Hi, this chapter was going to be twice as long but I decided to split it up into two chunks since the second half isn't finished. That way I can get you up something today to read. ) The next chunk will be up tomorrow morning.

This chapter is different and breaks from the format of the story so far in that it's from Cassandra's perspective. I will be going back and adding in her perspective to the previous chapters to keep the story consistent. I needed to add her perspective in because there are certain stories I want to tell in here that wouldn't be possible without it. Thanks for reading and reviewing.

Chapter 9

Cassandra heard everyone talking and laughing on the back deck of her parent's house as she walked around the side. Her Mom had called her that morning telling her they were having a cookout that afternoon as the O'Neills were in town from Washington, so they were having a Saturday afternoon barbecue as they'd often had at Jack's.

"Hi, everyone," she said with a wave as she came into the backyard.

"Cassie!" Jack said with a broad grin and wiped his sweating forehead with the back of his wrist.

Cassandra felt a slight unease in her stomach. She'd seen a grin very much like that one just the night before, but it had come from a very different person, at least that's what she thought. Her mind was currently still deliberating on the issue, despite the things she'd said to reassure Isaac.

"Hi, Jack!" She said, trying to keep her voice steady. Why was she acting like this over Isaac? She had been attracted to him fine, but she'd been attracted to guys before. He's not just another guy now. He's someone who knows you in a way.

Jack and Daniel were standing by the grill, from which was wafting the nice scents of burning charcoal and steak. Janet was sitting on the deck steps holding a sleeping baby lovingly in her arms and watching three other kids playing on the swing set and trampoline set in the shade of the large trees that dotted the backyard. The protective Teal'c sat beneath one of the trees, near the children, and gave Cassandra a smile and nod when he saw her. Two of the kids, three year old twins, saw Cassandra and came running towards her at full speed, faces alight.

"Hi, Sweetheart," Janet said with a slight laugh as Cassandra swooped her little brother up in one arm and her sister in the other.

"Hi, Mom," she replied with a cheerful grin. She kissed each twin on the forehead. "Hi, Derek and Amelia."

"Hi, Cassie," the twins replied simultaneously, hugging her neck with their arms, which Cassandra quickly discovered were sticky with what appeared to be ice cream.

"You play with us?" Amelia asked expectantly.

Cassandra giggled and rubbed her nose against the little girl's nose. "Of course, Munchkin. In a minute." She lowered the two back to the ground and shooed them back to the swing set to rejoin their companion, Jack and Sam's two year old, Jacob.

Cassandra waved to her Dad.

"Glad you made it, Cassie," Daniel said. "That military school takes up too much of your time."

"No more time than you spend translating languages no one in the universe speaks anymore, Daniel," Jack replied as studied the grilling steaks intently.

Cassandra knelt down at the base of the steps, putting her eye-level with her mom. She planted a gentle kiss on the forehead of the sleeping baby girl, Madison. She then kissed her Mom and went to join Jack and Daniel at the grill. "She's getting big, Jack."

Jack glanced at Cassandra, his face beaming with pride. "She's a handful. I've had system lords who give me less trouble than her," he said with a chuckle. "Just like her mother."

Cassandra rolled her eyes and leaned against the railing. The breeze from the previous night was still holding over and it felt pretty good on the deck under the shade of trees, though the proximity to the open grill made it a bit warmer.

"I tried calling you in your room last night, Cassandra," Janet said, glancing up at Cassandra. "Your roommate didn't know where you'd run off to."

Cassandra swallowed hard and griped the railing. "Yeah, um, I went to Arnold Hall with some friends."

"Oh, your roommate thought you left there with someone," Janet replied indifferently, though Cassandra knew she was far from indifferent. Though she couldn't see her mom's face, she could tell she was smiling.

"Where's Sam?" Cassandra asked suddenly, thankful that the question had leapt to mind and would derail her mother for a moment.

Jack gave a roguish grin. "Well, she's off on official business. That's why me and the kids are here. Sam had some stuff to take care of in the area. So, instead of me staying in Washington trying to take care of the two midgets, we decided to come visit."

"That's too bad. I would've liked to seen her," Cassandra lamented.

"Hopefully you can when she gets back on Monday," Jack replied as he flipped one of the steaks.

"That needs to cook more," Daniel said, pointing to the steak Jack just flipped.

Jack glared at him. "Who's the expert griller here, Daniel?"

Daniel raised his hands defensively and backed away. "All yours, Jack."

Cassandra chuckled and shook her head. Some things never changed. She hoped she got to see Sam. It had been months since she'd seen her. They'd moved to Washington three years ago after the wedding and Jack's promotion, and she didn't see as much of them as she liked to. She was glad for the visit, even if it did take official business to drag them out there. Official business. She mused over that. Isaac had mentioned Sam in his phone call. So, she was at Area-51 overseeing these tests, whatever they were. Hopefully that wouldn't make Isaac uncomfortable. She hadn't given much thought to how Isaac dealt with that issue of Jack's life. She was tempted to ask Jack about the project, but they would raise questions as to how she knew anything about it in the first place.