasing the um," Sam paused, looking for the right word.
"Libido of anyone present," Jack said.
Jacob stared between the two of them. He suddenly had a feeling he knew exactly where this was going.
"Colonel O'Neill!" he exclaimed, his voice increasing to a shout as he got to his feet, "What did you do to my daughter?"
Sam cringed back but Jack just stared calmly back at Jacob.
"Sit down dad," Sam instructed as she got control of herself again, "What happened happened, and while it was under the influence of alien tech it was consensual." She was blushing as she spoke but she held Jacob's eye.
"Still doesn't explain why I needed to come to Earth immediately," Jacob pouted as he sat back down.
Sam sighed. "Because of this," she said. She got to her feet, a hand on Jack's shoulder acting as leverage, his hand immediately going to support her elbow.
Jacob felt his jaw drop as he took in his daughter. He had no idea how he hadn't noticed before, the table would only have hidden so much, but he hadn't noticed that his daughter was very very pregnant.
He tried to speak but all that came out was some garbled sounds, no actual words, as he opened and closed his mouth, trying to say something, anything. He had nothing though and Selmak took over.
"Are congratulations in order?" the Tok'ra asked.
"Hi Selmak," Sam greeted. She and Jack then shared a look and smiled at each other. "And yes, congratulations are in order."
"How…" Jacob started, taking back control, "How far along are you?"
Sam smiled at him. "Technically I'm at six months," Sam explained as she sat back down, Jack's hand moving from her elbow to her back, "But this actually happened about six weeks ago."
"Six… six…" Jacob stuttered. He really had no idea how to process this.
Seeing his confusion Daniel jumped in. "I translated some of the writings," he began explaining, "The machine was created by the ancients in an attempt to increase the population of the planet in an expedited manner. Instead of having a nine-month gestation period, it's been reduced to nine weeks. The baby still grows like it would if this was a standard pregnancy, it's just speed up, the machine causes a reaction that causes the cell division to increase."
"So Sam's been pregnant for six weeks," Jacob said slowly, "But that actually means she's six months along. So in three weeks, she'll be full term?"
Everyone around the room nodded. "Which is why you got me to come to Earth now," he guessed, "Rather than wait?"
Again everyone nodded. "We were worried you might end up on a mission," Sam explained, "And we wanted to tell you what was going on before the baby's born. I think that would have been even more of a shock for you."
Jacob nodded. "It would have," he agreed, "And you caught me at just the right time. I was meant to be going on a mission tomorrow that could have lasted for weeks."
The room fell silent as everyone digested what had been said. Jacob looked around the room and smiled. "Do you mind if I steal Sam away to her lab for a chat?" Jacob then asked.
"Of course," Hammond said, "When you're come and find me so we can work out a few things."
Jacob nodded and got to his feet. Sam got back out of her seat, Jack again helping her, and then began to walk around the table towards the door. Jack however snagged her hand and stopped her in her tracks. She turned back to look at him with a questioning look on her face. "I'll come find you later ok," he said in a soft voice, also getting to his feet, "Just take it easy please."
"Of course," Sam replied with an equally soft smile. Jack brushed a kiss to the side of her mouth and let go of her hand. Sam was blushing slightly as she turned to look at Jacob. "Shall we dad?" she said, gesturing to the door.
Jacob nodded but before he moved he looked at Jack. "You and I are going to have to have a chat," he said in a level voice.
"Of course," Jack accepted easily, "Come find me when you're done with Sam."
Jacob nodded and then joined Sam, who was waiting at the door, and the two of them left the room and headed for Sam's lab.
As they walked through the halls of the SGC a few people stopped and stared at Sam, but most of the personnel they passed took it in their stride, clearly already knowing about Sam's condition. They walked in silence, neither wanting to talk while others might hear them. When they reached Sam's lab she let them in and then took a seat on a desk chair that seemingly had replaced her usual stool. She then pushed a second chair towards Jacob and he stopped it easily and sat down.
They stared at each other for a long moment. "Are you happy Sam?" Jacob asked, finally breaking the silence.
Sam nodded almost immediately. "Neither of us expected this," she said, "And I hadn't really ever entertained the idea of children any time in the near future, but yes, I'm happy, really happy Dad."
Jacob beamed at her. "I'm happy for you," he said softly, "And I'm sure you'll make an amazing mother."
Sam smiled shyly back at him. "Don't blame Jack for this," she then said, "Please. It wasn't his fault. He didn't even touch the machine, it just turned on as soon as he walked into the room, and then after that, we were…" she trailed off, not sure how to finish.
"Mostly consenting adults," Jacob suggested.
Sam nodded. "We were under the influence of alien tech," she said, "But at the same time…"
"You love him," Jacob said.
Sam stared at him with wide eyes.
"I've always known Sam," Jacob told her softly, "And I may not have liked it but I knew how you both felt about each other, and I couldn't be prouder of how you handled it. Alien influences aside of course."
Sam beamed at him and got out of her seat and moved towards him. Jacob also got to his feet and the two of them hugged each other hard. "I love you, Dad," Sam whispered into his ear as he held her close.
"And I love you too kiddo," Jacob replied, also whispering.
They stayed like that for a few minutes before Sam pulled away, dabbing at her eyes to wipe away a few stray tears. Jacob didn't comment, just reached for the tissue box that was sitting on the worktop and wordlessly offered her one. She smiled at him and dried her face.
"I'm glad you're happy," Jacob said, "When the baby is born will it also continue to grow at an increased rate?"
Sam shook her head. "We're fairly confident that it's just the gestation period that's sped up. Once our little bundle arrives it should grow just like any other child."
Jacob smiled. "I can't wait to meet them," he said softly, "I will admit I never thought I'd be a grandfather again."
Sam smiled. "And I never thought I'd be a mother," she admitted, "Between Jolinar and all the torture I've been through over the years there's a pretty good chance I never would have been able to conceive naturally."
"I'm so sorry Sam," Jacob said, reaching out and resting a hand on her knee.
"It's ok Dad," she assured him. She looked down at her extended belly. "This is my little miracle," she said, rubbing small circles on her belly, "And I wouldn't change that for the world."
Jacob smiled. "How about Jack?" he asked, "Something's changed there."
Sam nodded. "We talked about it," she said in a quiet voice, "And I gave him an out but he didn't want to take it." Jacob was pleased to hear that. He knew that Sam would have tried to assuage Jack of any guilt or responsibility for what had happened, but he was very pleased to hear that Jack was going to stick by her. "So we worked something out with Hammond. With the baby and everything I'm currently not on active duty," Sam continued, "Which means I don't have a commanding officer, therefore…"
"You're free to date," Jacob said. "What about when the baby comes and you're back on active duty?"
"We're working on it," Sam said, "And that's a while off yet so we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
Jacob nodded. "So if you're not on active duty how come you're on base?" he asked, "Other than to see me obviously."
"I can't exactly go home at the moment," Sam said gently, "I'm growing too fast and people will ask questions, plus we're monitoring the pregnancy closely just in case something happens. I'm living on base for the time being."
"That's got to be hard," Jacob said.
Sam shrugged. "I spent practically all my time here anyway," she said, "So it's not really all that different. Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c have all grabbed some things from my house to make my quarters more homely."
"I'm glad you have such a great team," Jacob said, "You all look after each other so well."
Sam smiled and then yawned. "As much as I'm loving seeing you dad," she said, "I'm exhausted. The side effect of the increased growth is that it really wipes me out and I need to sleep a lot."
She looked really apologetic but Jacob just nodded. "You go and sleep Sam," he said gently, "I need to go and speak to Jack anyway."
"Be nice," Sam said, "Please." Jacob nodded as the two of them got to their feet. They left the lab, Sam turning off the lights behind them and then went their separate ways, Sam heading for her quarters while Jacob headed for Hammond's office. From there he'd be able to find out where Jack was.
In the end, he didn't even need to go that far. He turned the corner and saw that Jack was heading his way.
"Colonel," he greeted brusquely.
"Jacob," Jack replied. He looked around the hallway then back at Jacob. "Shall we take this to my office?" he suggested.
"I didn't think you knew where your office was," Jacob commented even as he nodded and the two of them started walking.
Jack shrugged. "If people think I don't know where it is, they don't try and find me there," he admitted, "Which means I don't get interrupted when I'm trying to do my paperwork."
"Huh," Jacob said. He knew that Jack was smart, he wouldn't have made it to Colonel if he wasn't, but sometimes he forgot just how smart he was, he spent so much time playing the fool that it made it easy to underestimate him. Which, Jacob reasoned, was probably the point.
They walked down the halls until they reached Jack's office. He unlocked the door and then stepped to one side to let Jacob walk in past him, Jack then followed him in and gestured for him to take one of the chairs while he walked round the desk and sat in his.
"So," he said, staring at Jacob, "What did you want to talk about?"
"You and Sam," Jacob started, "Sam told me you were dating since she'd no longer in your chain of command."
"Yes sir," Jack replied, "We talked about it and decided to make a go of it."
"What happens once the baby is born?" Jacob asked.
"Sam's agreed to move in with me," Jack said, "So we can raise the baby together, as a family."
"Are you sure about this?" Jacob asked him, pinning Jack with a stare.
Jack held his gaze. "I am," he said with complete conviction. "It's not how I thought it would happen…"
"You've thought about this before?" Jacob demanded, interrupting Jack.
Jack shrugged. "I'd be lying if I said I hadn't," he said in a quiet voice, "Sam is one of the best things that ever happened to me and I've always cared about her." He looked away from Jacob for a second before looking him in the eye once again.
"You love her," Jacob said, parroting his words to Sam for earlier.
Jack nodded. "I do yes sir," he said, "With all my heart."
They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity, Jacob studying Jack as Jack stared back at him.
"Are you capable of doing this Jack?" Jacob then asked him, "Because if you do anything that breaks my daughter's heart I will find you and I will make you pay for it."
"I'm sure," Jack assured him, "I mean I'm scared out of my mind right now and I'm nervous as hell, but I have no intention of hurting Sam." He rubbed the back of his head. "I never thought I'd have a child again," he admitted, "After Charlie, I thought that that part of my life was over, I never thought I'd be a father again, but now I have that chance and I have no intention of wasting it."
His voice was quiet but passionate as he spoke and Jacob believed every word he said. "What happens when Sam comes back to active duty?" he then asked, "I mean this situation is weird enough as it is, and while George may have been able to smooth it all over for now who knows what might happen in the future."
Jack looked away from Jacob and down at his desk. "I've been thinking about that," he admitted, "Ever since we agreed to give this a go I've been thinking about it. I don't want them to be able to take it away from me, we've waited for long enough and now that I have her," he winced at his choice of words but continued, "I have no intention of letting her go. But I don't want it to affect Sam's carer, so I've been wracking my brains about what to do." He glanced back up at Jacob then returned his attention to his desk, focusing on his top draw.
"I eventually came up with this." He opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out a small box and placed it on the desk between them.
"Is that what I think it is?" Jacob asked quietly, staring at the box.
Jack nodded. "I know it's probably not how you expected someone to be asking you this," he said, his attention now on Jacob once again, "But I'd like your permission to ask Sam for her hand in marriage."
Jacob stared at him in shock for a few seconds before he smiled and nodded. "You're right," he said, "This isn't how I expected this to happen, but I give you my blessing Jack, so long as you're not doing this just because of the pregnancy."
"I'm sure you heard about when I was stuck on Edora for one hundred days after the gate got buried," Jack said, his change of subject taking Jacob by surprise. Jacob nodded. "While I was there the only thing I could think about was never seeing Sam again and having to come to terms with that, and it wasn't easy, I never truly managed it." He shook his head. "And then I had to go undercover to uncover the mole within the SGC and everything went wrong, but then we slowly started to fix it and I realised that I never wanted Sam to be out of my life so I went to a jeweller and I brought that ring." He looked between the box and Jacob. "It's been in my desk drawer for the best part of five years," he told Jacob, "And I've been waiting for a chance to give it to her."
"You have my blessing," Jacob told him softly, "You love my daughter Jack, so much, and that's really all a father can hope for in a son-in-law." His voice was thick with emotion as he spoke and as he caught Jack's eye once again he saw that the man had tears welling up. Jacob blinked a few times to clear his own eyes and walked round the table and offered Jack his hand.
Jack took it and they shook and then Jacob pulled Jack into a hug. "Thank you," he whispered, "For making my daughter happy."
"She's the best thing that ever happened to me," Jack said, "And I'm just lucky she's willing to give this a shot."
They released each other and stood smiling for a moment. "Now," Jacob said, "If you'll excuse me I need to go and find George for a chat."
"See you round Dad," Jack said with a smile.
Jacob rolled his eyes and left the office, happy in the knowledge that Sam was going to be ok, and that Jack was going to make her happy, and that he was going to be a grandfather once again to a grandchild he honestly never thought would happen.
-/-
Looking around the room now Jacob smiled. SG1 had always been like a family but now that was what they truly were, mother, father, aunts and uncles to the little bundle of joy who was currently curled up on his lap.
Jack had proposed to Sam and she had accepted. Grace had been born in early March and then they'd tied to knot in May, at a beautiful small ceremony with only close family and friends in attendance. Jacob had been back and forth between Earth and the Tok'ra whenever he had a chance. He knew many of the Tok'ra weren't happy with it, they thought he wasn't fully committed to their cause but Selmak hadn't cared, and neither had Garshaw.
They had been right as well, Grace's accelerated growth had been confined to the womb, as soon as she'd been born she started to age like a normal human child. The only thing that had occurred that was different from a normal baby was that Grace seemed to be developing mentally faster than a normal baby would. No one was sure if it was to do with the machine, or the mixture of the naquadah in Sam's blood and Jack's ancient gene, or a mixture of the two. But it didn't matter, she was still a little kid, she could just walk and talk a bit earlier than what would perhaps be considered entirely normal.
Jacob looked down at Grace and squeezed her tight. "Since it's your first Christmas," he said in a stage whisper to his granddaughter, "I got you, and your mommy and daddy a special present that you can open tonight on Christmas Eve, rather than having to wait for tomorrow. Would you like it?"
Grace's eyes got wide as she looked between Sam and Jack, who were smiling encouragingly at her, and back to her grandfather. "Ywes pwease gwamps," she said as she nodded happily.
"Why don't you go and ask Daniel which one it is?" Jacob suggested gently, "He's been my little helper and did all the wrapping for me."
Daniel smiled as Sam and Jack looked at him in surprise. He then shrugged. "What can I say," he said with a smile, "I'm a Christmas elf. This jumper really is fitting." The replacement jumper that Jack had got for him made him look like an elf, there was a collection of bells that jungled as he moved, and even a massive one on the end of the hood. A hood, that if he put up would droop down his back, completing the elf look.
The adults all laughed as Grace slowly made her way over to Daniel, using the furniture to keep herself upright as she went. "Sow me?" she asked in a quiet voice as she reached Daniel.
"What's the magic word Gracey," Sam reminded her gently.
"Pwease?" Grace asked, still looking at Daniel.
"Of course Grace," Daniel said. He offered Grace his hand, and she took it, and then they took the few steps between where Daniel had been sitting and the tree. Daniel crouched down and grabbed the smaller of the two presents he'd put there at Jacob's behest.
"Do you think you can carry this to your mommy and daddy?" he asked her softly.
Grace looked between the present and where Sam was sitting beside Jack on the sofa. She got a determined look in her eye, very reminiscent of the look that Sam got on her face when she was working out a particularly hard project, and nodded. Daniel handed her the parcel and while it was small in his hands, Grace needed to hold it in both. Concentrating hard she walked towards Sam and Jack, Daniel keeping pace behind her in case he needed to step in and help her.
She needed no help in the end and deposited the wrapped gift on Sam's lap and then clambered up onto Jack's lap. She shifted around a bit, to get comfortable, and Jack wrapped an arm around her to keep her from falling off. Once she settled Sam handed her back the present.
"Hwlp?" Grace asked, looking between her mother and father.
"Of course," Sam said, "How about you take that corner, I take this corner and daddy takes that corner." She gestured to each corner as she spoke.
Grace nodded and put her little hand on the corner that Sam suggested. Sam and Jack then grabbed their corners.
"Pull," Grace then said and started ripping the paper away. Sam and Jack pulled a little but mostly they let Grace do the majority of the unwrapping. Once the paper was nearly off Sam grabbed it all and balled it up, leaving Grace holding a box.
"What say, mama?" Grace asked, tilting the box this way and that as she looked at it.
"It says," Sam replied as she gently held the package still so she could read it, "Families first Christmas." She took the box from Grace's hands and turned it over. "It's a Christmas decoration."
"Fwr the twee?" Grace asked, looking at Jacob.
"Yes," Jacob said, "For the tree."
"Open," Grace then demanded, taking the box from Sam and passing it to Jack.
Jack opened the box and, with Grace helping, pulled out the bauble that was inside. Grace eagerly took it and looked at it. "That me," she said, pointing at herself in the picture that had been mounted in the centre of the bauble. It was a picture of the three of them that had been taken when Grace was about six months old.
"It is," Sam said softly, "And that's me and that's daddy." She pointed at herself and then Jack as she spoke.
"Fwanks Gwamp," Grace exclaimed happily. She extracted herself from Jack's grasp and toddled over to Jacob. "I wuv yew."
"I love you too sweetheart," Jacob told her, reaching down and pulling her into a hug.
He let her go and then Grace went back over to her parents and with their help moved to put the decoration on the tree, Jack lifting Grace up so she could put it near the top. Jacob watched them with a soft smile on his face. It was his grandchild's first Christmas Eve, and tomorrow would be her first Christmas Day, and he was so glad he could be a part of it. Glancing at the present that was still under the tree and then back to the family who were admiring the bauble on the tree he smiled, he was going to enjoy tomorrow, but he wasn't entirely sure that Sam and Jack were going to like the present he had brought his granddaughter.