Daughter


Chapter 79 – Meet Your Match

Two guardsmen revealed themselves from the brush once they saw who had arrived. They bowed low. When they rose, their faces were wide with smiles.

"Brothers," Jasuf greeted readily. He moved forward to grasp each of their forearms enthusiastically.

The pair quickly exchanged similar greetings with Bier, Andin, and Fezir. "How long will you be home?" one of the men asked.

"We have been dismissed. We no longer have duties to the Army," Jasuf announced.

"The people will be pleased."

"Lady Elda rests in your hut, Jasuf. The Tribe Father sits in the governance hut."

"Thank you, Brothers." Then he regarded them curiously. "Tell me, why are you posted at the gate?"

"Orders from Lady Elda," one of them replied nonchalantly, as if this were nothing new.

"Has she had many callers again?"

"No," the other said. "She simply wishes for the gate to be monitored at all times. Lo'zim is made aware of who comes and goes. When callers for the Hak'tyl arrive, we send word to them as well."

Jasuf exchanged looks with his fellow soldiers from the Army. "Curious."

Bier seemed contemplative. "It is reasonable."

"We will inform Lo'zim you have returned home. The village will welcome you."

The warriors nodded and began moving in the direction of their home. When they arrived, Lo'zim was there at the edge of the clearing.

"Light shines down on us this day now that our brothers have returned heroes," he declared.

They inclined their heads humbly.

"Krelnok, Brothers. Find your families," Jasuf said, urging the others to go. He turned to Lo'zim. "What of the village?"

"The village fares well. It has just now woken for the day."

Jasuf looked up at the sky to confirm it was early morning here. He gazed around, seeing that anyone who was outside was busy with their usual tasks. "Where is Lady Elda?"

"She still sleeps."

He scrunched his face. Then he stared at all the people here already moving. He could only presume that his father had given morning orders instead of Elda. But if she were home, it should have been her. She was meant to fill his role while he was away. He always rose before the village to be ready to give instructions for the day.

Lo'zim began to laugh, noticing his confusion. Jasuf had no idea what changes had been made in his absence. "See your father, first. Let your sim'ka rest. She arrived exhausted from her duties for Earth."

Jasuf laid a hand on his shoulder and followed his suggestion.

When Jasuf entered the governance hut with a bow, Meil'nor stood immediately. "My son, you have returned." He pulled him into a strong embrace. He clapped him on the back heartily.

"Father. It is good to be home."

"Have you completed your duties to the Council?"

"I have. Rya'c of Chulak sends his greetings."

Meil'nor harumphed.

"Father?"

"We, here, are of the opinion that Rya'c of Chulak has yet more to learn," he said cryptically.

Jasuf sensed his father's disapproval. "Why."

"There are stories to tell, Jasuf." He smiled enigmatically, hinting. "We will invite Ishta and Teal'c for a formal meal. We shall regal you with what you have missed."

He inclined his head in agreement, but couldn't help his confusion. "How fare our people?"

"They are well."

"You gave morning orders?"

Meil'nor stared at his son in amusement. He'd only been home for a few minutes and was already being faced with the change in leadership style here. He was looking forward to seeing how he would react. "No, Jasuf. Lady Elda has instituted changes. Morning orders are no longer necessary."

The look of incredulity on Jasuf's face was comical. Meil'nor stifled a laugh. He placed his hands on his son's shoulders. "Do not concern yourself with duties today. Simply enjoy your return. Join your sim'ka in rest if you like. I believe she still sleeps."

Jasuf studied his father's face. He was so at ease. It didn't seem to bother him at all that his main helper was sleeping in. That was outrageous to him. He would have never dared to dishonor him like that. Why wasn't his father angry?

"As you say, Father."

"I will summon you when the meal with the Hak'tyl has been arranged. Go now. Be with Lady Elda."

Jasuf left in consternation, warmly greeting anyone he passed on the way to his hut.

He arrived and entered his personal space without hesitation, noting that the drapes were drawn to block out light. His eyes took time to adjust to the darkness of the dwelling. A sleeping form inhabited the bed. There was a little snore emanating from there.

He smiled. Elda loved sleeping in. He shouldn't have been surprised that she was doing it again. Maybe her most recent mission was taxing. That could have been the reason why she was delaying duties today. Perhaps she exaggerated when she told the leaders of Shehadeh that she commanded this village.

Elda didn't seem to be commanding anything right now.

Jasuf chose not to disturb her immediately. He removed his armor and dirty clothes first. Then he went to the washing bowl to scrub away the dirt and grime that served as evidence he had ever been gone. He was glad to be rid of it. While he was proud to have served, he was less than pleased to have been kept away so long. The expectations of the Council were never clear from the start.

He went to the closet and stared. It was hard to find his own clothing in there. A rainbow of dresses took up nearly all the available space. He finally found his things folded up neatly at the bottom. Jasuf frowned. He gazed back at Elda, still completely unaware of him in the bed.

She quietly snored again.

Jasuf mustered patience and leaned down to get a fresh tunic and pants. As he dressed, his eyes caught sight of his mother's bracelet shining in what little light invaded through the slits of the curtains. Next to it was that new head piece he saw her wear. He wondered where she got it. Her array of weapons were lined up behind them as usual. Her tac vest hung on the hook by the door with the SGC-issued radio within easy reach.

This hut didn't even look like his anymore. Had he really been away that long?

Jasuf went to the bed. He carefully peeled back part of the blanket to slip in there with her.

He froze when a blaster made contact with his temple.

It whined menacingly as it powered up.

"Elda," he said calmly.

She actually opened her eyes now. She blinked them rapidly to clear away the sleep.

And then they went wide. She withdrew the blaster and powered it down. "Jasuf!" She leapt into his arms. The blaster remained tightly gripped in her hand behind him.

He sighed as he hugged her back. "Did you really not know I was home?"

"My Love, I was asleep! I cannot maintain situational awareness in my sleep!"

Jasuf pulled her hand back to look at the blaster meaningfully. "And yet you are capable of felling an attacker who dares to bother you in your sleep. This is a contradiction."

She had the good sense to look sheepish. "I'm sorry." She put the blaster back down, underneath the pillow where she liked to keep it when she slept alone. Then the bed shook as she knelt on it in front of him. Elda wrapped her arms around her neck. "How long are you home?"

"Permanently."

She hugged him. "Finally!" She pulled back to kiss him chastely. "Don't kiss me more. I'm sure I taste like sleep." Elda shot out of the bed and into the side room where the washing bowl was. From there she called, "When did you arrive onworld?"

"Just within the past hour." He took a seat on the bed to wait.

"Did you see Father yet?"

"I did."

"Did he tell you I am to travel to Hibradeen today?"

He looked up toward the door. "For what purpose?"

"Something about maintaining the alliance. I don't really know. Master Garth wished to see me."

"To see you?" Jasuf was once again surprised. "Or do you mean our Father? And he is simply sending you in his stead?"

She stepped out of the side room nearly naked now, having left her sleeping dress in there. She went to the closet to thumb through the choices. "No, he asked for me specifically. And he's been waiting, unfortunately. I couldn't find a day off from Earth that aligned with his planet's daytime until now. Father explained it to him. He sort of understands."

Elda pulled out one of the dresses from the closet to examine it. She tried to think back and remember if she had worn it to Hibradeen or not. She might need to ask the Head Mistress if she could remember. Maybe they needed to keep a record of such things somewhere. It would be a fashion faux pas to wear something twice in a row.

Jasuf appeared next to her and put the dress back. He pulled her into his arms and relished the feel of her smooth skin beneath his fingertips. "I have just returned and you are already trying to leave?"

She smiled at him. "Just thinking of my duties today," she said, voice lilting musically as she spoke. Elda kissed him properly now.

He sighed in relief that he had her again. He broke off the kiss to say, "Duties. And yet you sleep instead of giving morning orders." Jasuf could not help himself.

Elda gave him a look that lacked amusement. "Morning orders are not necessary when I can give standing orders, My Love. I am not here half the mornings to instruct the people. They are perfectly capable of directing themselves. So I gave them a little autonomy, and now they complete the work as they see fit." She raised a brow at him in challenge.

He studied her. "My Father approved of this scheme?"

She shook her head emphatically. "It is not a scheme. And Father loves it. He told me so."

Jasuf gaped in a Jaffa manner. His eyes squinted at her and his mouth dropped open slightly.

Elda stared at him for a beat, then let her mouth slowly turn up in a smile. She hummed. "And what of you? How are you faring?"

"I am… confused."

She laughed aloud. Elda kissed him again. "But you're home. That makes it all so much better." She pulled on his hands and led him toward the bed. "What did Father say?"

"That I may rest today. I fully expected to resume duties, but it would seem that is not necessary."

"No. But you could venture to Hibradeen with me if you like. That way we could spend more time together before I have to return to Earth again."

He let his forehead touch hers. "Perhaps I shall. Every moment I can have with you is precious," he said softly.

Elda was reminded of how delicious his voice could be. It was one of the ways he'd gotten her to fall in love with him. There was something about silky smooth tones that always got her juices flowing. The thought triggered an image of Chase, which she hurriedly tried to push away. He had a voice, too, that she liked. But she shouldn't think of him right now.

Jasuf's hands grabbed her hips. He kissed her breathily.

Chase told her to let him have her.

Who was she to disobey a direct order?


"How fortunate that we see you before you venture to Hibradeen," Ishta remarked. "Such a visit could be long, leaving us with no time for this gathering after." The group of Tek'ronian leaders were in her hut instead of Meil'nor's. She, too, had a comfortable dining room behind the governance space. She insisted that they meet here so she could honor Jasuf's safe return and Elda's recent success.

Elda had been in this private room a few times, but only to help maintain its cleanliness. This would be the first time she was invited here in a position of leadership. And for some reason, she wasn't intimidated.

She sat at a circular table next to Teal'c, who was dressed in comfortable Jaffa clothing. She was so used to seeing him in SGC uniform that this was a refreshing sight. Elda, herself, had donned her golden, Jaffa-made dress, with its suggestive styling and flowing fabric. Jasuf requested this one; he wanted to see her in it. She didn't mind donning it. If she was to travel to Hibradeen today, she did want to look her best.

Minders poured drinks for them and served food. When they exited the hut, the group got into specifics.

"I suspect Master Garth means to curry favor with you, Lady Elda, after your performance in front of the Council," Meil'nor surmised.

Jasuf looked up from his food. "Performance?"

Teal'c smiled. "I bore witness to her greatness."

He looked at Elda next to him. "What transpired?"

Ishta laughed quietly. "Tell him, EldaMalDoran, of how the Council was made to face your human father's wrath."

Jasuf's eyes went wide.

Elda quietly glowered at her food. She sighed heavily. Meil'nor just chuckled as he ate. "After I saw you at Shehadeh, I went to Earth. My father was there and questioned me, wondering why I was late. I simply told him the truth." She chewed with a frown, then swallowed. "He was very displeased that the Council ordered me to help Rya'c."

Teal'c continued, "O'Neill learned that the Council was scattered. He chose to summon them all to Earth the very same day."

Jasuf became incredulous. Rick of Earth was daring and powerful indeed.

Elda breathed in and out to maintain her calm. The strong argument she had with her father afterwards floated through her mind.

Teal'c went on, "He expressed his disappointment to them that they did not consult Earth prior to tasking her with a Jaffa matter. He made it clear that EldaMalDoran is human, first, and not obligated to follow their directives."

Ishta looked absolutely tickled by this. Jasuf could not remember ever seeing her so entertained. She was usually quite reserved. "Continue, EldaMalDoran."

Elda inclined her head. "One of the Council members apologized on behalf of the group. Then my father insisted I speak." She took in a breath. "I decided to make my move. I couldn't pass up the opportunity."

"What move?" Jasuf asked hesitantly. Ishta and Meil'nor grinned. He regarded them strangely.

She turned to Jasuf. "I said couriers usually get paid for their work. So I got the Council to agree to reserve a seat for Tek'ron."

His mouth gaped.

Elda gestured at Teal'c. "He backed me up."

Jasuf looked to Teal'c in question.

"I reminded them of her many titles and the importance she carries. They were forced to honor her demand." He looked so satisfied. "It was only right that I support her after the inconvenience caused by my own son."

"We did not regard him that harshly, Master Teal'c," Meil'nor said graciously.

Jasuf considered him dubiously, having heard the opposite claim just that morning. His father was engaging in political niceties here.

Teal'c inclined his head thankfully.

Ishta continued to smile. "And now Tek'ron will be represented in the highest seat of governance. I once again applaud you, Kal'ma."

Elda bowed her head. "Den Mother."

"Elda…" Jasuf regarded her with awe. "This is… impressive news." He was dumbfounded.

She tilted her head. "I intended for that seat to be inhabited by your father."

Jasuf looked at him now. "Does this mean you will depart for the Council?"

"No, my son. Not at this time. Your sim'ka made clear to the Council that they are being made to wait." He sniggered. "We need not send someone to fill the seat now. She has afforded us time to make arrangements and come to agreements here, first."

Ishta cackled. She loved this so much. "Such power your sim'ka wields, Jasuf."

Elda started turning red.

Jasuf sighed. "No wonder Bier says I should make you my queen," he murmured.

Ishta could not help but laugh more. Teal'c gave his wife a look to get a hold of herself.

"Bier is delusional," Elda ground out.

Meil'nor laughed heartily. He raised his glass in cheers toward her. "You could not have chosen better than her, Jasuf."

"Perhaps when you marry, we will raise your stations," Ishta said thoughtfully.

"My Love?" Teal'c asked.

"What say you, Meil'nor?"

He seemed to consider it. "An interesting idea. What would you suggest?"

Jasuf and Elda looked at each other in bewilderment. What more was there to be!?

"Do not humans use particular terms to refer to the offspring of great leaders, those in absolute power?"

Elda's eyes went wide. They shot straight to Teal'c, begging him to stop his wife. Immediately!

"Yes, I believe I have heard those in passing," Meil'nor said contemplatively. He looked at Elda now. "Does not your family refer to your adoptive mother by one of those terms?" He gestured a hand in the air. "Of course, I understand it is used in jest and adoration rather than as a serious title."

Color drained from her face. Her eyes pleaded with him not to do this.

It only entertained Meil'nor more. "Princess, I believe."

Ishta raised a finger. "Yes. That is it."

Teal'c sighed.

Elda began shaking her head emphatically. She didn't care if it was a very human thing to do. These Jaffa needed to know that she was not on board with this. At. All.

Jasuf just blinked apprehensively.

"When they marry, let them become Prince of Tek'ron and Princess of Hak'tyl," Ishta said to her counterpart.

Meil'nor smiled. "I am in agreement."

Elda's heart dropped. Her marines were going to eat her alive.

"Then when Jasuf ascends to power, it will naturally cause Princess Elda to rise as his Queen," Meil'nor explained. "Bier will certainly be pleased," he quipped toward Jasuf.

Teal'c looked at the two tribe leaders like they were crazy.

Jasuf dropped his head. Elda's shoulders deflated. They both sighed together heavily.


They had a little time before they were to leave for Elda's appointment offworld. So the pair sought respite by the waterfall, where they could have a little privacy. They didn't think their leaders spied on them anymore. There was no real reason to.

Elda just hid her face in Jasuf's strong chest. She groaned loudly into it. The sounds of her complaints were drowned out by the roaring of the water.

One of his hands held her behind her neck, careful not to disturb the delicate hairstyle the Head Mistress's subordinate had created. His other hand caressed her bare shoulder absentmindedly. He was deep in thought. And wondering if everyone had gone insane while he was away.

Elda looked up and reported, "I got Teal'c to make them keep this a secret until the very last second. That way, we have time to convince them that the whole thing is ridiculous. No one will ever have to know."

"I suspect we should delay our marriage for as long as it takes to make them see reason."

"Agreed! We need time to manipulate them." Her eyes started darting about, thinking of a way to play a long-game to distract their leaders away from this crazy plan of theirs.

Jasuf nodded. "This will be one of our greatest challenges, Elda. They are masters at their craft."

She looked at him pointedly. "We can do this. We can overcome them."

He noted the fierce determination in her eyes and began to slowly smile. "We sound as if we mean to overthrow them in a joma secu." He began to laugh.

"No! The opposite! We mean to hide and never come back!"

Jasuf laughed louder. He leaned down to kiss her sweetly. "I fear we will fail and only secure our places further."

She shook her head violently. "I cannot be named a Princess. Absolutely not!"

"Because of your human brothers?"

"Yes!" she hissed. "And Cameron!" Now her face crumpled. "He'll tell me he told me so!" she whined. Elda almost wanted to cry over that potential defeat.

Jasuf kissed her adorable pout. "Regardless of what others may call us, you will still be My Sun and My Moon," he said softly. He kissed her more.

Elda sighed, letting her body mold into his. Her fingers trailed down the trim of his formal robe, tickling the skin underneath. She broke off the kiss to speak. "You will always have my heart, Jasuf," she promised. "Whether we marry or not." Somewhere in the back of her mind, she felt guilt. She buried that sensation. She had not actually betrayed him. Not physically.

"And you will always have mine." He smiled at her as he stroked her cheek. "Let us leave these matters to another day. We must give ourselves time to think."

"Alright," she agreed softly. She smiled up at him. "Ready to show off on the world of Hibradeen?"

"Let us go."


"Chase," Elda said after inviting him into her quarters. "We should tone things down."

He stared at her, expressionless. "Jasuf came back, didn't he."

"Yes. And I am thankful that we…" She gestured between them as she spoke. "…have managed to hold back as much as we have. We didn't cheat."

He shook his head. "No, we didn't."

Elda let out a breath of relief. "Right, so, that's it. Enough games."

Crawford held up two hands in surrender. "I promise to stop complimenting you," he said agreeably. "No more pointing our your good looks. Or how impressive you are as a courier. Or how badass you are when you beat somebody up."

Elda's brow raised higher and higher as he spoke. She sputtered, "Well… it's okay to tell me I did good if I beat someone up."

He laughed loudly.

She scrunched her face in thought and realized that she had just been manipulated. She pointed at him accusingly. "I know what you just did!" Elda reached out to smack his chest forcefully.

Crawford easily dodged her strike while he continued to laugh.

"Aghhh!" she screamed in frustration.

He caught her hands in his and pulled her close. "For once, I actually beat you. So satisfying." Crawford became smug.

Elda pouted dramatically in his arms. "Chase," she whined. "We're supposed to behave!"

He released her and let her step back. "Sorry." But he was still smiling.

She pointed at him again. "And stop doing that!"

"What?"

"That! Smiling all sexy like that. It's trouble!"

"I don't know how else to smile, Babe," he said. His expression remained on his face.

If anything, Elda thought it was getting worse the more entertained he was by her. She felt her resolve melting. "Why couldn't you be an actual ass," she complained flatly. Her perfect plan to calmly get him to hold back was falling apart. And all it took was for him to charm her so effortlessly.

Maybe she was losing her touch. Now Elda wondered if she should be worried.

She sat down on the side of her bed dejectedly.

"Aww, what's the matter, Babe? Can't deal if you lose?" he teased playfully.

She glared at him. "I might have taught you too well."

He grinned at this. He pretended to shine his nails with his shirt. "Or maybe I have a natural-born talent."

Elda rolled her eyes. "You even steal my lines."

Crawford couldn't help but chuckle more. He stood before her as she sat on her bed. "Don't worry, Elda. Promise to use my new-found superpowers for good."

She raised her brow at him then shook her head. "And here I thought we'd have a clean break."

Crawford rolled the chair from the desk and settled in. "Look, I can behave. I promise."

"Really."

"Yeah. I won't try to bang you."

Elda glared. "You're doing it again."

"Oops."

She looked at him worriedly.

"What."

"I'm afraid you'll still win. And I might just let you."

Crawford realized she was being serious. He tempered his expression. "Elda, we'll be okay. We're not going to cheat." He waved a flippant hand in the air. "We're just having fun."

"Chase, as much fun as it is to test our limits, it's only going to lead to things. Dangerous things."

"Fine, fine. I'll take it down a notch."

"Several notches, please," Elda requested, somehow knowing what he meant. She was starting to realize that she hadn't asked him to clarify his strange phrases lately. When the words came out of his mouth, she just understood him perfectly. She found that interesting.

He smiled softly at her. "Okay."

She sighed in relief. "Thank you."

"So what happened when he came back? Was everything good?" he hazarded.

Elda could tell he was trying to gauge how much Jasuf knew about them. "Yeah. Everything was…" Her mouth quirked unconsciously. "…fine."

Crawford noticed. "Elda."

"Yeah?"

"What's wrong."

"What do you mean? Nothing."

"There's more to this story here."

Elda blinked once. "All I said was everything was fine. I didn't even tell you a story."

"So tell me a story."

"Once upon a time…"

He poked her in the arm. "What happened with Jasuf?"

She breathed in. "He doesn't know about you and me. He was more surprised by how I chose to run the village in his absence. And to hear the news that I got Tek'ron a seat on the Council."

"That was pretty badass. Please tell me he thought so, too."

"I think he did." Then Elda's eyes flitted away as she remembered other revelations from that meeting with leadership.

Crawford caught her again. "What else happened?"

"That was it."

"Liar."

She looked up. "What?"

"There's more," he concluded.

"No, there's not."

He tucked his bent finger under her chin. "You can't lie to me anymore. I was in your head, remember?"

Her eyes widened. "No, we simply shared an experience. One that is now over."

"Babe," he said meaningfully. "I know you now, inside and out. You can't hide jack-shit from me."

His confidence was alarming. Elda became nervous that he somehow knew all her secrets. Not just the latest one that had to do with the Jaffa. But if he knew, he would have said something by now. She hoped he was just bullshitting her. He already caught her off guard earlier in this conversation. She really needed to get it together.

The pause was enough for him to confirm she was hiding something else. "Elda?" he asked.

And there he goes again with that sexy voice of his. Her cheeks blushed against her will.

He smiled, seeing exactly what she was hoping he wouldn't see. "Don't make me work a seduction angle on you, Mal Doran," he warned in a low tone.

Elda gulped. That was the hottest thing ever.

"Spill," he commanded.

"No," she said weakly.

He scooted the chair closer. Their knees brushed against each other, causing her to look down. He took advantage of it. He used his finger to gently stroke her cheek and make her look at him. His eyes bored into hers, demanding an answer.

Her lip started quivering.

Crawford leaned his face closer, letting his breath tickle hers. "What. Happened."

Elda bit her lip. "Nothing."

His nose nuzzled against her cheek and he let his hot breath roam down her neck. "Not good enough."

Her eyes fluttered closed. Her hands started playing with the buttons of his uniform. "This is the complete opposite of behaving."

"I'll stop if you tell me the truth," he said in that sexy voice of his. His hand rested over her fingers to stop them from unbuttoning his jacket.

"But I kind of don't want you to stop," she admitted. She thought she was going to be good. Under control. Instead she wanted to climb into his lap and kiss him senseless.

He was ruining everything. And she loved it.

"I'm still gonna get it out of you."

She grated her teeth, eyes still closed. Elda felt herself leaning toward him more than she ever should. One of his hands cupped her neck.

He whispered, "Tell me." He dropped a chaste kiss beneath her ear.

Her mouth popped open. She started gripping his uniform again.

He let his warm breath trail down her neck more.

The moment his lips nearly brushed against hers, she crumbled. "Ishta wants to make me a Princess when I marry Jasuf." She turned her head so her lips could try to make final contact.

He pulled back. "What?"

Elda stumbled a little when his weight was suddenly not there to support her. Her eyes shot open. She let out a breath, completely flabbergasted. What just happened?

"A princess? Like an actual, real-live, legitimate princess?"

"How did you do that."

"Babe, this is golden. How many times have we told you?" Chase laughed aloud and leaned back in the chair. His eyes shut and his head fell back as he totally lost it.

Elda was more surprised that he had successfully worked her as a mark than the fact that he knew that little detail now. She stared at him in total astonishment. Her mouth dropped to the floor.

Once Chase reopened his eyes to look at her, he grinned. "Looks like I win again. Big this time."

She never wanted to bang him more than in this moment. Right now. "You can't tell anyone. No one is supposed to know."

He couldn't tell if she meant the Princess thing or what was going on between them. She was too out of sorts. Could have been both. Didn't hurt to have a little leverage, either way. "I'll keep my mouth shut."

She let out a breath of relief. Then she licked her lips and bit them. She grabbed his jacket and pulled him close forcefully. "You could be the greatest courier ever."

He smiled at her saucily. "Why, thank you. I learn from the best." He suddenly stood up.

"Where are you going?"

"Always leave 'em wanting more, right?" He flashed her a sexy grin.

Elda gaped as she watched him leave the room. She squeezed her eyes shut and opened them again. "I'm doomed."


The punching bag gave way when Elda forced her gloved fist into it. She had to wait for it to swing back so she could release more tension. The heavy chain hanging it from the ceiling creaked as the large cylinder moved.

Suddenly, the bag righted itself. Someone else's hands clasped around it. Jessica Matthews peeked around from its side.

Elda said nothing and kept going. The boys had shown her what this was for. Shown her how the gloves protected your hands and allowed you to punch full-force without risking an injury. She'd seen some of their colleagues use this thing. This felt like a perfect time to try it out for herself.

Sweat poured down her brow as she tried to clear her head. And distract her body.

Jessica just watched her, continuing to keep the bag from swinging too wildly. She was in her own set of work-out clothes. She noticed Elda going at it hard while she was on the treadmill. "Maybe you should ease up a little."

"No…" Elda sent another forceful punch into the bag. It sent Jessica back a step. "I'm fine."

The singular female member of SG-2 hummed knowingly. Jessica's eyes flitted around, seeing that others here were all exercising with ear buds in. That was no guarantee that they were actually listening to music, but they were far enough away to allow a conversation at the punching bag to be discreet. What also helped was the loud music blaring over the gym speakers.

Jessica caught Elda's next punch in her own hand. The blonde locked eyes with her, chest heaving from the activity. "You are hot. And bothered," Jessica pointed out plainly. She smirked.

"I don't know what you mean," Elda retorted through heavy breaths.

The Air Force Major leaned in. "You want some, but you can't get some," she translated.

Elda groaned. "Is it that obvious?"

"To me, it is. I'm sure to these other people, it just looks like you're practicing how to kick ass. Which, we are all well aware you can do."

The blonde huffed.

"So?"

"I will not have more rumors started about me."

"You think I would wish something like that on anyone? Come on." Jessica gestured at herself meaningfully. Between the two of them, the rumors spread about Jessica were decidedly worse. Her reputation for sleeping around was terrible, even if it wasn't completely true.

Elda stared at her. This other woman had nothing to do with anything. There was no reason to confide in her at all. She was just someone with courier-potential who was observant enough to recognize Elda's tension. But then again, she had nothing to do with anything. She wasn't involved in this mess. And she was capable of keeping secrets exactly because Elda knew she was courier material.

"It's complicated," Elda finally said.

"It always is. So what happened? Smith and Crawford fighting over you or something?"

"Hardly. Smith is on the space station. He doesn't worry about me. His girlfriend is ten times hotter."

Jessica grinned. She'd seen that woman before. Aurelia Thel could win beauty pageants here on Earth. "Okay, I believe you about Smith. What about Crawford?" She raised her brow at Elda in challenge.

Elda looked down to unclasp her gloves.

"Ohhh, so this is about him." Jessica tilted her head. "I thought you have a Jaffa boyfriend. I've seen him. He looks good himself."

"I do have a Jaffa mate. And we're supposed to be getting married." Elda didn't bother to explain that their nuptials would be delayed due to other complications. She and Jasuf were completely on the same page about that, too.

"I get it. You're supposed to be with him, but Crawford's right in front of your face every day at work."

Elda threw the gloves into the bin. She grabbed a towel to wipe at her face roughly. She honestly wanted to just hide her face from how well Jessica was calling her out. It's like she could read her like a book. And that worried Elda; maybe she really was losing her touch. Maybe she needed to get another manipulation assignment to sharpen her skills and get back in business. Meeting her match twice over in one day was alarming to her.

When Elda didn't confirm or deny Jessica's assumption, the airwoman smiled. "I know how that goes."

"You do?"

"I've seen it and dealt with it." She swept an arm around the gym. "I mean, just look at these people we work with, Mal Doran. It's a wonder they don't all sleep with each other more than they do."

Elda actually laughed now. She gazed around as suggested, noting that every person in this gym was physically fit. The fact that they were even on this base meant they had some special skillset that made them well-qualified. The SGC accepted nothing less. They were surrounded by elites.

She sighed a little. "How did you deal with it?"

"I slept with the guy once and got it out of my system."

"What!?" Elda shook her head. "I can't do that."

"Maybe not. You're attached. I'm not."

Elda gritted her teeth. "Yes, well, thank you, for…" She flapped her hand around. "Yeah."

Jessica chuckled. "What does Crawford say about this? Or does he not know?"

She looked away and twisted her lips around. "He… promised to tone things down."

The airwoman's eyes widened. "Oh shit. Have you guys already…"

"No. We haven't slept with each other."

By the guilty look on Elda's face, Jessica could see that wasn't totally true. She tilted her chin up and squinted at her. "You sure about that?"

Elda felt caught. "We haven't actually touched each other… in real life." She shut her eyes. Why was she telling her this?

"'Aliens made me do it' trope," Jessica grumbled with an eye-roll.

"What?"

"The shit we deal with around here," she explained. "We run into all sorts of wacky situations that cause us to do strange things we normally wouldn't do on a day-to-day basis." She placed her hands on her hips and challenged her. "So what was it this time? Stuck on a deserted planet and forced to survive alone, just the two of you? Stuck in some pods with your minds connected? Stuck in some medieval village and had to pretend you were married so the villagers would let you stay together?"

Elda's mouth dropped open. Her finger pointed aimlessly in the air. "The second one." Then she shook her head. "Wait a minute, all those things have happened before?"

Jessica rolled her eyes. "Countless times. It's like an initiation rite. Can't say you're a full-fledged member of the SGC until you lose contact with your team and deal with bullshit like that for a day."

Now Elda smiled. She wondered what interesting stories each of her family members had to tell about working here. Things that might not be in the reports. She hadn't gotten through reading all of SG-1's mission reports, but she was working on it. Her own growing body of experiences was providing the necessary context to help her better understand what she was reading in English.

"Stuck in pods and in each other's heads. Okay," Jessica murmured thoughtfully. She pointed at her. "You two fucked in there. And now you're out, feeling guilty. But still really horny. I can see why that's a problem."

Elda gaped. "How did you do that?"

"Lots of experience," she said drily. "If I were you, I'd just go back to the boyfriend as much as possible and let him have his way with me however he likes."

She frowned. "That was the plan."

"But it's not quite working, is it?" She gestured back to the punching bag. "Hence, that thing gets its ass whooped."

Elda whined a little. "I don't know what else to do."

"Well, you're sort of on the right track. Channel all that pent up energy into something else. Punching bag is a start. See if you can take advantage of it out in the field somehow."

"What?"

Jessica shrugged. "How do you think I got as far as I did?" She smiled.

Elda squinted at her. "Just how many seduction angles have you worked?"

"More than I can count. And it's gotten us some pretty juicy intel. You know, your boy Crawford once helped me take down a slavery ring."

"That's what you two did?"

"Yeah. It was fun. I already had a bunch of those slimy dudes pining for me. I needed him to run a little interference while I weaseled some more intelligence out of them. Jealous boyfriend routine worked like a charm. He held 'em back just long enough for us to skedaddle. The firefight was pretty awesome, too."

Elda eyed her furiously. She was both extremely proud of Crawford and jealous at the same time.

Jessica could tell she hit a nerve. Boy, Elda had it bad.

She smiled deviously and lowered her voice for emphasis. "You can keep him, Mal Doran. And maybe the next time one of those insane jobs comes up, you and him can pretend to pretend out there. Then actually get that sexual tension resolved."

"I am not having sex with him for the sake of a mission," Elda said bitterly. She had standards to maintain.

"I'm not saying do that. I mean, you can if you want to." She grinned. "I wouldn't blame you." Jessica laughed evilly. "What I'm saying is… turn this weakness into a strength."

Oh Gods. Jasuf did that with her back when he was first courting her.

And why was this sneaky airwoman's advice making sense?

It really, really shouldn't.


"Ideas?" Reynolds asked the occupants of the briefing room. Landry had just left them to hash out details of their next mission. It was time to pay Perim a visit, wherever the heck he had ended up. They needed to check on what he was up to and see if there was a way to find out how bad the Chigu slavery ring was. Then the SGC would know if it was worth interfering with.

Baker started, "With Smith gone, that leaves Crawford as the only one Perim hasn't really interacted with. That opens things up with possibilities."

"If Smitty were here, I would have suggested we dangle him as bait," Elda said. "I'm pretty sure Perim is looking for alternative employment and would simply try to sign on under him."

"Well, Smith isn't here, Cakes," Reynolds reminded. "He's busy making nice over on the space station." He rolled his eyes, still incredulous that his subordinate had even scored that sort of role. The decisions Jack O'Neill made would continue to be mysterious to him.

Elda pouted. She knew where this was going. But she refused to be the one to suggest it.

Baker smirked. "Looks like you're the bait now, Baby Cakes."

She huffed.

"Crawford? Thoughts?" Baker prompted. He had thus far remained quiet.

Elda kept her eyes on the table. She knew exactly what he would suggest. She knew how Crawford thought. She was the one who trained him!

"I'm thinking… put Elda where Perim can see her. Let her pretend to be doing Elda things. Perim will be attracted to her like a moth to a flame. Then one of us cock-blocks him."

Elda knew he wasn't sharing everything. He was waiting to see what their superiors thought, first.

"Who?" Reynolds tried to clarify. "Who's doing the blocking?"

Crawford shrugged. He had appearances to keep up. He wouldn't be the one to volunteer, even though he was ready to. If Smith wanted to kick that guy's ass so bad, then it meant he deserved it. Crawford was ready to do that on his behalf if it meant getting a little justice for Elda.

"Elda?"

She looked up at her CO. "Lieutenant's a natural choice. He's been established as our Muscle. And he already gave Perim the impression that he gets to sleep with Xena," she said, emphasizing that this was all a charade.

Elda could feel Crawford squinting at her. She chose not to entertain his look.

"Baker?"

"I'm in."

"Alright. We leave in two hours."

After the meeting, Crawford cornered Elda in the corridor. He made sure Reynolds and Baker were long gone. "I'm a little surprised you didn't suggest me."

Elda kept her face neutral. "I already explained this."

"Are you trying to keep us apart in the field?" he asked suspiciously.

"And if I am?" she said, raising her brow in challenge.

"Then you probably have a good idea."

She blinked. She wasn't expecting that reaction. She thought he'd want to be the one at her side for this. Elda nodded at him. "Good, then we agree."

Crawford smiled at her, knowing there was more going on here. But he chose to let her be. She was flustered enough. He knew better than to mess with her head right before a mission. He could wait 'til after to toy with her. He was drawing an evil satisfaction from this role-reversal, in which he could actually have a little influence over her.

She totally deserved it after she had manipulated her way into his every waking thought.

"I'll meet you in the gate room later," he announced, then left.

Elda watched him go and narrowed her eyes. He held back. She could tell. She wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. It was good because he was purposely trying not to tempt her. But it also was a little disappointing just the same. Elda shook her head at herself. She needed to stop wanting so much of his attention. She tried to fill her mind with thoughts of Jasuf instead.

Vala fell into step with her as she walked down the corridor. She looped elbows with her. "What do you all have going on today?"

"Checking up on an asset offworld. You?"

"Going back to that planet with the Head Sucker on it. Daniel and the other scientists keep finding more goodies in that old workshop." She smiled. "I'm making Mitchell bring a folding chair along. I'm just going to sit while they go gaga over whatever is in there."

Elda smiled. She knew her mother was referring to one of those collapsible lawn chairs. Daniel had tons of those in his garage, ready to use whenever they had a party outside. "Cameron doesn't care?"

"He's the one insisting I put my feet up, Darling. He's too afraid I might go into labor offworld if I don't."

Elda giggled. "He's that nervous, huh?"

"He is. It's adorable, actually."

They paused before an elevator. Vala swiped her card on the reader to activate it. Elda just let her lead her along, not having anything to do before her own mission. She only needed a few minutes to change and get geared up. She might be bait today for a mark, but that didn't mean she felt like putting one hundred percent effort into her look. She had no interest in letting Perim ogle her today. He creeped her out.

Elda wished Smith was here for this one. He would have a lot of fun 'cock-blocking' Perim again, as the boys called it. Reynolds might have even given him permission to rough him up a bit. Smith would regret this missed opportunity greatly.

The pair ended up in the O'Neill Family Quarters. They could speak more openly there. Vala gestured for Elda to let them in. She was the one with authorized access between the two of them. When they entered, no one was inside. Sam was offworld. Jack was back in Washington by now with Gracie.

The pair settled at the table together. "So, what's the latest with you?" Vala asked.

Elda let her chin drop into her hand. Her elbow propped up her head. "Jasuf came home."

"Oh? How was that?"

"Wonderful." She smiled. Elda was genuinely happy to have him back. And not just because it would help her reset after Crawford had so expertly screwed her up.

"How did he take all the changes you made while he was gone?" Vala grinned evilly.

"He had no idea what to do with it," Elda reported. "Lo'zim was laughing at him for it."

Vala laughed. "That's what he gets, right? He encourages you to accept leadership and now that you've asserted yourself, he has to deal with the consequences."

Elda scrunched her face as she joined her mother in amusement. "Yup. I'm not worried, though. I have the Tribe Father's support for this. Jasuf will see the worth of my way soon enough."

Vala hummed proudly at her. "Good work, Darling. You've risen beautifully."

"Thanks, Mom."

"What else?"

Elda shook her head nonchalantly. "Nothing much," she lied. "What about you?"

"This baby kicks me so hard, sometimes I nearly pee myself."

Her daughter blinked. She leaned down to talk to Vala's belly. "Good job," she whispered.

Vala lightly smacked her shoulder to chide her.

Elda grinned as she sat back up. "Almost there."

"Not fast enough," Vala complained.

"What exactly will happen once you deliver?"

"I go off active duty. Stay home and take care of the baby. Daniel stays with me for the first little while. Then he comes back here to work."

"And SG-1 will stand down?"

"Yes. Your Uncle Hank intends to schedule some medical things at that time and make Cameron take over the base in his absence."

"Meanwhile, I see Teal'c remaining on Tek'ron while he's not needed here."

"Right."

Elda tilted her head side to side. "Okay. I guess that will be good practice for Cameron."

"You think he'll be doing this more often?" Vala hazarded.

"I know he will, Mom. Remember, he already made General in my time. Old Man Daniel totally took advantage of that."

Vala shook her head. "Still can't imagine the way things were there. You could tell me and tell me and I will still be unable to wrap my mind around it properly."

Elda patted her hand. "Don't try too hard. Not worth it. Besides, that timeline is long gone. Too many things have changed."

"Is anything still the same?" her mother asked curiously.

Elda hummed in thought. "Cameron and Carolyn being together is the same. Ishta and Teal'c, too." She tried to think. "Human swindlers will always do what human swindlers do. Other than that… everything else is different."

"All because you showed up."

"No. Because Dad and Daniel went back to save me and Mom. I have nothing to do with it."

"Oh, Darling, you don't even realize the effect you have on people." Vala smiled at her proudly.

Elda shook her head emphatically. "I'm not doing anything!"

Vala knew she didn't need to remind Elda of all her accomplishments. She let her daughter be, seeing that she didn't want to take credit for all the monumental changes that had occurred since her arrival. It wouldn't hurt to let her remain humble.


"How fortunate I feel to be seeing you again," a smooth male voice sounded off behind her.

Elda breathed in. She made Perim wait. It served to give her time to steel herself for this annoying manipulation job and to make him second-guess himself. He had every intention of worming his way into her favor and she knew it.

She spun around slowly. She adopted a soft smile and directed it toward the former Chigu rep. She placed two thumbs into the back pockets of her tight, station-made pants. The action pushed her bosom out for him to gaze at invitingly. "You look familiar," Elda remarked, turning on her sensual tone.

Crawford stood with his back against a wall nearby and grinned to himself. He remained out of sight, ready to jump in as back-up however he was needed. He had on his own station-made clothing that was perfect for operations like these.

"Perhaps you might remember me from a minor trade negotiation. A sample supply of tretonin for one of your clients," Perim pointed out. People bustled around them in a busy marketplace on some commerce world. The majority of them were human. Just a few Oranians were roaming through the crowd. No Jaffa were in sight. They typically had no interest in visiting places like these. They had their own separate economy to utilize.

Elda noticed that Perim didn't try to remind her of the Chigu warship he showed off. Clearly, he didn't want to emphasize his connection to them anymore. "Hmm. Maybe that does sound like something I would do," she said. Her eyes darted around the marketplace in an effort to maintain situational awareness.

She picked a direction and pretended to walk there purposefully. She acted as if she could care less that her mark was there.

Perim followed.

Elda sent him a sideways look. "What do you want?" she asked very directly as she maneuvered through the crowd. She swatted away someone's sticky hands near her jacket pocket.

"To get to know you."

"I've heard that one before, Darling. Do better." Elda caught sight of Baker off to the side. They made eye contact to acknowledge each other but nothing more. So far, Perim hadn't noticed him. She knew both he and Crawford would surreptitiously keep up with them as they moved. Reynolds was back on the Firefly, listening in and ready to activate autopilot to pick them up if anything went wrong. The ship was connected to the tracking device Vala previously installed inside Crawford's blaster. Its navigation system would use that as the destination when auto-calculating a course.

"Fine. I'd like to work with you."

Elda laughed a little. "I'm sure you do." She paused when a large ground transport pushed through the crowd with sirens blaring. Everyone had to step out of its way as some official looking people were being carted through. "What happened to your cushy rep job over at Chigu?" she asked in a bored tone.

"It was time to move on," Perim said nonchalantly. He didn't mention the relief he expressed to Reynolds and Carolyn over being freed. They continued walking to wherever Elda pretended she needed to go.

"I knew it. You exaggerated about how great it was to work there."

"Perhaps I did. But that was the job."

Elda harumphed. "And what makes you think I'd want to bring you into my fold now?"

Crawford hid his smile as he listened in through open comms. She was baiting him good and inviting innuendo with her choice of words. She said 'fold,' but Perim would interpret that to mean 'between her legs.' Elda was leaning on the mark's obvious attraction to her and seeing if he'd bite. Crawford loved watching her work.

Perim smiled slyly. "Because if you let me in, I would be an absolute pleasure to work with," he answered suggestively.

Baker thought it was a good thing Smith wasn't here. He'd come kick this fool's ass immediately.

Elda quirked a small smile. She stopped and pretended to look Perim up and down now, taking in his good looks and deciding if he would be worth inviting to dinner. Her teeth openly bit her tongue as she raked him in thoughtfully. It made Perim think he had a chance to bed her.

"You would need to convince me."

"Working for Chigu qualifies me for any brokerage job out here. Assign me to any trade deal you like, and I will negotiate an advantageous contract for your client."

"Advantageous?"

"Yes."

"Percentage?"

"Sliding scale. We could start low, if you like," he said, putting on a sexy smile. "Then as you start to enjoy my work, we move up to bigger and better things. Let me prove my worth to you."

Baker shook his head at the obvious suggestion he was making. He could be talking numbers or sex or both. It was probably both.

Elda's expression remained controlled. She feigned a very slight interest in his offer. "Hmm. I do require proof for anything new I agree to."

Perim took that as permission to step closer. He invaded her personal bubble. Elda let him. "Xena, my dear, I stand ready to prove myself now."

She stood her ground. She pretended to breathe him in a display of arousal. "I'm sure you have the skill. But one wonders why you separated from Chigu in the first place. Were you not trying to recruit my beloved partner and take him away from me before?"

He licked his lips, giving himself time to think. "I was. But his continued reluctance told me there must be something more profitable out here worth looking into."

Elda tilted her head, giving him a good look down her neck.

His eyes were drawn to skin peeking out from the collar of her open crop-top jacket. They dropped lower to where a small tube top covered her breasts. Beyond it were well-formed abdominal muscles, signifying her fit state and implying she had stamina in bed.

"All those benefits upstairs on your little warship. Why would anyone give that up?" Elda didn't protest when his mouth began hovering closer to hers. She made eye contact with Baker and blinked once, telling him to get ready to move in.

"Not everyone enjoys working for Chigu."

Elda raised her brow. "Why."

"Because most of them there are slaves."

She scoffed disbelievingly. "Right."

"It's true."

"Chigu must be gigantic. How could it keep that many slaves?"

"It has its ways," Perim said seriously.

"Oh, it does, does it? How many slaves are we talking about here? I don't believe any of this."

"Chigu employs half the sector it inhabits. And it drugs seventy-five percent of them to maintain the workforce's compliance. The rest are locked into indentured servitude with no chance of paying off their debt within their own short lifetimes. And that's not counting the mercenaries that it hires."

"That's quite a claim."

He seemed a little indignant that Elda wouldn't take his word for it. "I had it good with Zersha before them. Chigu stole me and put me up with the thousands of others they acquired just like me."

"Thousands?"

"Yes. Nearly ten-thousand."

Objective achieved. Time to set the foundation for the next op and close this one out.

"Sounds like a lot of potential employees for my operation, then," she mused.

Perim smiled, recognizing another cunning shark before him. He could tell this Xena was good. "Hire me, and I could help you with that part." He reached up to stroke her chin and the side of her face. He leaned in toward her ear. "And I'll bet I could do better than that Carm if you let me have dinner with you."

Crawford had performed this exact same action on her and it worked. But he had an advantage that Perim didn't. Elda wasn't even phased this time. She felt satisfied by that.

She flicked a hand behind him, where Perim couldn't see.

Baker's strong hand immediately gripped his shoulder from behind. "She's got plans tonight," he announced.

The former Chigu rep swung his head around in surprise. "You." His eyes flitted between the marine and Elda. He frowned.

Baker smiled, unbothered. "Yes. Me."

Perim's mouth twitched. "I don't suppose you're willing to share."

Elda's brow raised.

Baker's smile faded. He stepped between him and Elda menacingly. "Not with you," he replied dangerously.

Elda placed two hands atop Baker's shoulder and smiled brightly. She leaned her chin on them. "Guess it might not work out after all."

Crawford began to laugh in the background.