While Sam and Pete were on honeymoon, the boys went onto missions with different teams. Daniel accompanied Colonel Dixon on SG-13, who recently found ancient ruins. O'Neill had authorized a two week mission and Daniel was nearly squeaking when Jack told him he could go.
Teal'c joined them after a rescue mission with SG-9. But at the end of the third week both anticipated Sam's return and were looking forward to finally going off world as SG-1 again.
Jack didn't see the need to assign a fourth member, they were good together just the three of them. It was relatively quiet with no alien threats and for the moment it was good the way it was.
The gate was spinning and chevron after chevron activated when Daniel, Teal'c and Sam stepped forward. The last chevron clicked into place and the blue shimmery event horizon appeared, paving the way for the next adventure.
When they arrived on the other side all three had a big smirk on their faces, a mix of amusement and nostalgia. Trees, trees and more trees! They could almost hear the General's grumbling echoing in their minds, his persistent complaints about the endless forest still ringing in their ears.
They began to walk down the 3 klicks towards the Naquadah mines, discovered by another SG team during an earlier mission, when Daniel stepped next to Sam. They hadn't seen each other much before they shipped out, so Daniel was curious about her vacation on Maui. He never thought of her as the kind of person who could lay at the beach with a cocktail in her hand for the whole three weeks and just do nothing, he thought if she'd ever take the chance to go on vacation it would involve some mountain to hike and a lake to relax.
"So, how was your honeymoon, Sam? I've never been to Maui. Anything interesting to explore?"
"Well, I haven't actually seen a lot of the island." She said, blushing deeply, trying not to look at him.
"Oh? Oh!" He laughed, "Right, honeymoon!"
"I mean…" Sam tried to explain, but an explanation was not needed as Teal'c spoke.
"I do remember the weeks after my wedding to Drey'auc. We also didn't manage to leave the house a lot of times. Was it different for you and Sha're, Daniel Jackson?"
He smiled at the memories and shook his head. "No, not really. But we were on a desert planet. Not much else to do."
"We've seen a bit of Maui at least. We rented a car for a day and explored a bit of it."
"I'm really happy for you, you know? And how is the move going? Is your house nearly ready?"
"Oh yes, I completely forgot to tell you. While we were away, the movers managed to get all our stuff to the new house, we just had to rearrange the furniture a bit and slept there two nights already. When we're home you guys have to come over. We don't do a big housewarming party or something like this, I thought about the next team night."
"That'd be great."
"I am looking forward to seeing your new home too, Colonel Carter."
They didn't manage to get a team night for the next few months. Someone was always not available. First, Jack was on vacation or in Washington, he had a few meetings in DC with the President or the Head of Homeworld Security. Teal'c joined the SG-9 for a few missions as their fourth member was currently in the infirmary with a broken leg. That left Daniel, who took the time to work on translations and Sam, who loved to work on the devices brought back from different planets.
She had the boys over separately a few times before they scheduled a BBQ at Sam's the next weekend. And just in time they returned from their mission, a bit bruised but nothing to worry about. When Jack left his office for the briefing room Daniel and Teal'c were seated next to each other.
"Okay, I'm already late, but where's Carter?"
"She was still in the infirmary when we left. I think Dr. Lam held her back and wanted to speak to her." Daniel explained.
"Nothing too serious, I hope."
"No, Sir! Sorry I'm late." Sam said, quickly entering the room to take the seat across from her teammates. "There's just a cut on my hand that needed a few stitches."
"Alright, then let's start. The sooner we begin the sooner we can leave. I'm actually on downtime for the weekend just like you, so let's start." Jack announced eagerly awaiting the end of the day.
An hour later they were finally done and all four rose out of their seats and Daniel moved towards Sam.
"Sam, do you need any help for the BBQ tomorrow? I'm free to come earlier if you want to." He asked, just to be interrupted by Jack.
"Ahm, I might be coming a little later tomorrow, I have to go and see an old friend around noon."
"Jack, you're serious? How long have we planned this meeting?" Daniel pouted.
"I haven't said I won't come, Hammond has asked me to go and see Hank tomorrow, it won't take long and then I'm joining you."
"Hank?"
"Landry. General Landry."
Sam sensed that the conversation between the two friends might get a bit out of hand and stepped in.
"Guys, it's okay. We can always order pizza instead. I mean, Pete will leave that day and go to Denver for the next three weeks. He has a case there and it's easier to bunk in at an old buddy's, so he won't be joining us anyway. Come over when you're ready and we order as soon as everyone is there."
Jack knew what Sam had done and thanked her with a quick nod. He could always get into a discussion with Daniel if nobody stopped them.
"Thank you, Carter! I will make it quick."
As promised his meeting with Hank Landry didn't take long, the older General surprisingly believed Jack's story very quickly. So he parked his car in front of Sam's new home the moment Pete came out of the door, carrying a big suitcase.
"Hey Jack!"
"Hi Pete! Important investigations?"
"Yeah, we can close a big case soon. I really don't want to go right now, but I've been working on this for over a year now and I'll be happy to finally get the bad guys."
"Understandable! Good luck."
"Thanks, Jack. You can go straight towards the back, I think they just moved outside."
"Thank you."
Inside, Jack closed the door that Pete had left open for him and headed straight towards the bus glass door that was the exit to the patio.
"Sir, we didn't expect you so early, that's great. I'll call the pizza place and order the food."
"Hey everyone." He greeted them and then turned to Sam, teasing her jokingly. "You hungry?" Because she was usually the last one to realize it was time to eat. She rolled her eyes and answered "Oh you've got no idea! I could eat a cow, straight from the meadow."
Meanwhile Jack grabbed himself a beer before he sat down opposite of Teal'c and Daniel, leaving the seat on his left for Sam. It was a warm afternoon, but when the chill sets in later they could always light up the fireplace in front of them.
"They say food will be here in thirty." Sam announced before she sat down beside Jack. "What did I miss?"
"Nothing, in fact we didn't say anything. But I'm curious, who is this old friend, Jack? And why did Hammond want you to visit him?" Daniel looked him straight in the eye, sensing that something was going on.
"I didn't want to do this on an empty stomach, but it doesn't matter when I tell you, I think." He took a second to find the right word and to brace himself for the storm he knew was coming.
"General Hank Landry will be the new base commander of the SGC, I was there to tell him about his new assignment and about what we really do down there."
"What???" Two pairs of eyes were staring at him in disbelief, Teal'c just raised his eyebrow.
"Yeah, well, that wasn't something I'd planned."
Daniel was almost faster talking than thinking. "What do you mean with 'he's the new base commander'? You're in charge of the SGC. What's going on?"
Jack carefully observed Sam, she had instantly gone pale and that worried him.
"I'm no longer in charge, Daniel. They'll send me to Washington. Look, Hammond is not very healthy anymore and he wants to spend more time with his grandchildren, so they put me in charge of Homeworld Security."
"Hammond is sick?"
"His heart isn't the best anymore and he has served enough years for both of us. He wanted to retire 8 years ago and didn't because of us. I owe him. And the President wants me. I tried to tell him Hank could do a better job than me in DC, but they wouldn't accept it."
Sam felt a wave of nausea rising within her, a tumultuous whirlwind of emotions that left her dizzy and disoriented. The reality of the moment crashed over her like a tidal wave; she was caught in a fierce struggle between wanting to scream in anguish at the thought of him leaving and feeling an overpowering urge to cry because now that it was too late he was transferred out of the same chain of command than her.
She placed her hand over her mouth, heart racing, as she suddenly stood up and hurried inside to empty her stomach.
When she returned Jack was immediately there to steady her, guiding her back to take a seat.
"Wow, Sam, you don't look good. Are you sure you're alright?" Jack asked, glad to lead the conversation away from him and his new job in Washington, but he was concerned about Sam, she never had a weak stomach. All the alien food that had made the guys sick, she couldn't care less about.
"I'm good. Sorry! I just wasn't prepared for this. When do you leave?"
"One week. I'll have an apartment ready near the Pentagon, I just have to take care of things here." He told them.
"And that's it? You're gone then."
"No Daniel, that's not it. I won't be gone. I'll still have my place here, I won't sell it. I grew to like this house and I will come to visit you as much as possible. You're my friends, family even. I won't cut the ties. What do you think of me?"
Relieved Daniel became calmer, sinking back into his seat as the doorbell rang, announcing the delivery guy. Teal'c was the first one to move and went to get the food. He took some napkins outside and gave each of them their pizza box.
"I'm so sorry." Jack said, "I should have waited until we had eaten at least. Not much of a difference at the news, but I mean you even threw up." He nodded towards Carter.
She bit her bottom lip so hard, Jack thought it would start bleeding any moment.
"Yeah, but this wasn't the reason. Not really." She said and put the slice back into her box. "Actually I was going to tell you something, but now I'm not so sure if one piece of information per day is enough."
"What information could probably make it worse?" Daniel asked, "You're not leaving too, do you?"
She closed her eyes and breathed out long and steady. "Sort of! I wanted to tell you that I'm pregnant. I mean, I will stick around, but I won't be going off-world for quite some time."
Now it was Jack's turn to feel nauseous, he knew it was inevitable but he wasn't prepared for this so soon.
"A baby? Wow Sam, that's great. Congratulations!" Daniel got up to be the first one to hug her, followed by Teal'c. While in the arms of the Jaffa her gaze wandered over to Jack, who was still sitting down, his forearms resting on his thighs and his head in his hands. He saw her observing him when he looked up, her eyes were glued to him. She could see the exact moment his manner changed and he put on a brave face to wish her well.
She sat down beside him and he turned to embrace her in a tight hug.
"Congratulations Sam!"
They all needed some time to absorb the information. By the end of day, it seemed that everyone was happy for Sam and trusted Jack when he assured them that he wouldn't be a stranger and would come for regular visits. He stayed behind to help Sam clean up when Daniel and Teal'c called it a night and headed back to the base.
"Would you like to stay for one more drink?" She asked him carefully, well aware of the sorrow she must have caused.
"I would love to. We can stay outside, the fire is still burning."
"Yes, go and sit down, I'll quickly go and get the drinks."
"No, Sam, you'll go and put your feet up. I'll take care of the drinks."
Grateful for the man's unwavering support, she followed his advice. With her eyes closed, she sensed the cushion shift beneath her as he settled beside her. Sam reached for the glass, leaning into him, finding comfort in his presence.
"So..."
"So..."
"Well, congratulations again. You're going to be an incredible mother."
Moved by his words, she suddenly realized the profound impact his transfer would have had on her life.
"If I had waited just a few months longer..." She whispered, not daring to say this loud.
"And then?" he asked, softly pushing her hair behind her ears.
She took his hand and placed it on her abdomen.
"Then this could be yours." Tears running down her cheeks, her voice breaking.
"Oh Sam, we couldn't have known."
"We should have."
"You love your husband, and don't downplay it. You'll make wonderful parents and this baby will be so loved. And spoiled by Uncle Jack." He smirked.
Even if he only would be Uncle Jack, he already loved this human being growing inside of her, because it was hers.