Jack stood in his office, geared up and ready to go. The puddle jumper had been moved into the gateroom and was at that very moment being loaded with everything they may need. Jack reached down and tidied some of the papers, wishing he could make the unsightly mounds just disappear. From just behind him, somebody cleared their throat, saying, "Hello, Jack."
General O'Neill jumped, spinning to greet the voice. "General Hammond," he said, surprised. "I just left a message..."
"I know, son. I hitched a ride over with the Daedalus."
"Ah," he replied, remembering the Asgard beaming technology aboard the new ship. "Well, Sir, we're just about ready to ship out. I was just..." He gestured absently towards his desk, wincing slightly.
"Trying to hide your overdue reports?," Hammond guessed, with a chuckle.
"Something like that, Sir," Jack replied. Hammond smiled fondly, walking from the cluttered office that had once been his. Jack followed, stopping abruptly when Hammond paused at the window overlooking the embarkation room.
"Is that the girl?," he asked, nodding towards Mia. Dressed in BDUs like the rest, with her hair knotted up using thin leather bands, Jack marvelled at how easily General Hammond had picked her out of the growing crowd down in the gateroom. From this angle, she could pass for any number of young air force personnel. "Yes," he replied, watching as Jonas handed her a sheaf of paper to review, smiling that big, goofy grin of his. Mia smiled back, responding, and Jonas chuckled. Jack had to suppress the urge to go down and separate them as Hammond asked, "Have you decided what you're going to do about her?"
Jack sighed. "No, Sir," he replied honestly. Although at the moment, assigning her with an all-female guard seemed like a pretty good idea to him. Following Jack's gaze back to the girl in question, Hammond chuckled. "She seems to have caught our Mr. Quinn's attention."
"He's not the only one," O'Neill replied tightly. "She was on a first-name basis with one of the SFs within two days of her arrival," he explained, much to Hammond's amusement.
"Well, now you know how Jacob Carter felt every time he came to the SGC," laughed Hammond.
"I beg your pardon, Sir?," Jack replied, genuinely taken aback. Hammond chuckled again. "You and Colonel Carter have walked a fine line over the years," Hammond replied simply. "It was more than enough to give any father sleepless nights, myself included." He shook his head ruefully, meeting Jack's gaze.
"Jacob was a very good friend of mine," he continued. "It was his dying wish that I find some way to give Samantha what she wanted most."
"The transfer, Sir?," asked Jack, understanding suddenly dawning. Hammond nodded, more serious than before. "Head of Stargate Research seemed like a suitable alternative to active duty, and it would give you the opening you've been waiting for..."
"I sense a 'but,' Sir," replied Jack, shifting uncomfortably. Hammond nodded. "I'm set to retire next month, son," he drawled, steeling himself for what he would have to say next. "The choice for my replacement was entirely out of my hands."
"Sir?"
"You're at the top of the list, Jack," he confirmed.
Jack closed his eyes, fighting the swell of emotion threatening to overwhelm him. "If I take this promotion..."
"Then it won't matter where she transfers to. Your jurisdiction would cover everything in her area of expertise: the SGC, Atlantis, the X-302 and 303 projects,..."
"And Stargate Research at Area 51," Jack finished numbly. "And if I don't accept..."
"The next name on the list was one Major General Henry Bauer."
"Ugh," groaned Jack, dropping his head to the plate-glass window.
"Nothing has been made official as of yet," said Hammond reassuringly. "Ultimately it's out of my hands, but the least I can do is buy you some time to work things out."
"Sir?"
"Weigh your options, Jack."
"With all due respect, Sir, I wouldn't trust Bauer with the fate of the latrine, much less the planet. I'm not really seeing a whole lot of options here."
Hammond chuckled humourlessly. "Talk to Sam, then. Work something out. And remember, son, with the Goaul'd out of the way now, there shouldn't be as much danger to Earth anymore."
"That is, until something worse comes along to fill the power vacuum they left behind, Sir," Jack replied with a sullen bite to his tone.
General George Hammond had no response to that. He had seen too much in his career to simply brush Jack's concerns aside. Eyeing his brooding friend sympathetically, Hammond at last interrupted the younger man's thoughts, saying gently, "Go bring your team home, son."
"Yes, Sir," replied Jack with more feeling, pushing the weight of their conversation to the back of his mind. There would be time to worry about that later. For now, he had a mission to focus on, and his family to save.
"And Jack?," called Hammond as his friend was about to leave the room.
"Yes, Sir?," he replied cautiously.
"It's not often we're given a second chance. Let her know you care," he said sagely, nodding towards Mia down below.
"Yes, Sir," replied O'Neill, closing the door softly behind him.
A/N: Sorry if it seems I'm dragging the ending out...I swear it's not intentional, there are just a lot of things I'd like to cover...