Sam groaned, lying still as she ascertained the extent of her injuries. She'd hit the ground hard, and skidded at least several inches before training kicked in and she'd turned the graceless slide into a roll, ending up sprawled on her stomach. Nothing felt broken, but several points radiated a raw, fiery pain, and an odd breezy feeling around her knees told her without even looking that the material there was likely torn. Her knees were one of the areas giving off pain signals, but she didn't think they were damaged seriously.
"Major Carter!" Teal'c was already by her side, forgetting her public name as he gently turned her over.
"Ow," she said reflexively, more from surprise than from any pain. She reflexively drew her right arm against her body, fingers encountering tender, raw skin, though not the tacky sensation of bleeding. Her knees were another story though, and she winced as she saw the oozing visible through the nearly identical tears in her jeans.
Teal'c of course took immediate note of the gaping material and blood as well the way she had supported her arm. "You are injured," he declared, and then before she could protest, slid his arms around her, scooping her up off the ground and cradling her carefully against his broad chest.
"Teal'c! Ow, what are you doing?" she complained automatically. "I can walk, I'm fine. It's just scrapes and a few bruises, that's all." But her objections fell on deaf ears. Teal'c's face was grim as he jogged back over to where the rest of SG-1 was tossing the Frisbee back and forth. Sam dropped her head against the man's large muscled shoulder with a sigh as he shouted to alert the other men. "O'Neill, come quickly," he called, making a beeline toward some nearby picnic tables. "Major Carter is injured!"
The Frisbee flew ignored over Daniel's head as both men came running. They arrived as Teal'c settled her on the tabletop like she was something fragile that might break even more. "I'll get the first aid kit," cried Daniel, and Jack tossed him the keys without breaking stride.
"I'm fine, I just scraped my knees and bruised my arm, nothing terrible," Sam protested as Jack arrived at the table, but the Colonel had a no-nonsense look in his eyes that she recognized all too well.
"Let me be the judge of that," he told her gruffly. "Now, where does it hurt?" he demanded.
She sighed in defeat. "Knees, my right arm, and left palm," she reported resignedly. Jack made a quick but thorough assessment of each of the problem areas, making her demonstrate range of motion before he agreed with her early evaluation. Teal'c hovered anxiously, and Daniel arrived panting as Jack straightened.
"Is she ok?" Daniel puffed out to Jack, clutching the emergency kit.
"I'm fine," Sam answered testily, "Thanks for asking me," she snapped, tired of being ignored and fussed over like she couldn't handle such minor injuries. She'd suffered much worse in the line of duty. They were all treating her like a, well, child. She regretted her sharp words instantly though as Daniel looked confused and a little guilty. Flushing, she looked down at her lap, biting her lower lip.
Jack gave her a curious look, and turned to Teal'c. "What happened, T?"
"I pushed Major Carter with more force than I intended, leading to her fall," Teal'c admitted remorsefully.
"Teal'c, you were supposed to push her on the swing, not off it," Jack answered automatically in exasperation. Teal'c nodded in agreement, looking thoroughly dejected.
"It wasn't his fault. Teal'c, I heard you stumble," Sam protested, lifting her head, feeling the need to defend the man and wanting to show him she didn't blame him for what had happened.
"Your fall would have been prevented had I acted with more care," Teal'c told her solemnly, brushing off her attempt at making him feel better.
Jack immediately looked regretful about his quick retort, and went to the man's side, clapping the man apologetically on the shoulder. "Teal'c buddy, accidents happen to the best of us," he said, turning the other man away from the group and leading him towards the picnic blanket, obviously intending to give the big guy a pep talk.
Sam lost the reply Teal'c made as they walked away. She looked down at her scraped palm with another sigh, trying to rub some of the grit out of the superficial scratches, wincing slightly as fingers came in contact with the tender skin there. Everything had been going so well, and just like that, it completely unraveled in one blink of the eye. She was starting to think it was a lot harder being a kid than any of them had imagined.
"Here, let me," spoke Daniel, taking the seat next to her legs and making her look up from her contemplations. He gathered her small hand in one of his; cleaning it carefully with the antiseptic towelette he'd taken from the kit. Despite his gentleness, she still hissed involuntarily as the tiny scrapes stung.
Daniel's head shot up. "Sorry," he told her, his blue eyes full of concern.
"I'm the one who's sorry Daniel," she told him as he started on the long raw contusion on the underside of her right arm. That injury, though minor, was still scratched and bruised and would probably be tender for a few days. She sucked in another breath at the sting the antiseptic caused in the abrasion, and then rushed on. "I shouldn't have snapped at you."
Looking up from her arm briefly and giving her a lopsided grin, he replied, "It's understandable." Setting the used wipes aside, Daniel opened some more, nimbly lifting the torn fabric of her jeans away from the wounds on her knees. The scrape on her right knee was still oozing sluggishly, while the one on the left had already formed a thin scab, both held bits of dirt and grit, and she knew Daniel would be meticulous in their care.
"Still," Sam argued, tying to ignore the minor discomforts as her teammate tended her small wounds, "I shouldn't have done it." She bit her lip, going stiff as he cleaned the deeper of the two scrapes. When he finished, he removed some band-aids from the kit, looking at her thoughtfully as he opened them, and then turned back to the kit and got out some antibiotic cream that he slathered generously on all open areas before he looked back up at her.
"We all have our moments Sam," he told her pointedly with impeccable logic. "I promise not to hold it against you, if you won't hold the next time I say something you don't like against me," he said, pointing out in his way that they'd both said or done things to the other over the years that they'd each regretted, and likely would in years to come. "Deal?" he asked, one eyebrow cocked as he offered her his hand.
She smiled in relief, some of the tension from earlier draining out of her small frame. "Deal," she replied, taking the hand with her uninjured one and giving it a firm shake. Daniel grinned as he put the band-aids in place on her knees and she grinned back as she hopped down from the table.
Gathering up the used supplies, Daniel tucked the kit under his arm and the two of them headed to where Teal'c and Jack had wandered over to retrieve the abandoned Frisbee.
Sam reacted instinctively as her commander expertly sent the disc flying in their direction, jumping up and catching the object before Daniel had time to react, encumbered as he was with the first aid kit. She reflexively sent it spinning back toward them but Teal'c moved to intercept. The big man had to take several quick steps forward to catch it first. By that time, Daniel had left the first aid kit with their belongings and waved open hands, and Teal'c sent the Frisbee flying towards the man. Daniel just barely missed the catch, and by the time he'd retrieved the disc, Jack had moved far enough away from Teal'c to present a new target.
They spent the better part of the next hour tossing the Frisbee around. Sam found she had to make adjustments for her current height, but discovered that strength didn't make a lot of difference in gaining the right trajectory and distance. It was all in the wrist after all. Her injuries were negligible and did nothing to hamper her game. As a soldier, she was used to carrying on with much worse.
When they grew tired of the game and headed back to their blanket under the tree, Jack surprised them all by pulling several magazines and journals out of the backpack. He had something for each of them. No one was close enough to their group to notice that what Sam read wasn't for children, the pages filled with text and long technical jargon specific to her chosen field.
As the afternoon waned and the surrounding shadows lengthened, Daniel suggested dinner, and Teal'c made a request to visit the local movie theatre afterwards. Gathering their belongings, Jack requested a minor detour before they left the park. A slight gleam in his eyes, the man led the group back to the playground. The piece of equipment he led them to was currently empty of children.
"Just one slide Sam," Jack said with a wave of his arm, "and we can go." When she hesitated, the older man grinned charmingly. "Oh c'mon, you know you want to. If I wasn't too big, I'd join you."
Sam looked from the slide and back to her CO, who was practically glowing with boyish exuberance. The unusually long metal slide was built into a steep, natural slope. She vaguely remembered a similar slide near one of the bases she'd lived at as a child. In the end, she decided she had nothing to lose, and giving in would satisfy her commander much easier than an argument. She climbed the ladder, and after seating herself at the top, gave a push to get her going.
She'd never admit to anyone, but the slide had been another of her favorites when smaller, the longer and steeper the better. And so she was somewhat disappointed when her downward motion was sluggish, and she got partially stuck halfway, having to wriggle and rock her body to get herself all the way down where she got stuck again near the bottom. She decided to stand up and walk down the last few feet, jumping off at the end and dusting the seat of her pants.
Climbing the hill, Sam tried to hide her mild disappointment, after all the guys didn't need any further ammo. "It's filthy," she reported. "Kids must have been dumping sand on it and it hasn't rained enough to clear it." Despite her attempts, a note of complaint had crept into her voice.
Jack just grunted, squatting to dig for something in the backpack. "Here it is," he announced triumphantly, his hand emerging from the bag with a terry hand towel. "Go down sitting on this once or twice," he said, somehow making the suggestion sound like an order. Sam frowned slightly and Daniel looked surprised. Teal'c watched in open curiosity.
Saying nothing, Sam accepted the towel dubiously, and mounted the slide again. The second slide was much like the first, but when she looked up after reaching the bottom she could see metal shining through the dirty coating in a child sized track down the center of the slide. She shook the towel out, and trotted back, climbing the ladder again under her teammate's interested gazes. Honestly, she wasn't sure what was motivating her.
The second time with the towel had her moving much faster, and she made it all the way to the bottom in one smooth motion. This time when she rejoined her team she couldn't completely hide the slightly accomplished smile she gave them, and Jack presented her with something else he'd discovered in the bag, taking back the towel. "Here, try this," he suggested, a twinkle in his eye.
Sam held up the slightly wrinkled square, recognizing it as one of the wrappers from their lunch. "Wax paper?" she asked in puzzlement.
Jack just grinned. "You'll see," he answered, obviously amused she didn't immediately see the plan.
Her forehead wrinkled, Sam decided to keep humoring the man, sensing again that arguing would only prolong their stay. Once more, Sam went down the slide, this time on the paper. The paper seemed to slow her momentum slightly, but she was beginning to get an inkling of what the Colonel intended. To her teammate's obvious amusement she made a second run, like she'd done with the towel, and saw to her satisfaction that the clear path she'd made with her trips now gleamed in the late afternoon sun.
When she'd rejoined her team at the top of the slide, Jack held out a hand for the wax paper, unable to completely hide a faint look of wistfulness. While the slide was wide for someone at Sam's current size, it was on the narrow side for a full-grown adult body. "Ok, Sam, just one more time, and we can go if you want," he promised, his gaze moving nostalgically to the slide.
Sam wrinkled her nose, but she wasn't about to tell him that she'd intended to go at least once more. After all, why do all the work cleaning the slide if she didn't intend to use it again? This time, the trip was much more satisfying, and she rocketed down the slide, instinctively holding her hands out to the sides to better feel the wind rush around her body. She came flying off the end, expertly landing on her feet and knowing she was grinning but not caring. She jogged back, and without saying anything, climbed the ladder again. Her team was no doubt staring at her in astonishment, but the thought of one more trip was too tempting to resist. Besides, the slide really brought back a lot of memories, which would no doubt be helpful in developing the role she was to play on the upcoming mission. At least that's what she told herself as she whooshed past her stunned teammates.
"You sure you don't want to go down once more?" Jack asked temptingly when she'd rejoined them and started toward the truck rather than back to the slide. Sam couldn't resist one last look at the slide, hesitating. Several children, attracted by her repeated trips on the slide had lined up for their turns, and one child was already speeding gleefully downward. "We can wait," he further tempted, all three men looking amused.
"Well, ok," Sam agreed, pretending reluctance, and jogging over to join the rapidly growing line before she could change her mind. The third trip was just as exhilarating as the others had been, perhaps even faster as the ramp had been cleared even further from the additional bodies using it. Still… "Let's go guys, I'm starving," she announced as she returned to the rest of her group. They headed back towards the parking lot.
Looking over his shoulder at the now popular attraction behind them, Daniel frowned slightly. "Jack, I can't believe you had Sam wax the slide," he said, shifting the bag he carried.
Jack just shrugged, "We used to do it all the time with bread wrappers when my brothers and I were kids."
"Only you, Jack," Daniel muttered, "Only you."
"What?" protested the older man automatically with a slightly reflective look, "The other kids loved it," he defended.
"It seems a most enjoyable activity," observed Teal'c thoughtfully.
Sam smiled, suddenly feeling absurdly pleased with the outcome of the day despite it's few ups and downs… literally! "Oh, it is Teal'c," she told the big man truthfully, and Teal'c inclined his head towards her in acknowledgement.
"More fun than swinging?" asked Jack cheerfully, pouncing on her admission.
"Maybe," answered Sam somewhat sheepishly, ducking her head and entwining her arms and fingers with a little shrug as they came to a halt by the truck.
There was some more good-natured teasing as they loaded up the truck and drove to a nearby restaurant, but Sam didn't really mind. After all, how could she take it personally when the Colonel seemed to genuinely think they should build a playground big enough for adults to join in on? And then Daniel had added that he thought such an idea would be greatly popular among military families especially. Teal'c had joined in with comments about a place he'd read about in Baltimore, where the multi-story indoor gymnasium was built large enough that parents were actually encouraged to enter it with their children. The drive seemed much shorter with the spirited discussion, and even Sam found herself contributing to the conversation as they pulled up outside their destination.
This time at the restaurant, she didn't protest being given the kid's menu, and even played one of the games with Daniel who was sitting across the table from her. Teal'c, seated beside her, made sure he held his menu so that she could look it as well, but she surprised all of them when she ordered something from her own menu.
"I probably wouldn't be able to finish the full sized meal anyway," she explained with a half shrug after the waitress left to put in their requests. She took a sip of her diet coke as the guys blinked, and conversation resumed.
After their meal, they headed to the theatre. Looking over the various attractions showing, Sam and Teal'c both gravitated towards a poster for a recently released action packed blockbuster. Trailing behind them, Jack coughed, and tapped a finger against the glass, drawing their attention to the R-rating for excessive violence as well as language and sexual scenes. Sam colored as she realized that it might look a little odd for a five year old to attend the show. Not that it was unheard of, but none of them wanted to give that sort of impression.
Daniel pointed to an alternate show that Jack immediately rejected as being too dull. After a few more ideas, they finally all agreed on a comedy with a family friendly rating.
Stopping at the concession stand, they picked up popcorn, drinks, and candy. Sam reluctantly asked for ice water and eschewed the candy, deciding to heed Janet's warning about consuming too much caffeine and sugar.
As the movie played though, she wished she'd at least gotten a soda. Despite the amusing nature of the film, the dark theatre made her sleepy. Before long, fatigue won out and she fell asleep, her head resting against Teal'c's arm. She barely registered when the lights came up, only managing to protest sleepily when Teal'c gathered her up. Her objection proved pointless when she couldn't even hold her own head up, letting it rest against Teal'c as she dozed on the walk back to the truck. She roused enough to help the man with the booster seat restraints, and promptly fell back to sleep.
This time, when they got back to base, Sam woke, and was able to follow the guys in under her own power despite needing a little help from Daniel to untangle herself from the seat, limbs uncooperative with unaccustomed fatigue. General Hammond met them as they got off the elevator, looking like he was on his way out. His sharp eyes roved over each of them automatically, taking in their appearance as if to check for injury or anything amiss. His eyes lingered on her torn and dirty jeans, but he seemed satisfied when none of them looked worried or more than tired.
"SG-1," he greeted them. "I'm glad I caught you. I've been meaning to let you know that I've asked Sergeant Nichols to help Dr. Jackson and Major Carter with their cover stories. The Sergeant has some experience teaching elementary school students from her internship before she decided to enlist full time in the Air Force. I've relieved Sergeant Nichols of her regular duties so she can devote herself full time to your mission."
"So she can work with Carter in the morning while Daniel is in his faculty meeting tomorrow, and help Daniel when his meeting is over," Jack summarized quickly.
"Exactly," Hammond agreed. "Good night people," he told them and SG-1 returned the greeting as Hammond stepped into the elevator.
Jack looked around at the rest of the team. "Daniel, if it's ok with you, Teal'c and I can drop you off tomorrow, so we can get a look at the school, as long as you don't mind walking a block or so. Carter can come with when we pick you up after she's done with her morning session with Sergeant Nichols."
Everyone agreed and then split up going their separate ways, and Sam took herself to her quarters, barely managing to change before she fell into bed.
A/N: So, how do you like SG-1's coping so far? As always, any feedback greatly appreciated!