Chapter 3: A Little Complication
The three men of SG-1 stared at their female teammate in shock. Jack knew they had all expected to feel surprise, maybe even awe at the transformation she would undergo, but they hadn't been prepared for what they now saw. The little girl that Janet and her medics fussed over didn't look a day over six and that was a stretch.
Dr. Lee bustled up. "Colonel, I can explain, you see…"
The dumpy man's words cut off as suddenly all the emotions raging through Jack's mind found a focus. Grabbing the front of the shorter man's jacket, he pulled him up so that their faces were mere inches apart. "Tell me what?" he bit out, "How you screwed up?"
"Jack!" he heard Daniel cry in shock, but ignored it in favor of glaring into the scientist's eyes.
"Uh well, um, you see..." Dr. Lee stammered helplessly, "Ah, our preliminary results show that actually sir, it um, well you see, err…" Jack tightened his grip, and the man squeaked out the last. "The program executed according to plan!"
Jack started in surprise at the answer. "Put him down, Jack, c'mon," encouraged Daniel taking advantage of the lull, "You don't want to do this."
At that, Jack blinked as if coming out of a trance, and then hastily thrust the doctor away from him. He flung out an arm and pointed. "That," he said with some emphasis, "was not in the plan!"
Dr. Lee turned instinctively to follow Jack's arm and winced. Janet and her two medics still knelt over the woman turned little girl, but had given up any pretense of disinterest and were watching the unfolding drama. Sam still lay as if merely sleeping. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, hair tussled, and one small arm was flung out, tiny hand half curled. Jack was seized by an instant fear. What if Dr. Lee had miscalculated on more than just age? As if sensing his thoughts turning again, Daniel stepped in front of him, neatly placing himself between Jack and the scientist. Teal'c also took a step closer, but at the younger man's look of reproach, Jack felt all his anger draining out of him, as quickly as it had come.
He sighed. "Sorry Doc," he apologized, scrubbing his hand through his hair. "What happened? Why is she so small?" he asked, looking around Daniel to see the scientist. Recognizing the danger past, Daniel moved out of the way. For his part, Dr. Lee still looked slightly terrified as he ran a nervous hand over his smooth forehead, fingers dancing over his receding hairline. Janet and her team went back to what they were doing, and some of the tension bled out of Teal'c's stance.
"I-I don't know for sure Colonel," Lee admitted hesitantly, he took a step back as Jack moved, but Jack was only pacing now.
"Take a best guess," he suggested, trying to be patient with the other man. Unlike Carter, this scientist had never learned to come to a direct point when the situation called for it.
Dr. Lee blinked, then frowned. "Well, I uh, that is to say… there was definitely a power surge," he reported hesitantly, "It, em, shorted out most of our equipment and started the electrical fire." He paused, adjusting his glasses. "We lost a good bit of data, but I might still, uh be able to salvage something." He trailed off as a far-away look entered his eyes.
"Power surge?" Jack asked, recognizing the look and trying to keep the man on track. "What caused it? And what about the fire? Did the machine come to any harm?"
The redirect worked. The other man was pulled back to the here and now. Growing more confident when he wasn't being threatened, Bill shook his head. "I don't know yet, but I mean to find out. I do know that the program was executed exactly like we'd intended."
"So you think Sam will still have her memories?" spoke Daniel, pouncing on the one small hope.
The scientist's short-lived confidence petered out. "I, uh, well, I think so," he said, taking a big step back away from the rest of SG-1 as the men stared at him in disbelief.
"You think so," Jack asked slowly, as if testing out the words.
"We'll soon find out," Janet interrupted briskly. "She's coming round," she reported.
All other concerns aside, everyone crowded around the small figure on the ground. As if sensing their scrutiny, Sam groaned, her face scrunching up as she moved restlessly.
"Sam, can you wake up for me honey?" Janet encouraged, concern for her friend slipping in under her professional calm. At the doctor's words, Sam cracked first one eye, and then the other open, blinking rapidly in the bright sun. She took in all the faces above her, brow still creased.
"Hey, Carter," Jack greeted. Daniel and Teal'c added their own greetings.
"Wha?" she whispered a little hoarsely, almost disguising the rather higher pitch her voice now had.
"Can you tell me where you are Sam?" Janet asked, getting right down to the question on all their minds.
Sam blinked again, squinting as if confused, and for a moment, Jack's heart stopped beating. In the next, it started right back up as if nothing had been amiss. "P35-437," she answered confidently, swallowing and frowning. "Did it work?" Before anyone could answer, she was holding up a hand in front of her face, opening and closing her fingers in fascination. Yep, that was Carter all right. Beside him, Daniel was grinning, and Teal'c looked both relieved and amused. Even Janet was smiling.
Looking at her though, Jack sobered. "Uh, Carter," he hemmed, hating to break the bad news.
Tearing her eyes from the wonder before her, she locked onto his face. "Sir?" she asked, forehead slightly furrowed.
Jack flinched, wondering how to put it. "There was a, uh, little glitch," he said, and winced at his choice of words.
Struggling to sit up, Sam was oblivious to her t-shirt sliding and baring one shoulder. "Oh no," she said, as she realized things felt wrong from what she had expected.
"Oh yes," Jack replied, and Sam swung a desperate look to Daniel.
With a grimace, Daniel answered the unspoken question. "Sorry Sam, you're a little, um, well, smaller than we'd intended," he said helplessly.
"How old do I look?" she asked, hands going to her face in dismay.
The three men exchanged glances over her head. "Five maybe. Six?" offered Daniel tentatively. He made a face.
"I'd say not much over five," Janet stated definitively.
Sam groaned, burying her face in her hands. "The mission!" she exclaimed, lifting up her head to look at them. "It's ruined, I'll never pass for twelve like this!"
Jack searched for something to say, when Teal'c spoke up. "Did Providence Day School not have a class for children of this age?" he asked.
"A kindergarten?" Daniel supplied and Teal'c nodded.
"What? You think I can still complete the mission like…like this?" Sam asked, unable to hide the disbelief in her tone.
"Are you not still Major Carter, despite your appearance?" Teal'c suggested pointedly.
"Teal'c is right, Sam. Tell her, Jack," said Daniel immediately.
Thinking about it, Jack realized the two men were correct. "I don't see why not, Carter."
"But…" she trailed off, unable to find an effective argument to her teammates' certainty.
"We'll be right there with you Carter, every step of the way," Jack reminded her.
"As fascinating as all this is," Janet broke in, "I really think we need to get Major Carter back to base."
Jack stood up, offering Sam a hand. "Sounds like a plan to me," he said, and then looked down at the small figure now standing next to him, her head barely clearing his waist. She sure was a lot smaller! "Maybe you should change first, Major," he suggested. The black t-shirt fell well to her knees, and one skinny shoulder still poked out the neck hole.
At his words, Sam hugged her arms around herself self-consciously. "Yes sir," she replied automatically, despite the incongruity of those words coming out of the mouth of a child. She craned her head back suddenly in surprise, looking from him to Daniel, Teal'c, and Janet. "Wow," she said, "You guys are a lot taller."
Jack laughed as Carter unconsciously mirrored his thoughts, and the rest joined in. No one bothered to point out the inaccuracy of her observation.
As he walked away though, after one more look at his suddenly reduced second in command, Jack realized that Sam wasn't the only one that would have to get used to the change in perspective.
A/N: See? Reviews really do make me post faster… Of course, I do hope that the eventual majority of responses isn't going to be about how evil I am… that might get depressing after a while!