AN: Happy 4th of July to my American readers! Because of the holiday I have today off and not my usual day so you get a new Fate story a little early this week. Don't eat too much BBQ.

al-Tabadil - Permutations

Day tripper

The doorbell rang at 0700 and Wil grumbled ungraciously while admonishing Ginny to stop barking. She obeyed after a final enthusiastic yap. Last night he had watched Mare and the kids as they brought in a giant batch of the elderberries which they left soaking in the big farmhouse sink in the kitchen. Then, he was woken up from a sound sleep this morning, at the crack of dawn, when his wife and said kids had gotten up to start stripping the said elderberries from their stems. He thought about going back to bed, but Ginny had pestered and barked at him, wanting a morning walk soon after, which meant he wasn't going back to bed any time soon.

Damnit, he'd retired so he could sleep in. Possibly golf a little with some of the other SGC retirees. With his own boys having grown up and with families of their own, he was definitely on board with fostering a teen when Mare had brought it up. But there were some days that he felt a bit like Matthew Cuthbert when he requested a boy and received a chatty slightly neurotic girl instead who was accompanied by said boy. But he knew he wouldn't trade his adopted daughter for the world or her boyfriend even knowing he was essentially raising a pair of adults in some ways. He laughed to himself, but then, he'd never thought Jack and Sam were all that grown up when he worked with them. Even so, there were times he sure would like the house to be a tad quieter.

"I'm coming. I'm coming." He grumbled and scrubbed at his unshaven grizzled face with his hand wearily.

The sight that greeted him when he opened the door was a tired looking Samantha Carter sporting a hopeful smile. "I'm sorry to wake you, Wil. My flight just got in. I wasn't even sure they would grant me my off-rota time."

Wil nodded dumbly at his former boss' wife. "Suppose you're here to see the kids?"

"Momma!" A tiny voice shrieked and barreled past him. Ginny resumed her excited barking and hopping when she recognized the voice at the door.

Wil sighed dramatically. He supposed he could take a nap later. The chaos in his house was unlikely to die down any time soon. He stared morosely at the hall clock.

Sam grinned and swooped up her daughter for enthusiastic hugs and kisses while Ginny excitedly jumping against her leg for attention. "I missed you," she said, hugging Gracie fiercely, pressing her nose against her daughter's neck, relishing her daughter's special scent before reaching down and scratching the dog behind her ears

"Missed you too!" Gracie said loudly, unable to be quiet in her excitement. "Nana is making medicine. Sammy and Jon are helping." She informed her mother.

"Medicine?" Sam asked in confusion, adjusting her daughter's weight against her.

Wil shrugged. "Mare usually takes the boys to a farm she's friendly with to cut elderberries to make tonic. It's good for colds and the flu."

Sam gave him an enquiring look, knowing Wil would eventually finish his explanation in his own rambling but endearing fashion.

"No school for the kids yesterday and Monday. Teacher workdays." He led her through the house towards the kitchen. "So she took Jon and Sammy with her instead of the boys. Mare's happy since she's getting four days of free labor out of the kids." he told her, stifling a yawn. "They're in the kitchen now, stripping berries off the stems so Mare can start the syrup over the long weekend."

"Ah," Sam said, not entirely understanding what was going on but accepting the explanation at face value. "I don't mean to rush anyone. But I was hoping to take Gracie to DC for a few days to see Jack." She said, following him through the house until Wil stopped at the entry to the kitchen for a cup of coffee.

"That's no problem. I'll help you pack some things for her. What time is your flight?"

"Noon."

Wil nodded. "Do you need a ride to the airport or base?"

She nodded. "I'd appreciate that actually. We can drop my car off at the house so it's not taking up space in front of yours." Stepping into the kitchen, she saw Mare watching over Sammy and Jon who were studiously stripping miniature berries into a huge plastic bowl that was clearly stained purple by many years of berries juice already imbedded in it. Turning to the teens, she greeted them with a smile. "Hi guys."

"'Sup." Jon said absently, focusing on the tedious task of pulling berries off without breaking the delicate stems to which they were attached. He grumbled a frustrated 'gah' under his breath when he failed and had to pick up a group of berries and, carefully, individually pluck them off.

Sam chuckled. It was easy to forget this boy was her husband until he did things so inherently Jack-like that it was undeniable.

"Hey." Sammy said with a flash of a grin and not missing a beat stripping the berries.

Mare smiled. "Good morning, Sam. Have you come to help?"

Sam shook her head. "This looks fun but, sorry, I just came to get Gracie so she could see her dad for a few days. We fly out at noon."

Mare nodded and wiped her hands. "We'll save you some jam." She promised and handed Sam one of the English muffins on the kitchen table slathered with dark purple jam. "I know you haven't eaten." She admonished the younger woman who accepted the muffin with one hand as she expertly shifted her daughter's weight to her other side.

"Thanks." Sam said with a dimpled grin that turned to surprise then incredible pleasure once she got a taste of the jam. "Wow. How did I not know about this?"

"You pretty much can only get it at farmers' markets. It's labor intensive to make so big manufacturers aren't going to bother making it. Mine is a side product of the tonic I make anyway. I'll save you a bottle of that too now that Gracie is in school and is starting to catch every sniffle going around." she said with a twinkle in her eye. "And sharing it with grandpa mostly."

Sam chuckled. "Sorry about that."

"It was fully expected." Mare said, dismissing Sam's concern that she was asking too much of her clone's adoptive parents. "I've raised plenty of babies. I remember the chronic preschool sniffles." She told the other woman. "Besides, lovely as your friend Vala is, I don't think her job is conducive to raising a baby right now."

Sam chuckled. Vala and Daniel were still trying to figure out their relationship as it was. They didn't need being babysitters added to the mix.

Sammy and Jon gave each other furtive looks at the mention of Vala. Wil noticed it but didn't say anything. Whatever they were up to, they clearly didn't want Sam to know. He wondered if it had anything to do with the phone call the other night when Sammy told them she would be getting home late.

"Why don't I go pack some things for Gracie while you catch up with Mare and the kids." Wil suggested and left the kitchen.

Mare watched him with a thoughtful frown before turning her attention to Jon and correcting his technique slightly.

"Are we going to see daddy?" Gracie asked hopefully to Sam, as she bounced in her mother's arms.

"We are. Are you excited?" Sam asked her.

"YES!" Gracie shrieked at full volume right in her mom's ear.

Sam winced slightly which made Jon and Sammy chuckle. "We should have warned you." He told her unrepentantly.

"Thanks." Sam answered, her tone sarcastic.

Sammy snickered.

"How is the play coming?" Sam asked once her ears stopped ringing.

"They adlib their lines fifty percent of the time." Mare informed her, with a hint of laughter in her voice.

Sam laughed. "I'm not surprised. We spent so many years just making it up as we went along that following a script is probably a challenge. Is the talent show going better?" The last she'd heard they were struggling to find material that wouldn't get rejected for being sex or drug related somehow.

"Some." Sammy replied absently, concentrating on her work. "Heather found a really good current song for us to play; we figured Journey is always a hit."

Sam nodded. There were plenty of Journey songs that were just 'feel good' fun.

"We tried to talk the guys into Jazz, but they shot us down." Sammy complained.

"It would take too long to figure out how to work in the electric guitar for the genre." Jon reminded her. "It's not that we couldn't do it. How would we explain that level of musical knowledge to them?"

Sammy grunted dismissively. "Natural talent." She said and stuck her tongue out at him.

Sam chuckled at her younger self. "I'm pretty sure they wouldn't fall for it."

"I tried to show them Jack's band audition." Sammy said with an evil grin.

Sam laughed. "How do you plan to explain to your friends that Jon just happens to look exactly like his 'uncle' only with shorter hair?"

"Genetics." Sammy said with a dismissive shrug.

Mare laughed. "Jon stopped her before she could do it anyway."

"I told her Jack would kill us." Jon said absently.

"He's not wrong." Sam admonished her other self. "Besides, you two don't need to be breaking into the house unless it's an emergency. I still don't know what happened to my pillowcases and I don't think I want to know." she said, assuming the worst.

"Is that what you used to make Gracie's rag doll? No wonder she never puts it down." Mare said with a chuckle.

"What?" Sam asked, now thoroughly confused.

"Whenever you are on rotation and Gracie is here, she drags around this tatty rag doll Sammy made her and refuses to let me wash it." Mare said.

"I made it when you and Jack were missing. She was scared and your pillowcases smelled like you guys." Sammy told Sam with an absent shrug.

"Aw. That's really sweet." Sam said, her eyes stinging a little.

"So, now every time you are gone for any length of time, she digs it out and won't let go of it." Mare supplied.

Sammy shrugged again. "She was inconsolable. I had to do something."

Sam reached over and ruffled Sammy's hair affectionately. "At least they went to a good cause. I thought you guys did something weird with them."

Jon snorted in mirth.

Sammy kicked him under the table, and he grunted in pain but kept his mouth shut just like he used to in briefings.

Sam laughed. "Some things never change."

"Never will, Carter." Jon mumbled as he grabbed another bunch of berries to pluck.

Sam chuckled and shook her head.

Wil chose that moment to return with Grace's bag of clothing. "I know you have stuff in DC but she's got a couple of favorite outfits she likes to wear here." Wil explained.

"Do not." Gracie objected.

"Do too." Sammy and Jon chimed together, making Mare laugh.

"She's turning into Daniel." Sam mused out loud.