Chapter Seven.

Daniel sat on an infirmary bed, facing Sam. Teal'c stood close to her on the other side of her bed as she continued to sleep. It had been several hours since Jack had made them return to the infirmary telling Dr Brightman to run every test on them known to man. Fortunately the doctor had questioned these orders and managed to narrow the tests down to full blood works and MRI's. So they sat now with Sam, waiting for the test results and waiting for their friend to wake up.

Jack and Dr Brightman strolled into the room together, the doctor holding her clip-board at her side.

Janet always holds it pressed to her chest Daniel thought to himself hang on!

"Shouldn't Dr Frasier have arrived by now Jack?" Daniel asked curiously.

The General just stared at him a moment, no emotion showing on his face except for the slight twitch in his eye when Daniel had first asked. No-one but Teal'c and Daniel, and Sam if she were awake, would ever have noticed it. Daniel held his breath as he waited for the answer.

"Frasier was Killed-In-Action last year." Jack replied steadily.

"Oh!" Daniel said quietly, "I'm sorry."

Teal'c bowed his head "This is indeed grievous news." He turned his head to gaze at his sleeping comrade, his sister, knowing how difficult such a thing would have been for her. "It is not so in our world." He looked back at O'Neill and the doctor.

There was an uncomfortable silence for a minute, before Dr Brightman cleared her throat.

"Sir, if I may? I have the results back on all the members of SG-1."

"Yeah, hit me Doc, what's wrong with' em?" Jack made his tone light.

"Well sir, as far as I can tell. Nothing."

"Nothing?" Jack queried.

"All the results have come back normal. They are who they say they are sir, however, Colonel Carter is most definitely not pregnant." The doctor clarified.

Jack let out the breath he hadn't realised he was holding. Oh thank God! He had stopped breathing the moment Carter's apparent pregnancy was mentioned. He just couldn't allow himself to even fathom the idea of her having a child with someone else. Ah, I mean with anyone, I mean at all…Ah hell!

"Ok, so you're saying they're not nuts?" Jack needed to clarify this point.

"I don't think so sir. Although I really am only qualified to say there is nothing physically wrong with the members of SG-1 sir." Dr Brightman answered.

"Jack, I'm telling you we're not insane. If we were then why would Teal'c and I both agree on the same points of difference in this world?"

Unbeknownst to Daniel, that argument did actually occur to Jack, still…

"Maybe they're false memories, like another memory stamp or somethin'." He couldn't let the chance of an argument with Daniel go.

"According to you we were only gone for five minutes!"

"That may be all it takes Daniel." Jack retorted.

Daniel gave him an exasperated look, letting Jack know that he was well aware of Jack's antics, being deliberately difficult. Jack relented.

"Ok, ok! So say I buy this whole alternate reality thing, again. Where the hell are my SG-1?"

"Perhaps they remain on P3X 292 O'Neill." Teal'c offered.

"Nope! Tried that, SG7 says they never arrived at their camp. In fact they were about to dial into the SGC to ask what the hold-up was."

Daniel's look of confusion was priceless. Jack would have been amused if he weren't so concerned for his SG-1.

Teal'c noticed it first. Sam moved her head slowly, a soft moan resonating from her throat.

Daniel was about to get to his feet to approach her when he decided to wait and see what Jack would do. The base CO didn't do anything, he just stood where he was at the foot of her bed, though his eyes were fixed onto her face and Daniel saw his fists clench before he shoved them into his pockets.

The General's actions didn't escape Teal'c's notice either. There were indeed some major differences between this world and his, he thought to himself and remembered how it was for his friends before they finally surrendered to their feelings and O'Neill found a way for them. He was saddened that in this world they continued to deny each other.

Sam's eyes fluttered open and she squinted as she tried to focus her blurry vision on her surroundings. Infirmary, her befuddled mind supplied. This place was more familiar to her than her own bedroom. Her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton wool, it made it hard to think as she tried to remember what happened that landed her in the base infirmary, again. She turned her head toward the familiar and comforting voice at her side and managed to focus on Teal'c's face.

"Teal'c?" She croaked.

"It is I ColonelCarter." Teal'c sat in the chair next to the bed and gently took her hand.

Sam smiled warmly at him.

"Hi Sam, how are you feeling."

It was Daniel. He was on her other side she realised, hey I must be waking up a little more, why was I even asleep?

She turned her head toward him and gave him her standard answer. The same one she would give whether she was suffering a paper-cut or a gash in a major artery.

"I'm fine. A little thirsty." Her throat felt so dry.

Daniel immediately jumped from the bed and brought a cup with a straw to her lips.

That felt better. Her head was starting to clear a little more too.

"What happened? Where's Jack?" She asked.

Jack? Thought Jack, though he didn't say anything out loud. They'd had enough experiences with alternates now, that he wasn't all that surprised. Besides according to Daniel He and Sam were married in their reality too, again. Damnit! Was there any reality in all the goddamn universes where they weren't married! Well apart from this one. The idea of that just sucked on so many levels. He desperately tried to ignore the fact that he really really liked the sound of his name from her lips.

"What's the last thing you remember Sam?" Daniel replied with a question, deliberately ignoring Sam's second question.

That's never a good sign Sam thought.

Her brows furrowed as she tried to concentrate "Um, we were returning to the SGC from P3X 292 and…" She stiffened, her mind suddenly clear as she remembered everything that had happened. She tore her hand from Teal'c's soft grasp and had both hands groping frantically at her abdomen.

Teal'c rose, took her hand again with a firmer hold and drew it away. He had to calm her before she lost her senses in grief again.

"ColonelCarter you must calm yourself." He told her in a firm but gentle voice.

"It's ok Sam. At least I think it is." Daniel tried. She shifted her stricken gaze to him.

Jesus! Jack had never seen Carter look so desperate, so frightened. He wanted to go to her, but was paralysed. His Carter was never scared and she never lost it. He figured maybe this really wasn't his Carter, but then again, if she really thought she'd just lost the child she was carrying… She was crying, her silent tears streaming unchecked down her beautiful face. He suddenly felt like someone had shoved a giant fist down his throat.

"Sam, listen ok." Daniel continued, holding her other hand. "We think we may have somehow ended-up in an alternate reality or something. It's more your area than ours Sam, but there are some significant differences between the world we know and this one." The tears were still flowing, but Daniel noticed she was breathing more evenly as she focused intently on what he was saying. "Remember when we came back through the 'gate you were wearing different clothes. You had your vest and your P90."

She sniffed and took her hand from Daniel, who had the lighter grip, to dry the remaining tears from her eyes. Daniel handed her a tissue, bless him.

"I…I do remember that, and Lieutenant Andrews wasn't there either was she. There's no way she could have gotten that far away in the fraction of a second it takes to travel through the 'gate." Sam had a new puzzle to work on, one that gave her a glimmering hope that somehow, somewhere her baby was safe. She had to hold on to that for now. "I don't really remember getting to the SGC though, and why was I asleep?"

"Teal'c had to carry you through Sam." Daniel said gently, his eyes telling her why - she'd lost it. God! How embarrassing! She thought.

"The doctor thought it best to sedate you ColonelCarter." Came Teal'c's deep rumble, answering the other question.

Sam sat up with Teal'c's help. As she did her eyes landed on Jack.

"Jack?" she called as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. She closed her eyes and took a couple of deep breathes to quell the sudden nausea she felt, before rising to her feet.

"Hey Carter, how ya feelin'?" Jack said nonchalantly, meanwhile his stomach had a giant elephant doing somersaults in it.

He swayed back and forth from his toes to his heels.

Sam knew he did that when he was uncomfortable. Her hand rested on her abdomen without her thinking. He noticed, his eyes briefly lowering to her hand before coming back to her face. She didn't remove it.

"Jack, is it true, I mean…" She didn't know what to say to him, Daniel said this wasn't their reality, but this sure as hell looked like her husband. "Jack, the baby…" She whispered.

Her blue eyes were wide and intense as she looked into his. He saw the fear there, and something else. Something he'd had a glimpse of once five years ago, when he gazed into her eyes through a Goa'uld energy shield.

"Carter." His face scrunched up in a wince as he studied his boots. He really didn't know what to say to her and he was beginning to have a serious sense of deja-vu. Crap! Why were they always goddamn married?!

Luckily Daniel rescued him. Just as she was beginning to take a step closer to Jack Daniel reached out for her arm.

"Sam, remember I said things were different here." And then Daniel looked pointedly at Jack.

It took her a moment, the drugs in her system making her a little slower than usual, but then her eyebrows shot up as she understood what Daniel was trying oh-so-subtly to tell her. Right.

"Ok. Umm. Well guys how about we go somewhere and you can fill me in on the details." She said.

"Right, good idea." Jack said, with a loud clap of his hands. "Once you're brought up to speed we'll debrief again, 'bout an hour." He paused, an uncomfortable silence filling the room. "Ok well, glad you're feeling better Carter, I'll leave you all to it," He turned and strolled casually toward the door. "Got a lot of important paper-clip requisitions to sign off on because as we all know without our paper-clips all hell would break loose around here." He turned his head briefly before exiting, but it was enough time to catch Carter's wide grin. He ignored the way his heart flipped and reminded himself that he most certainly did not go out of his way every day to get his Second to smile at him.

She couldn't help the grin that escaped her at his sarcastic joke, reminding everyone within earshot of how much he hated all the paperwork that came with heading the SGC. She sobered quickly though as she turned back to her team.

"Ok, so do I still have a lab?"

"Indeed ColonelCarter." Teal'c replied.

"Ok, let's head over there, I want to know everything that happened while I was out and everything you've learned since we got here." She marched resolutely toward her lab, knowing Daniel and Teal'c would follow.

A/N: I did toy with the idea of making Sam a lot more distraught but decided against it. Sam is a very strong person I think, who often puts her own personal feelings aside in order to get the job done, especially after being given some hope that the baby was ok.

Please review and let me know what you think now that Sam is awake. I really do love hearing from you and thanks to all who have been reviewing on a regular basis – sharing the love : )