There is giggling coming from the living room. Janet giggles? He knew that Sam giggled, but usually he or his fingers were the cause of her giggling. He wasn't sure how comfortable he was with Janet making her giggle. Although… it might be interesting.
He enters the room, and the two of them are bending over a piece of paper.
"What's going on?"
"We're just coming up with some plans to defeat the Goa'uld, sir," Janet replies.
"And what about that is funny?" he asks.
"Well, at first the plans were serious," Sam says.
"But somewhere along the line they got a little bit goofy."
He leans over the paper to read it. "You're going to pants Ra?"
The girls giggle.
"You realize that he doesn't wear pants," Jack points out.
"You wouldn't know what he was wearing under that skirt," Janet points out.
"So would he even notice if he was pantsed?" Jack asks.
"Is he always this much of a wet blanket?" Janet asks, turning to Sam.
"No, usually it's me playing straight man to him," she says with a grin, "You ok, babe?"
Jack doesn't miss the possessive language. He decides to reassure her, and puts an arm around her back drawing her close. "Kids are still napping?" he asks, kissing her cheek.
"It's my fault, sir; Sam was working on a project, and I put them down for their nap half an hour late," Janet says a little apologetically.
"That's fine, the schedule is not sacred. You're their mother, too; you can put them down for a nap whenever you think its best. And I think you'd better lay off the 'sir'. We're married, Janet." he says, calming her down.
-0-0-0-
Sam holds onto Jack's hands under the covers late at night. Somehow, this action seems more intimate than the 'intimacy' they'd just shared.
"Jack."
"Mmmm?"
"Never mind."
Jack rolls over to look into her eyes. Then his other hand moves hair from her face. "What is it, sweetie?"
"It's stupid. You are the master of strategy. You've been on a lot of missions. I don't even know what you do, really…"
"So you have an idea to help the resistance?" he asks.
"Yeah, but before I tell you, I want to be clear that I don't want you to be involved in this mission."
"Why is that so important?"
"Because I don't want you to think I'm trying to kill you off."
"That bad, huh?" Jack asks.
"Yeah, but it might just change the universe," she whispers.
"Let's hear it."
"Ra receives the tribute personally, at the harvest festival, right?" Sam prompts.
Jack nods his head.
"And this mineral, it's highly explosive. Janet gave me a little bit of it to work with. I was trying to make a way to detect the mineral. That didn't actually work out. But I did discover that it is by far the most explosive substance known by man."
He locks eyes with her, "You want to kill Ra."
"Not just Ra. The average tribute box could contain enough to blow up a whole ship. Even more."
"That's a bold plan."
"It's presumptuous," she says, looking down.
"Sammy, there are other gods," he says.
She's confused by the blasphemy. Not so much that Jack is blaspheming, but that he's blaspheming there being more gods instead of no gods.
"What are you talking about?"
"Ra doesn't want us to know, but there are hundreds of Goa'ulds out there."
"Right; I met Ba'al."
"Well, not all Goa'ulds serve Ra. Most do, but there are a few who have their own kingdoms."
"Ok," Sam says slowly, not quite understanding where this conversation is going.
"If we kill Ra, another one is going to take his place. The new one might be even worse."
Sam stares at him for a long moment before she says, "Ok, then what's the point?"
"Excuse me?" he says.
"Why are we risking our lives? Our kids' lives? If there is no way that we can win this one, we should pack it in. We should just keep our heads down and try not to get noticed."
Jack knew this day that is coming. It was the price of having a wife, they would ask you to give up everything that you had ever wanted.
"You want me to quit," he says sadly. He doesn't want to quit. But he thinks he might love her so much that he might just do it. If she bugs him enough.
"Jack, I would never tell you to quit," she says, confused.
He stares at her, her sacrificing makes him want to sacrifice all the more. "What do you want, Sammy."
"I want hope, you know, rebellion. A chance to kick their smarmy asses out of the galaxy once and for all."
"They've been trying to do that for hundreds of years, Sam."
"I know, and I don't exactly expect that this is going to happen in the next couple of years. I just want to know that it can happen. That we can win."
He never really believed those myths. You know, the ones where the humans win. The ones full of freedom and life and joy. But he looks at Sam, and he needs a chance of a world without Goa'uld.
"I want rebellion to be a reality," he says.
"But it's not," she says."
"Help me figure it out, Sammy. Help me end them," he says, wiping a band of hair away from his forehead.
"I don't know anything about strategy or…"
"And yet you brought their technology to a stop."
"That was chance."
"That was genius. I want to give our kids," he says, putting a hand on her stomach, "A world where there are no Goa'uld.
-0-0-0-
Sam opens the door to see Farida behind it. "Sha'uri is having her baby. I'll help you bring the kids over. I'm watching all of them."
Janet walks up behind her new sister wife, and puts a hand on her shoulder, "Sam, you have to come. Sha're's sister wives can take care of the kids."
"No, you can handle this one," Sam says. She is terrified being part of another birth.
"You have to get back on the horse. You're going to be having a baby before long. You have to get over your fear before that. Remember what I told you when you first found out that you were pregnant, most labors go well. There is a little pit of pain, and a little bit of screaming, and then a brand new baby enters the world. It's a miracle, and you are going to come and witness it."
Sam nods her head, with plans to slip out of the room as soon as the women become distracted enough with the process going on before them.
-0-0-0-
"Sam," Sha're yells as soon as Sam enters the room.
"Janet's here!" Sam says, figuring that in labor, a doctor is a more precious commodity than a best friend.
"Come here, and hold me up," Sha're says, pointing behind herself. She's sitting on the bed, and her back really does look like it needs some support. Sam figures she can probably do that, it is on the easy side of the woman in labor after all. "Dan'yel was supposed to do it. On my planet, the husband holds his wife," she sobs.
"Ok, so why isn't he doing it?" Sam asks.
"On Earth, men think childbirth is woman's business. And it's Farida's day."
"You're kidding, right?" Sam says in shock.
"In polygamy it's important to keep to a schedule," Sha're defends.
"Well, you'll train the next baby to be born on your day. Meanwhile, I'm going to get your husband in here."
"Stop, Sam, don't interfere," Sha're pleads, but the words are lost on her.
"Daniel!" she says, coming out into the living room.
"Is something wrong?" he asks, popping up from the couch with his face going white in terror.
She feels sorry for scaring him, "She's fine. But she is having your baby, and she really wants you to be there."
He rocks awkwardly on his feet uncertainly. "I know that in her culture…"
"I don't care about culture, and I don't care about whatever kind of rules you and your wives have figured out to keep the peace. Here is what I do care about. You got your wife pregnant. She's bringing your child in the world with a whole bunch of pain to herself. She wants you to sit behind her, and support her as she does this amazing things. You sure as hell are going to do that."
He stares at her, open-mouthed.
"Move, Daniel," she says firmly.
He glances at Farida. He knows that he is going to have to pay for this later with her, but he doesn't care.
Sha're is in middle of a contraction when Daniel enters the room, but she still breaks into a grin. When the contraction is over, she reaches toward him, "It means a lot to me that you came, but you don't have to be here. I know what it means for you to be here."
"I'll deal with Farida," he says, moving behind her.
She leans back against him, "I'm sorry."
"Don't be, you deserve this, you deserve everything," he says, kissing her forehead, "I love you so much. I couldn't love you more."
But everyone in the room knew it was a lie.
He could love her more, and he probably should.
-0-0-0-
"It's a daughter," Janet says as she raises a baby up and puts it into Daniel's hands. Sha're gives her husband a quick glance to see if there is disappointment on his face. Instead, she is met with a wide grin.
"I've waited a long time for you, little one," he whispers to his daughter.
"Dan'yel, you have other daughters," Sha're says, confused.
"I know, but they're not yours," he says, giving her another kiss at her forehead.
"I'm sorry I couldn't give you one sooner," she whispers.
"Oh Sha're, I'm sorry I wasn't more patient."
And for one moment they are honest with one another, if only with their eyes.