Chapter 2
Janet sighed and picked up yet another t-shirt from the bathroom floor. "Cassie, we do have a laundry basket!" she called out.
"Oh, God, Mom, I put it down two seconds ago!" Cassandra's frustrated voice echoed from her bedroom. "Give me a break!" She walked onto the landing tucking a clean t-shirt into her jeans and glaring at her mother.
"I'm just saying," Janet said with forced calm. "It wouldn't have taken any more effort to drop it into the basket instead of on the floor right next to it."
Cassandra rolled her eyes. "You're obsessed, Mom," she grabbed the t-shirt out of Janet's hands and stalked back off into her room with it. "Anyone tell you that?"
"There's nothing wrong with good hygiene habits, Cassandra." Janet stated as patiently as she could. Her daughter muttered something but she couldn't hear it so followed the girl into her room.
Cassandra spun around looking mortified. "Mom! God! Knock the door!"
Janet gazed at her, baffled. "It was wide open!" she protested.
"That's not the point!"
"You were in the hall two seconds ago!"
"That's still not the point!"
Janet opened her mouth to respond then closed her eyes, and her mouth, and took a deep breath, trying to retain her calm. "Okay," she said. "Are you all ready for the weekend?"
"Yep," Cassandra looked more enthusiastic. "Everything's packed, I'm all set."
"Any idea what you'll be doing?" Janet tried to keep her voice casual but, judging by the suspicious look her daughter sent her, she wasn't sure she had succeeded.
"Dunno, Dom wants to surprise me."
"Sounds romantic," Janet replied cautiously and was rewarded with another suspicious look. "Any idea what his parents are going to be doing?"
"Dunno, Dom doesn't know either," there was The Look again.
This conversation was definitely not easing Janet's concerns. "Alright, Cassie, you don't need me to tell you to be careful... " she began.
"Oh for God's sake, Mom. I'm 18 years old!" the teenager exploded.
"I know that, sweetheart..."
"I know all about sex!"
"Um..."
"And contraception..."
"Oh God," Janet whispered.
"And how to say no, if I'm not interested!"
"I'm glad to hear that," her mother's voice was feeble.
"So, stop worrying about me!"
Janet groaned. This conversation definitely hadn't reassured her. In fact, it had done the exact opposite.
"Mom?" Cassandra's voice was suddenly friendlier, more conversational. Surprised, Janet refocused on her, unsure what to make of the change in demeanour.
"What is it, Cassie?"
"Are you going to be okay when I'm gone?"
Janet looked slightly baffled by the teenager's concern. "Yes, of course, I am. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, it's just that everyone's... doing things and you..." Cassandra trailed off, looking sheepish and Janet suddenly realised her daughter was worried about her mother being alone on Valentine's Day.
Janet grinned and shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Cassie, I'm sure Daniel and I can find something to do with ourselves."
Cassandra stared at her. "Daniel?"
Janet shrugged and picked up the t-shirt Cassandra had taken off her earlier. She left the room and walked into her room to gather up what clothing she could find that needed washing.
Cassandra followed her, a perturbed expression on her face. "You're spending Valentine's Day with Daniel?" she asked slowly.
Janet studied her daughter's surprise, not really understanding it. "Is that a problem?"
"No... well... no, it's not!" Cassandra, seemed to be trying to work something out in her mind. Janet could almost hear the cogs turning in the teenager's brain. "Mom, how long has this been going on?"
Janet picked up a towel and began to fold it. "How long has what been going on?"
"You and Daniel!" Her daughter sounded exasperated that her mother wasn't keeping up.
"Me and Daniel what, sweetheart?"
"Mom!"
Janet looked up from the towel at the incredulous expression on Cassandra's face. "What?"
"How long have you and Daniel been dating?!"
Her mother stared then her eyes flew open wide as she finally understood the reason for Cassandra's confusion. "Oh! Um.. no, Cassie, we're not.. oh." She took a deep breath and tried again. "It was a choice between working alone, watching films alone, or spending a quiet evening with a friend."
Cassandra stared at her intently, as if not entirely certain whether to believe her or not.
Janet didn't drop her gaze. "Is that a problem, Cassie?"
"What?" Cassie shook herself back into focus. "No, it's not! I just thought... well... " she stared at her mother's inquiring expression then flushed. "Never mind," she muttered and slunk back to her bedroom.
Janet stared at the spot Cassandra had been standing in for several long moments, trying to work out how on earth the teenager could have assumed she and Daniel were dating but she couldn't really find a satisfactory answer. She and Daniel spent a lot of time together at any time of the year. Valentine's Day was, when it came right down to it, just another day of the year so she really couldn't understand the fuss. In the end, she dismissed it as Cassandra being a teenager who was still young enough to be bowled over by the romance of the day. Janet had spent years cynically dismissing the commercialisation of it all, so she suspected there was probably a large attitude gap between herself and her daughter with regards to things like this.
She grinned, shook her head and carried the washing downstairs - there were more important things to do than dwell on romances that didn't exist.
oooooooooo
Since General O'Neill had inherited the SGC from Doctor Weir, the base had quickly learned the one great consistency of his command: if anyone needed to reach him, his office was the last place anyone should bother to look.
He strolled down the corridor towards Colonel Carter's lab, absently trailing his hand over the exposed piping along the wall. He swung to a lazy stop outside her door and meandered inside, studying the tips of his fingers for any sign of dust. Brushing his hands off on his BDUs, he idly wondered what the Appropriations Committee would say if he asked about increasing the SGC's cleaning budget.
His eyes drifted around the lab until he located her, bent over something that was shining like an over-eager glow-worm. Teal'c was standing silently at her side, holding a staff weapon in his hands, watching her intently. She was poking and prodding the neon object with all the caution of an adult who possessed a childlike curiosity to touch but was still afraid it might turn nuclear at a moment's notice.
He leaned forward.
"Boo!"
He leaned back and watched as the Colonel actually jumped clear of the floor, gasping. "Why, Carter," he said lazily. "A few more inches and you'd crack the secret of flight!"
He was disappointed to note that Teal'c's only reaction to his sneakiness was a mildly animated eyebrow twitch.
"Sir!" she said with a careful control, her eyes expressing deep irritation with him even as she straightened politely - her compromise to his demand to stop saluting every time he walked into a room.
"So..." he glanced around the room again before his gaze settled on the item she had been so interested in. "Whatcha doin'?"
She sighed. "Paperwork problems, sir?"
He wrinkled his nose then leaned in slightly. "Walter," he said in a stage whisper.
Her eyebrows lifted and she exchanged a glance with Teal'c. "I am certain he is merely doing his job to the best of his ability, O'Neill," the Jaffa stated calmly.
"Yeah, but does the guy have to be so.. so... so... god-damned psychic?" The General shuddered. "It's creepin' me out!"
Sam cleared her throat and looked down at her toes hoping Jack couldn't see her fighting a grin. Teal'c didn't even bother hiding his amusement.
"Turncoats," Jack muttered, clearly spotting their lack of sympathy.
Before anyone had a chance to answer him, the phone rang. "Excuse me, sir," Sam said and moved past him to answer it. The moment her back was turned, Jack looked down at the green thing and gave it a good, solid poke.
Nothing happened.
He glanced up to find Teal'c staring at him. Shooting him a wolfish grin, he turned to eavesdrop shamelessly on the telephone conversation.
"Cassie!" Sam was saying, surprise in her voice. "Hey, how's it going?" She paused for a moment before adding. "That's good, and the weekend-- really? Sounds fun!" She paused as Cassandra clearly launched into some kind of speech then burst out laughing. "No, Cassie, I'm sure she doesn't mean it the way it..." there was another pause before Sam laughed again. "Look, I'm betting when she was your age, her mom was telling her the same things too. And I bet when you're her age and your daughter's your age, you'll be saying exactly the same..." she stopped again, listening, her grin growing broader by the second. "Okay, if you say so, Cassie," she agreed in a tone that clearly indicated she didn't believe a word of what she'd just been told. "Yeah, sure, ask away..."
Whatever Cassandra said next had a fascinating effect on Sam. The smile dropped off her face, to be replaced by an expression of open-mouthed surprise. "You must have heard wrong, Cassie, what..." she stopped for a moment, a frown forming on her face. "Really?... she actually said that? Well... no, Cassie, it's news to me too..." she cast a pair of baffled blue eyes in Jack and Teal'c's direction. They were both watching her with the kind of fascination they usually reserved for Playboy and science fiction films. "No, I bet they don't know either... yeah, they're right here, I'll ask... hang on..." She covered the phone with her hand and hesitated.
"What is the matter, Colonel Carter?" Teal'c asked immediately.
"Cassie wants to know if there's anything going on between Janet and Daniel," Sam said, bemused.
Jack stared. Even Teal'c blinked. "I do not believe so, Colonel Carter," the Jaffa said slowly. "What has happened for Cassandra Fraiser to ask?"
"Apparently, they've made plans for Valentine's Day," Sam said slowly.
Jack spluttered then choked, fighting to regain his breath.
Teal'c looked slightly confused but paused in his response long enough to come to his commander's rescue. He didn't so much pat Jack on the back as punch him. The General's knees almost gave way but he certainly stopped coughing.
"Thanks, T," he said weakly.
"You are welcome, O'Neill." Teal'c returned his attention to Sam, who was still holding the phone to her ear. "Colonel Carter, it is my understanding that Daniel Jackson is planning to work this weekend."
"Yeah," Jack said. "He said something about some weird Goa'uld dialect SG-9 encountered on P9-211. Or... somethin'." He hesitated. "Had a stone in my shoe at the time," he explained quickly. He seemed slightly sheepish but it was hard to tell if he was embarrassed at revealing he knew too much detail about the mission or not enough.
"Daniel Jackson has noticed the influence of the language of the Ancients within the text and wishes to understand why," Teal'c confirmed firmly.
Sam turned back to the phone. "They think Daniel's working this weekend, Cassie. What did your mother actually say..." she trailed off, frowning. She nodded slowly as the teenager clearly complied. "Well... maybe that's all it is then? I haven't seen anything that would suggest... yeah, yeah, I know they are... yeah, I know Cassie, they've been like that for years though... I know, but I'm not sure we should read anything... I know it's weird timing... look, Cassie, maybe they just didn't want to be alone on the weekend, so decided to do something together?" She sighed heavily. "Okay, I'll think of a way to ask him... Cassie, Cassie, hold up, can I ask a question?... Yeah. Thanks. Look, if they are would you have a problem with it?"
She was silent for quite a while before she spoke again. "Really?... Yeah, I know... Oh yeah, I know exactly what you're trying to say... No, no, sounds like a perfectly sensible concern..." she laughed. "Yeah, sounds like Daniel alright... I'm sure he'd agree with you, actually... And your mother, for that matter... no, no, it sounds like you're thinking of all the right questions... yeah, just depends on whether they really are... Good plan, Cassie, I'll get back to you when I know something... Yeah, you too! Bye, Cassie," she hung up and turned to her companions, eyebrows raised.
"Danny and the Doc?" Jack said in disbelief.
"I doubt it, sir." Sam said, seriously. "From what Cassie said, it sounds like they just realised they'd be bored over the weekend, so decided to actually do something together that wasn't work related."
"On Valentine's Day?" Jack said incredulously.
"I know what it looks like, sir," Sam said earnestly. "But think about it... it's going to be pretty lonely for them, knowing most of their friends are doing something else that weekend."
"Yeah but... Valentine's Day?!"
Sam sighed. "Well, according to Cassie, Janet claimed it was just to starve off boredom. She wants to know what Daniel's opinion is."
"She does, does she?"
"Yeah, she thinks you'll be the best one to ask him." Sam added quickly.
A little too quickly. Jack gazed at her suspiciously, but, confronted by those baby-blue eyes stretched wide with pure innocence, he caved with a groan. "Alright, alright, I'll ask!" He grumbled, walked out of the lab trying to pretend Sam hadn't just winked at Teal'c, and headed for Daniel's office.
As he expected, the archaeologist was up to his neck in a pile of old books, flicking through one volume with an intense focus, the impact of which was somewhat spoiled by his frequent sniffling.
"Hey, whatcha doin'?" he began.
Daniel looked up sharply from his book and squinted at the General as if he didn't have his glasses on. Jack's eyebrows lifted. Given the sniffles and the watery redness marring his old friend's eyes, most of the evidence pointed to Daniel being very upset about something.
"Hi, Jack," Daniel sighed, pulling his glasses off and rubbing his eyes. "What's up?"
He didn't sound upset, he sounded like he had the flu. Jack studied him intently. "You comin' down with something?"
"Allergies," Daniel grumbled.
Jack stared then looked around the contained, underground room in confusion. "From what?"
Daniel eyed him for a moment then sighed and gestured to the books strewn across his table "Dust."
The General blinked and looked back at him. He peered at the books and sniffed. His nose tingled; he could feel the dust in the air as well and he didn't even suffer from allergies. A slow grin began to spread across his face. "You been to the Doc about this?"
"Yes, she's tried three different kinds of meds," the archaeologist sounded cross. "None of them are working so far."
"Better hope the Doc can find one that does, Danny-boy, or you'll be out of a job," Jack looked positively delighted. Daniel just glared at him then returned to digging through his books.
"Speaking of... whatcha doin' on the weekend?"
Daniel didn't look up. "Lazing in front of a TV, probably."
"What happened to work?"
Daniel turned away to cough painfully, then he paused to blow his nose. He sighed. "I'm not working like this," he said with some asperity. "Janet and I decided to have a movie marathon, since everyone else is going to be busy."
Jack stared at him. Somehow... he hadn't expected it to be so easy. "You and the Doc?"
Daniel shrugged and returned to his book. "Why not?"
"It's Valentine's Day!"
The archaeologist blinked his teary eyes at the General and suddenly reached up to the top of his head, pushing his glasses back down onto his nose. "So?"
Jack blinked. "So..." he deflated. He couldn't think of a good argument against "so". It wasn't exactly a crime for good friends to hang around together on a weekend, even if it was Valentine's Day and, so far, Daniel wasn't behaving like there was a budding romance on the horizon.
As if reading his mind, Daniel managed to rise above his misery long enough to look amused. "It's not a date, Jack, if that's what you're asking."
Jack drew back, raising his hands submissively. "Who's askin'?" he demanded, the picture of innocence.
"Uh-huh," Daniel readjusted his glasses then sneezed. "Dammit!" he exploded in frustration. "This is getting ridiculous!"
Jack winced sympathetically and handed him a tissue. "Probably a good plan to spend the weekend with the Doc," he admitted after a moment. "Especially if you can't find any meds that'll work."
"You're telling me," the suffering archaeologist groaned and blew his nose again.
Jack patted him on the shoulder. "Get better soon, Daniel," he said, heading towards the door. He paused then grinned slyly. "Or your date'll be a disaster."
"It's not a---" Daniel began but started sneezing again. By the time he'd regained control over his sinuses, the General was gone. With a frustrated sigh, he turned back to the books he was fast beginning to hate. "It's not a date," he grumbled at them but the books, being books, didn't seem to care.
Daniel glared at them, anyway.