Beneath A Silent Moon (Part 1)

Title: Beneath A Silent Moon (part 1)

Author: Suz W.

Spoilers: After Metamorphosis (episode tag)

Feedback: I would love to hear from you!

Old Stories Referenced: “A Snowy Adventure (Parts 1 & 2)”, “A Cooking Lesson”, and “Dividing Lines”

Rating: R, S/J Friendship, Missing, Action/Adventure, and sexual situations.

Summary: With Sam and Jack having found their way back to each other, this Thanksgiving holiday is extra special. The only problem is they get much more than they bargained for.

Disclaimer: All publicity recognizable characters and places are the property of MGM, SciFi Productions, World Gekko Corp and Double Secret Productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks was intended.

Copyright: The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. Copyrighted on December 31, 2006, by Suzanne R. Whitmarsh.

Author’s Notes: This story follows “Yesterday”. This is my 50^th story of the series, and I’ve got lots more to come, so I hope you’re continuing to enjoy it. I want to thank each of you for your continued support, and for all the feedback on my stories that you send me. It is such a tremendous help to keep me motivated, especially now that my time is so limited. So sit back and enjoy the latest addition to “A New Beginning”…it’s be a great ride so far, and hopefully only promises more of the same as we continue on down the road with Sam and Jack!

Dedication: I’d like to dedicate this story to Trisha! Thanks for always being such a huge support for me. Your dedication to my series and all the feedback you send me means so much, as does your friendship. So this is for you…thanks for being who you are…a terrific fan and friend!

The second hand on Jack’s watch seemed to be magically slowing down every time he looked at it. The thirty minutes that he and the rest of his team had been in the debriefing felt like an eternity to him, and with no end in sight. They had returned from P3X-367 only three hours ago, affording enough time for their infirmary check-up, a good, hot shower, and in Jack’s case, a nap. In hindsight, he began to realize as the debriefing drug on that he should have recommended to General Hammond they get it over with right after their return to Earth. If he had, his time off would have already started. Stealing a glance at Sam, who was seated next to him, he gave a her faint smile. It was there time off he was definitely looking forward to.

Looking down at his watch again, he suddenly heard General Hammond interrupt Jonas’ recounting of events after they had arrived on the planet. “Colonel O’Neill. Are we keeping you from something?”

Shooting his eyes up to meet the General’s, he quickly composed himself. “No, Sir…sorry, Sir. I could have sworn my watch had stopped working.” Feeling the weight of his lame excuse on his chest, he cleared his throat and nodded at Jonas. “Continue on.” Sitting back slightly in his chair, he could see Sam trying to suppress a grin. He made a mental note that he would have to give her a hard time about that later. After all, the only reason he couldn’t concentrate was because of her. Folding his hands on the edge of the table, he did his best to give the debriefing his full attention.

Jonas regained his train of thought. “As I was saying, General, it wasn’t long after Egar and Woden put Teal’c and I in the cages that Nirrti appeared, subsequently surprising Major Carter, and capturing both her and Colonel O’Neill.”

Jack allowed his mind to drift back to that moment. It was the critical point in their mission where everything became a nightmare for him.

Instinct told Jack that something was suddenly terribly wrong. Moving slower and as quietly as possible, he crept into the room where he had left Sam. It was too still, making his stomach churn uneasily. As he came up on a corner, he edged around it, his P-90 clutched tightly in his hands. And then he saw her, and his heart jumped into his throat. Sam was unconscious, being held up by the one women he loathed more than anyone in the galaxy, or universe for that matter…Nirrti. She wore a cocky half-smile on her face that he wanted to carve out with a knife as she pointed a Zat at the back of Sam’s head.

Jack swallowed hard as he moved into position, with his line of sight directly aimed at Nirrti’s head. He wanted nothing more than to shoot her, but somewhere in the back of his consciousness, a little voice told him that he needed her alive in order to help the people she was killing. Severally irritated, he eased his finger off the trigger just a fraction.

Nirrti gave him an arrogant look. “I’m sure you’re aware that a second shot from this weapon will kill.”

Jack knew his limits were being pushed to the breaking point. It was bad enough she had shot Sam in the first place, but threatening to take her life was almost more than he could take. Jack growled out a response. “This weapon kills on the first shot.”

Nirrti gave him a defiant look. “Then why haven’t you already fired?”

Jack hated admitting the truth to her because he knew it gave her the upper hand. Trying to keep his voice even, he responded smoothly. “Because I need you alive.”

If Nirrti was surprised, she barely showed it. “You?”

Jack, his gun still aimed at Nirrti’s head, answered back coolly. “Yeah, I know. It’s kind of hard to believe. But I need you to help these people.”

Nirrti responded back instantly. “I am helping them.”

Jack wanted to laugh. “Yeah, I can see that.”

Nirrti didn’t miss a beat. Tightening her grip on Major Carter, she answered back. “Appearances can be deceiving, Colonel O’Neill.” As if she’d planned to show him what she meant, the Jaffa that had been unconscious on the ground beside her suddenly woke up. Seeing Jack with the gun trained on Nirrti, he raised his staff weapon to defend his “god”.

Jack quickly moved the aim of the gun to the Jaffa on the ground and fired without hesitation, knowing that if he didn’t, he’d never have a chance to save Sam. But before Jack could blink, Woden appeared from the shadows and held out a hand. The bullet suddenly stopped mid flight and then dropped to the ground with a light thud. Jack was stunned.

Nirrti’s voice rang through his head as she spoke. “Now, as I said…”

Jack looked at Sam, helpless in the hands of Nirrti, and knew that it was pointless to fight back. Her life was more important than any amount of pride or hero complex he might have. Not wanting to risk her life further, he sighed internally and unhooked his gun from the strap around his chest. “Yeah.”

As Jack placed the gun on the ground, he stood up in time to see Nirrti move the Zat from Sam’s head and point it at him. And then suddenly the world went black….

Jack blinked back the memory to refocus his attention on the debriefing in progress. Sam had taken over the recounting of events, and was in the process of describing her experience in the machine. Sitting back in his chair, Jack attempted to look like he was listening, when in actuality, he was traveling back to his nightmare, one that progressively got worse the longer they’d stayed in Nirrti’s makeshift fortress.

Jack, Sam, Teal’c, and Jonas all turned their attentions to the entrance of the room that contained their cells. Woden and Egar had just entered, carrying Evanov, who looked like he’d had better days. Jack’s mind was racing with the right thing to say in order to negotiate their escape. “Woden, buddy. Listen. I think we’re dealing with a bit of a misunderstanding here.”

Sam decided to help him out. “Do you really think Nirrti will keep you alive with these powers after she’s finished her experiments? She’s using you!”

Woden raised the cell door where Sam and Jack were, and together with Egar, tossed Evanov onto the ground without repose. Sam and Jack instantly moved over to him and helped him over to one of the beds, laying him down. He was sweating profusely, and looked like he’d been tortured for who knows how long, except without the bloodied marks to prove it.

Jack could feel his anger building. He didn’t really consider Evanov a friend, but he was a decent and honest guy, and certainly didn’t deserve this. Half turning, he threw accusing eyes in Woden and Egar’s direction. “What’d she do to him?!”

Without a response or even a hesitation, Woden pointed to Sam. “You are next.”

Jack could feel the panic suddenly rising up in his throat like bile. “Uh, I think I’m next.”

Woden gave him a hateful response. “Nirrti has asked for this one.”

Jack’s fear for Sam began climbing up his spine, making it hard to keep his emotions in check. Moving forward, his mind was racing for any idea of how he could keep Sam away from the machine and that insane Goa’uld. Allowing his voice to emit a little more authority, he responded. “And I’m asking you to take me instead.”

As Jack approached, Woden held out his hand, his voice full of anger. “NO!”

Jack suddenly felt an incredible force on his chest as it pushed him back, almost knocking the wind out of him. Jack was now scared. He couldn’t let them take Sam; he feared what would happen to her if they did. Trying to remain calm, he held up his hands, all the while staying between them and the women he loved more than words. “Alright, look. If you really can see in my mind, you know we came here to help you.” His eyes searched their faces for understanding, but found none.

Egar answered him, contempt lacing his voice. “I did sense that when you first arrived. But when I looked deeper into your mind, I realized you would sacrifice us all if necessary to destroy Nirrti.”

Jack’s voice rang out in panic. “That’s not true!”

Egar shouted back. “You cannot lie to me!!” Directing his attention to Sam, he spoke again, his voice still just as angry. “Come!”

Sam looked at Jack, their eyes holding each others. There were a thousand words that could be said, but there was no time. Reluctantly moving forward, Sam ducked under the cell door and then immediately found Jack’s eyes again. Giving him a weak smile, she attempted to reassure him. “At least I’ll find out how the machine works.”

With that, Woden lowered the cell door with a bang, and then he and Egar grabbed Sam and led her out of the room. Jack walked over to the cell door and wrapped his fingers around the cold bars, mimicking the feeling that was being wrapped around his heart. Watching her go, he leaned his forehead against the bars and felt utterly helpless. Knowing she was about to go through what Evanov had just gone through, and him unable to help her, made Jack sick to his stomach. Closing his eyes, he felt suddenly drained of all feeling.

Jack once again refocused his attention on the debriefing. Hesitating, he stole a glance a Sam, who was now listening to Teal’c and his account of what happened in the cell after Sam had been taken away. The memory had been so real that he needed to see her with his own eyes. The time she had spent in the machine was the closest thing to Hell he’d experienced in a long time, and after they had brought her back to him, he didn’t know then if he’d ever escape that feeling.

Jack’s heart raced with intensity as Egar and Woden appeared, half dragging Sam along with them. Jack was instantly at the cell door as Woden opened it. He reached out as they shoved Sam back over to him, practically letting her drop and forcing Jack to catch her in his arms. Grateful to have her back, he eased her up against him and spoke softly to her. “Come on, Carter.”

Feeling her weight resting against his chest, he guided her over to the other makeshift bed in the cell and carefully laid her down. As he looked her over, he could see that she was in pain. He would give anything to get his hands on Nirrti. Looking up as Woden and Egar made their way over to Jonas and Teal’c’s cell, he spoke up. “Hey fellas! Want to do me a favor? Go on back…let her know that I’m next…you should pick me…”

Woden didn’t even give his request thought. “Her will is my command.”

Jack felt the fight suddenly leave him. Sitting down beside Sam, he responded to Woden’s comment. “Yeah, well, there’s your mistake right there.” Looking down at Sam, Jack barely registered the scuffle that ensued between Jonas and their captors. He gave him mental praise for trying, but wasn’t surprised when he failed.

Wanting to take Sam in his arms, but knowing he couldn’t, Jack studied her face. Her eyes were closed, and she, like Evanov, was sweating profusely and grimacing in pain. Wanting to see the depths of her blue eyes, he called out her name softly. “Carter?”

Sam heard Jack’s voice. Despite her pain, his voice was like a soothing cool cloth on her forehead. She opened her eyes and attempted a small smile. “Sir.” Her body felt robed of all energy, but seeing his handsome face looking down at her with concern and love gave her the strength to respond.

Jack tried to find a positive tone for his voice. “You made it through. You’re going to be alright.”

Sam loved him so much for trying to cheer her up and give her hope, but she was no fool. Something had been changed. In a weak voice, she responded. “No, Sir, I don’t think I am.” She hated tearing apart his optimism, but she didn’t want him relying on false hope.

Jack felt his throat close up on him. Trying to keep himself composed, he brushed his hand against hers, hoping it would tell her not to give up just yet.

Reacting to the memory, Jack lowered his hands under the table and brushed one of them against Sam’s as it lay on her lap, loving the warm sensation it sent through him. Sam looked over and gave him a quick, inquisitive look. He simply responded by curling his lips into a small, quick smile, fleeting enough that no one would hopefully notice, but long enough for her to see it. As he returned his attention to the debriefing in progress, General Hammond addressed him.

“Colonel O’Neill, what happened to Evanov?” His tone was neutral, but Jack could sense that Hammond was aware of his lack of enthusiasm regarding the debriefing, along with his lack of participation.

Jack cleared his throat. “Well, Sir, he unfortunately met the same fate as Aldebrat.”

Jonas quickly spoke up. “Alebran.”

Jack gave him a quick, irritated look. “Yes, thank you, Jonas.”

General Hammond furrowed his brows. “He disintegrated into water?”

Jack nodded, his face suddenly mimicking the remorse his heart felt in losing a good man. “Yes, Sir. They brought him to our cell after he had been in the machine. Evanov couldn’t remember how long he’d been in it, but it wasn’t long after that that he…died.”

General Hammond directed his attention to Sam. “Were his symptoms the same as yours?”

Sam glanced over at Jack and then nodded. “Yes, Sir. Luckily the damage that Nirrti did to me was able to be reversed in time, but I can tell you that had it not been, it would have been a painful way to die. Unfortunately, Evanov suffered.”

Jack closed his eyes momentarily, attempting to block out the images that kept trying to surface. Though Sam hadn’t admitted it to him or anyone else, he knew that she had been in extreme pain. Hate surged through him, causing him to ball up his fists in his lap. He was glad that Nirrti was dead, but for what she had done to Sam and put her through, Jack wholeheartedly wished that he could have personally killed her.

As Sam continued the debriefing, Jack allowed his mind to work through the memories that had been stirred by the account she was relaying.

Sam looked over at Evanov, who was lying next to her on the cement slab with only bars separating them. He was coughing, sputtering up fluid that was obviously building in his system. He looked terrible and was getting worse by the minute. Looking at him, she couldn’t help but feel the fear building up in her throat at the outlook of her own fate. She knew the machine that Nirrti had put her in had definitely changed something, and she was doing her best not to think about it. But watching Evanov now, it was hard not to.

Sam managed to find her voice. “You in pain?”

Evanov could barely speak. “Something is happening. I can feel it.” Taking time for a ragged breath, he spoke again. “Is there water?”

Jack responded first, feeling guilty that he’d been put through what he had when he was the one leading the mission. “We’ll ask.” He gave Sam a brief glance, not knowing if he had the courage to fully look her in the face. The level of guilt over Evanov in no way compared to the amount of distress he was feeling over Sam. It should have been him who had been put in that machine, not her. And if something happened to her, he knew he would never forgive himself.

Sam caught Jack’s brief look in her direction and tried to read it, but her mind was in a haze. Glancing back at Evanov, she spoke up again. “Try to rest.” Sitting up, she positioned herself next to Jack on the bench she’d been lying on and looked over at Teal’c in the next cell.

Teal’c kept his voice low as he began speaking. “I have been attempting to communicate with the other prisoners, but they also believe Nirrti is a god. They will not listen.”

Jack nodded over in Evanov’s direction. “He’s in pretty bad shape.”

Teal’c looked over. “He appears to be suffering the same symptoms as Alebran.”

Jack suddenly had a thought. “We’ve got to get to that guy…what’s his name?”

Teal’c responded. “Woden.”

Jack lightly shook his head. “No, the other one.”

Sam answered him with some obvious discomfort. “Egar.”

Jack looked over at her briefly. “Yeah. I mean if he can read my mind, why can’t he read Nirrti’s?”

Sam spoke up. “He can’t read minds all the time or he would have known Jonas was going to jump him.”

Teal’c contemplated this idea. “Perhaps he is afraid to look into the mind of one he perceives as a God.”

Pain suddenly shot through Sam’s body, causing her to wince badly.

Jack reacted immediately as he looked over at her, his nerves on pins and needles, knowing how precariously her life now hung in the balance. “What?” His voice sounded soft and hollow, as if he were afraid of the answer.

Sam shook her head, her eyes closed. “Nothing, I’m fine.”

Jack could see she was anything but fine…that even answering his question had taken a lot out of her. His heart ached at having to watch her go through this. Again, anger welled up in his throat, feeling responsible for what she was going through and that it should be him now suffering and not her. Not the woman who meant everything to him. Speaking to her softly, he bent his head in her direction. “Get some rest. That’s an order.” Though there was no real command in his tone of voice, he hoped she would follow his wishes.

To his great surprise, moments later he felt her head snuggling against his shoulder. Turning to look at her, he felt the pain sear his heart as he watched her close her eyes, attempting to find some comfort in being close to him. It was all he could do to restrain himself from not scooping her up in his arms and holding her close. He knew that she had to be in incredible pain in order to let down her guard and allow herself this personal show of affection. Turning his head to look straight ahead, he stared off into space, attempting to distract his mind from the possibility that he might lose her.

But in that same moment, fate took another turn that allowed him no such solace. His brain registered Evanov suddenly coughing and spitting up water violently. He and Sam both turned at the same time, only to watch his whole body dissolve into a tide of liquid. Jack could feel the wave of bile rising once again in his throat as he looked over at Sam, who had a haunting shadow in her eyes. Time was running out, and unless he did something fast, he would lose his heart forever.

Remembered fear brought Jack quickly back to reality, rejoining the debriefing. Jonas was now taking his turning describing his personal encounter with Nirrti and the machine, along with what happened after he awoke in her bedchamber.

General Hammond looked over at him. “Colonel? What happened next?”

Jack could see that General Hammond was tolerating his lack of enthusiasm for the debriefing, and he made a mental note to explain himself later, at least as much as he could. Lack of sleep always seemed a viable excuse. As if on cue, he pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and index finger and then cleared his throat. “Well, Sir, Jonas was returned to the cells luckily unharmed and then they took me next. I tried to convince them down in the cells that Nirrti wasn’t what she appeared to be, but they wouldn’t hear it. Luckily on the way up, I apparently somehow managed to get through to Egar.”

General Hammond nodded. “He read her mind?”

Jack nodded back in response. “Yes, Sir. I was about to step into the machine when Egar announced that I was telling the truth.”

General Hammond was looking a little happier to have the leader of the team actually participating. “What happened next?”

Jack spun his memories, reliving them as he reported them back.

Jack felt his triumph at reaching Egar suddenly turning into fear as he watched Woden slowly strangle Nirrti with the powers she had given him. “Stop!” He never thought he’d find himself attempting to save Nirrti’s life, but Sam’s depended on it. When it seemed that his initial plea wasn’t going to work, he tried a different approach. “We need her alive. Woden, she’s the only one who can help your people!” He knew his voice sounded desperate, but he didn’t care.

But Jack’s pleas never reached Woden’s conscious. In the instant of a heartbeat, Woden snapped her neck, and Jack watched helplessly as Nirrti’s body fell to the ground dead. Jack felt the breath leave his body. His voice sounded weak and unsteady. “Why did you do that?”

The hatred in Woden’s voice spoke volumes. “She deserved to die!”

In some corner of his mind, Jack agreed with him, but the rest of his body was screaming no. “She was Carter’s only chance!”

Egar quickly spoke up, his voice smooth. “Not so, O’Neill. Before she died, I looked into Nirrti’s mind and took what I needed.” He looked over at Jack. “Hurry, while there is still time.”

Jack stared at him for a moment, desperately afraid that this was just another fleeting chance. But Jack saw the determination in Egar’s eyes, and he trusted that. Turning, he ran back the way he’d been brought, hanging on a prayer that it wasn’t too late already.

A minute seemed like an eternity to Jack when they finally arrived back at the prison cells. As Woden lifted the bars, releasing their hold on his team, Jack ducked underneath the cell door that had been holding himself and Sam, reaching her in three steps. His adrenaline was pumping so hard he could barely hear anything else but his own heartbeat.

Looking down at Sam, who was miraculously still alive, he met her eyes, which were glazed over, and he could see time was fading fast. Her breathing was labored, and sweat was seeping from every pore in her body. As his bent down to cradle her in his arms, she spoke a weak “Sir” that sung to his heart. Carefully picking her up, he carried her out of the cell and up the stairs as easily but quickly as he could, followed by the others. Glancing down at her, he spoke to her under his breath. “Don’t you dare leave me, Sam. Hold on. We’re almost there.”

Jack blinked, taking a moment to fully train his thoughts back to the present. “And so as you can see, Sir, Egar was able to work the machine, saving Carter’s life.”

General Hammond glanced over at Sam. “Well, I’m glad to hear that you are alright, Major Carter….and all of you for that matter. But what of Woden, Egar, and the others?”

Sam jumped into the conversation. “Egar is in the process of restoring each of them to their natural forms, along with repairing the genetic damage that Nirrti inflicted on them.”

Jack interceded. “We told them that we could provide them with the necessary food and medical supplies they would need to get back on their feet. I hope you’re in agreement with that, Sir.”

General Hammond nodded. “Of course. I’ll put Siler to work on it right away.” Looking at the team before him, he smiled. “A job well done, SG-1. Now, seeing as it’s Thanksgiving in a couple days, I’m going to give you a week off to recoup and enjoy the festivities, however you choose to do that. So on that note, have a wonderful holiday. Dismissed.”

Jack wanted to jump up and down for joy that the debriefing was finally finished, but instead he chose to get up from his chair casually, glancing at Sam and giving her an easy smile. She smiled back in return, their eyes locking for a moment with anticipation of the days to come. Trying to be as informal as possible, Jack nodded at her. “So, Carter, are you actually going to enjoy this holiday outside the realm of your lab?” He already knew her answer, but he’d asked anyway for appearances.

Sam shrugged. “I’m not sure, Sir. I was hoping my dad would come back this year, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. I may try and contact him here in a little while and see if I can entice him to leave the Tok’ra for a few days.”

Jack raised his brow at her and then turned to Teal’c. “T? Any plans?”

Teal’c, fearful he was going to ask him to go fishing, quickly responded. “Indeed. I am to join Bra’tac and Ra’yac on Chulak. It will be good to go back home for a short time.” In actuality, Teal’c didn’t know if Bra’tac or his son would be anywhere near Chulak, but the excuse sounded reasonable, and it helped to prevent any misguided adventures with O’Neill.

Last was Jonas. Jack looked over at him and saw the excitement of a young school boy who was about to discover something new. Letting out a breath, he squinted his eyes slightly, with his hands drawn behind his back and his fingers crossed. “Jonas?”

Jonas, who had read about the celebration of Thanksgiving but had yet to experience it, gestured with his hands. “I’m not sure, Colonel. I’ve read about this holiday you’re talking about, but I obviously have never experienced it. Do you….”

Just then, General Hammond called to him from the door of his office. “Colonel O’Neill, do you have a moment?”

Jack had to hide his internal praise of thanks to the General for interrupting Jonas. It got him out of trying to find an excuse for not inviting Jonas along to Thanksgiving. Perhaps a bit to quickly, he whipped around and responded. “Yes, Sir.” Moving away from the table and towards the General’s office, he glanced behind him only to find Sam giving him a “you dog” look that he knew he’d hear about later.

Stepping into General Hammond’s office, he closed the door to the meeting room and shrugged his hands in his pockets. “So, General, what’s up?”

General Hammond eyed him carefully for a moment. “I just wanted to make sure that everything is alright.”

Jack suddenly sensed what he was referring to. Tensing up just slightly, he stared down at his boots before looking up and answering. “Yes, Sir.” Wanting to make sure of his query, he broached the next obvious question. “Why do you ask?”

Hammond replied. “It just seemed like you weren’t with us in that debriefing. I know you’re tired from the mission, but it seemed like you had something on your mind that was really bothering you.”

Jack blew out a breath and searched his head for the best answer. “I’m sorry, Sir. I guess with everything that happened on this mission, from our encounter with the people of that planet to confronting Nirrti again…you know how much I hated that woman.”

General Hammond eyed him thoughtfully for a moment before speaking. “And Major Carter?”

At his question, Jack felt his body go stiff. He hadn’t thought he’d been that obvious in his actions that he was thinking about her. But maybe he had been. Cursing silently, he tried to compose himself before answering. “What about her, Sir?” Jack felt safer playing the dumb card than risking saying something he didn’t need to.

Hammond sat back in his chair, the leather squeaking under the shift of his weight. “Jack, I know you. You can’t sit there and pretend that almost losing her didn’t affect you.”

Jack could feel the blood draining from his face. Had he found about their relationship? Jack, beginning to panic, nervously fidgeted with the fabric on the inside of his pockets as he searched for something to say.

But before he had to, General Hammond continued. “She’s your second in command, and I know that you blame yourself for her having to go through that machine before you did. I just want to make sure that the guilt I know your feeling can be resolved. Situations are sometimes out of our control, and from everything I just heard during the mission debriefing, you couldn’t have prevented it.”

As a wave of relief hit his body, Jack thought it would knock him over. Instead, he adjusted his stance near the door and nodded. “You’re right, Sir, I do blame myself. But I also realize as you said that some situations are out of our control. I appreciate the concern, General, but I’ll be okay. I just need some time to defuse from this latest adventure.”

Hammond nodded. “Agreed, Colonel. I assume you have plans to do just that for your time off?”

Jack nodded, smiling. “Yes, Sir…just some quality time with the fish and maybe a good book.”

General Hammond nodded. “Well, Colonel, I suggest you get to it. That’s an order.” Taking a breath, he spoke up again. “And Happy Thanksgiving, Jack.”

Jack gave him a lazy salute. “Same to you, Sir.” Turning around, he reached for the door handle with a slightly shaky hand. That had been all too close for comfort. Opening the door, he welcomed the stagnant air of the debriefing room. He never had liked being trapped in a corner, and that is exactly what it had felt like to him.

General Hammond watched Jack go, walking steadily to the stairs that led down to the control room. Smiling to himself, he shook his head and went back to the papers on his desk.

Jack arrived at Sam’s lab still trying to shake off the feeling that Hammond knew more than he was letting on. Popping his head in the doorway, his face turned down when he found it empty. He could have sworn they’d agreed to leave the base together. As he continued to look around her lab, as if she’d suddenly appear, a voice sounded behind him.

“Colonel O’Neill?” Jack jumped at the sound he wasn’t expecting. Turning around abruptly, he trained an irritated look on the man before him.

“Henry, right?” It was Sam’s goofy research assistant who seemed to always pop out of nowhere.

Henry, surprised that the Colonel had actually gotten his name right, fumbled around for a response. “Yes…yes, Sir.”

Jack crossed his arms over his chest. “Hasn’t anyone ever told you not to sneak up on someone…especially someone who is trained in combat?!” Not really mad but loving to watch him squirm, Jack tried to suppress a smile as he waited for Henry’s answer.

Henry flinched. “Sorry, Colonel O’Neill…didn’t mean to startle you. Um…were you looking for Dr….ah I mean Major Carter?”

Jack, satisfied with the fun he’d gotten out of him, nodded. “You guessed it. Do you know where she is?”

Henry, still trying to recover from the initial shock of Colonel O’Neill’s tone, responded. “Who?”

Now Jack was losing his patience. “Carter, Henry….Carter!”

Henry regained his composure. “Oh right. Major Carter…she went to the locker rooms to change before heading home…I think.”

Jack turned on his heel and brushed past Henry, thankful to be making his escape from the bumbling scientist. He liked Henry, from what little interaction he’d had with him, but it always amazed Jack at how simple things seemed to always go over the heads of those people who buried their noses in books and lab equipment. Raising a hand over his shoulder, he spoke up as he walked away. “Thanks, Harry.”

Henry’s shoulders dropped a notch at the use of the wrong name. Raising his hand in response, he called back after him. “You’re welcome…and it’s Henry.”

Jack gave him a confused look over his shoulder, shrugged, and continued on. Hoping to catch Sam before she left the base, he picked up the pace to the elevators. He was looking forward to getting away from the base for a few days, and he couldn’t think of a better way to spend it than with the woman he loved.

Arriving at the door of the locker room, he was just about to knock when it suddenly opened, and he found himself staring into Sam’s beautiful face. Caught off guard, Sam gave him a shy smile before addressing him formally. “Sir…getting ready to head out on that vacation?”

Jack gave her a knowing smile. “You’ve got it, Carter. Can’t wait…all those fish are calling my name.” Searching for the appropriate excuse, Jack nodded towards the locker room. “I just need to grab a few things and then I’m on my way to the surface. You want to share an elevator?”

Sam hesitated before responding. “Actually, I was just going to run back to my lab…”

Jack raised his brow at her. He knew that if he didn’t personally escort her to the surface, he’d be eating alone tonight. No matter how much she loved him, there always seemed to be something that managed to hold her attention there a bit too long for his liking. Determined to prevent this, he spoke up, interrupting her. “I’m sorry…did that sound like a request?”

Sam gave him as playful a look as she dared before sighing. “Alright, Sir. I’ll go get us an elevator.” Moving past him, she allowed the twinkle in her eye catch his, and ran a light finger over the side of his thigh. She was looking forward to her time off, and didn’t mind a bit if Jack was forcing her to leave her work unfinished. She knew that Henry would finish things up for her.

It didn’t take him long to meet her. Striding up to her like a cool cat, she had to suppress the desire to kiss him right there. He looked incredibly handsome in his tan pants and white shirt, with his worn dark brown leather jacket hooked easily over his shoulder. His eyes, dark with an emotion she hoped to experience later, tracked hers relentlessly, making her blush. Finally finding the strength to look away from him long enough to press the elevator button, she caught her breath as his cologne took over her senses.

Jack was just as affected as Sam was at the anticipation of their time alone together. He casually looked her up and down, enjoying immensely the way her jeans hugged the curve of her hips, butt, and legs, and the way the color of her blue shirt made her eyes glow. Clearing his voice, he moved closer to her. “Carter. Glad to see that you followed my instructions.”

Sam gave him a smile. “Well, I convinced myself that Henry could take care of anything left unfinished.”

Jack smiled. “I knew I liked that guy.” Just then the elevator opened, providing their transportation to the surface and the means to start their vacation…together. Blessedly, it was empty, as was most of the base. Except for the skeleton crew, most of the personnel had departed a few hours ago.

As the elevator doors closed, Sam dropped her bag on the floor and launched herself into Jack’s arms, capturing his lips in the same instance. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she explored his mouth with her tongue and then receded, allowing Jack the same pleasure. Her whole body was on fire, and it felt as if they had melted into one being.

She had just enough consciousness left to register that the elevator was slowing down. Giving him one last lingering kiss, this one softer but just as intimate, Sam pulled back and stared into his flushed face. He ran a hand through his hair as he tried to compose himself and keep his insides from exploding. Watching as she did the same, he managed a few words as the elevator arrived at the surface. “Well, you can share an elevator with me anytime.”

Trying not to laugh out loud from the feeling of pure giddiness, Sam gave him a winning smile as they stepped out of the elevator and checked out of the base. Walking to their respective cars, Jack followed Sam out of the parking lot and then turned off on a side street. Glancing in her rearview mirror, she smiled to herself and wondered who would make it home first.

Twenty minutes later when Sam pulled into her driveway, she wasn’t a bit surprised to find Jack’s truck parked just down the street. Getting out of her car, she gathered her belongings and fingered her house key, hurrying up to her front door. Opening it, she’d barely shut and locked it before Jack grabbed her from behind and spun her around, causing her to drop everything she had in her hands.

But she didn’t care. Before she could blink, he’d swept her up into his arms and was carrying her to the bedroom. Striding easily through the door, he set her down on the bed and began ripping off his shirt as she did the same with hers. Hungry for her, he found her lips and explored every inch as his hands expertly worked to undo her jeans and slid them off her hips. Without even knowing it, she had done the same for him, and was digging her hands and fingertips into his shoulder blades for dear life as she kissed his neck.

Jack’s fingers worked the hooks on her bra and undid them, freeing her breasts for him to explore with his hands and lips.

As Jack went to work on her nipples, Sam gasped and cried out, wanting more. “Please, Jack, please…”

Jack heard her pleas and wasted no time. Entering her, they rode out the storm of their love while holding tightly to each other. Each wave that came was always bigger than the last, until finally Sam didn’t think she could take anymore or she’d lose any consciousness she had left. Jack’s body was firm and tight, muscles rippled in length down his torso as he moved on top of her.

In a final effort, he rode one more wave, feeling the tide rising higher and higher until finally they reached their peak, exploding together and coming crashing down on the shore in pure ecstasy. Lying together, wrapped up in each other’s arms, they simply looked back at each other, transmitting love that words could not touch. Drawing the comforter up over them with one arm, Jack closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, taking in her scent and the feel of her body as it happily intertwined with his.

After about a two hour nap, Sam woke up, still in Jack’s arms, and smiled. He looked incredibly peaceful, and she gently kissed his lips before craning her neck to look at the clock. 2000 hours. With that, her stomach growled, protesting to the fact that she hadn’t supplied it with any nourishment since earlier that morning.

Carefully getting up without waking Jack, she looked down at him for a moment more before grabbing her robe from the bathroom, putting it on. Slipping out of the room, she headed to the kitchen to make them something to eat for dinner. She felt incredibly at peace; it was so right to share her house and bed with him. Though the regulations said otherwise, she couldn’t imagine life without him. As she flipped on the kitchen light, she noticed the mess of papers, keys, and other items that still lay in front of the front door where Jack had swept her off her feet. Smiling to herself, she bent over and picked up the items, basking in the warm flow of memories from what had just happened only hours before.

Five minutes later, she was searching the refrigerator for something she could fix for dinner when a pair of arms came around her and she felt Jack’s lips nuzzling softly on the side of her neck. Smiling and purring at the same time, she turned around in his arms to face him, rewarding him with a sensual kiss. Pulling back, she used her right hand to smooth over some of his hair that was being unruly. “I’m sorry if I woke you. I was hungry and decided to make us something to eat.”

Jack gave her one of his sexy half smiles. “You didn’t wake me…it was the lack of warmth from your absent body that stirred me.” Giving her a quick kiss on the nose, he half released her and reached around into the fridge for a beer. “Besides, I’m a bit famished myself.” Opening and taking a swig of his beer, he moved over to the barstool closest to her and sat down. “Need any help?”

Sam shook her head. “No, but thanks anyway. You can just sit there looking sexy as always.” Giving him a quick flirtatious smile, she headed to the counter opposite him to start cutting up ingredients for a simple salad. “Actually,” she said, turning around and glancing at him, “I was wondering if you wanted to start our vacation a little bit earlier than we’d planned?”

Jack raised a brow at her. “Really? I thought that’s what we just did.” Seeing her smile, he smiled back in kind before continuing. “What exactly did you have in mind?”

Sam shrugged slightly as she continued cutting up the cucumber she was working on. “I was just thinking that since we did get that nice long nap, maybe you’d be up to traveling to my father’s cabin tonight instead of tomorrow? It’s only about an hour’s drive from here.”

Jack grinned like a school boy. He remembered feeling so excited about the time off that they were due with the impending Thanksgiving holiday because it meant that he’d have more of a chance to spend extra time together. So when she had surprised him by suggesting one night that they spend the week up at her father’s cabin near Vale, he was elated. Never in his wildest dreams did he think he’d be able to convince her to take that much time off away from her work at the base. Needless to say, he jumped on it faster than she could blink.

Jack crossed his arms over his chest and studied her. “And you’re sure that your father won’t mind?”

Sam responded. “He told me I might as well consider it mine since he’s never here to use it. He pays a local man up there to tend to the place once a week to make sure everything is okay with it. So…if you’re up for it, I might even be able to get in touch with the guy and have him get a fire going in the fireplace to warm things up before we get there.”

Jack got off the barstool he’d been occupying and moved over to where she stood. Giving her a knowing smile, he kissed her lightly on the forehead and took the knife out of her hand. Stepping in beside her, he began cutting up the bell pepper she’d laid out.

Sam leaned against the counter and looked at him. “I guess you changed your mind about helping after all.”

Jack popped a piece of pepper in her mouth. “Not helping…doing. Get to dialing, Carter. The phone’s right over there.”

Sam watched him for a moment and smiled, before turning around and moving over to the drawer where she kept her address book. It was going to be great to get away; but she knew that after spending an entire week together, it was going to make it incredibly hard to come back to reality. But that was something she wouldn’t have to think about until later. Right now her focus was on Jack, their vacation, and getting it started as soon as possible.

About two and a half hours later, they were cruising along in Jack’s truck, with only about 10 miles left to go before reaching their destination. It hadn’t taken either of them long to get ready…Jack had made a quick trip home to get his stuff for the trip while Sam was packing her bag. Within twenty minutes, he was back at her house and they were on their way, electing to take Jack’s truck while housing her car in the garage, in order to keep any suspicions at bay should someone come looking for either of them.

The drive had been blessedly uneventful, and they had enjoyed easy conversation between them, layered with everyday topics of politics, weather, sports, and even the latest movies showing on the silver screen. It gave them both a feeling of normalcy to their relationship, and being that it was so rare, was cherished all the more. After a comfortable silence, Sam had a thought and looked over at Jack, the features of his handsome face outlined by the dim lights of the dashboard. “By the way, what did General Hammond want to talk to you about after the debriefing…that is, if I can ask?”

Jack briefly looked over at her. He grimaced slightly, remembering the intense few moments when he thought that General Hammond might have discovered the truth about their relationship. Blowing out a breath, he responded. “He wanted to know if everything was alright. I guess he noticed that I was not exactly with the program during the debriefing.”

Sam nodded. “I would have to agree with him. I was actually getting quite concerned when you finally started talking.”

Jack glanced over at her from the corner of his eye. “I assume you know why I was distracted.”

Sam ventured a guess. “I could say for certain that it had to do with the mission, and with an almost certainty that it had something to do with me and the fact that you’re allowing your guilt at what happened to eat away at you.” Sam eyed him carefully for his response.

Jack almost snickered. “You know me well, Major.”

Sam reached out a hand and gently placed it on his arm. “Yes, I do, and it’s for that very reason that I stay concerned. Jack, you could have done nothing to prevent what happened. Nirrti asked for me, not you. It wasn’t like you had a choice in the matter.”

Jack tightened his grip on the steering wheel. “I could have tired harder…done something more to convince them to take me instead of you. God, when I think about what you went through…that I almost lost you…it scared the hell out of me.”

Sam studied him for a moment, watching the emotions roll across his face. A part of her wanted to argue with him, to tell him that it wasn’t his fault and there had been no choice, but like he’d said, she knew him well. And with that knowledge came the fact that no amount of arguing would change his mind. It was his job to be protective of his team and feel the responsibility of leadership. It was one of the sides to him that she loved the most. Only time would hopefully lessen the stab of guilt to a dull ache. All she could do for him was love him and listen when he needed her to.

Jack was grateful that she for once wasn’t arguing with him. Letting a minute slip by to calm his emotions, he looked over at her and gave her a weak smile of thanks, to which she responded by taking his right hand in hers and giving it a gentle squeeze. Focusing on the road ahead, Jack went back to answering her original question. “At any rate, I told General Hammond that my distraction came down to a combination of fatigue and utter hate for Nirrti. But then he asked me about you.”

Sam was as surprised as he had been when originally asked the question. “What about me?”

Jack looked over at her and nodded. “That’s exactly how I felt when he asked the question. I suddenly thought that he’d somehow found out about us.”

Sam felt her heart rate increase at the possibility. “I’m hoping you were wrong.”

Jack hesitated before answering her. “I guess so, although I’m not entirely sure. I chalked it up to my guilt over being made to watch my second in command go through something that should have been happening to me instead.”

Sam’s gaze was steady on his face. “But you don’t think you convinced him?”

Jack looked at her out of the corner of his eye. “He seemed convinced, but I just got this feeling that his insight was a lot deeper than he was letting on. I hope I’m wrong.”

Sam let out the breath she didn’t realize that she’d been holding. “Let’s hope so. I know we can’t go on hiding our relationship forever, but I guess I’m hoping for enough time to figure out the best solution that will work for all of us.”

Jack reached over and brushed a strand of her hair away from her eyes. Then taking her hand, he gave it a gentle squeeze. “We will. Just promise me that we’ll do it together…I don’t want you feeling like you have to harbor all the burden of this secret. I can’t have you wigging out and leaving me…my heart can’t take that again.”

Sam gave him a smile and squeezed his hand in return. “I promise.” Taking a moment, she studied their intertwined hands, loving the feel of his hand in hers. “And thank you, Jack.”

Jack looked over at her in surprise. “What for?”

Sam gave him a shy smile. “For loving me…and for not giving up on me even though I gave up on us.”

Jack looked over at her. “There’s nothing to forgive. Despite appearances, you are allowed to be less than perfect, Sam. And I wouldn’t want it any other way. It helps to keep me on me toes.”

Sam leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Sighing contently, she looked out onto the road ahead of them and realized they had arrived at their destination. “We’re here! The turn off should be right around this corner.” And just as Sam had remembered, the little lane that led up to her father’s cabin was still marked by the old Christmas wreath that she and her dad had nailed to the tree closest to the main road when she was a child.

As Sam pointed out the landmark, Jack turned off the main road and guided his truck onto the dirt and gravel road that made up the private drive to the Carter cabin. Jack was excited to be seeing something that was apart of Sam’s childhood memories. It made him feel even closer to her, surprising himself by the feeling since he thought his feelings for her could go no deeper.

As the drive continued on, he looked over at Sam. “So there is a house back here right?” Jack could just make out Sam’s outline against the faint glow of the headlights as they bounced off the road ahead of them and reflected light everywhere.

Sam smiled. “Don’t worry…we’re almost there. Let’s just say my dad had the house built where it is because of the location. We’ve got a spectacular view.”

Jack smiled to himself at her girlish enthusiasm. He hadn’t seen Sam so relaxed in a long time. If he’d known about this place, he would have suggested it a lot sooner, especially seeing how much joy it brought to her. He was just about to comment on this when the first part of the house came into view.

As Jack pulled the truck to a stop in front of the house, he slowly got out, stunned by the site before him. Looking over at Sam, who was getting her stuff out from the bed of the truck, Jack smiled and shook his head. “Sam, if this is your dad’s cabin, my place is nothing more than a little tin shack. I think I might need to educate you on the meaning of exactly what a cabin is.”

Sam laughed. “Come on in. It looks like Mr. Arbury was able to get the place ready for us. I’ll have to thank him later.”

As Sam climbed up the steps, Jack just stood in place, craning his neck in order to try and see just how big the house really was. It was two stories tall, covered in what Jack could tell was a beautiful red brick, with inviting window frames silhouetted with white shutters, and an expansive white porch the seemed to wrap all the way around the house. There was a spacious two car garage at the very end of the house, and closest to him in the yard, Jack could just make out the outline of a wide gazebo at the side of the house, facing the mountains in the distance.

Sam, who had reached the front door, turned and watched him for a moment as he studied the house before him. Smiling at his boyish astonishment, she moved back down the stairs and reached for his hand. “Are you ready to start that vacation?”

Jack looked down at her and gave her a sheepish grin. “You bet. Lead the way.” Taking her hand in his, he let her pull him up the stairs and through the front door. Upon entering, he found that the house was as comfortably elegant on the inside as it appeared to be on the outside. It was wonderfully warm, helping to break the chill on his bones that had accumulated as he had stood outside dumbfounded by what Sam deemed a “cabin”. The rooms were spacious and well furnished, defining a definite style that was formal yet simplistic and welcoming. In the room to his left, Jack noted the roaring fire that was burning in the fireplace, surrounded comfortably by easy chairs and a leather sofa.

Sam dropped her bag on the floor, beckoning Jack to do the same thing. “Come on, I’ll give you a tour.” Taking his hand again, she led him through the downstairs, through a spacious living room to the dining room and finally the kitchen, which was large and very accommodating.

Jack walked over to the fridge and opened the door. “Nice!” Inside he found plenty of food and beverages, including his favorite beer. Pointing to it, he turned and looked at Sam. “Is this another thanks to Arbury?”

Sam came up behind Jack and wrapped her arms around him, resting her chin on the top of his shoulder. “You could say that…I put in the request.”

Jack turned to face her, bringing his arms around her waist and drawing her close. “Well, Major, I’d say you scored some big points. I may just have to reward you.” Meeting her lips, he devoured them hungrily, tightening his arms around her as he backed her against the island counter.

As his lips trailed down her neck, Sam let out a light hearted laugh. “Jack, you’d better close the refrigerator door…we might melt everything in there.”

Jack used his foot and shut the door, gathering her up in his arms at the same time and carrying her into the living room. Setting her down easily on the soft, bearskin rug in front of the fireplace, he reclined her in his arms, following her with a grin on his face.

Sam couldn’t help but smile back at him. “What’s so funny?” She watched as his chocolate eyes danced with the light of the fire, reflecting his desire and stirring her soul.

Jack responded, giving her a quick kiss. “Are you ready to do it in your dad’s house? Cause I’m not quite sure how General Carter would take to me seducing his daughter in what I’m sure is one of his favorite rooms.”

Sam laughed, bringing her hands up to his face and drawing him down to her. “I won’t tell if you won’t.” Her lips then captured his in an intense passion, releasing the pent up energy that had been building like a wildfire since kissing her only minutes ago in the kitchen.

Exploring each other’s bodies with caressing ecstasy, they made love in front of the crackling fire that danced seductively in front of them, mimicking the intense heat that was moving through them. Their shadows danced off the walls and vaulted ceiling, enveloped into one fluid motion that sung to their hearts. To be able to find such a peace and seclusion in a world that constantly demanded their attention and appropriate demeanor was like a dream come true, and their love making reflected that.

After they had reached their climatic peak together, Jack rolled over on his side and gathered her to him. Kissing her nose, he ran a finger down her cheek as he watched with amazement at how the firelight made her skin glow. “You are incredibly beautiful.”

Sam blushed despite herself, not prepared for such an intense response from a man who usually preferred the lighter sided comments. Not knowing quite how to respond, she kissed him gently. Pulling back, she met his eyes. “I love you, Jack O’Neill. Never forget that.”

Jack gave her one of his half smiles, but his eyes were intense and serious. “And I don’t want you to ever forget how much I love you, Samantha Carter. And it’s wonderful to finally get you away from the lab and all your responsibilities. It’s about time you gave yourself a vacation.”

Sam picked up his discarded flannel shirt and sat up, putting it on. “You’re worth the sacrifice.” Suddenly yawning, she looked up at the clock on the wall. 0030 hours. “How about we take a tour of the upstairs tomorrow? I guess I’m more tired than I thought.”

Jack nodded. “It has been a long day. To bed it is…lead the way.” Jack stood and helped her to her feet, grabbing his pants and pulling them on.

Sam took his hand and walked over to the light switch, turning off the lights, with the exception of the fire that was still going strong in the fireplace. It’s red-orange glow gave the room a peaceful feeling, while keeping the chill of the night from seeping into the room. Sam spoke up as she resumed walking. “My dad’s room is upstairs, as is mine. But there is a large guestroom down here that I think will be perfect.”

Jack responded as she opened the door to a large bedroom that had been decorated with care and warmth. “We’ll have to christen it appropriately.”

Sam laughed. “Tonight? Aren’t you tired?”

Jack pulled her roughly against him and kissed her deeply. When he let her come up for air, he was satisfied to see the flush of passion that had returned to her face. “You give me vitality that I didn’t know was still possible for me. Shall we test it?”

Sam answered in a breathless whisper. “Absolutely.” Leading him to the bed, she pulled back the down comforter and climbed underneath it, watching with expectation as Jack took his pants off again and climbed in after her. Burying themselves in the fluffy softness of the feather bed, and in each other, their passion ignited once more, bringing them to a state no dream ever could. And when they finally fell asleep in each other’s arms some time later, the peace that engulfed them left a world that existed only for them.

The next morning broke with brilliant sunshine and blue skies. A fresh layer of snow had fallen overnight, blanketing the ground in a sparkling bright white that almost hurt the eyes to look at. The surrounding mountains were measuring at least three feet of powder and excellent skiing conditions. The birds were singing happily in the trees as icicles slowly melted from the heated rays of the sun. And the air was crisp and cold, refreshing the lungs and making everything seem fresh and new.

Sam and Jack had spent the morning in each other’s arms, making love with a fevered passion and then drifting off to sleep again. Eventually, they had managed enough energy to find their way into the kitchen and eat something for the first time that day. It was well past noon when they finally got dressed, having shared a shower that hadn’t been solely responsible for steaming up the bathroom mirror from just the hot water pelting their combined skins. They both felt twenty years younger despite the lack of sleep that they had gotten. Rather it was from the intimate environment of a secluded house or the fresh feeling of life that the snow brought, they didn’t know. Neither of them could remember a time when they’d enjoyed themselves more completely.

Around mid-afternoon, Jack woke up from dozing on the couch to find himself alone. After calling Sam’s name and getting no response, he became concerned and began searching the house for her. So when five minutes later he still couldn’t find her, he pulled on a layer of clothes and opened the front door, stepping out into the lengthening day. The cold that blasted his face shocked him, making him realize just how warm he’d been in the house.

Zipping up his coat, he called out her name. “Sam!” Listening intently to his surroundings, he frowned when his only response was the echoing of his own voice and that of the birds whistling in the treetops. His truck was still there, so he knew she couldn’t have gone far. Moving down the front steps, he followed the porch to the side of the house and breathed a sigh of relief.

Sam stood alone in the gazebo with her back to him, looking out over the majestic scene before her. With the snow crunching under his boots, Jack made his way over to her. As he stepped into the gazebo, she failed to react, indicating to him that she hadn’t heard his approach.

Stepping behind her, he brought his arms around her and cuddled to him her as she leaned back into him. “Hey.” Jack’s voice was low and husky in the air that surrounded them.

A soft smile lighted Sam’s face. “Hey yourself. Did you have a good nap?”

Jack squeezed her lightly, holding her close, enjoying the warmth of her body. “It would have been better if I’d woken up with you still beside me.”

Sam sighed contently. “Yeah, sorry, I guess I just needed some air.”

Jack furrowed his brow and released her, moving around to stand beside her. Studying her profile for a moment as she continued to look out over the scene before her, he leaned against the rail and spoke up. “What’s up?”

Sam, surprised by his question, looked over at him. “What do you mean?”

Jack brushed a gloved finger over her cheek. “You can’t fool me, Carter. Something’s eating at you.”

Sam gave him a quick smile before turning her attention back to the mountains. “It’s just…this.” She gestured with her hands at the landscape before her.

Jack looked confused. “What…the mountains? What about them?”

Sam let out a light laugh. “No…this meaning our trip, the incredible time we’ve had already and it’s been less than 24 hours. It’s like a dream come true. I can’t tell you the number of times that I’ve envisioned life this way…waking up in your arms, making love until noon, and spending an entire day doing nothing. It feels almost normal.”

Jack smiled at her. “That’s because it is…at least for most people.”

Sam frowned at that comment and looked over at him, her eyes searching his. “But we’re not most people are we?” When Jack didn’t say anything, she continued. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m feeling sorry for myself. I love what I do…what we do for this world…but it seems so unfair. I love you so much and want nothing more than to declare it to everyone and live a normal life. But we can’t…because the government we fight so hard for won’t allow it. It’s not fair.”

Jack didn’t say anything for a few minutes but instead looked out over the scene before them. It was majestic. The setting sun left a red-orange glaze of color on the glittering snow as the wind barely whispered through the treetops. Squirrels and birds happily played among their branches, and a lone rabbit hopped through the snow, stopping in its tracks every few feet to listen for the always potential predator. The mountains loomed all around them, their tops peaking into the occasional wispy cloud, while the valley plunged below, only emphasizing the incredible heights their jagged peaks reached.

Furrowing his brow, Jack focused his attention on a lone icicle as it hung precariously off the roof of the gazebo. “I know it’s not fair, Sam. I wish that it could be simpler and we could have the best of both worlds.” Taking a breath, he turned to face her, looking into her eyes. “What world do you want more? I’ll do anything I can to make you happy.”

Sam could feel her emotion welling up in her throat at the amount of love she had in her heart for this man. Moving forward, she kissed him lightly and then snuggled against him, loving the feel of his arms around her. Sighing contently, she searched her head for a response. “I know you would, Jack, and you do. A very large part of me just wants to give it all up and share our lives together openly for everyone to see.”

Jack squeezed her lightly. “But?”

Sam looked up at him. “But…there’s still that part of me that is with the SGC and all that we do there. I guess I feel like I’d be betraying our country by giving it up just when they need us the most.”

Jack gave her a grim smile. “There’s always going to be some kind of threat. If we wait for that kind of peace, I don’t know if what we both want will ever happen.”

Sam studied him for a moment. “What are you trying to say?”

Jack was slow to answer. “Well…just that maybe it’s time we seriously consider what to do about this dilemma. We’ve always talked about it, but not enough to start thinking about actually following through with something.” Jack eyed her carefully. “I can always retire again you know.”

Sam was stunned into silence for a moment. She could see that this time he was being serious. “Really?” Her voice was barely a whisper, as if she was trying to deny the truth of their conversation.

Jack smiled. “Really. This old dog isn’t learning that many new tricks, and we both know between the two of us who carries more importance to the SGC. War skills are one thing, but brains are a completely different story all together. Rather you know it or not, you are the glue that not only holds SG-1 together, but the SGC as well.” Pausing for a moment, he suddenly looked down. “It’s just that…”

When he didn’t go on after a moment, Sam took his gloved hand and gave it a squeeze. “It’s just that you’d miss it, and you don’t like the idea of me going offworld without you.”

Jack looked up and nodded. “See…brains.”

“Jack, I appreciate your willingness to throw in the towel more than you know, but it’s not what your heart really wants. And if you’re not happy, I’m not happy.” Moving into his embrace, she looked up at him. “It’s not the right time…not now. No matter how much we both want the kind of normalcy we’re getting with this vacation, it’s just not time for either of us to consider changing our careers.”

Jack gave her one of his half smiles, his eyes lighting up. “Okay, smartie, so what do we do?”

Sam answered him seriously. “Continue on, as we have been. Despite how hard it can be at times, we’ll make it work. And when the time comes for us to make a change in this arrangement, we’ll know. Life will find a way…it always does.”

Jack bent his head down and kissed her with his heart. Pulling her close, they stayed wrapped up in each other’s arms for a few minutes more before Jack reluctantly pulled back. “So,” he said, taking in a cleansing breath, “what’s next on the agenda?”

Sam gave him a smile and walked out from under the gazebo. “Well, we probably should go skiing tomorrow. There are some great slopes just west of here; one of my favorite slopes ends right here at the side of the house. But in the meantime,” Sam said with a hint of mischief in her voice, “I think there’s a little matter we need to settle.”

Jack crossed his arms and leaned against the opening of the gazebo, a smile painted on his face. “Oh? And what would that be?”

Sam bent over and picked up a handful of snow, slowly rolling it between her gloved hands as she smiled sweetly back at him. “The fact that you won our last snowball fight…I need retribution.” Without another breath, she flung the snowball at him, hitting him squarely in the chest.

Jack sputtered as some of the snow flew up into his face. Quickly wiping it off, he sprang after her. “Carter! You’re going to get it!” Scooping up a fistful of snow, he ran after her as Sam maneuvered around the yard, squealing in delight. Seeing an opportunity as she slightly stumbled, he flung his snowball and hit her on the side of the neck.

The war of the snowballs continued for several minutes, matching skill against skill as Sam and Jack made their way around the side of the house to the back and then changed their direction and headed back around towards the front. Just as they passed the gazebo again, Jack turned around to look at Sam as they both prepared to launch their snowballs. As Sam threw hers, aimed directly at his head, Jack ducked out of the way and slipped, falling on his butt. Laughing and out of breath, he held his hands up. “I give up. You win!!” Looking up at her, he expected to see a look of joy and accomplishment on her face, but instead he watched as her smile quickly faded and her color paled as she looked straight ahead towards the front of the house.

Jack got up, instantly concerned. “Hey, what is it?” When he didn’t get an answer immediately, he turned around and suddenly saw the reason for her distress. There, standing in the driveway, stood General Hammond, his coat covered with the snowball that Sam had attempted to hit him with. Beside him was Sam’s father, Jacob, looking quite annoyed with what had just happened. On the other side of General Hammond stood one of his grandchildren, Tessa, who was now around eight years old, and trying her best to suppress a giggle at the sight of her grandfather covered in snow.

Jack felt his color drain as Sam’s had, and he stood there for a moment unsure of what to do next. But he quickly recovered his senses and awkwardly moved forward towards them, nervously clearing his throat, as Sam gingerly followed behind. Not knowing what to say first, he relied on his sense of humor. “General Hammond, Sir, I must say that’s a great color on you. Right, Carter?”

Sam gave him an irritated look and then quickly turned her attention back to the people in front of her. “Dad, General Hammond…what are you doing here?”

Jacob eyed her carefully. “That’s just what I was going to ask of the two of you.” With Jacob knowing the truth about Sam and Jack’s relationship, he understood why they were there, but he was also annoyed that she hadn’t been a little more diligent in letting him know about her plans.

Jack searched his brain for the best answer he could come up with. And when the first one popped into his head, the intense scrutiny that he was feeling under their gazes forced it out without giving him a chance to think about it. “Carter here suggested a little getaway for SG-1, being Thanksgiving and all.” Immediately, he saw the error in his statement and cringed silently under the look Sam was giving him.

General Hammond voiced his confusion. “Colonel, Teal’c and Jonas are back at the base. I just saw both of them this morning. If this is a vacation for SG-1, why aren’t they here?”

Sam quickly intervened before Jack had a chance to respond again. “They’re coming up to join us later this evening, Sir. Honestly, this trip was a last minute decision for us, and we talked to them about it just this morning. It must have been after you had seen them.” Sam crossed her fingers behind her back hoping that General Hammond had talked to them in the early morning hours of the day. She was banking on Jonas’ insistence to start everyday early, in order to take in as much as he could, and of course there was Teal’c’s lack of interest in getting much sleep at all.

General Hammond thought on this for a moment before answering. To Sam and Jack, the momentary silence suddenly seemed to make the whispering wind sound like a dull roar in their ears. But he finally spoke up. “I see. Well, I did talk to both of them rather early this morning. Turning to Jacob, he continued. “Well, Jacob, you may not have enough room now for us. We can always do this another time.” As he said this, he avoided looking at his granddaughter’s face since he knew he’d only see disappointment.

But Jacob, still irritated at Sam and Jack’s carelessness, decided to make them squirm. “No worries, George. We’ve got plenty of room. Isn’t that right, Sam?”

Father and daughter exchanged a look that only Jack understood. When Sam answered, her voice held a layer of tension. “Of course, Dad.” Looking over at General Hammond, she continued, with a lighter tone. “We’d love to have you for Thanksgiving, Sir. You and…it’s Tessa, right?”

The little girl smiled up at Sam and shook her head in confirmation. And then suddenly she had a thought. Pulling on the sleeve of her grandfather’s coat, she looked up at him with big doe eyes. “Grandpa, can we make a snowman? You promised!”

General Hammond smiled warmly at her and let out a short laugh. “Of course we can, Tessa. Let’s just get our bags inside and then we’ll make it.”

Sam and Jack had the same thought at practically the exact same moment. Tripping on each other’s words, Jack finally got out what they were trying to say. “Oh, General, there’s no need to do that. Carter and I can handle your bags. You kids just have some fun out here in the snow. It’s getting dark, and I’m sure Tessa would prefer snowman making in the daylight.”

Jacob had a fairly good idea of why they were both so eager to take the bags inside themselves. Deciding to give them a chance to pick things up, he spoke up. “Sam, why don’t you take my bag and I’ll stay and help get the snowman built. The two of you look like you’ve had enough snow for one day.” And then as if to emphasize his point, he added some distinction to his tone. “We’ll be in shortly.”

It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out the reference, and Jack wasted no time. Grabbing their bags, he and Sam headed for the house. With a thought, Sam turned around and addressed her father. “Hey, Dad, what bedroom do you want me to set General Hammond and Tessa up in?”

As if fate hadn’t been cruel enough already, Jacob answered. “Why don’t you give them the downstairs guest bedroom. It’s the largest.”

Sam nodded curtly. “Sounds good.”

As she turned away to follow Jack, Jacob called out to them. “Hey guys! It’s great that you’re here. We should have an intriguing Thanksgiving!”

Sam and Jack both smiled and then looked at each other before turning back to the front door. Entering the house, they closed the door, and panic set in. Sam’s brain started rolling. “Jack, you take the bedroom. Just throw our stuff in any bag. We can sort through it later. I’ll clean up as fast as I can so it appears we haven’t been here for a night already. I’ll show you your new room in a minute.”

Jack, always more laid back than Sam, smiled. “Hey, I thought I was the colonel here!”

Sam looked exasperated. “Jack, be serious! That snowman will probably take all of ten minutes to make! I can only hope that my dad can hold them out there a little longer.” And as the next set of thoughts rolled into her head, she started up again. “Oh, and since it was your brilliant idea to bring up Jonas and Teal’c’s name, I suggest you call them ASAP! Let’s just hope they can make it up here.”

Jack’s smile dropped. “Hey, I had to tell them something. It was the best I could come up with!” Taking a breath, he calmed himself down. “Let’s just calm down. If we can kick the Goa’uld’s butts in minutes during a fight, we can certain handle a little housekeeping. And don’t worry about Jonas and Teal’c. If I have to order them to come up here, I will.” Moving closer to her, he reached out and took her hand briefly. “It’ll work out. This may now not be the ideal vacation that we started with, but at least we’ll still be here together.”

Sam smiled finally and squeezed his hand. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I guess I’m just stressing a little.”

Jack grinned. “No…you?”

As Sam headed for the kitchen and Jack the bedroom, she had a thought. Turning, she called out to him. “Hey, Jack, what was that about the right time and life finding a way?”

Jack smiled and gave her a wink at the irony of what they had just been talking about only an hour before. Life did have a way of proving a point. He would have to give the subject some more serious thought, especially if life continued to try and prove itself with situations like the one they were in now.

As luck had it, Jack didn’t have to convince Jonas to come up and join them. In fact, he was ecstatic over the possibility of learning how to ski. Teal’c had been a bit reluctant to come. He had been looking forward to a few days of solitude, but Jack promised him that up in the mountains, he would find some. He gave Teal’c the driving instructions, and found himself praying that he’d remember how to drive since he didn’t do it that much.

They had managed to get almost everything picked up and moved out of the downstairs bedroom in time. Luckily, Jacob managed to keep them outside for close to twenty minutes, which had allowed Sam enough time to show Jack the room across from hers on the second floor. By the time General Hammond, Jacob, and Tessa entered the house, Sam was in the kitchen finding something for dinner, and Jack was stoking the new fire he had just started in the fireplace.

Jacob showed General Hammond and Tessa to their room and then joined Sam in the kitchen. He knew that George would probably take a shower to get the edge of cold off his skin, and Tessa had found instant companionship with Jack, who was stretched out on the couch, watching a hockey game. As Jacob had made his way to the kitchen, he overheard Jack explaining the finer points to the game of hockey, reveling in the undivided attention of his young audience.

Sam was getting ingredients out the fridge to make a salad when Jacob joined her. He only had to look at her for Sam to know what he was about to say. Sam protested, keeping her voice low. “Don’t say it, Dad. I know, we weren’t thinking.”

Jacob nodded. “No you weren’t.” His voice still held irritation, but not as much as it had when he’d first arrived.

Sam got out the knife and began slicing a cucumber. “We just wanted some time alone. General Hammond gave our team the time, it was the holiday, and I didn’t know where you were or if you were even going to come home for Thanksgiving. So I made the suggestion to come here.”

Jacob sighed heavily and leaned against the counter, watching his daughter attempt to keep her emotions in check. After a moment, he responded. “Look, Sam, it’s not that I mind that you’re here…I told you that you could use the house whenever you want. But you should have made an attempt to contact me first, especially since you were bringing Jack.”

Sam stopped cutting and looked over at him, frustration clearly painted on her features. “What did you expect me to do, Dad? Dial up the Stargate, hope that I could find you, and then ask over a radio transmission if Jack and I could have a romantic holiday alone up here?!”

Jacob countered her. “Sam, you know perfectly well I didn’t expect you to say that. But a little warning would have been nice. When I arrived through the Stargate this morning, I was hoping to surprise you, but you weren’t there.”

Sam gave a little laugh. “Well, you succeeded in surprising me alright. You about gave Jack and I a stroke.”

Jacob softened his face. “Yeah, same here. But when I couldn’t find you, and George didn’t know where you’d gone, I just assumed you were off with Jack someplace…I just didn’t know it would be here.” Pausing for a breath, he continued. “So I asked George if he had plans, and he didn’t. It was just going to be him and Tessa for the holidays, as Tessa’s parents were out of town on business, and Tessa’s sister was going on a trip with some of her friends.”

Sam nodded. “So you invited them.” Sighing, she went back to cutting up the cucumber. “I’m sorry, Dad. We didn’t mean to put you in an awkward position. I just never thought that you’d be coming home since I hadn’t heard from you.”

Jacob crossed his arms over his chest. “I was on a secret mission for the Tok’ra until the last minute. I honestly didn’t think I would be able to get back in time.”

“I hope everything went okay?” Sam eyed her father for his response.

Jacob nodded. “It could have gone a little smoother, but it was accomplished.”

Just then, General Hammond walked in looking much more relaxed and a lot warmer. “Smells great. What are we having?”

Sam turned around and smiled. “Spaghetti and meatballs. Sorry, Sir, but my culinary skills are pretty much basic. But I can manage to put together a pretty good salad.”

General Hammond smiled. “Sounds great. Tessa will love it. Where is she by the way?”

Jacob spoke up. “The last time I saw her, she’d taken up residence on the couch with Jack, who was proudly explaining the game of hockey.”

General Hammond smiled. “Sounds like fun. Do you need any help?”

Sam gave him a kind smile. “Thank you, Sir, but I’m fine. Grab yourself a beer from the fridge and go join them.” With a second thought, she continued. “Oh, and if you don’t mind, you might grab an extra beer for Jac…Colonel O’Neill. I’m sure he’s milked his first one sufficiently.” She could feel herself blushing and hoped that he hadn’t picked up on the near miss of using Jack’s first name.

General Hammond did as she asked. As he was heading out, he turned around and spoke up. “Tell you what, Major…how about from this point on we go on a first name basis for the remainder of our stay. It might make things a little less complex.”

Sam nodded with relief and a controlled smile. “Yes, Sir…I mean George.”

“Oh yeah,” George said as an afterthought. “When are Teal’c and Jonas joining us?”

Sam was happy to be able to give him a straight and honest answer. “They should be here within the hour.”

General Hammond smiled. “Sounds good. I know you people weren’t expecting to spend the holidays with me, but I’m happy to be here. It should be a great Thanksgiving.”

Sam and Jacob both smiled. Sam answered him with enthusiasm. “It will be. And we’re glad you’re here.” As he walked out to join Jack and Tessa, she looked over at her father and smiled. “I’m glad you’re here too, Dad. I’ve missed you.”

Jacob smiled back at her. “I’ve missed you too, Sam. I’m just sorry that we’re cutting into your personal time with Jack.”

Sam shook her head. “Jack and I will be just fine. Besides, it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without family.” Nodding in the direction General Hammond had gone, Sam continued. “Now go join the boys. I may not be the traditional woman in the kitchen, but I promise not to burn the place down.”

Kissing Sam on the cheek, he did as she suggested, and Sam went back to fixing dinner. As she stood there cooking, she surprised herself by humming a little tune. She had the man she loved under her roof, along with her dad and a man that might as well be family. And with Teal’c and Jonas on the way, the holiday was turning out to be rather traditional. And she loved that feeling…with all of her heart.

Jonas and Teal’c arrived two hours later, with Teal’c looking irritated. A very excited Jonas had apparently wanted to stop several times to look through some shops unique to the area. The only thing that had saved him extra stops was the fact that night had already fallen before they had started out, otherwise they would have had to stop at every photo opportunity along the roadway.

With hunger having gotten the best of them, Sam, Jack, Jacob, General Hammond, and Tessa had gathered around the table and ate ahead of Jonas and Teal’c. It had been a fun and casual dinner, with leftovers put aside for when the rest of SG-1 arrived.

So with a roaring fire going in the fireplace, they all lounged in the family room, enjoying pleasant conversation as the T.V. played Indian Jones and the Temple Of Doom across the screen. Having never seen it, Teal’c and Jonas watched with rapt interest, as Jack and Tessa enjoyed a friendly game of Uno.

Suddenly, Tessa yelled out in delight. “Uno! Ha, Jack, I’m going to beat you!” With a look of triumph on her face, she waited for his next move that would decide if she won the game or not.

Jack, hesitating for a fraction of a second, bypassed the Draw Four card he had in his hand and instead reached for a card that would ensure her victory. But Jonas, who had been dividing his attention between the movie and the card game, suddenly spoke up. “Hey, Colonel, shouldn’t you use…”

Jack gave him a look to kill that stopped him in mid-sentence. Teal’c, seeing the exchange, pulled Jonas out of hitting range. “Jonas Quinn, perhaps you should keep your attention on the movie before us. There is an important part coming up you should not miss.”

Jonas looked confused. “But I thought you’d never seen this before.”

Sam smiled to herself as Teal’c did his best to keep his irritation in check. Instead, his voice emitted a lower growl than usual. “I’m sure there is an important part that you will not want to miss.”

Jonas, after a moment’s thought, shrugged. Turning back to the T.V. screen, he watched as Indiana Jones and his love interest, Willie Scott, frantically worked to free themselves from a tomb filled with bugs. Seeing Indiana’s fear of the creepy crawlers, Jonas shook his head and looked back at Sam while pointing at the T.V. “So this guy is really a big hero, huh?”

Sam gave him a smile. “Oh, yeah...a real American heartthrob who’s captured about every female heart the second he appeared on the screen.”

Jack, who had been half listening, turned and looked at Sam after hearing the dreamy response she’d given Jonas. Raising his brow slight, he smirked at her. “Easy, Carter…frankly, I didn’t know that you scientist-types could get so excited over a T.V. character. You know, I’m sure the General here could pull a few strings so you could meet the famous Mr. Ford.”

Sam returned his smirk and waved him off. But Jonas wasn’t satisfied. “I guess I don’t get how a man who’s so afraid of bugs could be seen as so heroic.”

Jack looked over at him, his smiled fading as he went. “You know, Jonas, how about I stick you in a dark pit with a bunch of creepy, disgusting bugs and we’ll see just how heroic you would be. Somehow I doubt you’d pass the test!”

Jonas held up his hands as he turned back to the movie. “Hey, I’m just saying…”

Jack interrupted him, his eyes now retrained on the game. “Well how about you don’t.”

Sam, who was enjoying the playful exchange immensely, suddenly yawned and stretched. Standing up, she addressed her audience. “Well, I think I’ve had enough fun for one evening. I’m going to head off to bed…I’ve got to get enough sleep so I can show each of you up on the slopes tomorrow!”

Jack looked over at her and grinned. “Yeah, well you had just better go dream that in your sleep tonight, Carter, and tomorrow we’ll see who has the real skill.”

Sam nodded at him, with a light in her eyes. “You’re on!” Starting for the foyer that led to the stairs, she hollered out before heading out of the room. “Good night.”

Everyone issued their response, but before leaving their sites totally, she turned around and focused her vision on Jack. He apparently seemed to feel her gaze on his face, for he looked up and gave her the smallest smile that only her heart understood. She had a feeling that she would see him again before the dawn breeched the horizon.

Somewhere in the wee hours of the morning, Sam woke to a brushing of lips against the side of her neck. Fluttering her eyes open, she took a moment to focus her gaze on the face in front of her before a soft smile lit her face. Jack moved forward and brushed his lips over her own before lying down next to her and drawing her to him. “Hey there. Mind if I join you for a while?”

Sam purred lightly against his chest and cuddled closer. “Sure thing. I could use some warming up. It’s a little cold in here.”

Jack kissed her on the top of her head and held her tightly. “I think I can handle that.”

Sam sighed heavily. “Oh, Jack, I’m sorry.”

Jack furrowed his brow and looked down at her. “For what? If it’s about sneaking into your room at night, well, that’s kind of fun. I feel like I’m in high school all over again.”

Sam craned her neck and peered up at him, giving him a wry smile. “So how many girls’ bedrooms did you sneak into when you were a teenager? Do I want to know?”

Jack gave her a quiet laugh. “I was a rebel, but not that big of a rebel. Besides, the girls seemed more interested in the jock types.”

Sam propped herself up on her elbow. “I thought you played sports in high school?”

Jack lightly pushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. “I did, but I always tended to get on the bad side of my coaches. Why do you think that I ended up in the military?”

Sam lightly laughed as she sat up and pushed him back against the bed. Climbing on top of him, she leaned down, running her fingers through his hair. “Well, I’m glad you did. Otherwise, we may never have met.”

Jack cupped her face with his hands. “That would have been an incredible tragedy. I guess my dad was right….the military did make all the difference in my life.” Pulling her to him, he kissed her lips full on, with the passion and longing that he’d been holding in since the arrival of their unexpected guests.

As their passion increased, Sam managed to get in a sentence before the intensity of the moment consumed her. “Jack, I am sorry about not knowing my dad was coming. It kind of…kind of puts a kink in our plans.”

Jack, his breathing heavy, responded by flipping her onto her back and hovering over her with fire in his eyes. “Hey, like I said, I was a rebel back in the day…so it’s kind of fun to be back to my old ways.”

Sam kissed him on his neck, wrapping her arms around his chest. “Well, how about showing me your talents.”

Without another word, Jack moved down on top of her and proceeded to make love to her, letting the night move around them in a quiet rhythm as they created their own. And as the night receded and the dawn approached, Sam and Jack slept deeply in each other’s arms, completely at peace and oblivious to the coming day.

A brilliant ray of sunshine broke through Sam’s window, flooding the room with light of the new day. Thanksgiving Day. Sam winced as the light slowly brought her out of the deep sleep she was in, and she turned away from it and cuddled up against Jack in hopes of finding a place the light had yet to touch. But as she did, Jack groaned, obviously affected as she had been by the need for less light and more sleep. They had spent the majority of the early morning hours making love, and it seemed to them that they had only just fallen asleep.

But after ten more minutes and only more sunshine, it became obvious that sleep was not to be. Grumbling, Jack straightened into a sitting position and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Jeez, Sam, haven’t you ever heard of a thing called curtains? They’re a remarkable invention in that you can keep the morning at bay for as long as you choose.”

Sam, who was stretching her long body, curled onto her side and propped her head up on her hand. Looking up at him, she gave him a sly smile. “Maybe I like the early morning light…it’s soothing, refreshing, and…”

Jack silenced her with one of his index fingers to her lips. “Annoying. And don’t sit there and pretend that you’re not the least bit disappointed that we can’t sleep longer.”

Sam trailed a finger up his bare chest to his lips. “I was going to say sexy…but I guess your word works too.” Giving him another coy smile, she watched as his lips curled into a smile as it dawned on him what her intentions were.

Jack ran his own finger between the soft mounds of her breasts and continued down her navel as he looked into her eyes. “I swear, Major, you’re going to be the death of me…but in a good way. Now, tell me where you’re feeling the sexiest…” Jack bent down and kissed her neck lightly and had begun to explore the hollow part with his tongue when a soft knock suddenly sounded at the door. Cursing under his breath, Jack barely had enough time to cover them up with the comforter before the door creaked open and Tessa popped her in.

“Sam, are you awake…” Tessa’s voice faded away as her eyes suddenly grew into extra large circles. Standing frozen in place, Sam and Jack could tell she didn’t know what to say or do. Neither did they. After a moment, she found her voice, now small and mousy as she spoke up. “Jack, is this your bedroom too?”

Jack, frantic for the best answer, pulled at the sheet that lay underneath the comforter and wrapped it around himself as best he could, grateful that it wasn’t tightly wrapped around the mattress, thanks mostly in part to their love making. Standing up with hesitation, he attempted to pull himself together as best he could. Walking over to her, he scooped her up in his arms, closing the bedroom door all the way before carrying her back to bed.

Placing her down gently at the foot of the bed, Jack sat down next to Sam, who was wrapped in as much of the comforter as was possible. Quickly glancing at Sam, he returned his attention to Tessa, who was patiently waiting for a response, her big eyes watching them with breathtaking innocence. Clearing his voice, he came up with the best answer he thought appropriate for her, and crossed his fingers that she’d go along with it. “Tessa, Sam was having some bad dreams, so I came in to comfort her and she asked me to stay.” At this, he felt a hard jab against his right side as Sam’s index finger found his ribs.

“But where are your pajamas?” Tessa’s voice was still quiet, but had gained more confidence.

Jack could feel himself begin to sweat despite the coolness in the room. “Um, well…”

Tessa suddenly interrupted, her gaze drifting over to Sam’s face. “What were your dreams about?”

Sam, highly irritated with Jack for putting them in such a position with an outright lie, blew out a light breath before reaching out and taking Tessa’s hands in her own. “Tessa, I really wasn’t having bad dreams. Jack just told you that because he wasn’t sure that you are old enough to understand the truth, and because why he’s here is a secret. Can you keep a secret?”

Sam could see the shocked look out of the corner of her eye coming from Jack’s direction as she waiting for Tessa’s answer. But she refused to look at him full in the face.

Tessa nodded triumphantly, a serious look on her face. “I promise not to tell.”

She said it with such sincerity that it made it a lot easier to tell her the truth. “Well, Tessa, the truth is that Jack and I love each other very much, and because we love each other, we enjoy sleeping in the same bed with each other. But this is the hard part for us. No one knows we love each other.

Tessa smiled then. “Why not? I think everyone would be happy.”

Sam looked over at Jack briefly, who had relaxed his face into a small smile. Reaching out for her, Jack opened his arms and waited as she climbed into his lap. Looking down at her, he continued the explanation for Sam. “Because both Sam and I are in the military, and even though they would probably be happy for us, we can’t tell them we love each other because it’s not allowed.”

Tessa screwed up her face. “That’s stupid.”

Sam smiled as Jack let out a chuckle. “You’re right, it is stupid, but it’s the rule.”

Tessa furrowed her brow. “So you’re breaking the rules? Won’t you get in trouble?”

Sam answered for Jack. “Yes we are, and yes we would…which is why this is such a special secret. So if we are going to be able to keep working for the military and continue loving each other, we need you to promise not to say anything.”

When she didn’t say anything at first, Jack reemphasized the point. “It’s very important Tessa. Can we trust you to keep our secret?”

Tessa looked at both of them thoughtfully for a moment before nodding with a serious expression. “I promise. I won’t tell your secret to anyone…except maybe to Lumpy.”

Sam put a hand on her arm. “And who is Lumpy?”

Tessa smiled. “Oh, don’t worry, he’s just my Teddy Bear. I tell him everything. But he won’t say a word. I promise.” She crossed her heart as she said this. “I know I may be a little old for him, but I’ve had him since I was a little girl.” Moving off Jack’s lap, she jumped off the bed with precision and ran for the door, turning around briefly. “I can’t wait to tell him. He’ll be happy for you.” As if she could sense their anxiety and fear, she turned around fully to face them and crossed her heart again. “I promise not to tell. Your secret is safe with me.”

Sam smiled. “Thank you, Tessa. We trust you.” With that, they watched her quietly open the door and start to shut it. But just as she did, it popped back open.

Tessa poked her head back in. “Oh yeah, and I’m suppose to tell you that breakfast is almost ready. Grandpa and Uncle Jacob have been making pancakes!”

Jack’s eyes brightened. “Tell them Sam will be down soon…and that you ran into me and told me the same thing.”

Tessa winked. Without another word, she disappeared from the doorway, with the door closing softly behind her. Jack’s hands flew to his face, covering it, as he fell back onto the mattress. “That was too close. I thought we were done for.”

Sam looked down at him. “We would have been if I’d have let you continue with that little fib of yours. Don’t you know kids are smarter than that? Somehow their innocence always manages to find the truth, especially when you are forced to keep lying.”

Jack held up his hands and looked over at her. “Hey, lesson learned. I just hope she’ll keep her promise.”

Sam bent down and brushed his lips with hers before sitting back up and climbing out of bed, heading for the bathroom. “Don’t worry, she will. If there’s one thing little girls love its secrets. It makes them feel empowered and grown up.” Hesitating in her stride, she turned around and looked back at Jack, who was still lounging against the pillows. “I would suggest you go get ready.”

Jack hopped up and walked over to her, a sheepish grin on his face. “Is that an invitation?”

Sam smiled but shook her head no. “Not this time. If we take too long and my dad comes looking for me, I’ll never hear the end of it that I let you in my room. I may be an adult, but this is still his house and I am his one and only daughter. He tends to get a little more protective on his own turf.”

Jack nodded. “Enough said. The last thing I need is Jacob more on my back than he already is.” Pulling her to him, he kissed her full on the lips, lingering long enough for his kiss to leave an impression. When he released her, he brushed his finger across the top of her nose. “See you downstairs.”

Sam watched him go, loving yet hating how that man always left her wanting more. Stepping into the bathroom, she turned on the shower to let the water warm up as she brushed her teeth. With Jack, her father, and some dear friends around her, it was going to be a great Thanksgiving Day.

After an enjoyable breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and hickory smoked bacon, they all parted to get dressed for skiing. Since the Carter house was conveniently located right off a ski trail, they gathered at the side of the house. Jonas, who had never skied in his life, looked hesitantly at the strips of material attached to his feet.

Jack saw the look of concern on his face. “Don’t worry, Jonas, it’s not as hard as it looks. You’ll just be running down an ice and snow-packed hill with sticks of wood attached to your feet. You’ll do fine.” Giving him a slap on the back, he turned with a smile on his face, only to find Sam giving him an irritated look.

Sam moved over to them. Glancing at Jack one more time, she looked over at Jonas and put a reassuring hand on his arm. “You’ll do fine, Jonas. Just use some of that amazing confidence that you always seem to have. Besides, one of us will stick with you until you feel better about it.”

Jonas smiled. “Thanks, Major Carter. It should be fun.”

Jack tapped one of his ski poles against Jonas’. “That’s the spirit. Now let’s get going, before my joints freeze in place.”

The rest of the morning was spent skiing, slowly at first in order for them to warm up and regain their winter confidence on skis. Jonas managed surprising skill, and by the time they took a break for lunch, they had to practically force Jonas off the slopes. After a warm meal and a little bit of downtime, everyone but General Hammond and Jacob hit the slopes again for the afternoon run. Teal’c and Jonas stuck together, while Jack and Sam escorted Tessa down the slopes, although she always managed to be quite a distance ahead of them.

As the afternoon began to wane, Sam left the group to head back to the house and help prepare the rest of Thanksgiving dinner that had been started the night before. It had been an enjoyable and memorable day, but she was looking forward to the luxury of a hot shower and a warm, scented kitchen.

The sun had just disappeared behind a distant mountain when Jack, Tessa, Jonas, and Teal’c arrived back at the house. Faces flushed from cold and obvious enjoyment, they were each sent to their respective rooms to shower and clean up before dinner. Sam, still not the practiced chef, but with some skill behind her thanks to Jack, was working on mashing the potatoes while her dad worked on the final touches of the dressing. General Hammond had taken the dubious task of setting the table, something which he did quite well.

So by the time everyone was gathered in the dining room, the food was laid out and the turkey awaited its traditional carving. With wine and hot apple cider in hand, they toasted the good company and the many blessings they had in their lives. Everyone gathered hands as General Hammond led them in prayer, and when they finally sat down to eat, Jack grabbed the nearest bowl of food and began scooping out his portion. And with Teal’c joining them again this year, there was no fear of leftovers.

The meal progressed with laughter and enjoyment all around. It was a perfect night, filled with family, friends, and old memories, along with the new ones that were being made as the evening wore on. As Sam and Jack periodically glanced over at each other from across the table, they both knew that even though their time alone had pretty much dissipated as soon as the unexpected guests had arrived, the sacrifice was worth it.

After the food had been happily consumed and everyone’s stomach was to the point of busting, they all moved into the living room to gather around the fireplace, soaking in it’s warmth as the blaze battled the cold breath of night. The naked tree limbs hanging closest to the windows brushed lightly against the panes of frosted glass as a brisk breeze stirred them from their resting place. Outside in the night, a new snow was falling, renewing the tattered blanket of snow with a fresh pristine one.

As the others settled into easy conversation, Sam and her dad made a stop in the kitchen to clean up some of the dishes before joining the party, and before their energy totally evaporated. As they stood side by side, scraping dishes amid a curtain of hot steaming water, Sam looked over at her dad, smiled and planted a light kiss on his cheek.

Jacob, caught off guard, looked over at her and smiled back. “What was that for?”

Sam shrugged. “I’m happy you’re here. It really has made the holiday perfect.”

Jacob studied her expression for a moment before answering. “I’m glad to hear you say that. As soon as I realized that I’d inadvertently interrupted what I’m sure was suppose to be a very romantic time for you and Jack, I was certain that you’d resent me for it.”

Sam handed him a dish dripping with hot water to be dried. “Dad, just because this Thanksgiving hasn’t turned out like I expected…doesn’t mean that it isn’t better than what I expected. And it is. Having all of you here is how it should be, and I’m really glad it worked out like this.”

Jacob threw the dish towel over his right shoulder and proceeded to put some of the dishes away. “Well, I’m not sure Jack feels the same way.”

Sam was surprised by his response. “Why? I haven’t seen him acting like he regrets how it’s worked out.”

Jacob shook his head. “I’m not saying that. To anyone’s eye, Jack’s having a great time. I just know that if personally I’d come up here with the intention of some quality alone time with the girl of my dreams, I couldn’t help but be a little bit disappointed.”

Sam relaxed her shoulders and sank the weight of her body into the countertop, facing her father. “I was worried about that at first, but watching him today…tonight…I know he feels just as I do.”

Jack’s voice suddenly penetrated the kitchen. “She knows me best.” Walking up behind Sam, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

Sam looked over her shoulder at him. “Hey, I thought you were playing host in there.”

Jack stole a kiss from her cheek before answering. “Ah, ye of little faith! I am playing host…hence I am here to retrieve another round of drinks for everyone.” Suddenly remembering they had an audience, Jack withdrew his embrace and stood a little straighter. “Sorry, Jacob, but your daughter is just infectious. I was missing her company…and yours of course, “ Jack said, clearing his throat, “so I thought I give you a hand and collect some more drinks for everyone.”

Jacob lightly laughed at Jack’s attempt to hold back his affections for Sam to a proper expectation around him. “Jack, relax, I know what your real motivation was for coming in here. No offense taken or apology needed.” Watching them as Sam and Jack looked at each other, Jacob had a momentary lapse in his usual hard shelled exterior. With his voice soft, shaded lightly with a slight emotional edge, he spoke up again. “You both remind me of the kind of love that Sam’s mother and I shared once upon a lifetime. It’s a precious and rare gift, and should never be taken lightly.”

After pausing for a brief moment to keep his emotions in check, he continued, placing the dish towel on the counter and walking over to them. “I can see that you both feel the same love that I shared with my wife. It eases the anxiety in my heart to see it. Just don’t let the military stop you from knowing the full power that your love can bring, or the kind of amazing life it can give you. I regret now all the times that I let the military come between our family, Sam. Don’t let the same thing happen with the two of you. As I found out, life is too short, and there never seems to be enough time to love.”

As he finished, Sam’s eyes were moist with tears that had yet to fall. “Oh, Dad,” she said, her voice soft but strong with emotion. “Thank you.” Reaching out, she embraced him tightly and spoke into his ear. “I love you.” Pulling back, she wiped at her eyes. “And as far as the military and our family…”

Jacob held up a hand. “Stop, Sam. I don’t need you to make excuses for me. I know that it put a tremendous strain in our relationship because I was never there for you and your mom as I should have been. It’s something I can never fully make up for, but I can at least advise you not to make the same mistake with Jack. Live and learn as they say.”

Sensing that enough had been said, he sighed and smiled, placing a hand on Jack’s shoulder. “Well, I think I’ll leave the rest of the clean up to the younger generation. Jack, what drinks can I take in for you?”

Jack moved over to the refrigerator and withdrew three beers and a bottle of soda. “Thanks, Jacob.” As the two men studied each other for a moment, Jacob knew the extent of Jack’s thanks extended beyond that of bringing drinks into the living room.

Jacob moved over to the doorway of the kitchen. “See you in there in a few minutes.”

Sam watched him disappear through the doorway and down the hall. Looking over at Jack, who had assumed her dad’s position at the sink, she smiled up at him. “I love you.”

Jack was still slightly stunned by the emotional context of the moment that had just passed between them with Jacob. He looked down at Sam after a moment and gave her a slight smile, though his eyes were deep pools of unexpressed emotion. “I love you, too.” Clearing his voice, he surveyed the array of pots and pans still needing their attention. Sighing, he continued. “Shall we? I feel like we’re back in my very first unit on dish duty…except I never got to wash dishes with a fellow airman…woman…as beautiful as you. If I had, dish duty would have been a lot more exciting!”

Despite herself, Sam found her cheeks blushing at the compliment. Swiping some soapy dishwater at him, she replied back. “What a big flirt you are! Come on, let’s get this done so we can join the others.” Laughing together, they worked side by side to finish their task in an admirable amount of time, and then headed back towards the living room to finish the remainder of the evening in the company of the family and friends that awaited them.

The next morning broke early with more brilliant sunshine and a fresh twelve inches of powder. As the snow sparkled in the new day’s light, Sam found herself in the kitchen making breakfast for everyone. In her memory, she couldn’t remember a better holiday vacation. Even if she and Jack weren’t able to openly share their love, just having him here, along with her dad and everyone else who was closest to her, meant the world to her. It had been too long since she’d allowed herself to let go of her daily responsibilities to the military and the world, and just enjoy her life on a personal level.

Humming a little tune, she poured another measured amount of pancake batter into the waffle iron and closed the lid, allowing the escaping steam to run over the skin on her face, warming it as it evaporated into the air. Closing her eyes, she reminisced on the night she and Jack had shared after everyone had gone to bed. He had come to her shortly after midnight, with eyes full of passion and a body that enveloped her instantly. Clinging to each other, they silently made love several times throughout the earliest hours of the new day. Attempting to avoid being discovered again by Tessa, Jack had reluctantly returned to his own bed just shy of the sunrise.

Restless without him next to her, Sam eventually gave up on sleep and made her way to the kitchen. Despite only having slept a few hours, she was surprisingly energized, and the slopes were calling out to her. She wasn’t sure if she’d find many takers on a ski invitation after the full day they’d had yesterday, but she was determined to get at least a few runs in before lunch.

With the smells of bacon, eggs, waffles, toast, and coffee waffling throughout the house, it wasn’t long before everyone joined her. Sleepy-eyed and still dressed in pajamas and robes, she happily set the table as they attempted to wake up with steaming hot cups of freshly brewed Hazelnut coffee.

Sitting down at the table and letting a big yawn escape, Jack looked up at Sam through hazy, loving eyes. “I guess someone’s been busy. Tell me, Carter, do you ever sleep?”

Sam gave him a warm smile before answering. “I just thought a hot breakfast before our next ski session would be helpful. Are you guys up for it?” She found herself hoping that her eagerness wasn’t too apparent.

Teal’c, always looking rested, gave her a nod. “Indeed, Major Carter.”

Sam gave him a smile. “Great. Jonas, Jack? You both up for it?”

Jack grumbled, knowing by the happy expression on Jonas’ face that he couldn’t be made out to be the party pooper. “If you allow me at least two cups of coffee and a chance to digest this feast you made, I’ll come along.”

Sam gave him a smirk. “Gee, Sir, do try and save some of that enthusiasm for the slopes.” Looking over at her dad as she sat down, she asked him the same thing.

But Jacob only threw a glance at General Hammond and then shook his head. “No, Sam, but I think George and I are going to sit this one out. We’re not as young as we use to be, and we have some soreness that needs to be worked out over a good book and a nap.”

Tessa piped up. “Can I come?”

Sam, not a bit surprised at her resilience, nodded. “Of course you can. I know Jack is looking forward to having you show him up on the slopes again.” As everyone broke into light laughter over her comment, she looked over at Jack and gave him a wink and a smile, which he returned affectionately.

Two hours later, Sam, Jack, Teal’c, Jonas, and Tessa were sufficiently warmed up and fully enjoying the fresh powder lining the slopes. The sun was bright and encroaching on its position of high noon. As the group swooshed down the slopes in pairs, always following the confidence of Tessa in her youthful grace, they reveled in the day, not only enjoying each other’s company, but remarkably enjoying the slopes all by themselves.

As they regrouped at the top after unloading off the chair lift, Jack stopped next to Sam. “Well, I must say, I didn’t realize your dad also had his own private ski area.”

Sam looked over at him and gave him a soft smile. “You would think so. But this part of the mountain tends to be a bit more off the beaten path, and unless you have a ski in home, this particular lift takes a lot of work and time to get to.”

Jack leaned in closer, lowering his voice. “Lucky us.”

Sam could feel the heat from her body suddenly overwhelm the cold of her cheeks, warming them significantly. Lost in each other, they failed to pay attention to the others around them. As the moment was intensifying for them, Tessa’s voice suddenly drew them back to reality.

Her shrill voice echoed around them. “No, Jonas! You’re going to crash…” A moment later, they spotted Jonas’ skis hitting a bush a short distance down the hill from them, causing him to tumble forward onto his side with a loud thump.

Jack cringed. “Ouch! That had to hurt.” Looking down the distance to his teammate, he called out. “You okay, Jonas?”

Jonas, who was obviously winded from having it knocked out of him, held up a thumbs up. As he struggled to get to his feet again, Jack looked over at Tessa. “What was he trying to do besides make a fool of himself?”

Tessa giggled. “He was trying to show me a stunt he saw on T.V. last night. He was convinced that he could do it too. Apparently it was harder than he thought.”

Jack, immensely enjoying Jonas’ humiliation, smiled, crossing his arms over his chest. “Apparently.” Raising his voice so Jonas could hear him, he snickered. “Enjoying that snow, Jonas?”

Jonas gave him a half wave as he got to his feet. But as soon as he attempted to move back onto the slope, his left ski wouldn’t budge. Pulling at it, he lost his balance and fell backwards onto his butt. Jack’s laughter echoed all around him. Slightly frustrated and knowing he would never live this down, he half turned and looked back at the group. “Um, it appears that my ski…is stuck.” Jack’s laughter only increased.

Sam gave Jack a warning look and slapped a hand hard against the right side of his chest. Looking over at Teal’c, who also had an amused expression on his usually stoic face, Sam sighed and knew it was up to her to give Jonas a hand. Shaking her head, she moved forward and skied down to where Jonas was.

Spearing her poles into a small snow bank beside her, she bent down next to Jonas and placed a light hand on his back. “Hey. You okay?”

Jonas gave her a shy smile and a nod. “Yeah. Maybe a bruised ego, but nothing seems to be broken.”

Sam glanced back at Jack and Teal’c, who were still holding their position about 500 feet up the slope. Annoyed by their smugness at Jonas’ expense, Sam turned back to her teammate and offered her help. “How about I take a look at that ski?”

As Sam worked on his ski and boot, which were both significantly wedged underneath the gnarled undergrowth of a slightly thorny bush, Jonas took in the beauty of the moment around him, determined to ignore the nagging feeling that he wasn’t going to live this one down for a long time. The full pine trees were towering above him, alive with color of deep emerald green that shimmied and shimmered in the swirling air.

Jonas felt guilty not being able to help Sam dig out his own foot, but because of the angle of his leg, it made it next to impossible to get to it without help. As he continued to sit there, with his gloved hands resting against the snow-packed ground, he suddenly began to notice a slight vibration that seemed to be growing rapidly in intensity. Just as he was about to say something to Sam, she looked up, obviously feeling the tremor too.

“What is that…” Jonas stopped mid-sentence when he noticed Sam’s eyes focused behind him, shielded from the sun with her hand. But it wasn’t her focus that stopped his question; it was the fact that her face suddenly went as white as the snow around them as she slowly lowered her hand and her eyes widened to the point of popping.

Sam’s voice was full of fear. “Oh my God…”

Before she could elaborate, Jack’s voice was heard echoing around them, shouting desperately. “Avalanche!!”

It only took a second for Sam to react. She turned back around to Jonas’ foot and began desperately yanking on it. “Come on, Jonas, PULL!!” Together, they pulled with all their might. Jonas, with pain searing up his leg from the pressure, used every bit of strength he had, but finally found his foot free.

Scrambling to his get back on his feet while trying not to get tangled up in his skis, he turned around just as Sam stomped back into her second ski. A wall of snow, towering at least 15 feet in the air, was barreling down upon them at a blinding speeding. Sam, having snagged her ski poles from the snow drift was waving at Jack frantically, who was closing in on their position quickly with Teal’c not far behind.

Sam could feel her vocal cords being stretched as she yelled above the roar of the snow not far behind them. “Go on!! Get Tessa out of here, Jack!! We’re right behind you!” Not wanting any protest from him, she quickly turned to Jonas. “Let’s go! And ski as fast as you can. Trust me…I know you’ve never seen an avalanche, but you don’t want to get caught up in it…you won’t survive.”

Sam could see the fear in Jonas’ face and was glad for it…it meant he would do as she said. With her heart pounding in her ears, she and Jonas were pushing themselves off the snow bank when the quaking of the ground became so intense it was hard to even balance her own body. The wall of snow was practically on top of them and she knew it was going to take a miracle to outrun it.

Without warning, the earth beneath them suddenly collapsed. With the ground gone from beneath her, she and Jonas were sucked under without even a second to catch her breath or get a grip on what was happening.

Jack, who was just passing Sam’s position at the time of the collapse, felt his heart being ripped out of his chest as he watched Sam, along with Jonas, suddenly sucked down into the ground in a violent display of snow, rocks, dirt, and trees. Angling his skis, he skidded to a stop right past where she’d disappeared. “SAM!!”

Just as he was about to ditch his skis and run for the hole, Teal’c’s voice reached his ears. “O’Neil!! We have to get General Hammond’s granddaughter out of here. Major Carter would want that!!”

Jack, knowing he had no time to think, but also knowing deep in his gut Teal’c was right, looked behind him to find the avalanche almost on top of them. Cursing, he slammed his poles into the snow and angled himself facing downhill, but took a moment to look over to where Sam had disappeared. “I will find you, I swear it.” Raising his voice, but knowing she couldn’t hear him, he repeated himself. “You stay alive! I will find you!” Marking the spot in his memory banks, he pushed off hard and joined Teal’c and Tessa as they gathered speed down the hill.

Tessa, obviously scared and in shock, was handling it amazingly well. She was crouched down on her skis, and not having the hindrance of ski poles as most children prefer, proceeded to fly down the slope with surprising skill, never looking back. Not as confident at their skill without ski poles, both Jack and Teal’c held onto theirs, but moved into a deeper crouching position to increase their speed. The world zoomed by as the cold, bitter air whipped at the expose skin on their faces, causing it to burn. Without looking behind him, Jack knew the speeding snow was almost upon them, and he was beginning to doubt if they’d make it. The ground was shaking violently with the roar of the moving mass, as clumps of it began making its way past them, a blaring indication that the monster was about to swallow them up.

Straight ahead of them, Jack noticed that the ground seemed to fall away, indication a cliff-like structure of rock jutting out of the mountain. Through the utter fear that his brain was processing, an idea sprang to life, and he quickly prayed it would work, because otherwise he knew they had no chance.

Yelling at the top of his lungs, he called out to Tessa and Teal’c. “Stop after you hit the bottom off this cliff and ditch your skis!! It’s our only chance!!” Hoping against hope that they heard him, he braced himself for impact as his skis left the ground.

It took only a fraction of a second for the fall, and his body dominoed against itself as the hard force of impact was felt in every inch of his body. Using all the strength he had in his legs, he slide to a short stop, jammed his poles into the back of his skis to release his boots, and felt a small sigh of relief as he stepped out of them and found Teal’c and Tessa already running. They had picked up on his idea.

Sprinting the short distance it took to get back uphill and under the overhang of the rock tested every muscle in his body, not to mention his will. But with the cold reminder that Sam was buried up on that mountain, clinging to life, not to mention Jonas, his legs found a will of their own. Catching up with Teal’c, who had thrown Tessa over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, the two barely reached the outcropping as the driven force of snow came cascading over their heads.

Quickly dropping Tessa off his shoulder, Teal’c pressed her as close as he dared against the icy rock without crushing her, using his large frame to shield her. Both he and Jack hugged the rock with their bodies, not caring about the pain in random places where the rock’s rough edges were jabbing into them. They could feel the snow at their back as part of the avalanche dropped off where they were at. But as Jack had banked on, the majority of the slide went over their heads, the velocity too great to slow and cover them.

After what felt like an eternity, but in reality was less than a minute, the ground lost its vigor, and the air around them once again found the serene peace it had held only moments earlier. Within minutes, Jack’s whole world had stopped. Slowly turning around, Jack saw that a part of the slide had built a four foot bank in front of them, but beyond that, blue sky stretched as far as the eye could see. To just the oblivious observer, it would have appeared that nothing had happened. The birds were once again singing, the snow was a pristine white, the icicles hung sparkling off of every edging, and the sky was a blanket of sapphire velvet, with the sun as its only flaw.

But everything was far from normal. Jack’s brain, still in shock, registered the tiny whimpering of Tessa, whom Teal’c was trying to console with soft words. Turning to her, he knelt down and placed a hand on her back. “Hey, it’s going to be okay.” Even to him, Jack’s voice sounded weak and unbelieving.

Tessa looked up into his face with big, innocent eyes, ringed with alligator tears that were starting to fall. “I’m scared, Jack.” Her voice was thin and weak, a stark contrast to the girl he had known only hours ago as she sought out the most difficult course for skiing.

Taking her into his arms, he had to choke back the emotional lump welling up in his own throat. “So am I, Tessa. So am I.” Looking up at Teal’c, normally always a tower of strength, even he was showing signs of helplessness.

Tessa’s voice sounded on his shoulder. “Jack, what about Sam and Jonas…how are we ever going to find them?”

Her question suddenly yanked him back to reality, a surge of strength finding its way to the surface. Pulling her back to look him squarely in the face, Jack took a determined breath. “We will, Tessa. I promise you, we will. If it takes every last ounce of strength I have, I will bring them home.”

Teal’c’s deep voice filtered through the air. “We will, O’Neil. We will bring them home.”

Jack gave him an appreciative nod. He knew that he was going to need every bit of help he could get if he was going to hold good to his promise. But as he sat there comforting Tessa, he couldn’t help the unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach that when he did find Sam and Jonas, it would be too late. Trying to shake it off, Jack pulled back and stood up.

Looking down at her, he gently placed a hand on her head. “Let’s get you back to the house. And then we’ll round up some help for the search.”

Tessa suddenly gasped. “What about the house?! It’s at the bottom of this hill! Do you think the snow made it all the way down there?”

Jack looked over at Teal’c, unsure of the answer himself. Wanting to protect her, he looked down and was about to tell her the house would be safe, but the truth was he didn’t know. And as he looked into her young face, he only had one choice. “I don’t know, Tessa. All we can do is hurry and hope that the avalanche stopped before getting down that far.”

Moving forward, he climbed up over the snow bank and out into the open air. Reaching back for her hand, he pulled her out, with Teal’c right behind her. As Teal’c looked around, he motioned down the hill. “How far away from General Carter’s house are we?”

Jack squinted in the bright sunlight, using his hand to shield his eyes as he scanned the surrounding area. “Hard to tell…maybe a half a click or less. It shouldn’t be too far. I don’t really know how far down we skied, but we must be over halfway back to the house. Of course walking in this freshly churned snow may prove to be quite difficult, especially with ski boots.”

Tessa looked up at Jack and smiled for the first time since the disaster. Taking his hand, she tugged on it. “Don’t worry, Jack. We’ll make it. At least the sun is shining.”

Her voice was remarkably cheery, and it just compounded Jack’s feeling of amazement at how resilient children always were to the cruel realities of the world. Determined to soak up any strength that her smile and attitude would give off, Jack gave her hand a squeeze and nodded. “Okay, you’re the boss. Lead the way.”

Thirty minutes later, they were making very slow but determined progress when the sound of snowmobiles sounded in the near distance. Relief washed over each of them as Jacob and General Hammond approached them at top speed, slowing down as they came closer to them.

Upon stopping a few feet from them, Tessa broke the grip she now had on Teal’c’s hand and ran forward, jumping into General Hammond’s open arms. “Grandpa!! You’re okay! The snow didn’t get you.” She hugged him tightly as he reciprocated, stroking her back through the thick ski coat she was wearing.

General Hammond had a reputation of strength and resilience, never showing fear and doubt. But as he held his granddaughter tightly against him, it was obvious that even he had had horrible scenarios playing in his head at what could have happened. “Thank God, Tessa, you’re alive. I was so worried.”

Tessa reared back to get a better view of his face. “Jack and Teal’c saved me, Grandpa. They saved me from getting sucked into the snow.”

General Hammond looked over at them with more gratitude than they’d ever seen encompassed in his face. “Of that, my dear, I have no doubt.” While he listened to Tessa’s frantic retelling of what had happened, Jack could feel Jacob’s eyes digging into his skull.

Looking over at him, Jack’s heart began to ache at the painful questions he knew were rolling through Jacob’s mind as he examined Jack’s expression for any clues of what was to come. But Jacob didn’t give him much time to offer any attempts at an explanation. Looking Jack squarely in the face, he spoke with a determined tone, but one that was laced with fear. “Jack, where is my daughter?”

Jack felt as helpless as a newborn kitten, and it took everything in him not to break down right there. After a few moments of awkward silence, Jack looked up into Jacob’s eyes and answered him honestly. “I don’t know.”

It was so cold, as if a glacial numbness had taken its hold on the earth and held it in an endless death grip. Sam’s subconscious was trying to register the kaleidoscope of colors running through her brain. It was dark, yet there was light. She felt like her body was trapped, as if something were pushing against her, making it hard to breathe. She could feel the cold, hard icy structure that her back was resting on, yet despite her efforts, she couldn’t quite figure out what was on top of her. Moving her fingers seemed to be a tremendous thing to accomplish, so when she finally did, be it only a few inches, all she could feel was what appeared to be the bristles of…perhaps a pine tree?

With her eyes still closed and her body in no hurry to move, it was all too easy to just give in and let the darkness consume her again. But somewhere deeper in her mind she heard a voice beckoning her, pleading with her to stay alive. Jack. She knew in her heart it was him. But where was he?

Moving her head gently side to side, she attempted to roll over and get up off her back, which at the moment, was numb with cold and pain. As she pushed at whatever was covering her, she suddenly heard a deafening crack, and the place she was lying on suddenly jolted. Fear paralyzed her body, and she even found herself holding her breath. ‘Relax, Sam, breath,’ she told herself. ‘You’ve got to assess your situation…find out where you are. Open your eyes.’

As she started to, whatever was on top of her suddenly shifted and rolled off. Seconds later, she heard a distinguishing splash. ‘Where am I? Was that water?’ Her mind began to spin with calculating possibilities, parting her fear temporarily and allowing more rational thought. ‘Okay, think, Sam…you were with Jonas, helping with his ski...’ Terror suddenly spun through her. ‘Oh God! The avalanche! Jack, Tessa, Teal’c! Wait, I was falling…falling.’

Without warning, the ground beneath her suddenly and violently cracked again, but this time it was enough to break free from whatever was holding it. In a free fall, Sam opened her eyes long enough to see a spiraling world of dark, but one with enough light to know that she was about to impact something. With fear and confusion overtaking her, she opened her mouth and screamed, just as her body was enveloped by a body of cold, icy water.

Her mouth was suddenly filled with water, choking off all the air supply. With the inability to swim due to her stiff joints and muscles, all that registered in her mind after a few horrifying seconds was an intense burning in her lungs, as if they were about to explode. With her body spasming for air, her conscious world suddenly went dark, and her body continued to drop like a weight into an abyss of icy darkness….

To be continued.

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