Chapter Thirteen.

"So you're still in the military then right?" Daniel said looking across the commissary table as he took another bite of his pancakes.

"Yes Daniel, very perceptive." O'Neill replied grumpily. He'd had next to no sleep the last couple of nights. Every time he'd go to bed images of Carter's face inches from his assaulted him, reliving the unbelievable kiss. His mind kept replaying Carter…err alternate Carter's…words in his mind. Her Jack found a way for them she'd said. What does that even mean? He'd pretty much avoided her as much as possible since then.

"Got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning Jack?" Daniel teased, wondering what had happened, well apart from their current dilemma, to make Jack so irritable.

Jack just glared at him as he shovelled more fruit loops into his mouth.

"Has something occurred to displease you O'Neill?" Teal'c asked, a huge platter of fruit and toast sitting before him.

"No! Would you two cut it out!" Jack said testily.

"Ok ok Jack. We were just wondering." Daniel said. "I took some recordings of the ruins around P3X 292 while we were there."

Uh oh, here it comes, "Daniel." Jack warned.

"Sam wants me to translate them, she thinks it might help her figure out what it does and how to use it." Daniel finished.

"Daniel you're not using Daniel's lab" Jack stated definitively.

"But Jack!"

"Ahah, no" Jack interrupted raising his hand.

"It could be really important Jack."

"No."

"Jack."

"Daniel." Jack drawled.

"Alright fine, what about letting us go back to the planet for a few hours, we don't have to be back until tonight."

"You're not going off-world Daniel." Jack said. He noticed the slump in his friend's shoulders and decided to give him a break, knowing full well how bored he and Carter got without some puzzle to occupy their huge brains. "Look, you and Carter can use one of the science labs ok. Just kick one of the geeks out."

Daniel's eyes grew and he smiled broadly, "Thanks Jack, just look at it this way, if we work it out you're SG-1 won't have to."

"Assuming that the technology we studied is the same as that in this reality DanielJackson." Teal'c pointed out.

"True, but their SG-1 and SG-7 can work that out later."

Jack was about to reply when the familiar and seriously rousing scent washed over him as Sam slid into the seat next to him. Crap! Why does she have to smell so damn…edible!

"Hi." She directed at him.

"Hey." He replied, his appetite for fruit loops suddenly vanishing.

There was a long and exceedingly uncomfortable pause. It didn't escape the notice of Teal'c and Daniel but they chose not to comment, concentrating intently on their breakfast.

"Well this is awkward." Sam admitted.

"Yep." Jack agreed. A few more silent moments passed while he quickly finished the rest of his cereal. His mouth was still full with the last of the fruit loops when he rose. "Err, I'm just gonna go now." He garbled as he left hurriedly.

Sam couldn't suppress the smirk.

"What did you do?" Daniel asked.

"What do you mean?" Sam said innocently.

"O'Neill appeared uneasy with your arrival ColonelCarter." Teal'c said.

"What makes you think I had something to do with it?" She said, directing the question at them both but unable to curtain her widening grin.

"Come-on Sam, what did you do?" Daniel said, lowering his voice conspiratorially. "He's been crabby for the last two days."

Sam relented and leaned forward so she could speak low without anyone over-hearing. "I kissed him in his office the other night." She all but giggled.

"What!" Daniel exclaimed loudly. Then regaining his composure whispered. "Sam are you crazy? Why?"

"I don't know really. I guess I just had to know if he felt anything, you know for the other me."

"Couldn't you have just asked?" Daniel said.

"Come on Daniel, you know as well as I do he would never have answered."

"Indeed." Teal'c agreed. He wore a light smile on his face. "I observed his carefully concealed feelings for you whilst you were unconscious in the infirmary, perhaps your actions will ultimately benefit the O'Neill and ColonelCarter of this world."

SG-1 finished their breakfast while Daniel told Sam about the lab Jack was allowing them to use. Her eyes lit up at the news.

Sam decided on one of the smaller labs. They didn't need access to any specialised equipment and she didn't want to displace more people than necessary.

They'd been working solidly for several hours, or at least Daniel had. There wasn't that much for Sam to do once she'd reviewed the tape of the device itself and made some notes, she needed the translations before she could do more. She was tiring of looking through books to help Daniel and decided to leave him to it for a while and join Teal'c who had left for the gym an hour ago.

Teal'c was just finishing on the bench press when Sam came in.

"Hi Teal'c."

Teal'c inclined his head as he wiped the sweat off his brow with a towel. "Is your work done ColonelCarter?"

"No, not really, but we've been cooped up for four days, I could use a work-out."

"I too am feeling confined." Teal'c admitted.

You never had to use too many words for Teal'c to understand how you were feeling, Sam loved that about him.

She smiled brightly at her friend. "Hey Teal'c want to practice the staff with me? We haven't been able to do it for a while I'm probably a bit rusty."

"I would enjoy that very much ColonelCarter, but do not fear, you have become very proficient with the staff weapon, your body will remember." Teal'c noticed the tightness in the corners of Sam's eyes and the slight tension in her shoulders as she retrieved the two wooden practice staffs from where they were mounted on the wall. Nine years of fighting side by side made Teal'c acutely aware of every nuance of Sam's body.

They faced each other across the room and bowed. Teal'c attacked first and Sam easily parried him. They trained for an hour, before calling it off. The body Sam was occupying was in peak condition, but fighting, especially with a staff weapon, was incredibly draining. She had sweat poring off her by the time they'd finished.

Teal'c replaced the weapons while Sam mopped the sweat from her face. He approached her as she took a long drink from her sports bottle.

"ColonelCarter, something concerns you." Teal'c stated. He had held his tongue whilst they duelled, but the tension had not left her.

Sam looked at Teal'c ready to tell him she was fine but she saw the knowing glint in his eye and the stubborn set of his jaw. She dropped heavily on a nearby bench, her elbows on her knees.

"I'm worried Teal'c. The baby's due tomorrow." She gazed up into Teal'c's soft eyes, "What if…"

She couldn't continue but she didn't need to.

"Whatever happens ColonelCarter, your child is safe and in O'Neill's care, remember that is what is significant."

"I know Teal'c, you're right and I know Jack will take care of things, it's just, I should be able to give birth to my own baby, I wanted too."

"You may yet. I realise it is important to you to do so, however, giving birth to a child is not what makes you a parent ColonelCarter. It is the love you and O'Neill shall share for you child. It is the care and nurturing you and O'Neill shall give your child."

That was one of the longest speeches she'd ever heard Teal'c make but while Teal'c may be a man of few words, when he does say something it's usually very important or very wise. Sam smiled as she remembered Daniel saying once that Teal'c was deep. Daniel was nearly drunk at the time, but he was right.

"Thanks Teal'c." She said sincerely. She knew he couldn't understand completely, but at least he was trying, and in the end he was right. Teal'c merely inclined his head and took a drink of his own.

Sam heard the door of the gym open and she glanced over at the reflection of the door behind her in one of the gym mirrors.

It was Jack O'Neill.

He strode into the room wearing sweat pants and a black t-shirt that stretched tight across his chest. Damn!

As he neared Sam smiled wickedly up at Teal'c who arched a questioning eyebrow at her.

"You know," She said loud enough for Jack to hear, "If we do get stuck here I'm going to want to start making babies right away."

Thump!

"Ow!"

A/N: This chapter's a little short, but I needed a deep breath after the last one. Hope you liked it.