Jack was never in the habit of getting the gateroom early before leaving for missions, but Sam was, so Jack arrived at the same time she usually did. Although playing dumb was his favorite thing ever, he was not a stupid man, and he knew when someone was trying to avoid him. But he couldn't figure out why.

There was no Sam in sight. She strode into the gateroom at the last possible minute, after Daniel and Teal'c had already arrived. She carefully avoided Jack's eyes.

He forced her hand and walked right up to her, borderline to invading her personal space.

"Hey, Carter." He stared her down, knowing his anger was evident in his voice.

Sam knew he was angry for ignoring him, and she knew he had no idea why, but she couldn't help herself. She managed to look up at him, inwardly flinching at the anger she knew she would find there.

So she was very surprised to see hurt there as well. Expertly disguised pain, hidden well, but not well enough to escape her notice. Then she hated herself for her treatment of him these past several days. "Good Morning, Sir."

For a few moments they just stared at each other. Jack finally opened his mouth to say something else, when the Gate roared to life.

"SG1, you have a go," boomed Hammond over the loudspeaker from the control room. Sam forced herself away from his gaze.

Arriving back on Gelna, they found themselves face to face with Jornan, the planet's leader, and a small contingent. Jornan was roughly middle aged, with brown hair and piercing green eyes that would've been lovely if not for the rage that shone in them.

"Jornan, old buddy!" Jack said jovially as the gate died out behind them. He walked forward to Jornan and did their culture's version of a handshake - he placed his left hand on Jornan's right shoulder and waited for him to do the same.

Jornan met Jack's gaze disdainfully and did not return the gesture. "Welcome," he said unwelcomingly. "We will be ready for the ceremony shortly." He spun on his heel and left, leaving Jack's outstretched arm hanging in midair.

Jack put his arm down and looked at Daniel with raised eyebrows. "Did I do it wrong?" he mouthed.

Daniel shook his head. He was a little disappointed that Jornan wasn't as responsive. This was the first time in his recent memory that Jack really paid attention to the customs and really tried to follow instructions to the letter. It was a shame that his first honest attempt was met with indifference, bordering on rudeness.

Jornan had left his assistant, Tanjin, standing there as well. After a brief, awkward silence, the little man cleared his throat. "I apologize for my lord. He is unwell today."

"Should we do this another time?" Jack asked hopefully.

"No, now is the appropriate time. Please follow me." He turned and headed down a long hallway, and SG1, after a few uncertain glances toward each other, followed him.

The hallway was dimly lit, with luxurious red carpet and portraits all along the wall. Sam, at the end of the group with Jack, squinted, and promptly tripped.

Her face was inelegantly on its way to an up-close and personal meeting with the floor when Jack pitched forward and caught her. The carpet absorbed the sound so well that Tanjin, Daniel, and Teal'c left them behind, oblivious.

"Sorry, Sir," Sam said, red-faced.

Jack chuckled. "No problem, Carter." He set her upright, his hand lingering a little too long around her waist. His other hand held hers.

Sam steadied herself and began to walk, and Jack kept hold of her hand. She looked over at him, surprised. He held her gaze, barely able to breathe. He searched the blue eyes he knew so well, looking for a hint of resistance. There was surprise there, and a little anxiety - probably about regs or some shit - but then she smiled. Jack was able to breathe again.

And then she dropped his hand. Jack knew when he was seeing an emotional wall go up - he was the resident expert on that. He stared her down. She looked away and hurried to catch up with the group. What was going on? Jack balled his hands into fists. It was preferable to channel the emotion that way.

Tanjin abruptly stopped and Teal'c nearly ran into him. Tanjin spun around, looked as surprised as Teal'c, and regained his composure. He gestured toward a grand doorway on the right. "This is the place of The Joining."

All down the hallway they had traveled, they looked at the portraits of various people. Most had been run-of-the-mill, uninteresting - except for the one across the hallway from the door into which they were about to enter. All eyes landed on the painting.

She was a stunningly beautiful woman. Long, dark, luxurious hair fell in gentle waves around her face. Large, deep brown eyes stared out at them, seeming to watch them. She was dressed in rich red robes, and her full mouth looked slightly sad.

"Who's the babe?" Jack asked without thinking.

The answer was a low, threatening snarl. The group spun around to see Jornan advancing quickly. He barreled up until he was mere inches from Jack's face. Jack held his ground.

"She," snarled Jornan, "is none of your concern."

But behind the intense anger, Jack saw intense pain, and he decided to drop the matter. He threw a reassuring glance to Sam, who had unconsciously geared up for a fight.

"My apologies," Jack said, pleasantly surprised at how diplomatic he sounded.

Jornan continued to stare for a moment longer, then spun and flounced into the door Tanjin had still been holding open. "On with The Joining," he growled, disappearing from sight and earshot.

"The Joining? It's called The Joining? Just what the hell kind of joining are we talking about here?" Jack was appalled. He threw Daniel a near-murderous look. The young archeologist had not mentioned anything about this.

Daniel held up his hands. "They wouldn't tell me much about the ceremony."

Tanjin opened the door and gestured for SG1 to enter. Jack felt his worst fears had been confirmed. Soft, gentle music played and candles were lit everywhere, similar to when Teal'c practiced Kel Noreem.

"See Jack?" Daniel said, slapping him on the back. "Nothing here for you to worry about. Look... There's romantic music and mood lighting all set up for when you join with Jornan." He couldn't quite finish that last sentence without laughing. Sam bit her lip and even Teal'c looked amused.

Jornan was standing by an altar at the back of the room, staring strangely at two crystals seated on top of it. They glimmered innocently in the soft light. Still somewhat horrified, Jack threw a backward glance at his friends and walked uncertainly to the other side of the altar.

Jornan picked up one of the crystals and held it thoughtfully. "These are very rare," he said softly, not looking at Jack. His eyes were almost reverent. "They have been in the Gelnan Royal Family for generations. I had another pair, but -" his expression hardened.

"No matter," he snapped at Jack, as if he had been the one to bring it up. He gestured for Jack to pick up the other crystal. "Now," he barked, and Jack gritted his teeth.

"Alright, fine. Let's get this party started."

Gingerly picking up the other crystal, Jack looked at Jornan, having no idea what the hell to do next. Jornan held the crystal out before him, and it started to softly glow a deep red. Astonished, Jack looked to his friends. Daniel gestured.

Jack held his crystal out to Jornan in the same manner, and it glowed a deep blue. Jornan smiled, his grin a tad creepy, and touched his crystal to Jack's.

Jack heard Sam gasp. An unexpected heat burst in his core and he was thrown off balance. Jornan didn't look surprised when Jack fell to the floor. In fact, if Jack didn't know better (and maybe he didn't know better) he could've sworn the man looked triumphant. A blast of light temporarily relieved Jack of his vision.

His last memory before losing consciousness was Sam softly cradling after she caught him.

* * *

Jack's next memory was of waking up in one of the opulent rooms in Jornan's house. He looked to his side and saw Sam in the chair next to the bed. She was curled up on the small chair, fast asleep, with a blanket drawn around her shoulders. Jack stopped trying to move and just took in the sight. He so rarely got the chance to just look at her.

He loved that face. Calm and unguarded in sleep, framed by blonde tendrils that looked damn near angelic. One rogue curl was threatening to cover her eyes. Jack resisted the urge to reach out and tuck it behind her ear.

The moment ended too soon when Sam stirred and opened two brilliant blue eyes. Surprised chased away the sleepiness when she saw he was awake. "Sir," she said, shaking the vestiges of sleep from her voice. "How are you feeling?"

He actually felt fine. "What the hell happened? How long was I out?"

"Two hours."

"Two hours?" he repeated disbelievingly.

"Something happened during The Joining. Looked like some sort of energy transfer, Sir. I can't quite explain it, but it didn't look like Jornan was surprised. Whatever it was, there's something he's not telling us."

"Well, that's peachy," Jack murmured.

"Are you feeling okay? You gave us quite a scare, Sir," Sam reached over with one slim hand and pressed it gently against his forehead. The gesture was surprisingly intimate, and Jack closed his eyes.

"I feel a little warm," Jack lied, hoping she'd keep her hand there. She did, and he noticed that it stayed a little longer than necessary. Before he could change his mind, Jack reached up and captured her hand in his. And before she could react, he brought it to his lips and kissed it gently.

Jack was pretty sure Sam had stopped breathing. Don't pull away, don't pull away, he willed, and she didn't. He was too afraid to look at her, so instead he closed his eyes. He repressed a smile of triumph when the hand he was holding began to gently stoke his hand back.

"Sir," Sam whispered.

"Shhhh... It's you and me here. I prefer 'Jack'."

"Sir - "

"Jack," he repeated, eyes still closed. When she hesitated, he opened his eyes. "Just say it," he whispered hoarsely. "Please. Just one time." He was not used to asking for things. He gave orders. But at this moment, he bordered on begging.

Sam held his gaze. "Jack," she said softly. Her free hand stroked his temple.

His breath caught when she looked at him with those baby blue eyes. There was something there, and he couldn't tear himself away from it. "Jack," she said softly. "I -"

There was a knock at the door and Jack cursed inwardly. Sam removed her hand and stepped back as if she'd been bitten.