A/N: Thank you so very much if you are still in this for the long haul! I know it's been an excruciatingly long time since my last update. The end is in sight!


Alice could not help her lips curling up into a smile as she began: "Do you know, I always thought Unicorns were fabulous monsters, too! I never saw one alive before!"

"Well, now that we have seen each other," said the Unicorn, "if you'll believe in me, I'll believe in you. Is that a bargain?" - Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll


Sam awoke to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sound of her best friends' laughter. Daniel and Teal'c had arrived, as promised, just after dinner and despite having stayed up most of the night pretending to be "normal" people by just hanging out and playing cards, everyone was up early today. Sam yawned, stretched and slowly opened her eyes, smiling at the muffled banter she could hear through the bedroom door. She indulged in a long, lazy stretch before rolling back over onto her stomach and burying her face in her pillow. She knew there'd be fewer and fewer moments like this to enjoy in the future and she didn't want to rush getting out of his bed.

"She's getting better you know." Daniel was spreading cream cheese over a bagel and watching as Jack prepared breakfast.

"Huh?"

"Sam. She's turning into quite the card shark. If I didn't know better I'd say someone was coaching her." He glanced up at Jack over the top of his glasses. "Perhaps giving her private lessons?"

"Whatever are you implying, Daniel?"

"Nothing. Just making an observation."

"Well, one usually observes with one's eyes, Daniel, not one's mouth."

Daniel smirked in reply and turned his attention back to his coffee and bagel. He trusted his instincts and in the fact that sooner or later his friend would either set him straight in no uncertain terms or confirm his growing suspicions that there was something going between his two best friends.

Jack's scent lingered on the pillow next to her and Sam's eyes clouded momentarily as she took a deep breath and let the memories of the last few days flood her senses. She could still taste his mouth on her lips and feel the heat of his body pressed tightly against her. Sighing contentedly, she sat up and threw her legs over the side of the bed, pulling the sheet with her as she stood.

A piece of paper fluttered to the floor beside her and bending down to pick it up, she recognized Jack's distinctive scrawl.

Carter,

Your bag is at the foot of the bed. If you want to unpack, there's room in the dresser, and there are clean towels waiting for you in the bathroom. Take your time.

-J

Hiding behind pretense, she'd kept her things in the guest room. It seemed silly now considering where she'd spent the last three nights. Smiling at his thoughtfulness, she grabbed her toiletries and made her way to the small ensuite. Not only were there fresh towels waiting, but brand new bottles of shampoo, body wash, and lotion were also lined up on the counter. She picked up the shampoo. It was one of her favorites, lavender and citrus, and the body wash and lotion were a coconut lemon combination that smelled amazing. Grabbing the bottles, she stepped into the tub contemplating what she was soon going to have to do.

A part of her was extremely nervous about facing her teammates. She knew that she needn't really have to worry about how they'd react, Teal'c especially had always had a kind of sixth sense about the true nature of her relationship with Jack. And Daniel had also been extremely perceptive over the years. She just wasn't sure how to approach the subject after so many years of blatant avoidance and after their having witnessed her retreating into Jack's bedroom the night before. So she let herself linger under the hot spray until the water began to cool signalling that it was time for her to face her friends and their questions.

It turned out that she was right. She needn't have worried. Daniel's shit eating grin as he said "Good Morning," and the smile and nod she received from Teal'c when she finally walked into the kitchen revealed that they'd already gotten the confirmation they'd needed.

Daniel held out a mug, "Coffee?"

"Thanks." She took the mug and sat next to him at the table trying to hide her own grin in its steaming contents.

"So...Sam...you and Jack?"

She nodded and gave him a muffled "Uh, yeah."

He threw an arm around her shoulder and pulled her into a hug. "It's about time."

Jack smiled at the two of them and turned to start the omelets as he listened to their animated chatter. He'd been afraid of changing the team dynamic by revealing his new relationship with Sam, but change was the only thing the team seemed to be able to count on in recent weeks. Now that he and Sam had made their decisions, it was only fair that Daniel and Teal'c hear everything straight from the horses' mouths. He plated the omelets and laid out the table as Daniel freshened everyone's coffee. This was as good a time as any to get everything out in the open.

He let everyone get settled at the table and tuck into their breakfasts before he started the "family meeting."

"Daniel, I know you've been wanting to go off to Atlantis and become Weir's pain in the...neck." He ignored the glare Daniel threw at him and continued. "And Teal'c, I know that Bratac has been after you to spend more time on Dakara and Chulack, so the timing couldn't be better for all of us." Daniel looked at Jack with curiosity as he began telling them about his and Sam's soon to be pending transfers from the SGC.

"Are you...you're sure? This is...wow...I mean...wow."

Jack grinned at his power to put Daniel at a loss for words. "We've talked it over, Daniel, we've covered all of the 'what ifs' and the 'maybes,' in depth. With everything else that's happened recently, this just feels right. We all need some normalcy in our lives. And, even though this plan has its faults, everything is falling into place to make this work. We still have to talk to the powers that be, but..."

"I am happy for you O'Neill." He turned to smile at the woman who'd become like his sister, "and for you as well, Colonel Carter. I wish great things for you. It has been an honor serving with you both and you will be missed."

"Look, it's not like we're never going to see each other again guys." She couldn't help the tears in her voice as she looked across the table at them. "We can visit."

Teal'c reached over and took her hand. "Indeed."

"So…" Daniel put down his fork and pushed his plate away. "What do we do now?"

"Now Daniel?" Jack winked at Sam across the table. "Now we go fishing."

Daniel and Teal'c volunteered to clear the breakfast dishes and clean up the kitchen while Jack and Sam headed outside. Knowing how they both felt about fishing, it was probably a stall tactic but Jack didn't care. He'd been outside earlier in the morning and had already set up two chairs at the edge of the dock. As they made their way to the water's edge, he motioned for Sam to sit.

He opened the tackle box next to him and pulled out one of his favorite lures. These were simple, merely worms, but he smiled as he thought of his grandfather and the summer he'd spent not only teaching him how to make different kinds of lures and flies, but also teaching him which colors and designs worked best for catching different kinds of fish. But today was about fishing, not catching fish.

Sam watched intently as he carefully tied the lure to the end of the fishing line, her gaze intense as she admired his skill and dexterity. She grinned at the long pink creature with which he'd adorned the end of her line.

Jack smiled back as he handed the pole over to her and picked up his own. Once it also held a lure, he showed her the best way to cast the line and slowly reel it in.

They sat alone in silence for several minutes, enjoying the quiet of the morning. She cast her line out into the pond, making sure she was far enough from his that she wouldn't get tangled as she slowly reeled it back in. It was amazing that something so simple could bring her so much peace.

For years he'd been trying to get her to come here, and it had saddened her when she'd said no one too many times and the invitations stopped. Their lives never seemed to sync in such a way as to allow them this simple pleasure, any pleasure really. They'd both tried to find something with other people, some kind of connection that could rival this universal pull they had toward one another, but in all the years they'd known one another, neither had been very lucky when it came to love.

She glanced over at him leaning back in his chair, legs crossed at the ankles, cap blocking out the rays of the early morning sun. She'd never seen him so content. She'd seen him laughing, smiling, but never so relaxed, so free in movement and expression, so...outwardly honest with his emotions.

When Sam finally spoke, he could hear her own mix of emotions in her voice.

"This is great."

He couldn't hide his grin. "I told you."

"I can't believe we didn't do this years ago." She was still kicking herself over the amount of time it had taken to finally accept the invitation.

Biting his tongue against saying anything more blaming, even in fun, Jack simply looked at her with incredulity. "Yes, well, let's not dwell."

She cast her line out once again. "There are no fish in this pond are there?"

"Nope."

She giggled and smiled at him as she reeled the line back in.

He cast his own back into the pond. "Nice!"

Jack glanced behind them and saw Daniel and Teal'c come around the corner from the front of the cabin carrying a cooler and two more lawn chairs. Though they each carried their own fishing pole, it was clear by the way they set their chairs on the embankment, that they had no real intention of fishing. They set the cooler down and Daniel opened it, taking three beers over to the dock. He opened them one-by-one before handing them to his friends and raising his own in a toast.

"To what's to come."

TBC