A year ago, a meteor shower had taken out the settlement near where SG-1 had been posted at for an astrological event on a mission. The shower had taken the gate with it, burying it under rubble. Jack had been trapped, and at some point in the hundred days he had lived there among the survivors, he actually thought he would be staying there for the rest of his life. He knew the kind of shell shock one could get from being told there was no way back and that moving forward wasn't easy. He remembered digging every day after putting in hours of work on the village houses or working the fields. He'd chipped away at the pile of debris until his knuckles bled and and muscles ached, with no reward. Eventually, he stopped digging for the stargate, but he'd had some faith that they'd find him eventually.

This was different. Kylee had no place to dig, no hope of going home. She had to make a home here.

They'd gotten lucky with this one and would be utterly stupid if they didn't treat her right. They rarely got lucky with these sorts of things as most of the time the potential powerful allies either wanted nothing to do with them or turned out to be not so cooperative (sometimes downright hostile) in the end. This one - this kid - was in survival mode. She cooperated with them mostly because it was a survival tactic, aside from the obvious personal connections she was making. Right now, Jack considered it to be his job to get her out of that mode so she could get on with her life and make a little headway. The silent misery was starting to get him down. Not to mention that Carter was pretty sure that she had figured out the puzzle they needed to make that get out of jail free card' device to work.

Returning his attention to the girl, she was chasing him as he moved around the empty room, hockey stick in hand and handling the tennis ball they were using as a hockey puck like a seasoned player. She was faster and more nimble, even without using her powers, but he was stronger and wider, able to use his body to block her from accessing the ball. Except when she got lucky and managed to get between him and the net, stealing the ball from him and shooting it into Teal'c's boot. Like now. The score was still double zero with that Jaffa guarding the net, and with the stipulation she not use her powers or forfeit a point to Jack, it was turning out to be a pretty good distraction. He was glad he didn't opt for skates, those blades they had now would be murder on his knees.

He'd bribed her, not knowing idea she had a thing for hockey, but he was grateful it had worked. He never would have guessed even a couple of hours before, when he'd seen her in fullon geek mode in the lab, sitting there spinning a wire between her fingers, playing her snark off his when he addressed her.

"Whatcha doin'?" Jack asked crassly. In his hand he held a plastic shopping bag with something wrapped up inside it.

"Science," She had said bluntly, trying to refrain from grinning at him. Her poker face was about as good as Carter's, which is to say almost non existent if a deck of cards weren't in play.

"Ah. Clearly," Jack said dryly as he continued his observation of her. "As opposed to moping around."

"Been doing that too," Kylee rolled her eyes and spun a cable wire idly between her thumb and forefinger again. Her eyes hadn't left the thing. "Just in case you were worried I wasn't getting in some quality hours of feeling sorry for myself."

He'd thrown her the bag containing a Northstars jersey, and she'd broken. The smile that crossed her lips was one of those smiles he got when the armor was shattered. The armor she used against him was part of a game she was keen on playing, trying to outwit or out snark him. Either way she took the bait and here she was, dueling him for a ball and playing one of the toughest games of hockey anyone could hope to play. Nobody could get past Teal'cs defense.

With the ball free again Ky had moved to pursue it, but her attention was drawn away to the familiar face of Carter up in the observation area. Probably to inform her about the tech's completion but too polite to interrupt their game. His eyes lingered on her for a bit too long, which gave Kylee plenty of time to take advantage of his distraction to get the ball putting some distance between them and took a shot at the net. Teal'c repelled with extraordinary swiftness given his opponent's natural agility. Teal'c blocked the second attempt, Jack simply waited for an opening, Kylee caught the tennis ball in her stick and moved to line up another shot.

Jack swept in to (successfully) steal the ball and then moved away to get some distance on her. Ky turned on her heel and raced after him snatching it back and turning to make another shot at the net. The ball, to Jack's great surprise, went between the bar and Teal'c's knee, hitting the net and she gave a resounding "Yeah!"

"One should not congratulate themselves until the battle is finished." Teal'c said, in an almost taunting tone He seemed to be enjoying himself considering they'd been playing almost twenty minutes and that was the first score made.

"At this rate, I'm gonna win,," she said, casting her eyes at him. "Colonel, you havin' trouble keeping up?" Kylee jeered at him, leaning into her stick with a cocky little smile. The fact she was getting into the game, taunting him, being competitive at all,was a good sign she was recovering. All this kid needed was time, and TLC, and probably a better shrink than MacKenzie, but if all they had at their disposal for destressing was a hockey net and a couple of off duty hours, it'd have to do.

"Lucky shot," Jack said, nodding to Teal'c as he tossed the ball out to them. It wasn't lucky. It was hard earned given how tough Teal'c s defense was. He was glad she was showing some nerve, and for him it was a sign that she was starting to pull out from under all that baggage. True, it was easy enough to fall back in, but they weren't about to let that happen. In soldiering on, she was in good company.

"Bring it on, fly boy,," Kylee smirked, watching as the Colonel reacted with all the reflexes of a seasoned soldier when Teal'c sent the ball towards them. Ky was on the move, heading towards him but he shielded the round object with his body and stick, and handled the ball until he could outpace the girl and make his shot. Teal'c deflected it with his stick, and the two both chased after it.

He tossed the ball to Teal'c who threw the ball in turn back at them, which sent the two of them after it yet again. She pushed forward to intercept his bid for the ball, the two of them making it there about the same time. Again, Jack was using his body as a wall between herself and the ball, but this time she withdrew, and as he was lining to take a shot he felt her hand push against his shoulder. He stumbled and she flipped (actually flipped) over him, leapfrogging just above his head and spinning to face him. Grinning, she took a shot, but the ball hit the bar of the net.

He was about to remark on how illegal that move was, until he was interrupted by his 2IC.

"Colonel."

"Major? You got any pressing matters to attend to or do you wanna come down and give your kid here a fighting chance?" Jack said, more or less disregarding her addressing him for the moment, but she'd have the next word for what she had to say.

"Thems fightin' words," Kylee cut in, out of breath, before exchanging a glance between herself and the Jaffa goalie who promptly raised his eyebrow at her. She happily bit a smile back but broke into a challenging grin once Carter retorted.

"Looks like she's doing just fine on her own, sir,," Carter said, her lips somewhat tight when he called Ky 'her kid'. Might take time to get used to the idea, "Think I could borrow her for a while?"

"One more round," Kylee protested, raising a hand and holding up her pointer finger. She didn't seem willing to call it quits quite yet. That was fine with Jack. He was so game. No matter what his knees said.

"Kylee, the general wants to have a word with you, and before that I'd like to test out the power inhibitor," Carter replied, gazing down at her. The kid looked crestfallen but nodded, holding herself far better than she had before they started. Go through that kind of hell and anyone would have the tendency to sink no matter how strong they are, but all this? He smirked a little as he saw her trudge towards the door. He could see it now. She wouldn't quit. Good for her.

"Go on kid, duty calls," the Colonel said as the girl handed him back the stick.

"Alright. I want a rematch, though. On real ice next time," he said, shoving her hands into her pockets and wandering out of the room.

"You betcha," Jack replied, as he watched her go.

Once she managed to corral Ky from the Colonel's hockey game, Sam herded her up stairs to the manufacturing lab only a few floors up from where they'd been. It was not the familiar setting of her own lab of which she had carved out a small section for herself to work, but all the work the kid had done was paying lion, Orion, had touched Sam's mind, giving her the information as opposed to having her actually write it down. Without Kylee, Sam was sure that it would take a few months to sort out all the details on how it actually worked. Her practical knowledge, having dealt with the technology before, knowing how it looked and how it felt, and even then the internal workings had accelerated the process. As reluctant as she was to do it, she knew there was a tangible reward in leaving the the base. And if it worked? Sam could probably get her off base as soon as tonight.

"How's it feel to be in a place where you can basically make anything?" Sam asked with a wry smile to the kid before her, and for the first time since she had the opportunity to work with that Orbanian girl Merrin. Mentoring was something she actually enjoyed which was why she was happy to give an astrophysics lecture to the Air force academy every year. She had half a mind to request Kylee be able to come along as a guest, or as her assistant but she wasn't sure how jazzed Ky would be about that idea.

"I got R&D privileges back home, so it's refreshing to have something familiar," Kylee said as she observed the room, looking around curiously. "Do you have a 3d printer?"

"Well, we do although we don't fire it up too often. It's that one over there, and mainly used for prototyping." It would be fair to say it wasn't the most cost effective machine they had at their disposal. She walked around to a long conveyor-belt machine that was just finishing the production; a pair of boot soles in Kylee's size. "But I had your polymer requisitioned and manufactured. I think you'll have some decent luck out in the field with new shoes."

"Oh. Awesome," Kylee said, rushing towards to take a look at it, but only tentatively touching the side of the rapidly cooling material. "No shoe makers on staff, I guess? Do I actually have a say in the boot's design?"

"We'll see, but the more important thing is that I think if this stands up to you, it'll stand up to most anything. We can test it once it sets, and if it works, you have your own patent," Sam replied, which was something that had to be music to the girl's ears. It was a payoff for what had to be hours of work in her own world. "You should, too. You deserve it."

"Not the first time someone's told me that. I didn't really know if I should have. I mean, technically, like you said before, it was being a vigilante. I really didn't want to get caught," she said, giving a soft laugh but her tone left something to be desired. "I guess I'll have to come up with some actual use for that business class I took."

"Not quite as much fun as the R&D, I take it?" Sam said, patting her arm and pulling her onward to the other machine where she had been working most of the day assembling the power inhibitor, or 'cuff' as Kylee was fond of calling it ,though Sam would just have to agree to disagree on that point. "Any objections?"

"I figured out the aesthetics. If I hate it, it's my fault," Kylee replied with an indifferent shrug, but seemed a bit more interested when she picked up the device. The design was that of triangles intersecting with each other to create a solid band around the wrist; simple but functional. "It feels like my energy's already flowing into it. I guess that means it works. Maybe we'll have to figure out how to store the energy sometime and not just channel it out of me."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked, reaching over to connect the pieces together into the band as designed. hen offered to lock it in place around the girls wrist. Only a key from a member of SG-1 or Doctor Fraiser would be able to unlock it for the time being. SG-1 because they were closest to her socially and she would more than likely be assigned to work with them, lucky for her. It was for her personal security. Kylee looked a bit upset at the bracelet, but sighed while closing her eyes, as she were suddenly fatigued. Likely that was the case given how her metabolism seemed to work.

"You alright?" she asked.

Kylee nodded. "I'm fine. It's just not really a welcome sensation. Mostly bad guys were the ones to use these on me. But then, they always used collars so read into that however you like," Kylee said grimly, shaking her wrist briefly, then offering Sam a slight smile. "I guess the good part is I'll actually be able to get a life now."

"That's one way to look at it. Let's go to talk to General Hammond and run the tests. He'd like to talk to you about your future with the SGC." At that, Ky puffed out her cheeks, and Sam knew she was itching to get out of her for a while. Fair enough. Not everyone was content working as long as she did, and as much as Sam hated to admit it, she could be considered a workaholic. She slept more than a few nights out of the week in her quarters, but it was clear that wasn't the environment Kylee needed or was accustomed to. "What do you wanna do for dinner? I know this great pizza place."

"I could cook," Kylee offered, looking up as if considering what to make. "I'm not too bad at italian."

"I...Really? I would have thought you'd have jumped at the chance to go out for a change of pace." That was actually surprising.

"Yeah but-" She laughed sheepishly. "I love cooking. I never really told you that. Or answered that question you asked me before. About what I like to do. I wasn't sure how you'd react to the hero work, but… I really wasn't seeing you for who you were either. More like tiptoeing around the idea that you looked like my mom. Maybe how you answered would have been the way she answered."

"Give your mom some credit, she was ahead of the curve, remember? IF she's anything like me, she'd come around eventually. It's kind of a difficult concept to process. Anyway, after Hammond authorizes you to go off base, we can head to my apartment," Sam said, rubbing a hand on her kid's shoulder, then giving it a gentle shake. The kid shother a grateful smile.

"Besides that- I gotta pay you back for being so damn nice all the time, Major Carter," Kylee said cheekily, grinning up at the older woman.

"I guess I can't argue with that logic. C'mon, let's go see General Hammond."

General Hammond looked up at the knock on his door, to which he responded with a curt, "Come in."

The door swung open to reveal Kylee Harwood standing next to Major Carter. It was clear to see the family resemblance, but he wasn't about to show any more favoritism towards the two regarding these proceedings. Even while he considered the Major a good friend, he had to be objective, though there was thankfully no bad news to share with the two today.

"Go ahead and take a seat miss, Major," Hammond said, making a brief gesture to the two chairs before his desk. "I'll get right to the point if that's alright with you. As it currently stands I'd like to extend to you a position under this command, provided you complete a series of training regimes and you'd be assigned to SG-1 for a probationary period."

"Really?" Kylee asked, more than a little surprised. She glanced over to Carter briefly, then nodded. "Alright. Uh. That sounds fine."

"That's only for the short term. Kylee, I understand you would still like to attend college, is that correct?" Hammond asked, folding his hands over each other, looking the girl up and down. She nodded at the question so he continued. "I've been given a go ahead, with the completion and successful test of the inhibitor device to allow you to enroll in a college within the city limits. As long as your field of study is in service of a future position here at the SGC, the costs of tuition will be covered."

"So basically I can continue my degree and you're paying for it? Just so long as I work for you when I graduate? Is that the only catch?" Kylee asked, glancing again to Major Carter for assurance.

"You have to maintain your grades, obviously. It shouldn't be all too difficult for you," Carter said supportively. The girl thinned her lips and glanced sideline at the elder of the two. Though amused at their somewhat sibling like interaction, Hammond didn't let it show.

"Are you guys sure you're okay with that? Even if it'll probably not be until next semester before I can get in? I got into a college that was essentially the MIT of the midwest back home. Not sure but I don't think those credits are going to transfer." She looked down sadly when she spoke of home, but seemed to bounce right back with her sardonic comment afterward. Then her face softened a little. " But Jack said you could use engineers. And this'll be a surprise to absolutely no one, but its electrical engineering." Hammond nodded approvingly at that, Carter smiled with amusement in her eyes.

"What do you think?" the old soldier asked.

"I'm not going to say no to free school. I just need to know, do you expect me to join the military?" the girl asked.

"The pentagon has decided that that option is up to you if you'd like to pursue that career. Your academic work and military service are not mutually exclusive. You'd have much higher responsibilities and expectations, as well as a higher measure of accountability," Hammond replied. In all honesty, he wasn't all too concerned with that, and while he knew there was a section of the government who wanted to push the military enlistment, he was determined to give her that choice.

She seemed to think about it for a moment before she sighed. "I'm going to have to decline. I'm…," she hesitated, then sighed softly, almost as though she regretted it. "I'm not ready for that sort of thing, even if I had an interest. Maybe someday I'll change my mind, but it doesn't make a heck of a difference either way right now. But school, yes. Even if I gotta wait till next semester."

"In the meantime you can continue helping me out in the lab and work with other members of the science team. General, isn't there a lieutenant Rhoads managing the fabrication labs?" Carter asked, helpfully.

"Three and a half months is plenty of time to get you situated as far as working in this program. You'll effectively be an intern until you get your degree. At which time we'll reevaluate your position unless circumstances suggest we need to take a look sooner. If you're not off world you'll be assigned tasks related to your field of study. You'll report to the officer you're assigned to."

"I understand, and that's fair," the girl replied, thoughtfully, and Hammond was glad she was thinking about it, as well as acting rather professionally. "What about citizenship? I still have rights as an American, right?"

"We're still evaluating that as your situation is unique, but we do have paperwork for you to fill out so an identity can be fashioned for your cover story," Hammond replied.

"And what's that?" Kylee asked, a fair bit more unscrupulous than before, her brow raised at the elder general.

"The details are something I'd like you two to work out together. Officially, she's claimed you as family, as you know, but we have very few details about your life other than where you're from. Once you have it sorted out you'll be issued a state ID and official paperwork. But much like everything else, it's probationary. Very likely, in the near future you will be awarded full citizenship." The girl rubbed a hand through her hair, tucking it behind her ear. Then the two women met gazes for a moment before the younger nodded in agreement.

"Alright," she said firmly, "I'm going to need some custom uniforms, though. I can design them based on my needs. Would that be alright? We've got the material now." She seemed almost excited, Hammond nodded smiling kindly.

"Of course. You can consider that your first assignment as supervised by Major Carter," Hammond replied. "You can get her situated, Major. If the device can be proven effective I'll authorize temporary leave off base for twenty four hours," the General said , knowing well that Doctor Mackenzie had declared her fit for active duty as had Dr. Fraiser. The head doctor would, of course be the one to judge whether the device was working or not.

"Uh, Thank you sir," Kylee said, pulling her lips tight in an abashed way. Still a bit too unused to the courtesies of military living, something she'd have to get used to, but she was making good strides.

"Now, report to Doctor Fraiser for the assessment and you can be on your way. Dismissed," He said, watching the two of them rise from their seats and head out the door.

By the time she had gotten on the treadmill, it was getting difficult to stay keep moving with how weakened she felt compared to how she was . She felt so sluggish and slow. Like wading through molasses. Or maybe that was just her waxing poetic. It was far slower than what she was used to but anything would be compared to the super sonic velocities she enjoyed. Even then, she was clocking in at an impressive 45 miles an hour, arguably far too fast for a normal human.

"I'm not going to be running any marathons…," Kylee remarked as she slowed down, still amazed at the fact that she could move so fast without her powers being active. She could outrun a car on the average road. "Which is a shame considering how I'd win."

"My readings indicate the wristband is doing its job. Is this really your own altered physiology?" Carter asked, dumbfounded as the Doctor observed.

"You were the one telling me about how amazing my physiology is. I guess my body is just used to the speed - adapted to it. Makes you wonder if it'll carry over with epigenetics, but I'm not thinking that far ahead," Kylee said with a wry smile. As if she needed to wonder what kind of speed demons she could produce if she ever had kids. Trying to parent superhero tiny tot was more like nightmare fuel than one would think. Even so, the scientific implications were fascinating to think about. "Sam, I think I'll be okay metabolically, but I'll have to plan ahead for big missions. Don't wanna get hypoglycemic and faint in the middle of running down some space warlord."

"I'm glad to see your sense of humor has recovered," the doctor said, offering a wry smile to the young lady as she climbed off the bike and reached for the glass of water she had been offered.. "And that's an interesting theory, which may very well be the case. I'd like you to try a regular two thousand calorie diet, and make adjustments as long as you're living with the wristband on. Obviously, before you go on any missions, treat it like an athletic event."

"Carb loading? Yeah. I get that. Guess we're gonna need to buy some extra pasta." Although Kylee was pretty sure she could put down an entire pizza by herself even with these damn inhibitors on. "But am I good to go?"

"I see no reason why not. Sam, any thoughts on having Cassandra over? I think these two would be thick as thieves, wouldn't you say?" Fraiser said warmly. Kylee looked up as she pulled on the fresh BDU over the tank top she had been wearing for the test.

"It's up to her," Sam said, gesturing at Kylee, and she nodded unsurly.

Kylee shrugged, a hand going through her hair, then falling to her shoulder as she considered it. Everything has been so chaotic lately, it would be nice just to have a quiet night without anything to really think about. "How about next time? It's been a pretty busy day. Week. Month. I need to defrag."

Doctor Fraiser looked puzzled at first, so she glanced over at Sam, who gestured towards the nearby computer and she nodded. "Ah. I imagine you would. I'm authorizing twenty four hours off base, and once we check in tomorrow I can extend another 48 hours. Obviously they're imposing a probationary period. All you have to do is stay out of trouble. As for dinner plans, we'll sort that out later."

"Sounds good, Janet. C'mon kiddo," Sam said, leading the way to doorway. Kylee lifted herself from the table she'd leaned on and nodded, following like a baby duck. She chuckled softly at the thought, but all of a sudden, it felt as thought there was a burden lifted from her shoulders. It was a good day.

Samantha Carter was by no means a homemaker. Honestly, she didn't often go home to her small apartment. She noticed the dust that had settled on one of the shelves and the photos while her resident youngster set to work in the kitchen. The apartment was sparsely decorated, with only a few knick knacks and photos on the wall. The place wasn't exactly lived in. She had moved from her first place in Colorado Springs to accommodate visits from her father after he became Tok'ra, but it really just seemed so small to her now. Maybe it was just the fact that it still looked new, as though she had barely touched these lonely walls. She bit back a mirthless smile as she sat down on her couch, wondering why she was feeling so insecure about it, but every step they made made it more real. And now she was here, and she wasn't really sure what she wanted to do about it, or why she was feeling like Kylee cared about what her apartment looked like.

She got up before Kylee got too into the work and put a teapot on the stove. "Do you like tea?"

"Hmm? I dunno, but you have any wine?" Kylee asked as she opened the cupboards, searching for something.

"Uh, sure. But I'm pretty sure you're not old enough," Sam said, smiling wryly at the youngster.

"Oh, please. Two tablespoons," she said, gesturing to the pork and ground beef on the counter. "I forgot the sherry. And I've got more of a taste for wine coolers and cider."

"That's no surprise given your sweet tooth." If nothing else, Kylee was honest. She withheld information, sure, but even Sam could understand the apprehension that came with having to lay bare otherwise sensitive things, like her history with her mother or just any personal detail she had yet to share. There was a lot left to peel back with this girl.

"Yeah, I promise not to go on a bender for another eight months," Kylee said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Sam shot her a look, but had half a mind to let it go, given how strict her upbringing was. There was no underage drinking at the air force academy, let alone in her father's house. Then there was the rite of passage, in her mind, of having the first legal drink bought for you among friends on your 21st birthday. She trusted Kylee enough that she didn't have any plans to become a delinquent. It was,in fact, a rather ridiculous notion to start with. The two of them eyeing each other made her break into a laugh before going to the pantry and pulling out a bottle. "Merlot?"

"That'll do," Kylee replied and she set it on the side of the counter, taking a knife to chop up the herbs and onions. Sam watched her for a few minutes, noting the skill of which she worked.

"Where did you learn to cook?" Sam asked curiously. She found it a little sad that, even while emotionally burdened ,she seemed all too eager to work to keep her mind off of her loss. Not all dissimilar to herself, she had to admit. If it weren't for her dutifully working out the details on that device rather than spending her time in her quarters, they wouldn't be standing her discussing family recipes.

Kylee stopped chopping, glancing over to Sam, thinning her lips. "Dad has a restaurant. It's really just a neighborhood café but it has good business. I've been waiting tables since I was fifteen, but really everyone in our family can cook," she said, returning to the task of dicing the onion and garlic. She squinted her eyes, obviously becoming sensitive to the propanethial from the cut onion. She turned away to wash her hands under water as well as the knife.

"So, I can't help but ask... who is your dad? I mean, what's he like?" All she had was a surname and an occupation, but it was a burning question. She had no real image of who this guy - a man who had obviously meant a lot to her - was, or what she could possibly see in him. The simple fact that Kylee's mom wasn't exactly her fell by the way side as she made the inquiry.

"He's… um," Kylee exhaled, her hands still under the water, thoughtfully mulling over what to tell Sam. "He's a nice guy. He's funny and kind, and likes to please people, which is probably why he's running a café. It sure isn't about the money. 'Course I don't really know if he even exists in this reality, so I can't go play parent trap."

"I think that's probably a good thing," Sam replied before chuckling and giving a slightly more admonishing look for that little joke. That was the last thing she needed, someone trying to hook her up with someone she may or may not be attracted to.

"Yeah, I'm not that mean. Anyway…" Kylee said as she slid her ingredients into a bowl, and reached for the wine bottle. Sam opened a drawer to hand her the wine opener, and she corked the bottle, then poured some into the bowl with the other ingredients. Soon enough, the ingredients were mixed together and the food began to cook, while at the same time she diligently prepared a sauce . The small apartment filled with a homey smell of fresh italian. And sure, maybe they cheated and bought one of those take and bake garlic french loafs, but that was neither here nor there.

It didn't take long at all for the two of them to get small table Sam had set up in the corner of the kitchen situated. She found herself musing this as she poked a fork into the meatball on her plate, sampling it.

"Alright. I'm sold," Sam said, then dished up a plate of food and headed to the table, with Kylee following suit. Absently, she poured herself a glass of the wine, where Kylee went for some milk. "You've got free reign of the kitchen."

"I figured I'd make a good first impression as a house guest," Kylee said, before digging in herself, quite happy to just eat. If Sam had the girl pegged right, a nap would follow soon thereafter.

"Would it be alright if I went on a walk, check out the neighborhood?" Sam looked up to the younger girl as she cut a piece of meat with her fork.

"I guess not. Stay close by, though and don't show off?" Sam really didn't have to say it, so she grinned a little, letting Kylee know it was meant more of a quip than hard rule. The importance of although staying under the radar had already been discussed in length with her.

"Yeah. Gotta get that fresh mountain air, y'know," Kylee said, not looking up.

Sam paused, then nodded. "Oh, yah," she said, mimicking Kylee's slight accent a bit.

"Don't you start with that. I get it bad enough from Jack," Kylee said, before taking a bite from her bread, as though to emphasize her point.

"He's… uh. Proud of his heritage," Sam admitted, then looked up at the sound of a knocking on her door. She wiped her lips with napkin and went to answer. Kylee just stirring the last bits of food around on her plate. In the peephole, she widened her eyes slightly, mostly in confusion, before opening the door.

"Uh, Colonel, Sir. What brings you here?" Sam asked, actually stunned he showed up, but it wasn't entirely unwelcome either. She relaxed only as much as their professional relationship would allow.

"Just a quick check in, and giving you a heads up. Hammond wants a couple OSI's monitoring your place just in case you get any unwanted company," Jack said, jerking his thumb towards the window that aced the street. She could see a black sedan parked out front and two men sitting in it.

Kylee was up on her feet peeking over their shoulder as she looked. "What's the deal with them?"

"They're law enforcement for the Air Force. Why are they here?" Sam asked, more than a little miffed that they had people watching them, but the answer was obvious and she had to concede that it was a good idea. Kylee listened attentively, as though expecting an explanation for the monitoring, even pouting a little. "I mean, I know why."

"Can't be too careful," the Colonel said simply, and that was all Sam needed. They both knew the score, and of course poor Kylee had no idea. Or rather she did, but it was just a validation off the fears she'd had since the beginning.

"Kylee, there's a few arms of the government who may take advantage of your being off base for their own agendas. We'll talk about it, brief you on safety measures, and in fact I think we might have to create a few. As for now, we'll play it by ear," Sam explained with a sigh. Not really the greatest of situations but she'd all but forgotten about that caviet. She supposed Hammond assigned these guys as an additional measure. "Colonel, sir, could you take her out a while? She wanted to take a walk."

"Gee, it's almost like I'm back to where I started. Unless this is VIP treatment," Kylee said ruefully as she stretched her arms up over her head, then slipping onto the couch.

"It is. And not so much," Jack said, then nodded towards the door. "No limo for starters. C'mon kid."

And with that, Sam watched the pair leave, smiling wistfully and mostly glad that Kylee was so taken with the Colonel, but knowing he had that effect on youngsters. For herself, she was just glad to see Kylee enjoy herself so much, in her new environment. There was a way to go before she would find herself here, but this was a good start.

"So… they give you the ol' recruitment speech?" Jack asked as they walked, Kylee taking in a deep breath of the fresh air and generally enjoying the crisp mountain air that carried the smell of early autumn. She gave Jack a sidelong glance and kept walking. She was pretty sure they weren't supposed to drop any juicy details while walking around this quiet neighborhood street. But, as she thought about it, she realized there really wasn't much to say.

"He offered a free ride to get my degree. Who says 'no' to that?" she said, offering a shrug. "But no go on the military, I think I'm pretty sure on that."

"Yeah, I didn't think you were up for that," Jack admitted, but didn't seem at all disappointed. "Doesn't really make much of a difference one way or another. You got plenty of smarts to be on team, Egghead."

That made Kylee laugh a little. She kinda was one of those now, wasn't she? She'd grown up with athletic ambitions, and she never really lost that drive to be physical and get up and go, but she also always did well in school. She'don some academic awards and ultimately a scholarship, but she did this with little fanfare. Very much caught up in a whirlwind of activity and never slowing down. Well, never slowing down to this speed. For the first time in a long time, she had so much time on her hands and no idea what to do with it. It was good, then, that the SGC was there to hand her an opportunity like the college admission and a job saving the world on the side, but it seemed like a hollow victory all the same.

"You talk as though that's a badge of honor. I sure hope it is," Kylee said, not that she'd mind given that engineers got to build the future, which was all she really ever wanted.

"It is. Probably. It's an exclusive club. Better milk the free college long enough to gain admission," Jack replied.

"And what's that?"

"I dunno, y'gotta get at least one PHD. At least then you can translate all the technobabble."

"Right…" Kylee trailed off, that was something to chew on all right. A doctorate? She'd never planned that far ahead, probably should have. Shoulda, woulda, coulda. She felt a bit of guilt, mostly over the past year of letting herself get swept up in all the superheroes. She loved it, but her grades had suffered. In her defense, she had been trying to save the world from a threat not unlike the Goa'uld. It was a rough balance, but she'd have to learn how to do it. There was really no excuse when you looked at it.

"What with all the deep space radar telemetry, all the bosons and hadrons and up down strange charm top bottom stuff?" Kylee asked, turning her gaze up to him to see his reaction.

Jack stopped and squinted his eyes, clearly confused. "What?"

"Quarks."

"See, we need people who know this stuff," Jack replied immediately.

"Yeah but that's all I know. I'm not theoretical astrophysics, I'm applied sciences. Like, robots and… other doohickeys." She felt as though Jack would appreciate that term better than anything else. "I'm all for that. And if I can…"

Kylee paused a moment as someone passed them by on the street, stopping herself to think of a way to phrase it better for being out in public. "Save the world with said doohickeys, then that's what I'll do."

"Well there you go. You can do...that. Just maybe put a limit on these doohickeys is in the future." At that, Kylee couldn't help but giggle. Yes, giggle. She pushed it down and looked back up at the old Colonel.

"Are we even talking about the same thing anymore?"

"So, uuh… Got any idea on where you're going?" he asked, totally changing the subject, though sporting a knowing smile. The vagueness of the question reminded her of her old gymnast coach who said something along the lines of, 'To Hell if I don't change my ways' whenever she was asked where she was going. The inappropriateness of it all always got the girls laughing when they overheard it.

"I do. I think. It's as far away from the pathetic mess I've been in lately. It's… I don't recognize who I am now, and I hate it, but I don't think I can go back," She looked up to him, her eyes blinking away a stinging wetness. "I… um. I just wanna be someone I can be proud of. And… stepping up to bat for a PHD seems like a great way to start, if I'm gonna be Earth's defender some day."

"Hey, that's the spirit," Jack said, opting not to comment too much on her confession of self depreciation. The whole point was that she felt like a shell of her former self, and she couldn't stand being this way anymore. Jack took it surprisingly well. "But you know, it's okay to feel that way, for a while. Just... you can't stay there or it'll eat away at you. Fact that you recognize it is good. Just don't let yourself fall back in."

Kylee simply nodded, mulling over what she could say to that. Before she had the chance to reply, heads turned to the sound of a clatter, one of those aluminum trash cans. Two little eyes emerged from the can as it jumped onto a cardboard box and shook off the filth. It was young, maybe three months old, tops. It walked out of the alley, shaking it's coat off and looked up at them, meowing urgently at them.

Jack looked to Kylee, then to the cat, then sighed. Kylee snapped out of the 'aw, cute' mode, a stupor of letting her heart melt into a puddle. Guess she was exceptionally vulnerable to cute things at the moment, but if there was such a thing as 'signs from the powers that be', this had to be one of them.

She crouched down letting the cat sniff her hand. The kitten rubbed his cheeks against it and trilled. Without further hesitation she scooped up the young feline into her arms and it meowed again, then began purring up a storm. "Yeah I know. I'm a stray too. You're in good company."

"Kid…" The colonel said as a warning.

"I know," Ky said again, looking up at the man with wet eyes, but hardened resolve. Most everything she had now had been handed to her since she got here. Sure, none of it was easily earned but she felt like for the longest time she didn't have a choice. This was a choice, not a hard one but still hers to make. "I'm making a friend, Colonel. Sam will understand," she said. Then she walked on towards the apartment complex with the kitten in her arms.

"Probably. Maybe," the Colonel said, walking beside her and reaching to stroke the small kitten's cheek. "Good thing Carter is a cat person."

"Yeah, lucky. I think that'll make it an easy sell," he said, smiling fondly at the small creature in her arms. This was something she needed.

Once they were back in view of the steps she could see Major Carter standing there waiting for them, or perhaps just getting some fresh air. She saw the kitten and gave a thin smile, her eyes turning to Jack.

"So uh, Colonel, Sir. Did you happen to mention any rules about every kid having a pet?" she asked, teasing her superior officer for past deeds, Kylee suspected.

"No. We found him. Or he found us. I think we should probably give him a home," Kylee explained, holding the little guy out to her, hoping that Sam would get suckered in by those big green eyes of his. Sam rubbed her neck briefly, then accepted the cat for a moment, looking him over.

"He must be a stray. Friendly as he is," she said, stalling before giving her answer. The cat snuggling up to her in her hands. Very tame, this one. "As long as we put some flyers out, just to make sure he isn't lost. If nobody claims him, we'll keep him."

Fair enough. Kylee bit her lip and nodded, moving to sit on the stone railing with her aunt. "I guess we might need to do some shopping."

"Colonel, you mind? Stores are still open for a while," Sam said, holding the kitten, Kylee glanced to Jack who seemed a bit less enthused to be doing chores but he shrugged nonetheless.

"Yeah sure, let's go, double quick," the older man said.

"That's not a problem," Kylee said, a broad smile on her face as she followed him out to his truck. If every day going forward worked like this, she didn't think she'd have a problem. Of course she knew that wouldn't be the case. At best, that was a naive wish, but sometimes that's about all someone had to keep themselves moving until one could find that thing within them that was strong enough to push them forward on their own. She wasn't there yet, but she'd get there in time. She had to.