Eleanor

We were gathered in the large conference room with five members of the IOA that Richard Woolsey had brought to discuss Stargate Command matters with. Apparently the Russians, once again, were finding it hard to believe that the American side of the pact was delegating impartially when going off world. Daniel was acting as translator between them all as General Hammond and Jack sat silently waiting for their turn to speak. I was shocked that I had been asked to join in on the meeting, mostly to take what notes I could for Daniel as he translated but also to give them a quick presentation of the database I had finished and would be up for their use in a matter of days. I had already explained that not only would it be a small field guide pre jump for cultural differences in earth customs to other planets, but an easy search engine for referencing points in past mission reports. They didn't seem as excited about it as I was, but it went over well enough.

Now, I was sitting watching lost but mesmerized while Daniel managed to effortlessly switch from Spanish to Russian to English and Chinese like it was nothing. He would listen to one member, speak to another, and repeat in English for everyone else to understand and I just sat looking equally as lost as Jack who was half asleep leaning back in his chair. I noticed the Chinese representative flashing Daniel little alluring looks completely unaware his fiance was sitting across the table from him. Each time I'd place a small tally on the left side of the page keeping my face perfectly placid. The Russian representative would often say something insulting to Jack, and on the right side I had made another collection of marks. After another hour of arguing the meeting adjourned and I collected my belongings. Daniel flashed a cheeky smile in my direction before leading the IOA members to a group luncheon. Hammond turned out the door with Jack, both mumbling about how this was a waste of time for them. I escaped back to my office and saw Jonas scrolling on my computer where I had left him this morning. From what I could tell he was reading Wikipedia entries as he spun around to greet me, a look of pure childlike wonder beaming from him.

"Do you know about the Roman Empire?" He blurted out.

"What about it?" I asked, setting my travel laptop back onto my desk and slipping my bag under.

"It's wild, absolutely fascinating. I've spent the last," he looked at the clock on the computer, "four hours? Yeah I guess so. Four hours reading about it."

"You know who surprisingly knows a lot about the Roman Empire? Jack O'Neill. He has a few books on his shelf in his office about them. The only ones that don't have dust. I bet he'd let you borrow them." I looked over at the computer and made a face. "I wouldn't trust everything you read on Wikipedia." I motioned for him to get out of my computer chair and slipped my loafers off, kicking them under my desk as well and gliding into my chair curling my feet under me.

"What were the highlights for the meeting?" He leaned against my desk and I pat the corner inviting him to take a seat. My office was too small to host any extra chairs with the additional bookshelves Daniel had brought in for me, no one came in for a meeting anyway. If I did have to meet with someone it was often a large setting or one on one in their respective office.

"Well, the Russian emissary said Jack was a pigheaded idiot, his words not mine, seven times. The Chinese emissary made eyes at Daniel nine times. Jack fell asleep twice, and nothing was resolved." I handed him the pad of notes and he flipped through with a confused look back.

"Made eyes?" I often forgot that he was not fully used to every earthly turn of phrase and it took a moment for me to figure out a polite way to word it.

"When someone gives flirtatious glances at you, in an obvious way usually. They want you to know with body language that they want you. Making eyes is the polite way to say it." I tapped my pen on the desk and glanced over at my computer once more. "I guess you could look it up on Wikipedia the next meeting I'm in."

"My chancellor back home wants to set something like this up with planets we travel through gates with. I cannot imagine a worse idea if these are the politicos they send as representatives."

"I assume they'll send Woolsey then for Earth. That or possibly Daniel. But, I doubt the IOA will want Daniel to be honest. He's too military for them, even though he's not military." I pulled out my lunch sack and offered him half my sandwich from home. Surprisingly Jonas denied it, but then I remembered there were meatball subs in the mess hall today and he would easily down two servings of those. "I will say, they didn't seem the least bit interested in any of my work so, I'm not sure that my attendance will be needed later for the rest of the rehashing."

"Oh," Jonas drummed on the tabletop and I looked back at him. "I heard about your engagement."

"I've been wearing the ring for weeks now Jonas." I said flatly, taking another bite and swallowing it down with my water.

"We don't do that on Kelowna." He shrugged back and I had to give him that. I made a mental note to put that in the planetary file, doubting it would ever be helpful but it was interesting to say the least. "But, what we do have is this custom where a singular friend of both parties combining in union collects a series of reasons they care for one another. The friend puts them together in a clay pot, corks it and seals the pot, then at some point in the future, traditionally a landmark anniversary or a tough moment when they need reminding, the couple smashes the pot together and they look back at the reasons they decided to form their union."

"Oh Jonas," I clasped my hands together holding them against my chest, "that's lovely."

"What color do you want your pot?" He grabbed a hard candy from my dish unwrapping it, plopping it into his mouth.

"Really?" I smiled weakly, "you'd do that for us?"

"Well yeah, I consider you both friends." He grinned back, "what color? The pot is only about the size of a grapefruit, but if it sits on a shelf you'll want it to match all the shit in your house. I've seen Daniel's office, your office," he motioned around and what I saw as a very organized but arguably full room, "I imagine your apartment is equally as cluttered."

"Not cluttered, curated," I corrected, "and any natural a as tone would be nice. I trust your judgment on a traditional color."

"I'll need a list compiled, I don't read them, I just bring the jar to you, you both put them in, I say some things, and then you both seal it. So, you can put whatever horribly raunchy and deranged things you want in there." He stood up and made his way to leave. "But I report back to Kelowna in a week, and I'll have the pot when I return."

"Thank you Jonas," I felt the comfort of an unforced friendship between us bloom in me. A few of my former friendships here seemed impossible to get off the ground now, and having Jonas was a breath of fresh air. He gave me an understanding look, as if he read my thoughts, and left to find someone else to mess with.

Lunch had finished, and when hours had gone by with no request of my presence in the next round of whose country had the biggest complaint, I was able to wrap up my workload for the day and now was scrolling through possible vacation destinations in a couple weeks. Daniel and I had decided if we were going to elope, we'd make it into an event for us both. I had an official passport now courtesy of the SGC, and as annoying as it was going to be to have the name changed on everything, I had decided I'd be Eleanor Jackson. Part of me enjoyed the idea that we would share a name, share that part of us together, but mostly it was that I didn't feel as if I had to hide as much as I did now. Eleanor Owens legally was buried six feet under, and there she could stay. I felt more freely able to say Eleanor Jackson when in public without fear of looking over my shoulder.

Daniel knocked on my office door and poked his head in. "Hello, hello. I went ahead and cleared us both a week and a half of vacation for an impromptu honeymoon."

"I doubt you'll be out of these meetings even by then," I mumbled still scrolling through pages of flights to book. "We should book tickets soon though, were you thinking of anywhere in particular?"

"Just somewhere far from here please," he groaned. "Today alone has taken most of my patience in dealing with the IOA as a whole."

I minimized the computer screen and turned back to him. "Wherever we go, we'll need a translator."

"Oh," he mocked the insult, "you think you're funny?"

"I'm just saying, I saw you in there this morning and your language skills looked a little rusty." I shrugged, biting back my laugh.

Leaning against the doorframe he lowered his head, glasses falling to the bridge of his nose and he looked up and me through his thick lashes. "I've never had complaints from you about my translations before. Written or oral. In fact, you always seem pleased by my oral work, eager even."

"Dr. Jackson," I scolded him with heat prickling my cheeks. "We will discuss this at home."

"Oh, I'm sure we will," he mused back.

"Were you not just going on about how hard of a day you're having?" My face grew hotter but I pursed my lips into a tight line and raised a brow in question.

"Thinking about you and I discussing this at home will make it hard, among other hard things." The boyish smile tugging at his lips made me squirm slightly in my seat.

"This is a workplace doctor, watch yourself," I shushed him as I pressed my thighs together tighter.

"So should I not be telling everyone about that little trick you like when I orally go through alphabets? Because if memory serves, the German eszett tends to be the one that..."

"Enough," my eyes widened and I motioned for him to shut his mouth as he laughed looking back down the hall at a collection of sg members walking by and talking about their next jump, completely ignorant to the dribbling puddle I was in melting into at my desk with Daniel's taunts.

"Later then," he winked and continued onto his next meeting. I reached for my water bottle chugging the icy remains hoping to cool my heat flushed face away.