THAT WHICH WE ARE  BY DARCY & SAMI-J

Chapter 11

Most Saturdays Jack would go into the SGC for at least a few hours and Daniel would go with him. Not this Saturday. Today, Daniel was content to sit in his room and read one of the books from his parents’ library on hieroglyphics. He'd brought it home from Cheyenne Mountain - the SGC, he corrected himself. He still wasn’t used to calling the base the SGC. He’d brought the book home yesterday. It was fascinating, made even more so because it was from his mom and dad’s library.

Daniel ran a reverent hand over the cover, thinking about how his mom had held this very book. The pages were worn; she must have read it a lot. He had checked the publishing date and sure enough, it had been published two years before The Accident. She had definitely handled and read this book. His dad had probably read it, too.

He couldn't help wishing he'd been older before she... no he wasn't go to think like that even though it would have been fun, more than fun, to be able to talk to her about the book’s contents, especially with his newfound knowledge of the Stargate. He needed to remember he had a new and amazing life right here in Colorado Springs with Jack and Sara and Charlie.

Even with the windows closed Daniel could hear playful voices rising up from the front yard. He took a break from his book and walked over to the window to check it out. Down below, Jack, Charlie and Spencer were tossing around a football on the front lawn. It looked like they were running routes like he'd seen Jack and Charlie do up on the top of Cheyenne Mountain. He didn't know much about football but all three of them looked skilled in their abilities to run, throw and catch. They also looked like they were having a lot of fun.

When it came to sports, Daniel didn’t have any skills. He hadn’t played American sports growing up in Egypt and he’d managed to avoid getting involved, other than the mandatory P.E. stuff, during his two years in foster care. It was only since he’d joined the O’Neill family that his aversion to sports began to fade. Unfortunately, he discovered that reading books didn’t help much in learning how to catch a football or swing a bat properly.

That day up on top of the Mountain he'd admitted his ignorance and Jack had offered to teach him. Neither Jack nor Charlie would make fun of his lack of abilities, Daniel was sure of that. They were right outside, having what sounded like a great time. Maybe it would be fun to join them, except he wanted to finish this chapter. Maybe he could do both.

When Daniel finished his reading he set the book down on the bed and tried not to over think the sports thing. Instead of worrying about his skill level, he grabbed his jacket and raced down the stairs.

Jack had disappeared but Charlie and Spencer were still playing. Daniel stood on the front porch and watched for a few minutes until Charlie yelled, "Think fast!" and tossed the ball in his direction.

Despite thinking as fast as he could, Daniel dropped the ball which made Charlie and Spencer laugh. He resisted the impulse to run back into the house. There was no need to feel defensive, the laughter was in fun. So Daniel laughed along with them.

Charlie offered some advice as he picked up the ball and tossed it back to Spencer.

"You have to catch it with your hands, not your body." Daniel listened intently to his brother’s instructions. "Catch it with your hands and then pull it into your body so you don't drop it. Watch me."

He nodded to Spencer who tossed a perfect spiral. Charlie demonstrated his point by making the catch and then tucking the ball under his arm. "That’s really all there is to it." He threw the ball back to Spencer. "One more.”

Spencer threw another pass, this time it was a little high and Charlie had to jump to make the catch. Still, he made it look easy.

"See what I mean?"

Daniel nodded. He did see. He'd never realized they weren't smothering the ball with their bodies to catch it.

"Okay, you try it."

Spencer threw Daniel a pass and for a brief second he thought he had it before fumbling it away.

"I'm not very good at this," he mumbled, trying not to blush.

"No, you almost had it," Charlie encouraged. "Try it again. And this time watch the ball go right into your hands. And," Charlie punched his shoulder affectionately, "have a little confidence. I know you can do it."

That was encouraging, Charlie was a good athlete, if he thought it was possible then maybe it was. Daniel focused on Spencer who launched the troublesome football his way. He concentrated and watched the ball glide into his outstretched hands as he caught it and then pulled it securely into his body. He'd done it!

"Yes!" Charlie pumped his fist in the air as Spencer yelled, "Way to go, Daniel!"

"Let's try a few more." Charlie was excited, too.

Daniel tossed the ball to Charlie who in turn threw it back to Spencer. Spencer threw ten more passes and under Charlie's watchful eye and sage advice Daniel caught six of them and barely missed catching the seventh. With every successful catch his sense of accomplishment grew. Charlie was right. It was easier once you understood the mechanics of it. He couldn't wait to show Jack. Speaking of which, where was Jack? Sara was working a Saturday shift at the hospital but Jack should be around here somewhere.

"Hey, Charlie, where's Jack? I want to show him what you taught me."

Charlie grinned. "He went down the street to help Mr. Eckerly. He's pretty old and needed help moving some things in his basement so Dad might be a while. Whenever he goes over to help, Mr. Eckerly finds all kinds of jobs for him to do. Dad says he's just lonely and likes the company."

Daniel nodded, thinking how nice that was of Jack.

"He'll be surprised when he sees how good you can catch," Charlie added.

"Can you teach me how to throw, too?" Daniel decided it was high time he learned. He'd successfully learned how to catch the ball; maybe he could figure out how to throw it as well.

Charlie frowned. "Sure, but don’t get discouraged. It's a lot harder to throw a football than it is to catch one."

Daniel looked confused. Spencer and Charlie made it look easy.

"We've been playing for a long time." Charlie must have read his mind, just like Sara sometimes did." I think Dad got me my first football when I was like two years old." They all laughed at that.

Spencer checked his watch. "I have to go home soon, guys. We're going to visit my grandma," he groaned.

"Yeah, yeah, just stand there a minute," Charlie ordered.

Spencer rolled his eyes but obeyed.

"First you have to get the right grip." Charlie gripped the football and showed Daniel as he explained. "Put your fingertips on the laces and hold the ball like this."

He held it out as Daniel watched in fascination. He hadn't realized there was such a science to it.

"Then you heave it like this." Charlie threw a perfect pass to Spencer who had no trouble catching it. "Did you see the tight spiral? That's good. That means it's a good pass and makes it easier for the receiver to catch."

Daniel nodded as Spencer threw it back and Charlie caught it. "Okay, now you try it."

Charlie tossed him the ball and then helped him position his fingers for the correct grip. Daniel had no idea throwing a football was so complicated. No wonder he wasn't very good at it. He'd been doing it all wrong.

After Charlie okayed his grip Daniel tried throwing the ball across the lawn to Spencer. Instead of spiraling gracefully through the air the ball jerked way over to the right and Spencer had no hope of catching it.

Daniel let out a sigh.

"I really have to go, guys," Spencer yelled as he ran over and grabbed the ball.

"One more," Charlie demanded.

"Last one," Spencer reluctantly agreed and he threw the ball back to Daniel.

"Nice catch!" The boys yelled simultaneously at Daniel's newfound catching ability.

Daniel beamed with pride. If he could get the throwing part down he could toss the football around with Charlie and Jack and be one of the guys.

"Let's see your grip." Charlie hovered over him.

Daniel tried to remember the instructions then held the ball up in the throwing position. Charlie made a few adjustments before yelling, "Let her fly!"

This time when Daniel threw the ball it flew high, end over end and to the left of Spencer. It didn't have any trace of the graceful spiral of the other boys' passes.

"Don't worry, it takes a lot of practice," Charlie assured him. "And you learned how to catch today."

Spencer ran after the ball and brought it back. "I gotta go, guys. Charlie, did you want to come over and borrow the Mummy movie?"

"Oh yeah. Daniel, you want to come?"

"No, I'm going to go back inside and read my book."

"All right. If Dad comes back, tell him I'm at Spencer's but I should be back way before he is."

Spencer was already headed up the street and Charlie turned to jog after him to catch up.

"Okay. Thanks, guys!" Daniel yelled after them. Charlie didn't turn around but raised one hand in the air and waved as he and Spencer ran down the street.

Daniel picked up the football and smiled. It was a great day, his big brother had taught him something new. He looked down at the ball in his hands and decided to give it one more try. Maybe he'd have better luck without the pressure of Charlie and Spencer watching. He tried to remember his brother's advice and adjusted the ball in his hand accordingly. Charlie had told him not to over think it, just let it fly.

He reared back and threw the ball as hard as he could. It wasn't a perfect spiral, more of a wobbly spiral, but it definitely had some sort of spiral. It was exciting... up until the moment the ball crashed into Jack's truck and knocked the side mirror askew.

Oops.

Daniel ran over to the truck, praying the damage was fixable. Maybe the mirror would somehow snap back into place. No such luck. He tried to stand the mirror up straight. It stood weakly for a second or two before limply falling back over on its side.

Oh, no! His heart thumped unevenly in his chest until he remembered where he was. He wasn’t in one of those nasty foster homes. He was with the O’Neill’s; he was part of their home now. There was no need to panic; everything would be okay. It had been an accident and Jack would understand. Maybe he'd even be excited Daniel had learned how to catch a football even though he was a long way from figuring out how to accurately throw one.

He took a deep, cleansing breath and felt better. As soon as Jack came home Daniel would get it over with and confess. The thought made him nervous again but he quickly stomped down the feeling. After all the things they'd been through on Abydos and Chulak, he was sure Jack would take this mishap in stride.

~~~

Jack walked back to his house, wishing he had kept playing football with the boys and saved Eckerly for another day. Hank Eckerly was an old man, a lonely old man, and spending an hour or two with him every month or so seemed the least he could do.

Today, that old man had been an unadulterated pain in the ass. Demanding and unreasonable, ordering Jack around like he was an irresponsible kid, telling him to move things here or there and then finding fault with everything.

When he reached his front yard he stopped and took a few deep breaths. He'd been keeping his tempter in check for more than two hours and he needed to get rid of it before he went inside. There was no sign of Sara’s car so she must still be at work. The last thing she needed was to come home to a cranky husband.

What the hell?

Jack stared at his truck. It was in the driveway right where he'd left it after running an errand this morning but it wasn’t in the same condition.

He circled the truck to more closely examine the passenger side mirror dangling precariously on its side. It was easy to figure out what had happened with the football sitting innocently by the front tire and no boys in sight.

Jack picked up the ball and took it inside the garage. Damn it, Charlie. Irritation surged and he pushed it back down. This wasn't a huge deal. Accidents happened. He had no doubt it was an accident although he'd told the boys more than once about staying clear of any vehicles in the driveway, not to mention the house windows when playing ball. Still, boys will be boys and accidents happened.

He contemplated Charlie’s explanation. Knowing his kid, it would at least be an entertaining story.

Checking his watch, Jack saw he'd been at Eckerly's for just over two hours. It was hard to get away once old Eck had you cornered, especially when old Eck was in one of his moods, like today.

Jack went in through the back door and found Charlie in the kitchen finishing up a bologna sandwich. Daniel was nowhere in sight. The miniature genius had been so engrossed in his book this morning Jack doubted Daniel had left his room. He'd have to drag the kid down for some lunch soon.

"Hi, Dad." Charlie shoved the last bite of sandwich into his mouth and took a huge gulp of milk to wash it down.

"Hi."

"What did you do at Mr. Eckerly's? You were gone forever." Charlie was bright and animated and didn't look the least bit guilty about the mirror.

"A little bit of everything," Jack admitted.

"Look what Spencer loaned me." Charlie held up the “The Mummy” movie he'd been dying to get his hands on. "You want to watch it tonight?"

"Maybe."

Jack eyed his son carefully. He didn't look repentant. Maybe he'd truly forgotten. Two hours was a long time in Charlie's world. Jack opened the fridge and grabbed the turkey, cheese, mayo and the bread then stood at the counter and proceeded to make himself a sandwich.

"I don't think Mom will like this movie,” Charlie added. “Maybe Daniel will."

The kid was right about that, it definitely wasn't a Sara movie. "Where is Daniel?"

"He's upstairs reading his book."

Charlie confirmed his suspicions. Jack sat down at the table and ate his sandwich, keeping an eye on his son who promptly went into the living room and flopped down on the couch to read the DVD insert from the Mummy movie.

The irritation Jack had suppressed earlier began bubbling up again. The longer he sat at the table, the more annoyed he was that Charlie didn't bring up the broken mirror on his own. It was troublesome. Since the kidnapping Charlie was back to his exuberant old self, except Jack and Sara both felt the boy seemed a little less extreme and a little more responsible. They hadn’t been imagining that, had they?

When Jack finished eating he decided he'd given Charlie enough time to confess. He dumped his dishes into the dishwasher and headed into the living room to confront his son.

"Charlie?" With effort, Jack refrained from putting his hands on his hips. As a kid, he hated when his own father stood like that. It always seemed so confrontational.

"Yeah, Dad?" Charlie looked up then sat up a little straighter. Maybe he knew where this was heading.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

Jack watched Charlie's expression change from light-hearted to concern. Come on, kiddo, just own up and we'll both feel better.

"About what?" It took a few beats before Charlie responded and Jack wondered how many 'sins' Charlie had mentally run through before answering.

"About the mirror on my truck." Jack was losing his patience. How many chances did the boy need?

"What about it?" Charlie stood up to face him.

"Don't, Charlie." Jack put up a warning finger. "Just tell me the truth."

"What are you talking about?"

Charlie looked nervous now, shifting from one foot to the other. Jack folded his arms across his chest.

"You know damn well what I'm talking about!" He couldn't help raising his voice, Charlie's denial was irritating the hell out of him. "I can't believe you're going to stand there and play dumb about it. I thought you were finally growing up and willing to take responsibility for your actions. I guess I was wrong."

He couldn’t figure out why his son was having such a hard time admitting he’d made a mistake. It wasn’t like he or Sara beat the kid.

Jack waited impatiently while Charlie stood silently before him, adding fuel to the fire of Jack’s temper.

"Dad, I-I..."

Charlie seemed at a loss for words. Unbelievable. Jack decided to help him out.

"How about, 'Dad, I'm sorry'?" he suggested. Despite his effort at self-control, sarcasm underlined his words.

"I didn’t do anything," Charlie muttered, his confusion turning into anger.

"Now you're going to lie about, too?" Charlie was really pissing him off. "What's wrong with you?" Jack realized he was getting louder and took a deep breath and counted to five.

"I'm very disappointed in you,” he said coldly. “I thought we raised you better than that. Go to your room. And you're going to pay for that mirror."

"What mirror?" Charlie didn't move.

Before Jack could yell again a quiet, shaky voice called his name.

"Jack?"

Daniel stepped off the bottom stair and moved slowly toward him. The boy looked rattled. All that yelling must have scared him. Crap. Jack hadn't seen Daniel scared since Chulak and he never wanted to be the cause of the boy's fear here on planet Earth.

"It's okay, Daniel." His anger vanished in an instant. "Charlie and I are having a little discussion." Jack looked at Charlie. "Which by the way is over. I believe I told you to go to your room."

"Wait," Daniel pleaded. "Are you mad about the broken mirror on your truck?" He looked down at his shoes.

Before Jack could answer, the boy let it all out. "I'm sorry, Jack. I did it. Charlie was teaching me how to throw the football and after he and Spencer left I wanted to practice so I threw the ball as hard as I could and it hit your mirror. I tried to fix it but I couldn't. I would have told you but you were at Mr. Eckerly's. I was going to tell you as soon as you got home but I was reading my mom's book and I didn't know you were home. Until I heard you yelling. I'm sorry, Jack. Really, really sorry."

Damn it to hell. Jack had screwed this up royally. Daniel was on the verge of tears and Charlie looked beyond pissed. His only comfort was that Sara wasn't around to witness it.

Jack slipped his arm around Daniel. There were days when the boy had the weight of the world on his shoulders; he certainly didn't need to worry about minor football accidents and broken mirrors.

"I'll pay for it, Jack." Daniel wasn't crying but his voice was shaky.

Oh, for crying out loud. "Don’t worry about that,” Jack reassured him. “I know it was an accident.” As if this kid would deliberately break something. “It's nothing to worry about," he repeated, rubbing Daniel's shoulder for emphasis.

When Jack noticed Charlie standing there with his mouth hanging open, he knew he needed to say something to his son, too. He consoled himself with the fact that he hadn't been mad over the mirror, it was the idea that Charlie was denying breaking it that had pissed him off.

"Really?" Daniel was hopeful and Jack was relieved to see the kid’s fear and upset disappear. "I didn't think you'd be mad if you knew it was an accident." The big blue eyes stared up at him, reminding him of the depth of trust they had in each other.

"Really," Jack confirmed, then winked and affectionately tousled the boy's hair.

"I don't believe this!" Charlie folded his arms across his chest.

Jack was still hugging Daniel with one arm. "Take it easy, Charlie. Why didn't you just tell me you didn't do it?"

He wasn't about to give in to Charlie's anger. Given his son's past history Jack felt justified in his misinterpretation of the facts.

"How could I tell you?" Charlie snapped. "I didn't even know what you were talking about. How come you're not mad at Daniel?"

The boy maintained his defiant pose and waited for an answer. His brown eyes were bright with anger, an unusual emotion for easy-going Charlie.

Admittedly, since Daniel's death and resurrection, it was impossible for Jack to get mad at the boy, but that was beside the point. Daniel hadn't done anything wrong. The entire incident was an accident, one gigantic misunderstanding.

"Let's just forget about it,” Jack said with forced calmness, “and chalk it up to miscommunication."

Daniel nodded, looking relieved. Charlie was another matter. Charlie wasn't about to move on.

"First answer my question, Dad. How come you're not mad at Daniel?"

"For crying out loud, Charlie, It was an accident."

"Oh, and you think I would have done it on purpose?" Charlie glowered at him.

"Of course not. You're making a big deal over nothing." Jack struggled to maintain his temper in the face of the boy’s sarcasm.

"I'm making a big deal out of nothing?"

Jack hadn't realized how much disdain his son could pack into one sentence. Wonder where he got that from?

Charlie wasn't finished. "So admitting mistakes and taking responsibility... that only applies to me?"

His arms were still crossed and his face was flushed with anger. Jack fought to control himself. He had to with Daniel standing beside him and taking everything in with wide blue eyes.

"I said it was an accident, a misunderstanding. I said I'm sorry, Charlie, what else do you want from me?" Jack decided not to bring up all the times he'd forgiven his son over the years. He was a dad, that's what he did.

"No, you didn't, Dad.” Charlie stared hard.

"Yes, I did." Jack held firm. Charlie was pissing him off as only Charlie could.

"You never said you were sorry." The kid wasn't giving an inch.

Jack’s anger flared and he barely caught it in time. "That's what you're mad about? Okay, I'm sorry. There, are you happy now?"

"Hi, guys." The front door opened and a familiar voice greeted them.

Great, Sara arrived home just in time to join in the fun. Two steps into the house she stopped.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing. Just a little misunderstanding," Jack tried.

"Nothing? You call this nothing?" Charlie grabbed his jacket off the sofa and headed out the door.

"I'll go talk to him and tell him I'm sorry." Daniel broke the ensuing silence.

Jack gripped Daniel's shoulder to stop him. "No, this has nothing to do with you. Why don't you go back upstairs and finish reading your mom's book? I'll take care of this."

"But..."

Jack cut him off. "It’s okay. I'll talk to Charlie and I want to talk to Sara in private, too, so, upstairs. Go."

Daniel had no choice but to agree.

"So, what is going on?" Sara asked again after Daniel disappeared up the stairs.

Jack let out a huge sigh and pulled her in for a kiss. "Nothing. Nothing's going on. Not really."

Sara kissed him back before pulling away. "Really? It didn’t look like nothing." She walked into the kitchen so he followed her.

"Looks can be deceiving," he reminded as he flashed his most charming smile.

Sara wasn't impressed. "Before you let me in on all the nothingness that happened, did you take the pork chops out of the freezer for dinner?"

"What? No. Sorry, I was distracted." Pork chops, how was he supposed to remember pork chops?

"Distracted by... nothing?" She smirked at him.

"All right, you got me.” Jack hesitated just long enough to think through the last fifteen minutes. “I guess it was something but it's something minor and Charlie's making a big deal out of it and overreacting. Do you believe it? After all the things he's gotten into and now he's mad at me. It's ticking me off.”

Sara opened the freezer and moved some packages around in an effort to figure out dinner. "You can grill these." She pulled out some frozen burgers. "Or,” she sighed, “we can order out."

"It's too cold to grill. Let's order out." She was avoiding his rant. Damn it. Jack wanted her on his side. "Did you hear what I said, honey? He's mad at me. Do you believe that?"

She threw the burgers back in the freezer and turned around to face him. "Are you sure you're not wrong?" She gave him a quirky smile that made him wonder if she was laughing at him.

Jack blinked in surprise. "You're taking Charlie's side? You don't even know what happened." For the first time he realized his wife didn't seem all that concerned.

"No, I don't but you're acting defensive, Jack. I know you. When you're right, you're calm and reasonable and forgiving. When you're wrong, you act like you're acting now. That's all I'm saying."

"I do?"

"Yes, you do. Whatever happened, I'm sure you guys can handle it like adults. I'm tired. I'm going to go upstairs and take a long, hot bath." She kissed his cheek. "You will handle this like men and not like little boys, right?”

"I suppose so." If he had to.

"Good."

Sara walked out of the kitchen, pulling off her jacked as she went. Jack watched her head upstairs, suddenly feeling like an ass. He hadn't even asked about her day. He hated getting bombarded with problems the second he walked in the door. Sara wasn't any different. Her job as a nurse could be as stressful as his on any given day. The planet may not be in peril in her line of work but there were plenty of times when someone's world came to a crashing end with the sudden loss of a loved one, worse still if a child was involved.

On those nights, Sara would snuggle with him and tell him what had happened and sometimes there'd be tears but mostly just an outpouring of words and sympathy and emotion. Jack could be a good listener when called upon and it always seemed to help her deal with the fallout from her job.

Sara didn't look like anything traumatic had happened at the hospital today, he could usually tell. Still, it would have been nice if he'd asked. She could confide all sorts of things and it always made him feel good that she trusted him enough to share everything. It also made him a little sad that, due to the classified nature of his work, she was deprived of that same good feeling because he couldn't share his day with her.

Jack took the stairs two at a time and burst into the bathroom. She was just getting into the tub.

"So, how was your day?" he asked cheerfully.

Sara laughed and he went weak in the knees.

"Come on in and I'll tell you all about it."

She didn't need to ask twice.

~~~

Jack felt warm and calm and rejuvenated by the time he went outside to hunt down Charlie. His son wasn't in the backyard, he was in the garage hammering away at a couple pieces of scrap lumber. Jack nodded in approval. It was a trick the boy had learned from his old man, hammering on inanimate objects as opposed to taking his anger out on someone who wouldn’t be as passive as a piece of wood.

Testing the waters, he went for an upbeat tone. "We're going to order out dinner, then maybe we can watch Spencer's Mummy movie."

"Whatever."

Jack swallowed a reprimand. Charlie was well aware of his father's intense dislike for that particular word and he was pretty sure that's why his son used it now. The boy was still royally pissed. Now that Jack had calmed down, he was all too aware that he owed his son an apology.

Earlier, he had wondered why it was so hard for Charlie to admit his mistakes and to apologize when he was wrong. Well, the apple didn't fall far from the tree and the only way to teach character was by example. Too bad leading by example was so damned difficult.

There was no way around it and Jack decided to jump right in. "I'm sorry for what happened earlier. I jumped to the wrong conclusion and I didn't give you a chance to explain. I was wrong."

"Did Mom tell you to say that?" Charlie looked him in the eye.

Jack smothered a stab of amusement. If the shoe had been on the other foot, he might have thought the same thing.

"No, of course not. As a matter of fact, your mother didn't want to know anything about it. She said we should handle it ourselves, like men."

"Really?" Charlie frowned. "That's weird.”

"I know." Jack couldn't agree more. "That's just what I thought. Weird."

Charlie sighed and relaxed, setting the hammer aside. "I suppose she gets tired of guy stuff. Even guy arguments. Too bad you guys didn't have more kids. Maybe you could've had a girl."

Jack tried not to laugh. "Maybe," he agreed. Poor Sara, he'd have to pay more attention. "We have Daniel."

Charlie nodded. "You treat Daniel different than you treat me."

Although his first instinct was to deny the statement, Jack took a minute to think about it. Yeah, his son was right.

"I do,” he admitted. “Does that bother you?"

He was pleased when Charlie thought before answering. "No, not really. I think Daniel's more sensitive than I am. Probably because his mom and dad died."

Sometimes Charlie had amazing insight, not unlike his mother. It reminded Jack that his boy was growing up.

"How was he on the mission?" Charlie continued in all seriousness.

"Nice try." Jack burst out laughing and patted his son's shoulder.

"I'm going to find out, Dad," Charlie said before joining in the laughter.

"Daniel can't tell you." Jack’s amusement faded and he gave his son a stern look. He hoped Charlie wasn't badgering his brother over it; if he was, Daniel hadn't mentioned it. If his son was trying to nose out classified information...

"Duh, I know that, Dad. That's not my plan."

Plan? Charlie had a plan? That was a scary thought. Dare he ask? "You have a plan to access classified information?" It was always best not to show any fear.

"Yep." Charlie stood up, stared him straight in the eye and spoke rapidly, with the confidence of the very young.

"I'm going to go the Air Force Academy and when I graduate I'm going to get assigned to Cheyenne Mountain. Then I'll have clearance and that's how I'll find out all the top secret stuff. I'll have to wait until I'm grown up but I think it'll be worth it.”

Jack stared at the boy in disbelief, shocked by his certainty. Charlie, his kid, his little Charlie, had all these grandiose plans for the future? When had this happened? The last he'd heard, his son was planning to play shortstop for a major league baseball team when he grew up.

His initial surprise gradually eased and he consoled himself with the facts. The kid was only twelve years old, the Air Force Academy was still a long way off. Anything could happen between now and then.

Despite the reassuring thought, there was something Jack needed to say. "It might be best not to mention this plan to your mother until you’re at least a junior or senior in high school, just in case you change your mind." Sound fatherly advice.

Still grinning, Charlie nodded his understanding.

"Clean this up and come inside so we can take a vote on what to order for dinner." Jack mouthed the word 'pizza' and Charlie chuckled.

"Wait, Dad," he called as Jack turned to go back into the house. "I'm not going to forget about it."

Positive he already knew the answer, Jack asked the question anyway. "Forget about what?"

"I’m not going to forget about the Air Force. Maybe you'll still be working at Cheyenne Mountain when I get assigned. Maybe we could work together." Charlie flashed him a grin and went back to putting away the tools he had laid out on the table.

Jack blinked hard but couldn't will away the vision of Charlie patrolling the halls of the SGC or worse, going through the Stargate to save Planet Earth from alien incursions and unimaginable disasters.

God help us all.

Chapter 12

Daniel couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so busy or so happy. Even school was okay - sometimes, when it wasn't boring. He enjoyed eating lunch with Karen and taking the college-level class in English literature that had been arranged for him. That only happened once a week, though, and he'd hoped to spend the other afternoons at the SGC. Unfortunately, Jack and Sara had nixed that plan.

He was only allowed to go in to the Mountain twice a week. A few times he’d been able to coax an additional day out of them but that was the exception. Weekends were always a toss-up. If he had his way, Daniel would spend Saturdays and Sundays at the SGC working on translations, but even Jack didn't go into the Mountain both weekend days so that never happened.

Sara had her own ideas about what was best for him. She believed she was doing the right thing but that didn’t relieve Daniel's frustration. More than once he thought Jack agreed with him and was frustrated on his behalf. Still, Daniel wasn’t about to rock the boat. Working at the SGC two days a week was better than no days at all.

As much as Daniel preferred spending his time at the SGC he had to admit Charlie always had interesting ideas on how to have fun. Their ideas weren't always in agreement but Charlie was never boring. Like what Charlie had proposed for today.

Daniel had never liked snow. It was cold, wet, hard to walk in, and, except for cushioning him when he slipped and fell in it, snow had never seemed to have any positive qualities. That was before he'd moved in with the O’Neills and met his brother. Charlie had forced him to re-evaluate some long-standing opinions on a lot of subjects from sports to bike stunts. Today it was snow.

Here he was, Daniel Jackson, born to the desert sands, standing at the top of a snow-covered hill and holding on to a sled with very little idea what he was supposed to do with it.

“Wahoo!”

Charlie yelled with delight as he and his sled sped down the hill at breakneck speed. When he was almost at the bottom he tried to turn the sled; instead of turning, it fell over and Charlie rolled off into a deep snow bank.

Watching from the top of the hill, Daniel laughed. Jack and Major Kawalsky were standing nearby and they were laughing even harder.

“Smooth move, Big O!” the Major cheered as he applauded wildly.

“That’s my boy!” Jack proclaimed before looking at Daniel. “Ready?”

Daniel gulped and tried not to let his nervousness show. Charlie had already gone down twice without any problems, well, except for his choice of kamikaze landings.

“Sure,” he said with all the assurance he could muster.

Jack gave him a comforting pat on the back so maybe he didn't sound as assured as he'd hoped.

“The sled will do all the work, kiddo,” Jack promised. “You just sit back and enjoy the ride. And never mind what Charlie did at the end there. When you reach the bottom just hang on, the sled will slow down and stop on its own.”

“Got it.” Daniel spotted Charlie standing at the bottom of the hill, waving for him to come down.

He sat down on the sled and positioned his feet on the rudders like Charlie had. Daniel had noticed that most of the kids who were on the hill were using saucers or small toboggans. Charlie had bragged how Dad favored the old-fashioned sleds because they went faster and you had more control. Daniel had no idea if that was true but Charlie had gone down extremely fast. Then again, Charlie did everything fast.

“Ready?”

Jack was directly behind him. Major Kawalsky had pushed Charlie so hard he had nearly been thrown off before he even got started, so Daniel was relieved Jack was pushing him.

“Ready!” He was as ready as he'd ever be.

The sled lunged forward under the power of Jack's strong push. A second later it was speeding down the hill.

The cold slapped his face but the feeling of flying was real. It wasn't scary at all! It reminded him of sliding down the sand dunes of Abydos, only this was smoother and faster. The hill was big enough to enjoy the ride and Daniel whooped in excitement. This was fun! The cold burned his face and would have burned his ears, except Jack had pulled his knit cap low on his head.

The sled careened down the hill, picking up speed with every passing second. He was vaguely aware of trees in the distance whizzing by, his attention split between steering his sled and keeping an eye on what lay ahead.

“Go, Daniel!”

He heard the excited cry and caught a glimpse of a Charlie-shaped blur jumping up and down and cheering him on. Then the blur disappeared behind him and he tightened his grip on the rope.

His sled slowed down after he reached the bottom of the hill. As the terrain flattened out Daniel slowed even more and he dared to straighten up and laugh out loud at the sheer adrenalin rush he’d felt flying down the hill. Now he better understood why Charlie was always pushing for the “maximum thrill.” His brother was right. It was a blast!

After sliding a surprising long way on the flat, snow-covered ground, the sled came to a stop and Daniel climbed off. His first couple of steps were wobbly until he regained his balance. Out of the corner of his eye he spotted something rushing at him and whirled defensively, only to gasp as Charlie slapped him on the back hard enough to stagger him.

“Way to go, Daniel! Now that’s the way to ride down a hill!”

Daniel ducked another excited punch and backed up a step. “Hey, enough,” he protested, still laughing.

“Oh, sorry.” Charlie grinned without any trace of apology. "Tell the truth, you're glad I dragged you out here. It's fun, isn't it?"

“You were right” Daniel admitted. "It is a lot of fun."

“Come on, guys!” Distant yells turned both boys around. On top of the hill Jack and Major Kawalsky were calling and waving their arms. Charlie chuckled.

“I think we’d better get back up there.”

“Do we have to go home already?” Daniel was surprised by his disappointment.

“Nah. We just have to climb back up so we can sled down again.”

“Oh, okay,” Daniel brightened. He couldn’t wait to try this again.

Pulling their sleds behind them, they started the long trek up the hill.

“We’ll probably get in a good hour of sledding, maybe two,” Charlie noted.

"Good," Daniel grinned. It was hard to believe he’d been so reluctant to come along. He hadn't had this much fun doing kid stuff since he and Charlie had gone swimming in the off-limits Adam’s Pond last summer. Even though they'd ended up grounded for a week, it had been worth it. Today they were having fun without doing anything wrong. What could be better?

“I’m glad you kept pushing me to come,” he conceded. "I don't usually like snow so I thought I wouldn't like this."

Charlie laughed. “I knew you'd love it if you could tear yourself away from your books for a few minutes."

"Books are fun to me," Daniel defended himself.

"I like books, too, but not all the time, and especially not on Saturdays. Tell you what, little bro, I'll trust you to help me out with Spanish and book stuff but you need to trust me on teaching you how to have fun. Okay?"

Little bro? Charlie always surprised him and made him laugh. "I will. I do," Daniel said. "Just don’t get me into too much trouble, okay?"

"Me? Trouble?" Charlie made a face. “I'm really glad you came," he said turning serious. “You’ve been so busy since you started going back to the Mountain that you never seem to have any free time anymore.”

Daniel came back to earth with a thump. “I’m not that busy.”

His brother shrugged and Daniel’s throat went dry. “Are you okay with it? I mean, with me going back to the base?”

Charlie’s face was already flushed from the exercise but Daniel didn’t think it was his imagination that his brother flushed a little darker.

“Sure. Why wouldn’t I be?”

That wasn’t very convincing. “You don’t sound sure.”

Charlie gave him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry I was so mad before... you know, when you and Dad were going to the base. It’s just – ” he cleared his throat and looked uncomfortable.

“I know.” Daniel did know. Back when he first started going to the Mountain, Charlie had been jealous of the time he and Jack spent together. Should he be worried about Charlie's feelings again?

“When you and Dad went missing during your mission, it made me re-think a lot of things. I wish I could work with my dad but I guess I’m okay with it now. I don't hold it against you, Daniel. It is what it is and I'm not going to whine about it. I'm going to do something about it.”

Those last words sounded a little ominous but still it felt like a weight slid off Daniel’s shoulders. He and Charlie were brothers now and he was relieved there was nothing bad between them.

A yell from above made him look up to see Jack waving at them again.

“C’mon guys,” he bellowed, “time’s a ‘wasting! Stop yakking and get up here.”

They were getting near the top so Daniel lowered his voice. “Thanks.”

“No prob," Charlie winked. "Wanna race down this time?”

“Why not?” Daniel laughed, suddenly feeling reckless.

Over the next hour they went up and down – or, as Charlie said, down and up – the hill several times. When Jack finally called a halt, Daniel was a little relieved even though he was having a great time. It had been especially funny when Jack and the Major borrowed their sleds and tried their luck racing each other down the hill. Both of them had flipped the sleds and crashed in an effort to build up more speed to win. Charlie couldn't stop laughing even while Daniel had worried about both men's health, until they sprung up out of the snow and began climbing up again. Then he laughed, too.

Now that they weren't sledding, Daniel was cold and tired from all the climbing. Jack had said the hill was a lot like life, you couldn't have the fun of sliding down without the effort of climbing up. Daniel had liked the analogy though Charlie had been far less appreciative and had asked his dad not to ruin the fun with any life lessons. Jack only laughed and promised Charlie not to point out any other pearls of wisdom while sledding.

"Now for the best part," Charlie said as they headed home. "When we get back, Mom will make hot chocolate for us.”

“Awesome!” Daniel couldn't wait to pour something warm down his throat.

“Sometimes we roast marshmallows in the fireplace to go with the hot chocolate.” Charlie smacked his lips in anticipation. “Wanna race home?” he asked, obviously still full of energy.

No, Daniel didn't want to but he didn't want to disappoint Charlie either.

“Haven't you guys done enough racing for one day?" Jack intervened. "We’ll be home in a few minutes.”

Daniel blew out a sigh of relief.

Charlie shrugged, bounced a few steps, and changed the subject. “Wait until you taste the hot chocolate, Daniel. Mom makes it from scratch. It’s the best in the world!”

“I can’t wait,” Daniel commented truthfully.

As they walked behind the still hyper boys, Kawalsky slanted a look at his friend and C.O.

“You know, I didn’t think I’d ever see this day.”

“What?”

“The day I’d see Daniel Jackson behaving like an honest to god little kid.”

Jack smiled. “I know. It took awhile but we’re seeing the boy shine through the genius every once in a while.” His smile widened. “It looks good on him.”

“Yeah.” When the Major laughed Jack eyed him with raised eyebrows.

“Yeah?”

“Did we have that much energy when we were their age?”

Jack snorted. “Speak for yourself, Charlie. I still have that much energy.”

Kawalsky made a rude sound. “Yeah, and reindeer really know how to fly.”

They both chuckled and Kawalsky gestured. “Do you believe this?”

“Believe what?”

“So much snow so early in the season. It’s not even Thanksgiving.”

Jack grinned. “I know. Just last week I was tossing the football with Charlie and one of his friends in the front yard.”

“Maybe the – ” Kawalsky lowered his voice – “Stargate,” he raised his voice again, “is affecting the weather.”

Jack snorted with laughter. “I can’t wait to hear Carter when you tell her that theory.”

Kawalsky gave him a look of mock horror. “Are you kidding? I’m not saying a word. I’d never survive all the scientific babble. By the way, how’s Daniel doing now that he’s back...” He glanced around and although no one was in earshot, he lowered his voice. “At the base?”

“From everything I hear, good.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Daniel loves it. Every time he comes he spends the drive home giving me a play-by-play account of everything he did.” Jack chuckled. “I've never been so well versed in the similarities and differences between ancient languages and derivative-something-or-others in cuneiform, and, hell, I don’t remember what else. Half the time I have no clue what he’s talking about.”

“So you’re not taking notes?” Kawalsky threw him a grin.

“Oh yeah.” Jack rolled his eyes. “But Hammond’s happy the Linguistics Department is making some progress on all the backlog, not only because of Daniel’s help but because he’s also teaching them what he knows. So the Linguistics Department is happy and the Archeology Department is happy because... I forget why but they’re happy Daniel’s back, too. He likes all the scientists and they all seem to like him so...”

“So everything’s good?”

“Yeah. Why?” The tone of Kawalsky’s question caught Jack’s attention.

“I dunno.” He gave his C.O. and old friend a long, measured look. “We’ve known each other a lot of years, Jack.”

“Yeah,” Jack agreed, wary now. It was obvious the man had something on his mind.

“Call me an idiot if you want – ” Kawalsky grinned briefly. “I get the feeling there’s something else going on with you, something that’s maybe not so good.”

He was right. They'd known each other a long time. Maybe talking about it would help. Kawalsky, more so than anyone else, would hear what Jack was saying and know whether his imagination was running wild.

“I don’t know if anything else is going on,” Jack admitted. He looked for the boys who were almost half a block in front of them now. There was no way they’d be able to overhear the conversation.

“It’s just that, Daniel loves coming to the base. He loves doing all that linguistic-archeology stuff. It’s always a struggle to tear him away at the end of the day. But a few days ago...” he hesitated, trying to put words to nebulous feelings.

“A few days ago I checked on him and he wasn’t in his office. Rothman said he’d left because he didn’t feel well. I found him in my office and he said he needed to go home. It's not the first time he's disappeared from somewhere without warning." This was the hard part. "I worry about post-traumatic stress but the nightmares have lessened and he doesn't really display any other symptoms... ”

Listening to himself, Jack wondered if he was making a mountain out of a molehill. So what if Daniel didn’t normally like to leave the base? So what if he suffered from occasional stomach aches? He was a kid and he was entitled to have his squirrely moments.

“Or maybe I’m imagining things,” he shrugged.

Kawalsky was silent for awhile before responding. “Maybe. Maybe not. One thing I’m sure of. I’d trust your gut instincts over facts any day.” He looked at his friend. “If you think something’s wrong, it probably is. It may not be PTSS but it’s probably something. I'll keep an eye on him as much as I can, too.”

“Thanks.” Jack appreciated the support.

“So what are you going to do about it?”

“I’m not sure. I tried talking to him the day he was sick but...” Jack remembered that frustration. “When it comes to evading questions, that kid’s as quick on his feet as Gordy Howe ever was on the ice.”

Kawalsky laughed. “Yeah, I remember a couple of times on...” he did another quick survey and lowered his voice again, “Abydos and Chulak.”

“Yeah,” Jack agreed in bittersweet amusement. The memories were always close. He changed the subject to dispel them.

“So, hard to believe it’s almost Thanksgiving.”

There, Thanksgiving was a nice, safe topic. Except maybe for Sara. This would be the first major holiday since her father died, the first Thanksgiving since they'd moved to Colorado Springs that Mike wouldn’t be a big part of their festivities. That's why Jack had secretly invited Sara's best friend, Diane, to join them. He hoped it would be a good surprise because he didn't always get these things right.

“Mmm, yeah!” Kawalsky chimed in. “My stomach’s growling just thinking about Sara’s pies.”

“Not to mention the turkey, the hot, just-out-of-the-oven homemade rolls, the cranberry sauce.” Jack laid it on thick and his old friend groaned.

“No more, please! I won’t be able to survive until then if I start thinking about what your house is going to smell like. It's been a while since I've had a chance to enjoy a real holiday feast.”

“Well, you can enjoy one in a little over a week.”

"Yeah, I know." Kawalsky rubbed his hand in a circle over his stomach. "It's been too long since we've been stationed together for Thanksgiving. The Stargate's not the only perk of being transferred to Colorado Springs."

Jack grinned and swatted the man on the arm. “So, the reason you hang out with my family is finally revealed.”

“What can I say? Soldiers live on their stomachs, right?”

“You do,” Jack snorted.

For the first time in several years, Kawalsky and Ferretti were joining them for Thanksgiving dinner, just like old times. Jack had also invited Carter and Rothman and General Hammond but they all had other plans. He hoped surprising Sara with Diane's visit would offset all the testosterone that'd be flying around the dinner table.

The only one who hadn't been invited was Teal’c. The higher-ups were uncomfortable with an alien working at the SGC; they'd never allow Teal’c to wander around Colorado Springs even it if was just for dinner at his C.O.’s house.

Jack was determined the status of his new team member would eventually be upgraded from alien consultant and semi-prisoner to full-fledged ally. At this point, he knew better than to rock the boat. That didn’t mean he liked the idea of the Jaffa spending Thanksgiving alone in his sterile room at the SGC. For now there was little he could do about it.

"You alright?" Kawalsky had stopped in front of the driveway. The boys were already inside. "Something else you want to talk about?"

Kawalsky was a good friend. Jack patted the man's shoulder as they headed up the driveway. "Nope, I think we pretty much covered it."

~~~

Jack was still thinking about Teal'c on Monday morning when he arrived at the base. There was the usual morning briefing with Hammond, then a couple of hours in P.T. and trying to survive Teal’c’s unique form of education. Jack was pleased to see how well Carter and Teal’c were beginning to jell, Rothman was a civilian and it was going to take him longer to get into the right mind-set. If he ever got there at all.

P.T. was followed by a meeting with the new personnel who kept pouring into the SGC. Hammond insisted Jack handle part of their orientation. Apart from being 2IC of the base, he was one of the few people who had been through the Stargate and faced Earth’s newest and most dangerous enemy firsthand.

Jack didn't mind. As second in command it was a good way to meet everyone on the base no matter how briefly. His favorite part was introducing Teal'c and seeing the wide-eyed, jaw dropping reactions that ensued. Jack could talk until he was blue in the face and it would never come close to the experience of meeting a real live alien. Teal’c was living proof of what the universe had to offer.

Today, after orientation, Jack caught the Jaffa as he exited the room.

“Hey, Teal’c, you want to grab a bite?”

The alien gave him a raised eyebrow and Jack wished he could do that. “What do you wish to bite, O’Neill? And why must you grab it? Is it still alive?”

Jack sighed. It was going to take awhile to break Teal'c's habit of taking everything literally.

“I meant a bite to eat.” In the face of Teal’c's imperturbable eyebrow Jack tried to be a little more explicit. “As in lunch. I’m inviting you to have lunch with me.”

“I accept your invitation, O’Neill.” The eyebrow resumed its normal position.

“Great. Come on.”

After they reached the commissary and sat down with their food Jack broached the subject that was on his mind. “Things are going to be kind of quiet around here next week.”

Chewing steadily, Teal’c gave him the eyebrow again. Jack finished a fork-full of roast beef and continued.

“Holidays are like that on a military base. All those who can, go home, and the C.O. doesn’t generally plan for anything out of the ordinary.”

No response, no expression, not even an eyebrow. Jack sighed.

“I don’t know if anyone’s mentioned it to you, but next week is Thanksgiving. That’s a major holiday for us.”

“What is a holiday, O’Neill?”

Finally.

“A holiday...” Jack hesitated, not sure how to explain. “A holiday is a special day.” He gave Teal’c a hopeful look.

Damn, back to the eyebrow.

“It’s a day when we, as a nation, celebrate something special.”

"What is the occasion of which you speak, O'Neill?"

Finally a flash of interest. Should he go into the whole Pilgrims and Indians story from grammar school? Charlie had done a paper on it a few years back and it made for a nice refresher course.

“Okay." Jack decided to go for it. "Way back in the seventeenth century, some people we'll call the Pilgrims came to this country to settle. The indigenous people were called Indians, although now we call them Native Americans but that's beside the point. Anyway, the Indians taught the Pilgrims how to plant corn and hunt and fish, and when it came time for the harvest they threw a big shindig and gave thanks for the food that would help them survive the upcoming winter. We keep up the tradition by celebrating Thanksgiving every year. Basically, we eat a lot of food, mostly turkey, and give thanks for our blessings, like family and friends.”

"Have these Pilgrims and Indians been able to remain friends and work side by side since the great feast?" Teal'c sounded impressed as he finished off the last of his mountain of mashed potatoes.

Crap. "No, not really but that's a whole other story. Anyway, that's what’s happening next week.”

“Your Thanksgiving holiday is a time of eating and giving thanks in remembrance of that first harvest?”

“Pretty much. Yeah.”

Teal’c nodded his understanding and Jack felt like he’d just been awarded an ‘A’ for his oral report.

Black eyes stared at him across the table and Jack wasn't sure if Teal'c was waiting for an invitation or if the Jaffa was still pondering the fate of the Pilgrims and Indians. He decided to cut to the chase.

“I wish I could invite you to spend Thanksgiving with my family, Teal’c. But...” Jack hesitated, searching for the right words.

“Your superiors do not wish me to go out into your world,” Teal’c said matter-of-factly.

Jack looked at him in surprise. The Jaffa didn’t need any long explanations. He had no problem grasping why the higher-ups of this world would be reluctant to have the former First Prime of Apophis running around loose.

“Yeah,” Jack said. “That’s it, exactly.” He leaned forward. “Teal’c, you know I don’t have any concerns about that.”

“I am aware and I appreciate your trust, O’Neill.” Teal’c inclined his head a fraction.

“Back’atcha, big guy.”

Oops, that won him another eyebrow and Jack coughed. “I mean, likewise. Listen, I promise I’ll save you part of the holiday meal and I guarantee you’ll enjoy it. Sara’s a great cook.”

That prompted another slight inclination followed by a raised eyebrow. “I look forward to ingesting the meal prepared by your mate, O’Neill.”

Jack leaned back in his chair, still wishing Teal’c could join them for Thanksgiving dinner. He chuckled at the alien’s words. No doubt his 'mate' would have enjoyed the Jaffa's company, too.

Chapter 13

Jack checked his watch as he pulled into the parking lot. The day before Thanksgiving was not a good day to be at the airport. It seemed like everyone in the state of Colorado was flying into or out of Denver International today and the place was a zoo. The forty-five minute Waiting Area was his destination but it was first-come, first-served and the place was packed. Crap. Where were those vaunted survival skills when he needed them? He’d show them first-come, first-served.

It was going to be close. Jack had left the Mountain as early as possible, grateful Daniel wasn't with him on this trip. The holiday traffic had slowed him down. He hated being late.

Hah! Jack slid into the parking spot just as the car that had been occupying the spot backed out. Then he threw the truck into park and raced for the terminal. Maybe Diane's flight had been delayed, though that never seemed to happen when you needed it to.

As soon as he was inside he spotted the row of monitors with the arrival and departure information and headed over to check her flight's status.

"Jack!"

No need to check. There was Diane waving at him, standing near the door he'd just entered. She was lugging a big purse and pulling a large carry-on as she rushed over and gave him a hug.

"This was a lot easier when you lived in Denver," he joked. "You look great. Have you been waiting long?"

"Thank you, and no, don't worry. I just got in." She seemed animated and excited to be visiting.

Jack had always been amused at the sight of Diane and Sara together, Sara was tall and blonde while Diane was petite with shining black hair and an olive complexion that reflected her mother’s Mediterranean heritage. He couldn’t wait to see his wife's reaction at seeing her best friend, hopefully within the next hour or so, depending on the damned holiday traffic.

"Good,” he responded. “I guess we better hit baggage and pick up the rest of your luggage."

"No need. This is it." She pointed to the carry-on. "I'm only staying for the long weekend so I didn't want to bother with baggage."

"Smart woman." That was a bonus. He rolled the carry-on for her while she struggled with the overloaded purse. They veered in and around the crowds and headed for the exit.

Jack gave her an affectionate look as they walked. "Thanks for coming. I know it was kind of last minute."

"No problem, I'm looking forward to it." She was nearly run down by the masses when she stopped to zip up her jacket and pull on her gloves before they headed out the door. "Have you managed to keep my visit a surprise?"

Jack tried to protect her from the pushing crowd. "I think so but you never know. I didn't tell the boys so there's no chance of them slipping up. You ready?" He needed to get out of here, he hated crowds.

"Yep, and not telling them was probably a smart move," she laughed.

It was dark and cold outside. When they reached the car, Jack opened the passenger door and ushered Diane inside then threw her bag in the back.

“What are you laughing at?” he asked as he climbed in behind the steering wheel.

"Always the gentleman." Diane grinned at him before turning serious. "How's Sara doing? Is she okay?"'

"Great, she's doing great." He realized how phony that must sound after he'd called to ask her to fly in for the holiday. "She's fine, Diane. Really. It's just that my buddies are coming over for Thanksgiving and it'll be all guys and, and I know she's going to miss Mike and I thought... you know."

"The first year's the hardest," Diane confirmed and he knew she was speaking from experience.

He nodded as he flicked on his turn signal and slipped into the stream of traffic exiting the airport.

"Yeah,” he agreed. “I'm hoping you being here will make it easier for her. She'll have someone to talk to about, whatever it is you women talk about when you get together." Even after all their years of marriage he still didn't have a clue.

"You're a good man, Jack O'Neill.” Diane laughed out loud.

"Be sure to point that out to Sara when you're talking about..."

"Women stuff," Diane smoothly filled in.

"Exactly." It was Jack’s turn to chuckle.

Having Diane fly in for Thanksgiving had been one of his better ideas and he was delighted the details had all worked out. When Jack first raised the possibility, Diane had agreed almost immediately. It turned out she missed Denver and Colorado Springs almost as much as she missed Sara. And Diane had known Mike when she and Sara were kids so she understood how difficult the holidays were bound to be. Sara wouldn't say much about it to him or the boys. She wouldn't want to ruin Daniel's first O'Neill holiday season but it would be nice if she had someone to confide in. He was proud of himself for thinking up this one.

The drive home was as horrendous as expected. Thankfully, Jack knew several side routes and short cuts and he pulled into the driveway only a half hour later than he’d hoped. The drive had allowed him plenty of time to hatch a plan with his wife's best friend on how to best spring this visit on his unsuspecting wife.

He opened the front door and yelled, "Honey, I'm home!" with Diane partially hidden behind him. "Whoa, something smells good," he noted.

"You're not kidding," Diane whispered.

Instead of Sara, Charlie appeared from the kitchen. "Hi, Dad – oh!"

"Shh!" Jack shushed him before he shouted out the name and ruined the surprise.

"Mom!" Charlie yelled instead. "Dad's home!"

This time instead of Sara appearing it was Daniel bounding down the stairs to check out the commotion. Charlie put his finger to his lips and shushed his brother just as Jack had shushed him. Daniel looked confused until Charlie pointed out Diane who was fairly well hidden behind Jack.

"Sara!" Jack yelled again.

"Mom!" Charlie called out.

Daniel must have thought he was supposed to join in because he yelled, "Sara!" too.

"What's the matter with you guys?" Sara appeared at the top of the stairs and came down in a huff. "Can't I have a second to myself? I've been cooking all day. What's so important?”

Charlie pointed at Jack and when she looked over he stepped aside and Diane moved forward waving her arms in the air.

“Surprise!” she laughed.

Sara’s eyes bulged out of her skull and for a second she couldn't speak. “Diane!” she squealed when she found her voice.

The two women embraced in a hug while Jack looked on, rocking back and forth on his heels and feeling very pleased with himself.

Charlie sidled up to Daniel. “That’s Ms. Haley. She and Mom have been best friends forever.”

“I don’t think I’ve seen her before.” Daniel studied the woman with interest.

“Nope. She used to live in Denver but she moved a while ago and now she lives in Phoenix. They e-mail each other a lot,” Charlie added, “and talk on the phone. You remember when we went camping in the summer? Mom went to stay with Ms. Haley while we were gone.”

“Right, I remember that.”

Charlie watched the hugging and happy tears and lowered his voice. “Can you imagine them as little kids?” He shook his head at the absurdity of it. “Mom as a little girl? Unreal. What did she do, tell her parents to brush their teeth and clean up their rooms?”

Daniel grinned. “She had to have been a little girl some time. She had to have been a baby once, too,” he added, checking his brother's reaction.

Sure enough, Charlie’s eyes widened. The concept was obviously something he hadn't considered. “No way.”

“Yes way,” Daniel insisted.

“Unreal.” Charlie shook his head again and they both laughed harder.

When Sara was finished hugging Diane she went over and hugged Jack. "Did you do this?"

"Nope, I just found her in the driveway," he smirked

"Right. Thank you, honey." She leaned in and whispered, "I needed this," into his ear.

"Who's this?" Diane smiled and nodded toward the newest member of the O'Neill family.

"This is Daniel Jackson." Sara put her hands on Daniel's shoulders as she introduced him. "Daniel, this is Ms. Haley, my best friend in the whole world."

"It's wonderful to meet you, Daniel." Diane stuck out her hand and Daniel shook it.

"I'm taking the boys out for pizza so you two can catch up and do whatever," Jack announced. "Eat in, eat out," he waved his hand in the air. "Do whatever it is women do when men aren't around. Grab your coats, boys, we're going out.”

When Sara winked at him it warmed Jack to the core. He knew her life wasn't as easy as she made it look. And it certainly wasn't always easy for him to figure out what his wife needed and why. Being that he was in the Air Force, the vast majority of his co-workers were male and emotions weren't high on their list of preferred subjects to discuss. Poor Sara was surrounded by testosterone 24/7. It was one of the reasons Jack had agreed to consider adopting a baby girl, it would balance out the gender ratio in the house. That, plus he'd always wondered what it would be like to have a daughter.

That plan hadn’t been in the cards and thank goodness for that. None of them could imagine life without their Daniel.

Jack didn't have many female friends to consult for birthdays and anniversaries and other significant occasions, though he might rope Carter into that role at some point in the future if she was willing and the situation warranted it.

He shook his head and focused on the scene playing out in front of him. After years of trial and error, Jack’s persistence and experience had finally paid off and he'd reached the pinnacle most mortal husbands could only dream of attaining. He'd finally succeeded in giving his wife the perfect gift.

Both women were wiping their eyes and the guys all pretended not to notice. When Sara finally tore her attention from her best friend she looked at the boys.

“Since Diane is staying a few days, she’s going to need one of your bedrooms.”

“That’s not necessary,” Diane jumped in. “I can bunk in the attic. I’ll be perfectly comfortable there.”

Sara shook her head. “No, you won’t. I’m sure – ”

“I could sleep up in the attic!” Charlie interrupted. “I’ll throw my sleeping bag on the rug. It’ll be cool.”

She studied her son for a minute before looking at her husband. Jack gave her a shrug.

“Why not?”

“And Daniel could sleep up there, too!” Charlie added with a wink at his brother.

“So you two can talk all night long?” Sara gave him a knowing smirk. “I think not. Yes, you can sleep up in the attic. Daniel can sleep in his own room. Before you take your sleeping bag up there, Charlie, why don’t you take Diane’s suitcase up to your room?”

Charlie nodded and grabbed the carry-on. As he passed Daniel he muttered, “Mom’s getting way too smart.”

Daniel smothered a laugh and turned back to the adults when Jack said his name.

"Daniel, run upstairs and hurry Charlie along. There's pizza in our future and I'm sure your mother wants to spend time with Diane."

The words were out of his mouth before he realized what he'd said. Daniel didn't flinch at the word 'mother' so Jack didn't bother correcting himself.

“If you’ll excuse me,” Diane brushed back her hair, “I’ll go upstairs, too, and freshen up.”

That left him and Sara and he gave her a satisfied smile.

"You're pretty pleased with yourself, aren't you?" She moved in on him and played with the collar of his shirt.

"It was a good idea, wasn't it?" It was amazing how she saw right through him.

"It's the best idea you've ever had without any prodding," she acknowledged. "Thank you." She kissed him again. "I may have to keep you."

“Glad to hear it.”

"You are something, Jack O'Neill." Sara took his hand and squeezed it. "You always manage to surprise me."

"Good." He reached out for another kiss but she was already turning away, her mind obviously working at warp speed.

"I hope we have clean sheets for Charlie's bed. I better check the linen closet in case I need to wash a load. At least we have enough food. I should run up there..."

Jack grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Relax. Have fun with Diane. I'll take care of all that when we get home. You've been cooking and running around all day."

"You're right." She took a deep breath and exhaled. "Relax. Okay, I'm relaxing."

"That's better," he gave her another hug. "It smells great in here. I'll get the kids out of your hair.”

"Thank you, again," she whispered.

He winked at her and yelled up the stairs. "Charlie! Daniel! Let's go."

The boys charged down the stairs with Diane following at a slower pace.

"Pizza!" Charlie yelled as he jumped from the fourth step instead of the third, probably to impress Diane. Jack didn't bother saying anything and surprisingly neither did Sara.

"Bye, Ms. Haley. It was nice to meet you," Daniel said as he zipped up his jacket.

"Goodbye, Daniel, it was great meeting you, too. I look forward to getting to know you better."

After they said their goodbyes the boys thundered out of the house, followed a bit more sedately by Jack, and Diane turned to Sara.

"He's adorable! What a sweetie. You and Jack lucked out."

"He is. We love him to death." Sara glanced at the kitchen. “Stay right there."

She ran into the kitchen and cracked opened the Tupperware container filled with the "off limits until Thanksgiving Day" cookies and threw a bunch of them on a plate. She grabbed a bottle of wine and two glasses and then joined her best girlfriend on the sofa. After she poured the wine, they nibbled and sipped and Diane filled her in on how Jack had managed to pull off the amazing surprise.

"So how are you really doing?" Diane eventually asked.

Sara smiled affectionately at her old friend. Diane knew her better than anyone, with the possible exception of Jack. They had no secrets between them and had always been able to tell each other anything. It felt so good to sit on the sofa together, sipping their wine and munching on holiday cookies.

“Honestly,” she said after a minute of thought, “I’m doing pretty well. Thanks mostly to Jack and the boys. I can’t imagine the basket case I'd be if I were going through this alone.”

“Pretty well?” Diane repeated.

“You’re never satisfied.” Sara shook her head at her friend.

Diane put her hand over Sara’s. “We’ve been best friends all our lives. In case you’ve forgotten, I love you, pal o’ mine.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Sara returned and squeezed Diane’s hand. “I admit, sometimes it’s hard. And not just for the big events like holidays. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a thought or maybe I heard something funny and wanted to call Dad to tell him about it. Sometimes I get as far as picking up the phone before I remember.”

She stopped to take a few deep breaths. “The worst time was when Jack and Daniel were missing. I was doing my damndest to be calm and in control and reassure Charlie but inside I was terrified and all I wanted to do was call Dad.”

“I wish you had called me more than those couple of times,” Diane said, and Sara saw regret in her best friend’s eyes.

“Oh, hon, it had nothing to do with you. It was me. It’s just, almost every night I’d lie awake in bed staring at the ceiling and wishing,” Sara’s smile was painful, “wishing Dad was there. Not to make things all better or listen to me complain or anything like that. I just wanted him here to hug me.”

Sara was surprised when her voice broke and her oldest friend threw her arms around her.

“Sari, Sari,” whispered Diane, using Sara’s childhood nickname. “Would you let him hug you through me?”

The embrace was fierce, all-encompassing, and Sara sank into it. She could feel the tears sliding down her face but didn’t care. This was Diane and Diane was safety.

“I still miss him,” she choked, “so much.”

“I know,” Diane murmured.

That was it. There were no useless platitudes or trite clichés. Diane had been where Sara was now. She understood words were meaningless. Instead she held on and grieved silently with Sara.

Time passed unnoticed before Sara drew back and wiped her eyes. Diane did the same and they laughed, a bit shakily, at each other.

“Where’s the damn kleenex when you need it?" Diane demanded.

“In the bathroom,” Sara managed, half-choking on her laughter.

“Naturally.” Diane pulled the sleeve of her sweater down and used it to wipe her face, which made Sara laugh harder.

“So much for my hostess skills!”

“Forget your hostess skills,” Diane said. “I’m no guest, I’m family.”

“Damn straight!”

Eventually they calmed down. “You always were the best listener.” Sara squeezed her friend's hand.

Diane’s smile echoed Sara’s. “That’s because I know it’s not about hearing with these,” she said, touching an ear, “but hearing with this.” She pressed her hand over her heart.

“As I said,” Sara repeated, “you always were the best listener.”

They hugged one more time before Sara moved to steer the conversation Diane's way. “Now I want to hear all about life in Phoenix,” she demanded with a chuckle.

Before they finished catching up, Sara saw a flash of headlights against the curtains on the front window as a vehicle pulled into their driveway.

“Oops, the guys are back.” She leveled a finger at her friend. “Don’t forget where you stopped because this is definitely to be continued. When she stood up she added, “I still have some things to do to get ready for tomorrow. Why don’t you – ”

“I’ll help.” Diane jumped to her feet.

Sara knew better than to turn down the offer. “Great. But first I think we need to get some dessert ready for three guys who are about to come storming through the front door.”

Diane laughed. “Quick! To the bat cave – err, I mean... to the ice cream!”

Sara laughed as she followed Diane into the kitchen. She could only hope the rest of the holiday season would sail along as smoothly as tonight.

Jack had done good.

~~~

"I'll get it!"

At Charlie's yell, Jack hurried down the stairs in time to see his son make a dash for the front door with Daniel hot on his heels. Diane was already here so it had to be Lou or Charlie K and both boys were excited at the prospect of greeting either one.

When Charlie opened the door Kawalsky's voice boomed through the house. "Hey, guys!"

Big Charlie lifted little Charlie up off the ground in a bear hug like he did every year he was in town. It saddened Jack to realize this might be the last year Kawalsky would be able to get away with that big old hug. A look of delight crossed Daniel's face when the Major didn't hesitate to pick him up as well. Jack stood a safe distance behind the boys and waggled his fingers at his best bud.

“Glad you made it,” he greeted.

Instead of returning the wave, Kawalsky raised his gift in the air and Jack stepped forward to retrieve the bottle of booze his friend was holding. He gave a low whistle as he pulled the whiskey out of the bag.

"Bushmills. What do you know, you finally sprung for the good stuff.”

"Don't get used to it," Kawalsky cracked as he rubbed his hands together to warm them and then pulled off his coat.

"I’ll take it," young Charlie offered as per Sara's instructions. Not that the boy needed instructions, he'd been taking guest's coats since he was seven or eight years old. "But..." he made a show of pointing at Daniel, "you get the next one."

"I will," Daniel agreed.

"Something smells good." Charlie K dramatically sniffed the air and patted his stomach then let out a satisfied sigh as he surrendered his coat. “Thanks, Big O.”

Charlie gave the man a broad grin and disappeared to hang the jacket up in the back closet.

"It's turkey!" Daniel supplied, sniffing the air in imitation of the Major. "And apple pie and pumpkin pie. I forgot what else we're having." His nose wrinkled in thought. "I could check with Sara."

"You don't have to check," Kawalsky laughed. "It's Thanksgiving, Daniel. Up until a few years ago, I came over for the O’Neill Thanksgiving dinner practically every year. At least whenever the Colonel and I were stationed together. Let’s see.”

He stuck a finger in the air and narrowed his eyes in thought. “Providing Sara hasn’t changed the menu, we're having turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, sweet potato pie, green beans, home-made biscuits and probably one new dish she'll try out that won't make it back on the menu next year. And for dessert, apple pie, pumpkin pie, and...” He opened his eyes. “Ferretti's coming over, right?”

“Yep,” Daniel nodded.

“Then Sara will probably have pecan pie for Lou. Ferretti loves your Mom's..." he stopped himself too late.

Jack checked the boy's reaction to the Major's slip-up but Daniel's smile remained firmly in place, just like it had yesterday.

Kawalsky winked and corrected himself. "Ferretti loves Sara's pecan pie. No matter how much he eats for dinner he'll still stuff in at least two or three pieces for dessert. Mark my words."

Daniel giggled at that.

"What do you want to drink?" Jack ran down the extensive list of holiday options and
Kawalsky interrupted him halfway through.

"I'll just have a beer for now. Let me say hi to Sara." He took a few steps toward the kitchen and poked his head inside.

"This is the room where all the magic happens," he declared. "Hey, Sara!"

"Hi, Charlie." Sara wiped her hands on a dish towel and came over to give him a hug. When they broke apart she made introductions. "This is my friend, Diane Haley, she's joining us for dinner this year. Diane, this is Charlie Kawalsky, he works with Jack."

Though he was standing several feet away, Jack observed Kawalsky’s start of surprise and chuckled. The man must not have seen Diane crouched down in front of the fridge, rummaging around inside. So much for Special Ops skills.

"Nice to meet you, ma'am," Kawalsky nodded politely and Jack’s grin widened. A true officer and a gentleman, at least around women and children. His old friend was so predictable.

When Kawalsky came back into the living room he took the offered beer and sat down on the sofa beside Daniel. It did Jack's heart good to see his newest son so comfortable. The boy's relationship with Kawalsky and Ferretti was one of the few positives to come out of their Abydos adventure.

Jack couldn't help feeling a little maudlin. He'd been out of sorts since waking up this morning. Except occasionally with his family, he wasn’t one for being sentimental. But this Thanksgiving their traditional holiday get-together felt different.

It would be easy to attribute it to the fact it was Daniel's first Thanksgiving with them but it was more than that. His sons, his friends, this year Jack had come within a hair's breadth of losing all four of them. It was the season to count your blessings and be grateful, but a mere thank-you didn't seem to cut it this year.

Watching Charlie K interact with Daniel reminded Jack how they'd all been to hell and back this past year. He walked up behind the sofa and squeezed Kawalsky's shoulder. It would have been a devastating blow to lose his best friend to a snake, especially in light of what the future held. Instead of looking confused, the big man winked up at him. Maybe he was feeling thankful, too.

"Dad!" Charlie's yell broke up his thoughts. His son had been gone an awfully long time to hang up a coat.

"Yeah?" Jack answered as the kid emerged from the back hallway.

"The football's soft." Charlie held up the ball. "It needs air for later and I can't get the pump to work."

"All right. I'll be right back, guys," Jack said before following his son out to the garage.

"So how are you doing, Daniel?" Kawalsky took a sip of beer and jiggled the boy's knee.

"I'm fine."

"How are things in the world of linguistics?” Kawalsky lowered his voice and practically whispered the question in Daniel's ear.

"Oh, good!" Daniel's eyes lit up with enthusiasm. He followed the Major's lead and answered in a hushed tone. “Dr. Kerrigan and I are putting together a folder of essential information for all team members. You'll get one as soon as it's finished. If you have any trouble with it I can help you," he offered.

"Hm, I'll bet." Kawalsky nodded agreeably and took another slug of beer. After a comfortable minute of silence the big man leaned forward. "Is that a car I hear?"

Daniel strolled over to the front window to check it out. "Yep, it's Captain Ferretti and..."

"And what?" the Major asked.

"And he brought a woman with him," Daniel answered, staring in interest. "She's very pretty."

Kawalsky was off the couch like a shot. He stood beside the boy to peek out the window. "You’re right, she is pretty. Major-league pretty. Who the heck is she? He didn't mention he was bringing a date. Did you know he was bringing a date?"

"Nope," Daniel shrugged.

"The football's all set to go," Jack announced as he entered the room with the ball tucked under his arm and Charlie trailing behind him.

"Jack, you better come over here and see this." Kawalsky pulled back the sheers to get a better look.

"See what?"

"Captain Ferretti," Daniel replied, still standing beside Kawalsky and staring out the window.

"It's Ferretti," Kawalsky confirmed. "And he brought a date. Whoa, she's some looker, too."

"Let me see." Charlie flew over to the window and muscled his way past Daniel.

"Move over, son." Jack elbowed Charlie to one side to get a better look and let out a long, low whistle. "Who the hell is that?"

"I don't have a clue," Kawalsky muttered.

"They're getting something out of the backseat," Charlie observed.

"It's a present," Daniel stated the obvious.

"Get away from that window!" Sara swept into the room. "Right now, before they see you."

She shooed them away and pulled the sheers closed. Then she went to the door while the four guys stood gawking behind her.

"What's the matter with you, Jack?" she asked as she passed.

"Me, why me? I just came in from the garage, for crying out loud." He held up the football as evidence. She shot him a look that left no room for arguing.

Ever the hostess, Sara plastered on a smile and opened the door before the bell rang. "Come on in, it's too cold to stand out there."

Once inside Ferretti flashed them a roguish grin. "Hi, all. This is Allison," he said, as they pulled off coats, hats and gloves. "Allison, these are my friends, the O’Neills. This is Sara, Jack, also known as Colonel O’Neill so watch out for him, Charlie, Daniel and he –” Lou added, jabbing a thumb in Kawalsky’s direction, “he's Charlie, too. Last name of Kawalsky. Better known as Charlie K in this crowd."

To Jack's astonishment, Ferretti was actually beaming.

"It's nice to meet all of you," Allison said. "Lou's told me so much about you that I feel like we've already met.”

"Odd, he hasn't mentioned anything about you." The words were barely out of Jack's mouth before Sara jabbed him in the ribs.

Allison whatever-her-last-name-was was flat-out beautiful, with soft brown hair that fell smoothly to her shoulders and warm hazel eyes. Now that she was out of her heavy coat they could see she was slender and tall, about Ferretti’s height.

Jack knew he was staring but he couldn’t help it. Where in the name of all that was holy had Lou Ferretti run into a class act like this one?

"We're so glad you could come." Sara gave Ferretti's mystery woman a welcoming hug.

"Can I take your coat, Allison?" Charlie was right there at her side looking like – Jack wanted to shake his head. No, it couldn’t be.

"Sure, that'd be great. Here you go. Thank you, Charlie."

"You're welcome," Charlie blushed.

"I thought I was supposed to..." Daniel's voice trailed off when Charlie stared him down.

"You get Captain Ferretti's," the older boy ordered.

As Ferretti handed his coat over to Daniel, Allison spoke. "I have something for you, Sara." She produced the small, wrapped gift box they had seen her remove from the backseat.

"Thank you, Allison. Should I open it now?" Sara turned the box over a few times to admire the beautiful silver-blue, metallic wrapping paper.

"Sure," Allison agreed.

The boys returned from their task and Sara called to Diane as they made themselves comfortable in the living room. "Lou, Allison, this is my friend, Diane Haley. She's spending Thanksgiving with us this year."

After they exchanged pleasantries Sara carefully opened the box to reveal a delicate, hand-painted ceramic hummingbird.

"It's a Christmas ornament." She held it up and the women ooh'd and aah'd over it. "Isn't it beautiful, Jack?"

"Lovely." Jack couldn’t resist a little sarcasm but he tamped it down in deference to their guest.

"And half the proceeds go to a wildlife foundation," Daniel announced happily after reading the small card that had also been in the box.

"Nice, but where's the booze?" Kawalsky grumbled. Sara shot him a look and he coughed and glanced away.

"It's wonderful to receive such a thoughtful gift," she said warmly, ignoring Charlie K's remark. "Thank you."

To Jack’s shock, his son added, "It's beautiful, Allison."

Jack exchanged a glance with his wife. She looked as surprised as he felt but they managed to refrain from laughing at the boy’s obvious infatuation. Jack realized his earlier suspicion had been correct. First Daniel and now Charlie had discovered girls. The future suddenly looked scarier than it had ten minutes earlier.

“We better get back at it if we're going to get dinner on the table by two o'clock," Sara announced as she and Diane made a beeline for the kitchen.

At the mention of dinner, Ferretti sniffed the air in appreciation. "It's always delicious," he informed his date.

"I can help," Allison offered, heading off to follow the other two women. Halfway to the kitchen she turned back to face the guys who were still sitting among the chairs and sofa.

"Lou, please don't tell me you boys sit around the living room talking football while the women do all the work.”

Ferretti shifted uncomfortably and glanced at Jack and Kawalsky, who both looked away. "Sara doesn't like us in there when she's cooking. Right, Colonel?"

Jack stifled a snort. The Captain was great at thinking on his feet. In this case he was speaking the truth.

"I dressed the turkey and put it in the oven this morning, and I peeled potatoes." Jack had a hard time hiding his smugness.

"Now that's a good man." Allison gave Lou a disparaging look.

Since it was the holidays, Jack decided to be magnanimous and give Ferretti a break. "But Lou's right, Sara doesn't like too many bodies in the kitchen when she's cooking. It drives her crazy."

"Otherwise, Lou and I would be in there working right alongside her," Kawalsky chimed in, his eyes twinkling like he was going to bust a gut.

Allison sniffed. "I'm still going to help. See you later, honey." She waved in Lou's direction.

"See you later, Allison," Charlie said brightly from his position beside his dad.

"Whoa, down boy," Jack chuckled, tousling his son's hair.

"What? I'm just being friendly to our guest." Charlie's eyes shone with sincerity.

"Yeah, you're doing a great job of it, too," Jack smiled.

"Okay, Ferretti, what gives? Spill." As soon as Allison was out of the room Kawalsky pounced.

Lou's face broke out in a wide grin but he stayed quiet. Jack swallowed his own questions knowing Kawalsky was well trained in interrogation methods, though he wasn’t sure how well it would work on one of their own men.

"Come on, Lou." Kawalsky never liked being in the dark and Jack laughed as his old friend behaved true to form. "As your team leader I'm ordering you to give us the dirt on what's going on.”

"Nope,” Lou shook his head, “that doesn't work in a social setting."

Ferretti couldn't seem to get the cheesy grin off his face and Jack decided that grin, more than anything else, was what was driving Kawalsky crazy. Jack knew that look. If he didn't know better he'd say Ferretti was in love. But how? More importantly, when? Lou had never mentioned Allison, he'd just shown up at the door with her. Jack had to admit she was beautiful. And tall. Ferretti was 5'11" and Allison looked close to his height.

"Colonel," Kawalsky pouted. "Make him tell us.”

Jack laughed out loud at Charlie K's antics. "What do you want me to do, threaten him with a court martial?"

"If you have to," Kawalsky confirmed.

Ferretti threw up his hands. "Stop. Just stop. What's the big deal? I'll tell you more later, I promise. Can we talk about something else? The Cowboys are playing the Packers in the afternoon game."

"What's the big deal?" Kawalsky repeated his 2IC’s words, unable to let it go. "I'll tell you what the big deal is... you brought a hummingbird ornament instead of a bottle of booze, for god's sake."

"He has a point there, Lou," Jack said, trying not to laugh at the day’s surprising turn of events.

"At least tell us her last name and where you met," Kawalsky insisted.

"I liked the hummingbird," Charlie chimed in.

"Me, too," Daniel agreed.

"Her name is Allison Cooke and we met in a grocery store. And that's all I'm going to say for now." Ferretti kept his voice down, apparently not wanting Ms. Cooke to know she was the hot topic of conversation.

"You met in a grocery store? Give me a break, Ferretti. We know that's not true." Kawalsky was having none of it. "That only happens in chick flicks."

"It is true and could we please change the subject?" Ferretti gave Jack an imploring look.

"What's a chick flick?" Daniel asked.

"A movie that only girls like," Charlie supplied.

"Enough." Jack's head was spinning from the conversation. "We're going to sit here and watch football for the next," he checked his watch "thirty minutes then we're going to eat a nice Thanksgiving dinner.”

"But," Kawalsky tried to interrupt.

"Ack!" Jack held up his index finger to shush the persistent Major. “It's my house so I get to make the rules. No more Allison Cooke talk, just football talk."

Kawalsky gave a resigned sigh and settled back in his seat as Jack flicked on the television.

"I didn't know there were movies just for girls," Daniel remarked thoughtfully before turning his attention to the action on the screen.

Chapter 14

Forty-five minutes later they were all seated in the dining room. Jack and Charlie had added both leafs to the table and brought extra chairs down from the attic so there was plenty of room for everyone to sit and be comfortable.

After Sara made the gravy, Jack carried the turkey over to the table and plopped it down in front of his plate. The damn thing weighed a ton.

"Wow, that's a big turkey!" Daniel's eyes were huge.

They all chuckled at his enthusiasm.

"Of course it is," Charlie replied. "It's Thanksgiving."

Jack remained standing to do the honors as he carved up one side of the bird while everyone watched, their mouths watering in anticipation. When he was finished with the white meat he cut up some dark meat as well.

"That should hold us for now but holler if you need more. As you can see there's plenty."

After Jack sat down, all eyes were on him, waiting for him to say his customary thanks for good food and good friends. He cleared his throat twice to stall for time. For some reason he couldn’t seem to get it together. What was his problem? The smells wafting up from the dishes were hot and intoxicating and if he didn’t start soon the food would get cold and all Sara's hard work would be ruined.

Pretty much everyone in the room had nearly died or lost someone they loved or had come damn close to losing someone they loved - Jack glanced at Sara - even if they didn't realize how close. He didn’t know Allison's history but she probably had her own heartbreak as well. Life was so fragile and yet they'd made it, Charlie, Daniel, Kawalsky, Ferretti, Jack himself, they were all here, alive and whole, it had to mean something in the grand scheme of things.

What about those who were gone? Mike, his father-in-law, Daniel's parents, and Jack’s teammates from his most recent mission, Brown, Porro, Reilly, Rogalla, and Freeman... how were their families coping during this holiday season? And then there were those who were still lost. Sergeant Tracy Waring and Skaara, their fates were still unknown and Jack hated to think what their families were going through on this day.

All eyes were on him but somehow the silence didn't feel awkward, he was sure they were revisiting their own memories of events from this extraordinary, unforgettable year.

"Do you want me to say grace, Jack?” Sara squeezed his hand.

"No, I'm fine, honey." The touch was all he needed.

He looked around the table at the solemn faces. Daniel appeared on the verge of tears and Jack wondered who he was remembering. Was it Freeman and the other soldiers? Tracy and Skaara? Maybe his mom and dad? It pulled at his heart that one little kid had lost so much.

Jack took a deep breath and bowed his head. "It's been an incredible year for all of us and I'm thankful for each and every one of you gathered around this table.” Now for the hard part.

"Let's take a minute to remember those families whose loved ones are missing on this day. And let's take it upon ourselves to honor their memory with our words and our actions and make sure their sacrifices aren't in vain."

He felt Sara squeeze his hand and finished up with, "And may God be with all of us in this upcoming year. Amen.”

"Amen," Kawalsky and Ferretti answered simultaneously.

Daniel swiped at his eyes. Jack didn't want to say anything to draw attention and embarrass the poor kid. Apparently Sara didn't want to say anything either. Luckily, Charlie saved the day by leaning over and whispering in Daniel's ear. Jack couldn't hear what was said but the words seemed to work magic as the younger boy sat up straighter and smiled at his big brother. For all of Charlie's recklessness issues, Jack was proud of the man his son was growing into.

Okay, Enough of this. It was time for someone to break the solemn mood and Jack was just the man to do it. He passed the platter of turkey meat to his right and began dishing himself up some mashed potatoes.

"Dig in, gang. And thanks to Sara and Diane and Allison for this delicious meal."

That elicited thanks from all the guys around the table, young and old alike.

"I didn't make any of this," Allison clarified. "All the thanks go to Sara and Diane." She clapped her hands lightly in tribute.

"You were a big help in the kitchen," Sara assured her.

"Thank you. I don't mind helping out, I just can't cook worth a darn. I'm more of an eating out, frozen-dinner kind of gal."

"There's some irony, given your last name," Jack quipped.

It did his heart good to watch Allison load her plate with several slices of turkey before helping herself to the dressing and a generous scoop of gravy. He hated when women acted like they couldn’t eat anything. It was nice to see Ferretti's date digging right in.

His comment drew a few chuckles and Jack was happy to get the gathering back in a celebratory mood.

"So, are you expecting Lou to cook for you?" Kawalsky asked, his lips twitching into a smile at the thought.

"We're not home very much so when we're together, we're happy with take-out or going out to dinner," Ferretti answered and Allison nodded her agreement.

Jack noted the Captain's goofy smile every time he looked at or spoke Allison's name. It was definitely love and he couldn’t get over it. He hoped Lou wouldn't end up with a broken heart. He'd never seen his friend this giddy over a woman.

It was true Ferretti wasn't home much and it made Jack wonder if his old friend had thought this relationship through. No one knew better than Jack how hard it was to keep 'the big secret' from the people you cared about. Sara was unique in accepting that what he did for a living was classified and couldn't be discussed, and despite that knowledge even she'd occasionally get testy.

Did Allison really have a clue how long and how often Lou might be 'out of town?' Especially in the months ahead. Hopefully she was the type of woman who could keep herself occupied. If not, sad to say their relationship probably wouldn't last very long.

"So what are your interests, Allison?" Sara asked, and Jack marveled at how his wife's thought processes often mirrored his own.

"I'm a sports reporter for NBC." Allison took a sip of her wine. "What is this?" She held up a forkful of Diane's special cornbread soufflé. "It's incredible! Isn't this delicious?” She nudged Lou in the shoulder.

"Yeah, it's great," he agreed.

For his part Jack tried not to laugh at the stunned expression on the big K's face.

"A sports reporter? Cool," young Charlie exclaimed with enough enthusiasm for all of them. There was no doubt about it. The boy was head over heels, gaga over Ferretti's girlfriend.

"What kind of reporter?" Kawalsky asked. "You mean for local stuff like high school and college games?"

Allison savored another bite of her soufflé before answering. "No, on the national level. I've done on-field reporting for the National Football League and for Major League Baseball. And I get assigned a lot of women's sports, too, which I love."

"Wow, what's your favorite sport to cover?" Charlie eyes were glazing over with more love and admiration than Jack would have thought possible this morning.

"My best assignment ever was a couple of years ago. I was sent to the Olympics in Beijing to cover the women's volleyball tournament because that's my sport."

Charlie's cheeks turned pink when Allison smiled at him before she added, "And I'm going to be in Vancouver for the winter games next year. I'm excited about that, too."

"It must be awesome!" Charlie gushed.

"It's the best job in the world," Allison agreed.

"Why women's volleyball?" Jack asked.

Allison was tall and looked extremely fit and he had a feeling he already knew the answer to his question, but he was sure the answer would push Kawalsky over the edge.

"I played on the silver medal team when I was in my twenties." Allison lowered her voice, probably not wanting to sound like a braggart.

Whoa. Jack had suspected she might have played volleyball but this revelation was a shocker. There was no need for modesty. If he had an Olympic medal he'd brag about it 24/7. Hell, he'd be wearing it around his neck, showing it off at the dinner table right now.

It didn't take Charlie, the sports nut, long to digest this bit of stunning news. "You won a silver medal? In the Olympics?" The kid looked like he was about to explode. "In the real Olympics?"

Allison nodded, then looked around the table and blushed. Jack fought back more laughter at the sight of Kawalsky’s dumbstruck expression.

"That's wonderful," Sara jumped in. "It's nice that since you and Lou have such demanding careers neither of you will be bored when the other one's out of town."

Allison gave Sara a grateful smile. Not wanting the besieged woman to feel self-conscious under the scrutiny of the two Charlie's, Jack directed the conversation elsewhere.

"Daniel, you're awfully quiet over there. Any comments, questions or observations on this lovely Thanksgiving Day?" Daniel could always be counted on for long, drawn-out, unusual commentary.

The boy finished chewing his mouthful of food before answering. "Allison's right. This corn stuff is one of the best things I've ever tasted. Thank you for making it, Ms. Haley." Daniel wore a satisfied smile. "Everything tastes great, Sara.”

He took a sip of water and looked at Jack. "And I'm quiet because I'm busy eating. Thanksgiving has the best food." He scooped up a huge forkful of sweet potato pie and went back to the task at hand.

Who knew a Thanksgiving dinner could shut the kid up?

"You're welcome, Daniel," Diane said.

"I'm glad you like it," Sara chuckled.

“Sara, what about you? I understand you’re a nurse?” Allison took advantage of the break from sports talk to change the focus of the conversation.

“Yes,” Sara smiled, “for a whole lot of years now.”

Diane laughed. “And she has a lot of stories you wouldn’t believe. Come on, Sar, tell us a few.”

“You’ve already heard most of the good ones.”

“Yeah,” Jack put in, “but they’re always worth hearing again.”

There was laughter around the table followed by emphatic encouragement and Sara finally obliged them with a couple of hilarious stories that took them through the rest of dinner.

After everyone had their fill and even Charlie and Daniel pushed their plates away, Sara directed the kids to clear the table and shooed the men into the living room so the women could clean up more efficiently. Jack was grateful. He couldn’t wait to get Ferretti alone. The three men plopped down on the couch and Kawalsky let out a loud belch.

"Always classy," Jack chuckled.

Kawalsky ignored the comment and turned to Ferretti. "Okay, I have a couple questions for you."

"Fire away." Lou sat with one hand behind his head and the other on his belt. Jack had never seen the man so content.

"If Allison works for NBC what's she doing in Colorado Springs? And how did you meet her? And don't give me that grocery store line." Kawalsky growled out the last sentence.

Ferretti chuckled. "She has family here and she's working on a football documentary. They picked an NFL team at random to follow through an entire season and the team chosen was the Denver Broncos, so she's headquartered here until football season ends. And I did meet her in a grocery store. I was in a hurry and accidentally crashed my shopping cart into hers, and by the time we got them untangled and figured out what food belonged to who, we were on a first-name basis. I asked her out to dinner and she said yes.” He gave them a rather smug smile.

“Only you, Lou.” Jack shook his head.

"And what are you going to do when football season ends?” Kawalsky appeared to be giving this some serious thought. “Break up?"

Good question. Jack had been wondering the same thing.

"We'll see." Ferretti didn't seem too concerned. He wiggled his eyebrows and clapped Kawalsky on the back. "I know you're a little bent that I didn't mention her sooner but I really like her and I didn't want to jinx it and bring everything down to crappy, locker room talk. You know what I mean."

The mild concern faded from Kawalsky's expression and his voice turned as warm as his smile.

"Yeah, I do. And I'm not annoyed. I'm just surprised that's all. Hey, man, if you're happy we're happy. Right, Jack?"

Ferretti broke out another huge smile when Jack nodded his agreement.

"I'll be right back, guys." Lou stood up, pointed in the direction of the bathroom and vanished down the hall.

As soon as the man disappeared Kawalsky leaned in and spoke in a hushed tone. "I don't understand it," he moaned. "What'd he do? Find some alien device we didn't know about and conjure up the perfect woman?"

Jack snorted at that. He had to agree the Captain and the sportscaster seemed an unlikely match. Then again, why not? Ferretti was a great guy. Special Ops-trained, maybe a little rough around the edges, but loyal and good-hearted to the core. Allison had been smart enough to see past the tough-soldier exterior and latch on to the man inside.

"He deserves it," Jack said.

Kawalsky nodded in agreement.

"It's tough having a serious relationship in our line of work," Jack continued. "I just hope it lasts, for Lou's sake."

It wasn't long before Ferretti returned, the boys finished clearing the table and the women emerged from the kitchen. The guys were hanging out in the living room watching the football game with the volume turned down low so the women could hear each other talking in the dining room.

The score of the game was lopsided and not very interesting. Charlie was trying to explain to Daniel why the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys always played on Thanksgiving Day. Daniel was giving Charlie trouble by asking a lot of questions. Jack would have jumped in to help but he had no idea how that tradition had started. Kawalsky and Ferretti were quiet on the subject so he assumed they didn't have a clue either. If he sat here much longer he was going to embarrass himself and fall asleep.

"What do you say, guys, are you ready for some football?” Jack stood up patting his full stomach. "I'm in desperate need of some exercise. I don't know if we can play an actual game since there are only five of us but I suppose one of us could play quarterback for both teams."

"Maybe not," Ferretti grinned. "Allison, you want to play some football?"

Allison was sitting at the dining room table, chatting away with Sara and Diane. "I'd love to." She bounced up with more energy than the five guys combined.

"Excellent!"

Charlie sprung to life, pumping his fist in the air and Jack shivered with a clear vision of what the not too distant future held - the boys going to dances, dating, having their hearts broken, and driving cars. The last image made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.

"You, ah... play football, huh?"

Jack sized her up and had to admit Allison looked like she was in great shape. She was probably in her early thirties, at least five years younger than any man in the room. Still, he was the undisputed street football king and she was a mere volleyball player.

Olympic volleyball player. Silver medalist, Olympic volleyball player. Maybe he'd get lucky and they'd end up on the same team.

"Great!" Jack clapped his hands together. "Now for choosing teams..."

"Allison and I will be on the same team." Ferretti jumped in before Jack had a chance to finish his sentence.

"Can I be on your team, Uncle Lou?" Charlie wasted no time jumping on that bandwagon.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't you want to play on your old man's team?" The little traitor.

"Nope, not today, Dad. Besides, it would probably be more even to have the three of us against you, Uncle Charlie and Daniel."

Unfortunately, the kid had a point. That would be the fairest way to divide up the teams.

"Okay, me, Kawalsky and Daniel against the three of you," Jack agreed. "One hand touch, and no roughhousing," he added. This was going be interesting.

"Go get 'em, Allison," Sara cheered as the group stood at the front door pulling on the coats and hats Charlie had retrieved from the back closet.

"Et tu, Sara?" Jack whined. "I'm your husband, for crying out loud.”

"Sorry, Jack, we're rooting for our gender in this one," Diane agreed, adding insult to injury.

"Fine, be that way," he grumbled, feigning insult. "Come on team, look alive."

"Have fun, guys," Sara yelled as she hurried them out and closed the door behind them.

It was cloudy and nippy outside with the temperatures in the mid forties, but no snow or rain so it was perfect for a little post-Thanksgiving dinner street football. They all stretched out a bit then ran some warm-up routes to loosen up and get in a little practice.

Jack tossed the ball around, making sure everyone had a chance to catch at least a few balls before declaring the warm-up over. Daniel dropped the first few thrown his way before making some nice catches. The boy was definitely improving. Allison dropped the first toss, declared she was a bit rusty, and then proceeded to catch everything else thrown her way, even the tough ones.

When they huddled up for the opening play of the official game Daniel commented on Allison's skill level. "Women are really good at football, aren't they, Jack?"

"No, not usually," Jack grumbled.

"Sam's good at football," Daniel astutely pointed out.

"He's got ya there," Kawalsky winked.

"Well, there are exceptions to every rule," Jack admitted, thanking his lucky stars Carter had been too busy to join them. She and Allison would have kicked ass and taken no prisoners.

Once the game was underway Jack made it a point to throw some passes Daniel's way with Kawalsky picking up the slack in between. It took three tries before Daniel caught the ball and held on. He was so thrilled he forgot to run as Charlie ran up and touched him.

"Nice catch." Even though he was on the opposing team Charlie stuck his hand in the air for a high five. "But next time keep running," he advised.

"I will." Daniel laughed and returned to the huddle. "I never thought this game would be so fun, Jack. But it is, it's really, really fun."

"It's always fun when you're winning or making catches," Jack confirmed. "And Charlie's right, next time you catch the ball keep running." He put his hand on Daniel's cap and good-naturedly shook the boy's head.

Daniel nodded as Jack and Kawalsky discussed the next play. This time Jack went out for a pass and Kawalsky found him in the make-believe end zone near a neighbor's driveway, throwing a perfect strike for a touchdown. Jack celebrated with a goofy touchdown dance that made them all laugh.

The game went on with both teams scoring regularly. Jack was determined Daniel would have the fun of scoring, too, so on their next possession, when they were close to the imaginary goal line, he faked to Kawalsky, who was being covered by Ferretti, and instead threw the ball to Daniel who was being covered by Allison. He intentionally didn’t put much on the throw to make it as easy as possible for Daniel to catch. Allison could have stepped in front of Daniel and batted the ball away without much effort but instead she pulled up short and Daniel, after fumbling the ball for a second, pulled it in close to his body, just as Charlie had taught him, and held on.

There was a few seconds of shocked silence until Charlie's voice rang out, "Daniel, you scored a touchdown!”

"Way to go!" Kawalsky ran over and picked Daniel up off the ground in a celebratory embrace. "Let's see what ya got," he said as he set the boy back down on his feet.

They all laughed when Daniel mimicked a silly combination of Jack and Charlie's victory dances. Jack glanced over at Allison who was clapping her hands in genuine delight. That sealed the deal for him. Ferretti had hit the jackpot. Allison Cooke was a kind woman with a big heart.

A few plays later, it was obvious her kindness to Daniel didn't extend to him when he was guarding her around midfield. Ferretti went back to pass, faked to Allison and then threw to Charlie. Except he didn't throw to Charlie, he made such a great fake to Charlie that Jack took a few steps in and that's all Allison needed to get behind him and run like the wind deep down the street. Jack tried to get back in time but it was too late. Ferretti's pass was a little long but Allison made an adjustment and stretched out to make a spectacular catch for the best play of the afternoon.

One look at his men and Jack knew he'd never hear the end of this one. Allison did an impressive river dance-type touchdown celebration and even Kawalsky and Daniel were high-fiving her. Jack jogged down the street to offer his congratulations. What was the old saying? If you can't beat ’em, join ’em.

"I'll cover her next time, Jack," Charlie K said when they eventually huddled up. "You can take Charlie."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Don't start with me, Kawalsky," Jack feigned annoyance and gave Daniel a wink. "We need to tie this game up before it gets dark.”

Jack mapped out their strategy for the next series of downs by throwing the ball mainly to Kawalsky but mixing in a few short passes to Daniel when necessary. Charlie and Allison were alternating between rushing him and guarding Daniel while Ferretti concentrated on covering Kawalsky. They were making steady progress down the street and Jack was confident they could end the game in a tie.

When he looked up from the huddle, he saw Sara watching them out the front window. He had no idea how long she'd been standing there but he hoped she saw Daniel score his touchdown rather than Allison getting past him and burning him deep. He gave her a little wave and she waved back.

"Okay, guys, let's do this. Both of you go to the end zone, Kawalsky fake left and go right. Daniel go left. Both of you keep moving and try to get open. I'll hit one of you."

"I have a move that works on Ferretti every time. I've been saving it," Kawalsky grinned. "I'll be open inside near the right curb. You just make sure you get the ball to me.”

"No problem. Here we go."

Jack clapped his hands twice and Kawalsky hiked the ball to get the play underway. Jack went back to pass. Allison was on the line and counting to five before she could rush him. They were close enough to the end zone that he should have no trouble getting the pass off without even having to dodge her. Jack looked over to Daniel who was well guarded by Charlie before looking for Kawalsky on the right side near the curb.

He couldn’t help smiling when, true to his word, Kawalsky faked Ferretti out of his shoes and got at least three steps on him. It was like taking candy from a baby. Jack let loose the pass, but instead of the ball sailing into Kawalsky's waiting hands it was knocked off course by a leaping Allison. Damn, that woman could jump! Before he had a chance to recover, she had caught the wobbly ball and was flying down the street in the other direction.

Jack started to give chase but slowed almost immediately. With that much of a lead it would be pointless. Lou and little Charlie were already running down the street to celebrate with Allison.

"Wow, she runs really fast," Daniel observed.

"What the hell happened?" Kawalsky jogged over to commiserate.

"That woman jumps like Michael Jordan in his prime," Jack tried to explain.

"All you had to do was lay the ball in there," Kawalsky moaned.

"She's a volleyball player," Jack offered in his defense.

"You know we're never going to live this down. Ferretti will never let me hear the end of it," Kawalsky continued.

"Ex-Olympian," Jack mumbled.

"I had him beat, I was wide open," Kawalsky complained.

"Silver medalist," Jack muttered as the three of them marched down the street to congratulate the winners.

~~~

"You should have seen the look on your face, Jack," Lou laughed. "When Allison jumped up and knocked the ball out of mid-air and then hightailed down the street for the touchdown."

Ferretti was as animated as they'd ever seen him. Even Allison poking him in the ribs couldn't stop him from describing the play for what seemed like the hundredth time.

Jack smirked Ferretti's way before addressing Sara. "This pie is delicious, honey." He held up a forkful of pumpkin. "What's that white stuff in there?"

"Diane made it," Sara answered, deferring to her friend.

"It's a cream cheese mix." Diane knew better than to go into detail with Jack.

"Isn't this good pie, guys?" Jack asked again, hoping to steer the conversation away from rehashing the football game for the tenth time.

To his shock, Kawalsky lifted his fork and checked out the thin layer of white. "Is that what makes it taste so good? It's great stuff."

"Thank you." Even though she didn’t know the good Major, Diane looked almost as shocked as Jack felt.

Before he had time to think about the implications, Ferretti cleared his throat.
“Excuse me but could I have everyone’s attention?”

This was going too far. Jack could take a joke as well as the next guy but how many times did they have to relive that same stupid play? If it wasn't Thanksgiving he'd tell the Captain to knock it off.

"Allison and I have an announcement," Ferretti said.

Uh-oh, that sounded serious. Jack sat up a little straighter and forgot all about the afternoon's humiliating defeat.

"Last night I asked Allison to marry me and she said yes."

Allison pulled a ring out of her pocket and blushed as she slipped it in on her finger. "Lou insisted we surprise you guys."

What did she just say? Ferretti was getting married? The information didn't compute. Jack sat there with his mouth opened and his forkful of pie hanging in mid air.

He heard someone else’s fork clatter against a plate and saw Kawalsky was also frozen in his seat. Jack was relieved he wasn’t the only one having a hard time coming to grips with Ferretti’s announcement.

"That's wonderful!" Sara jumped out of her chair and went around the table to give Allison a hug. "Welcome to the family," she whispered as Allison thanked her. When Sara was finished she hugged Lou, too.

To Jack's amazement, Charlie followed his mother's lead and raced over to give Allison a welcoming hug. It was no surprise when the kid stopped short of hugging Lou, opting instead to shake the Captain's hand.

"Give me a minute." Finally, Jack could talk again.

He had sufficiently recovered to smile at the two lovebirds before he left the room. A minute later he returned, holding up the bottle of champagne he'd been saving to share with Sara. What the hell, this was a special occasion and he could always pick up another bottle. When Sara recognized his intention she went into the kitchen to bring out the crystal champagne flutes.

Jack popped the cork and the bubbly foamed over the top just like it did in the movies. He filled all the glasses except for the boys, Sara had already filled theirs with water, and raised his glass to make a toast to the newly engaged couple.

"To Lou and Allison, let me see if I remember this correctly." Jack paused to give his wife a searching look. "This is an old Irish toast that Mike, Sara's dad, made on our wedding day and it's brought us good luck through the years."

They all raised their glasses. "Here goes,” he continued. “May you be poor in misfortune, rich in blessings, slow to make enemies and quick to make friends. And may you know nothing but happiness from this day forward."

"Here, here," Kawalsky cheered as they all drank.

Jack glanced at Sara over his glass and despite her overly-bright eyes her smile told him he'd said the right thing.

After the toast he went over and hugged Allison and loudly offered her some advice. "Keep him in line and if he gives you any trouble call me. I'll order him to do whatever you need." She chuckled and thanked him.

When Jack moved on to Ferretti, the man stood up to shake hands. After Jack whispered, "Congratulations," the handshake turned into a hug.

Jack suddenly felt overwhelmed by the memories of Ferretti on Abydos, broken and bleeding, battling for his life yet still having the foresight to check the DHD for the coordinates of where the snakeheads had taken Daniel and Skaara. And then having the stamina to stay conscious long enough to relay that information. The whole horrific experience had been a test of courage Jack would always marvel at and admire.

Looking at him now, it was clear Lou had never been happier and the fact that he almost hadn't lived to see this day was difficult for Jack to deal with. The rest of them might not understand but Ferretti did. When they broke apart Lou looked as emotional as Jack felt. Sitting at the end of the sofa, Kawalsky winked at them both.

When Daniel approached to offer his congratulations, he hugged Ferretti hard and whispered something in the man's ear. Whatever it was, it brought a tear to the tough soldier’s eye and Jack had no doubt they were all thinking the same thing – about how lucky they were to be here today, eating Thanksgiving dinner, playing football and sharing in Ferretti's amazing news.

There were more toasts and more laughter until the party finally broke up. Everyone offered their congratulations one more time before saying their goodbyes.

After the last guest left Jack gave the boys the option of doing something quietly upstairs or helping with the last of the clean-up, so they both disappeared in a hurry. He ran upstairs behind them to change his clothes. A pair of sweats and a tee shirt would be more comfortable for helping shine up the kitchen.

Back downstairs, Jack found Sara unloading the clean dishes to make room for the last load of dirty ones.

"Let me get that," he intervened. "You must be exhausted.”

"I'm a little tired," she conceded.

Instead of sitting down to rest she grabbed some cleaning spray and began wiping down the counters. There was no point in telling her to take a break. He knew his wife and she wasn't going to stop until the kitchen was back to its usual pristine condition. He understood because he was the same way. They'd be done soon enough.

What Jack really wanted was to get Sara's take on the day's events. "I can't believe Ferretti just showed up at the door with a fiancé, can you?"

While he talked, he removed the clean plates and stacked them on the counter before transferring the entire pile into the cupboard.

"You'd think he would have at least called. Don't you usually get a head count for Thanksgiving dinner?”

"Jack – "

"Seriously, we usually know how many people are coming, don't we? I know we have plenty of food and if someone shows up at the last minute it's no big deal but he must have known ahead of time."

"Jack," Sara said again but he was on a roll.

"I know," he repeated, waving his hand. "It's no big deal." He finished putting away the glasses and moved on to the silverware.

"He did." Sara stopped wiping and turned around to face him.

"What? Who?"

"Lou. He did call."

Jack closed the silverware drawer and stared at her in confusion. Sara leaned in and kissed him.

"He did?" It took a few seconds to register after the diversionary kiss. "I can't believe you didn't tell me that.” It was hard to muster up any real annoyance in light of the closeness and the kiss.

"He asked me not to say anything.” She chuckled, not looking the least bit sorry. "He wanted to surprise you and Charlie K.”

"Well, he certainly succeeded in that."

"Did you like her?" Sara was face to face with him in front of the sink.

"Did you?" He did like Allison and he thought Sara did too but he figured it was best to ask.

"I did. And Lou is definitely head over heels in love with her." Sara smiled and turned back to the sink to grab the remaining dirty glasses and plates to put into the now empty dishwasher.

"Oh, yeah," Jack agreed, "there's no doubt about that. And she let Daniel score a touchdown and she was happy for him. I knew I liked her right then and there."

"I saw that!" Sara had her back to him now as she finished loading. "I thought she let him score that touchdown, too. Now I like her even more."

When Sara stood up to grab the last few glasses Jack wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and kissed the back of her neck. "Today was fun," he whispered.

"Yes, it was," she agreed.

"So you saw Daniel playing football?" Aside from Ferretti's announcement it had been his favorite part of the day.

"He looked so happy," Sara nodded. "Do you think he was as happy as he looked?”

Even with her back to him Jack could tell she was worrying her bottom lip hoping for the right answer. He was pleased he could give it to her.

"Daniel had a blast. I think it's the first time I've seen him so at ease. After the first few minutes he really let his guard down. I don't think he even remembered to be self-conscious.”

Sara turned around and kissed him full on the lips. He was just about to return the kiss when a thought stopped him cold.

"Where's Diane?"

He'd run upstairs after the boys, passed through the living room and now stood in the kitchen. There had been no sign of her. The only place he hadn't been was the garage and he doubted she was out there. Maybe the woman went to bed before nine o'clock, though that didn’t fit the Diane he remembered.

"She went out for coffee with Charlie," Sara answered still waiting for her return kiss.

It took Jack a few seconds to find his voice. "My Charlie?" he croaked out.

"No, of course not, our Charlie's upstairs." Sara's brow wrinkled in confusion. "Charlie K."

"Yeah, Kawalsky." Jack tried to wrap his mind around it while she released him and took a step back.

"You call Charlie K 'your' Charlie?" Sara gave him a strange look.

"No. I just... you know what I mean. I was just surprised that's all.” Jack knew he needed to shut up before he dug himself in deeper but he couldn’t resist one more question. "Are they, ah, interested in each other?"

The expression on Sara's face let him know that was perhaps the dumbest question he'd ever asked.

"Don't be ridiculous, Jack. They went out for a cup of coffee.” She closed up the dishwasher and turned back to the sink to finish shining it up.

Ridiculous? Lou Ferretti was marrying a cross between Miss America and Wonder Woman and now Kawalsky was out having coffee with Sara's best friend.

Giving up, Jack tied the garbage bags to take them out to the garage. This was a Thanksgiving he wouldn't soon forget.

Chapter 15

A couple of days later Jack was back at the SGC for another round of meetings, this time with the Pentagon pencil pushers who needed to be brought up to speed on the program's progress. Hammond had insisted he participate since he was part of the administration or, as Jack preferred to call it, the adminis-trivia.

It was all he could do to sit still and keep his tongue in check as the meeting droned on and on, taking up the entire morning and spilling into the afternoon. When they began covering the same ground and answering the same questions, Hammond took pity on him and dismissed him.

Once he left the conference room it was safe to yawn. As he walked, Jack gratefully stretched out his leg muscles and glanced at his watch. Lunchtime. No wonder his stomach had been growling. He took the elevator down to the 21st level and followed the familiar twisting of corridors until he reached Daniel’s office. Jack shoved the door open without knocking.

“Hey, kiddo, you ready for – ”

Daniel whirled around so fast he accidentally knocked a load of books to the floor. Jack stared in surprise, which quickly turned to concern at the sight of the small, pallor-stricken features and fear-filled eyes.

“Sorry,” Jack moved toward the boy. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Instead of answering Daniel dropped to his knees and began picking up the books. Jack knelt beside him and frowned at the sight of the kid’s shaking hands. What the hell?

He caught Daniel’s hands in one of his and gently tugged on them until the boy raised his head.

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing. I knocked the books over.” The blue eyes dropped immediately.

Uh-huh. Daniel didn’t lie often, maybe that's why he wasn’t very good at it. This was another perfect example.

“Let me help.” Jack picked up the rest of the books and stacked them in a neat pile.

They rose together and put them back on the desk. Daniel still refused to meet his eyes.

“Come here.” Jack lightly tugged on the boy’s arm and pulled him over to the couch. “Sit down.”

“I have lots of work to do.” Daniel stared at his feet.

Jack tugged some more until they were sitting side by side. “You can get back to work after we talk and get some lunch,” he promised.

“Talk about what?” Now Daniel was staring at his hands folded in his lap. Jack figured that was some kind of progress.

“Talk about whatever has you so spooked.”

“I’m not spooked.”

“Yeah, well, you’re giving a pretty good impersonation of someone who’s spooked.”

Jack waited several more seconds. Nothing. “Something’s going on. You need to talk to me.”

Still nothing. He considered his next words. “I thought you trusted me.”

Daniel’s head shot up. “I do! I trust you Jack, more than anyone.”

“Then why won’t you talk to me?”

The blonde head began to drop again but this time Jack slipped a finger under the boy’s chin to stop him.

“Daniel?” he questioned.

There was a long, strained silence but Jack was determined to wait out his stubborn kid. Finally, Daniel muttered something though his eyes still refused to meet Jack’s.

“Sorry, buddy. I didn’t catch that.”

More silence, more waiting, then he heard another mutter, slightly louder this time. Jack’s eyebrows rose.

“Teal’c was here?” He repeated what he thought he heard.

Daniel nodded his head.

“Why?”

Another mutter. Jack stifled his impatience. “To help you translate?” he questioned. It was the only thing that made sense.

“Uh-huh.”

They were making progress. He actually heard the words this time. “That’s good, isn’t it? You said you were having problems with the writing on the rock.”

“Artifact.” The correction was automatic and Jack stifled a grin.

“Whatever. So Teal’c came by to see if he could help out?”

Back to body language as the blonde head silently bobbed.

Jack rubbed his chin over this bit of intel. Teal’c had come to help on a translation. Daniel was inexplicably frightened. His eyes narrowed.

“Did whatever you translate scare you?” Damn, if that’s what happened, Jack wished Teal’c would have tracked him down. He didn’t want the boy translating anything potentially scary. Unfortunately, Daniel knew this language better than anyone and the linguists didn’t always know what they were exposing the eleven-year-old to.

"I don't know," Daniel shrugged. "I didn't translate it"

Okay. So it wasn’t the writing that scared the kid. “Did Teal’c say or do something that scared you?” It didn't seem likely but he had to ask.

If that had happened, it must have been an accident. Jack was willing to bet his life the Jaffa was on their side, but Daniel was a kid and Teal’c was a scary-looking dude. And an alien, couldn’t forget that part.

“Daniel,” Jack said in his ‘Colonel’ voice. “Look at me.”

The kid raised his head in obvious reluctance. “No.”

Jack blinked. No? Daniel was looking at him so he wasn’t being defiant.

“You mean, no, Teal’c didn’t say or do anything to frighten you?”

“Yes.”

Crap. “Yes, he didn’t say or do anything to frighten you?”

Daniel nodded. Success! Jack’s brief feeling of accomplishment faded. So what the hell was going on? Good question to ask the kid.

“So what’s going on? Why are you...” Jack hesitated. Daniel hadn’t liked the ‘spooked’ question. Maybe if he phrased it differently. “Why did you look so concerned when I came in?”

Back to silence. Enough of this. “No more nodding and shaking your head, buddy. What’s going on? If you can’t tell me, then maybe we need to re-think you coming to the Mountain. I don’t want you getting upset every time you come here.”

“But I want to be here!”

“Then talk to me. What’s going on?”

“Teal’c.”

“What about Teal’c?” This wasn’t making sense. Daniel had just said the Jaffa hadn’t said or done anything to upset him.

“Before he came here... he was bad.”

Jack felt sucker-punched, both by the words and the fear he heard in his son’s voice. Shit, how come he hadn’t realized Daniel was afraid of the Jaffa? He took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the boy. Daniel had been in the prison on Chulak so Jack couldn’t lie, even if he wanted to.

“Yeah, Teal’c did bad things in the past.” There was no point in denying that. “But on Chulak he made a different choice. You remember.” There was no immediate answer. “When we were in the prison on Chulak,” Jack prodded.

“He helped us.”

The words were almost inaudible but Jack heard them. “He not only helped us but he saved our lives. Yours, mine, Major Kawalsky’s, and all those other prisoners. If Teal’c hadn’t helped us, we all would have died. And even after we escaped, it was because of Teal’c that we were able to make it back to the Stargate and hold off the enemy until help arrived. You were there so I know you remember all that.”

A slight nod. Good enough. He continued. “Teal’c was the First Prime of Apophis. That means next to Apophis, Teal’c was the most important person on that planet, right?”

Another faint nod and Jack softened his voice. “When Teal’c chose to throw in with us, he turned his back on his entire life, on all the things he believed in. He gave up everything to save us. And now here he is on another planet and we’re aliens to him. He’s trying to create a whole new life for himself here, and he’s also helping us fight the Goa’uld. Does that sound like he’s still bad?”

Daniel bit his lip. “No. But...”

“But what? Talk to me, kiddo.”

"What if Teal'c turns bad again?” Genuine fear glistened in Daniel's eyes.

Crap. Hadn’t the boy heard anything he'd just said? Maybe Jack needed to repeat a couple of the critical points.

"If it wasn’t for Teal'c we wouldn't be here." He had to help Daniel break through his fear. Teal'c was invaluable not only to the Linguistics Department but to the SGC. Hell, to the whole damn world.

Even though Daniel nodded his agreement his eyes told a different story. Jack tried another tactic.

"Teal'c may not only be critical in fighting Apophis but also in helping us get Sergeant Waring and Skaara back. He knows an awful lot about the Goa'uld and the Jaffa. It would take years for us to gather all this intel on our own."

"Maybe he shouldn't have taken us in the first place," Daniel whispered.

"What do you mean?" Jack frowned.

"If he wouldn't have kidnapped us then you wouldn't have to get Skaara back. He wouldn't be gone. He'd still be on Abydos with Kasuf and Sha're."

Jack stared at his kid. Daniel couldn’t mean what it sounded like. "Are you saying Teal'c is the one who grabbed Skaara?"

"Yep, me and Skaara." Daniel moved closer and nuzzled into Jack's chest.

"Teal'c is the one who kidnapped you?" Jack’s shock gave way to astonishment. How come he hadn’t known this? All this time and Teal'c hadn't bothered to mention it? And why hadn’t his son said anything before now?

Daniel nodded into his chest. No wonder the poor kid felt sick every time Teal'c tried to assist in the lab. Jack wrapped his arms around his boy and hugged him tightly. Here he'd been unwittingly forcing Daniel to face his worst nightmare, alone.

He wondered if his son could feel the pounding of his heart as understanding dawned and his rage grew, the fury of it threatening to overwhelm him.

He suddenly recognized where Kawalsky and Ferretti were coming from. Maybe they were right. Maybe having a Jaffa on the base and on his team was insanity.

With Daniel still clinging to him he reached out a long arm for the telephone and paged Kawalsky to this office ASAP. Only the feel of his son’s arms around his waist kept Jack from exploding. He didn’t want to say or do anything to make the kid feel worse.

Despite his shock, questions kept nagging at him, the main one being – Why hadn’t Teal’c said anything? The Jaffa had been with Apophis when they came through the Abydos gate, had been part of the enemy hostiles who engaged in a firefight with Ferretti and Freeman – shit! Teal’c might have killed one of his men. And then he’d been part of the kidnapping of Daniel and Skaara –

Skaara, that bright-eyed, inquisitive kid with the irrepressible grin was lost to his family, maybe forever. And Daniel had come so close, dear God, so close to the same fate.

Jack fought back his fury. He was itching to confront Teal'c' but he didn't want to leave Daniel alone. It wasn't necessary to get Kawalsky down here, Daniel was perfectly safe in his office, but he wanted his son with someone the boy trusted and aside from himself, there was no one on the base Daniel trusted more than the Major.

Kawalsky appeared inside of three minutes. "What's up, Colonel?"

He stood in the doorway in sweats with a towel wrapped around his neck. The soldier’s features went from light to serious in less than a second so Jack assumed his ability to hide his rage was lacking when it came to Daniel.

"Stay with Daniel. There's something I need to do." He gave the kid a last squeeze and stood up. “I’ll be back in awhile, kiddo.”

Daniel nodded and Jack smiled at him before heading for the door. When he brushed by the other man, Kawalsky grabbed his arm.

"What’s wrong?" he asked.

Charlie Kawalsky didn't like being in the dark. Too bad, this was something Jack needed to do alone.

"Stay with him."

Jack pulled away from his friend's grasp and headed out the door to confront Daniel's worst nightmare. Teal'c was his own worst nightmare, too, he just hadn’t made the connection.

He stormed through the corridors, barely aware of people scrambling to get out of his way. Why hadn’t Teal’c told him? Jack had trusted the Jaffa. He’d trusted him and, without knowing it, forced Daniel to relive some of the most terrifying moments of his young life over and over again.

A quick elevator ride took him to the right level. He charged into Teal'c's quarters and found the Jaffa watching television. Jack's expression and body language were enough to cause the alien to rise to his feet. If he wanted a fight, Jack was more than happy to oblige him.

"Is there a problem, O'Neill?"

Is there a problem? Eyes blazing, Jack crossed the room in a few long strides, raised his arm and slammed Teal'c up against the wall, his forearm firmly wedged against the Jaffa's throat.

"Yeah, there's a problem. You kidnapped my kid. How's that for a problem?"

"On Chulak?" Teal'c sounded genuinely confused.

“On Abydos!” Jack snarled. “When the hell were you planning on telling me? After my kid was scared to death?"

"Daniel Jackson is your son," Teal'c whispered.

The Jaffa was having difficulty speaking with Jack's forearm rammed into this throat. Too bad, Jack wasn't letting up any time soon and Teal'c didn't appear to have the will to fight back.

"Would he not tell his father the circumstances of his capture?" Despite the constriction to his breathing, Teal’c’s voice remained calm.

His words seemed to echo in Jack’s head. That was probably true of most kids. He could envision Charlie pointing out Teal'c and yelling, 'there's the man who grabbed me.' Not Daniel. Daniel was different. For some reason Daniel had kept that information to himself.

The thought fanned his rage. "You thought he told me?" Jack exerted more pressure and still the Jaffa didn't fight back.

"Yes."

The word was barely audible. Something clicked deep inside and Jack reluctantly eased up.

"Of course you did," he muttered. After one final angry shove to make himself feel better, he released his hold.

"Well, he didn't tell me. He didn't say a word about it until just now." Jack took a step backward in an effort to sort this out. The reality was that nothing had changed. The Teal'c that had kidnapped Daniel was the First Prime of Apophis, not the Teal'c standing before him today. Jack divided Teal'c's life into two categories centered around the great Chulak prison escape. The before, and the after. He expected the Pentagon and the Joint Chiefs and the Generals and the base personnel to do the same. How could they accept Teal'c's past if he himself was having trouble?

"Daniel Jackson is uncomfortable in my presence." Teal’c broke the silence and spoke in his unemotional, matter-of-fact tone.

It all made sense now that Jack had calmed down. Daniel's bouts of headaches or stomachs pains that mysteriously came and went, no doubt coordinated with Teal'c's offers to help out in the lab. The big question was why had Daniel kept the weight of that secret to himself?

Jack decided he needed to have a serious talk with his boy in the very near future. Waiting until the kid was on the verge of a breakdown before confiding his fears didn't sit well. It wasn't going to fly, especially working in a place like the SGC where unusual things were likely to be the norm. Any and all concerns needed to be discussed openly and handled directly in a timely manner.

Thinking about Daniel's avoidance of the problem reminded Jack of another issue that needed to be addressed. The attitude of many of the Airmen, Marines, hell, pretty much all of the personnel at the SGC, toward Teal'c left much to be desired. If he was going to confront Daniel maybe it was time he challenged the rest of the people under his command as well.

Trust was the glue that held teams together in times of crisis and in this endeavor, unwavering faith in each other was essential. You couldn't order people to trust but you could let them air their differences to help the process along.

Jack was second in command of the base and he needed to takes steps to assure that Teal'c became more than a feared curiosity. He'd start with Kawalsky and Ferretti and move on from there.

"Teal'c, I..."

He wasn’t sure what to say. Jack knew in his heart the Jaffa's loyalty was beyond question. The former First Prime had left his way of life behind to work toward the goal of freedom for all Jaffa, and he'd done it in a way that assured he could never go back.

And what about what just happened? Teal'c had allowed himself to be physically attacked when Jack was well aware the alien could easily have broken him in two.

"I understand, O'Neill. Your worry for your son overrides your ability for rational thought."

Although an alien of few words, Jack had noted more than once that Teal'c chose those words carefully and was dead on in his analysis. As C.O. of SG-1, he'd have to remember to listen when Teal'c spoke.

"Yeah."

Jack peered thoughtfully at the Jaffa standing before him. Did Teal'c have a son? He seemed to understand the 'temporary insanity' thing over Daniel's abduction. There was so much he didn't know about his new teammate but this wasn't the time to pry. It was the time to clear up some of the confusion.

"Listen,” Jack said. “I'm going to talk with Daniel and then maybe we can set up a meeting with the three of us. We’ll take it slow. Would you be willing to do that?"

Teal'c hesitated before answering. "Do you think it wise to burden the boy further?"

"You work here. You're part of my team and part of this facility. We all need to work together if we're going to have any hope of defeating the Goa'uld. And that includes Daniel." It pained Jack to say it but it was true.

"As you wish," Teal'c nodded.

"He'll come around," Jack said with more confidence than he felt. "I know him, I know he will."

Not one for small talk, Teal'c nodded again.

"So, what are you watching?" Jack pointed at the small television on the nightstand. More than anything else he wanted to change the subject and finish calming the emotions that had been raging minutes earlier.

"I am endeavoring to learn more of your world by watching this small box that displays samples of your culture." Teal’c turned toward the television. "There is a man of steel who fights evil in one of your cities. He wears a red cape and has the ability to fly. He would be most helpful in our cause. Does this individual exist, O'Neill?"

"No, he doesn't." Jack choked down a laugh. "Trust me, Teal'c, the closest thing we have to Superman around here is you."

~~~

From his position behind the podium, Jack watched the slow influx of SGC personnel filter into the huge room. Practically everyone was here – under orders – except for those manning essential equipment or areas. Even those who weren’t able to attend would be able to hear thanks to the base-wide sound system.

Everyone had one thing in common. They all looked confused as to why they were there. Jack could practically hear the muttered conversations. What’s going on? What's this about? Adding to the confusion was the location. Level 17 was essentially unused – it hadn’t been developed yet. Hammond was still considering the possible uses for the rooms on this level. For the moment it offered the appearance of a ghost town, military style.

For this briefing, hundreds of chairs had been brought into the largest room to create an impromptu assembly hall that was rapidly filling up with personnel, civilian and military alike.

Considering how slowly the military often worked, Jack was pleased at how quickly they'd been able to organize this essential meeting. Only two days had passed since Daniel revealed his fear of Teal'c and his reasons why.

That discovery had forced Jack to face what had been in the back of his thoughts since returning from Chulak. Daniel wasn’t the only one on the base who was afraid of the alien. Hell, Daniel was in the majority.

It had been Jack’s idea to bring Teal’c back to Earth and make him a part of SG-1. He'd been waiting for people to accept the Jaffa but for the most part that hadn’t happened. So it was time to stop waiting and start acting. As C.O. of SG-1 and second in command of the base, it was up to Jack to figure out a way to get the rest of the base to accept Teal'c for who and what he was, not only a valuable member of the SGC but also a critical component in the future safety of the planet.

It had taken a couple of conversations with Hammond to work out the details. Jack hoped his plan would work, for everyone's sake. Earth needed Teal’c. All he had to do was persuade a bunch of hard-headed military types of that fact. No pressure.

He looked out over the sea of bodies assembled in the huge room, satisfied that everyone who needed to be here was here, with the possible exception of the blonde-haired kid in the front row. Yesterday, Jack thought his plan to include Daniel in this mandatory meeting had been nothing short of brilliant; today, he worried it might feel like an ambush to the boy.

Jack wished he had the luxury of discussing the plan with Sara. She'd know what would be best for Daniel. She always knew. Of course, he didn't have that luxury and it was too late now.

For better or for worse the decision had been made and Daniel was here, excited to be included in such an important meeting. At least Jack had the foresight to discuss the briefing ahead of time with Kawalsky and Ferretti and now Daniel was nestled safely between two of his most trusted friends.

His kid was yakking Ferretti's ear off and Jack stifled a chuckle, wondering if Daniel was going over the nuances of demotic writing or the Greek development of ancient Egyptian culture. Whatever the topic, Lou was nodding agreeably, though from this distance Jack couldn’t tell if the Captain's eyes were glazing over.

Daniel caught his eye and stopped chattering long enough to flash a bright smile and give a little wave. Jack answered with a wink and checked his watch. It was 1300 hours, straight up, time to get down to business.

Throughout his career he'd conducted scores, maybe hundreds of meetings and briefings but for some reason this one made his palms sweat. This one was important. Maybe the most important he'd ever given. He needed to get it right.

As he leaned toward the microphone, Jack hit the switch to allow his words to be heard throughout the SGC.

"I know you're all wondering why you've been dragged away from your work," he started, "your incredibly important work, for this mandatory get-together but believe me when I tell you nothing is of greater consequence than the discussion we're about to have here today."

That settled everyone down. All eyes were on him; he had their undivided attention.

"We're going to have an honest, open discussion, followed by a Q & A regarding Earth's newest ally. Teal'c, would you come up here please?"

Jack heard the surprised murmurings that swept through the room and he looked at Daniel. Shock mingled with fear spread across the boy's face and Jack was relieved when Kawalsky patted Daniel's knee and kept his hand resting there.

"It's difficult to accept and understand what's out there and what our role in it is going to be," he continued. "But there's one thing we should all be able to agree on. We're not going to be able to do this alone. We're going to need friends and allies to help. Teal'c is one of those friends."

Teal'c came and stood beside him.

Technically, he was breaking security. Not everyone in the room had clearance. Only a handful of these people really understood the facts of the Stargate, and an even fewer number were allowed to read the mission reports of what had happened when Jack’s team had gone through to Abydos that first time. But he and Hammond had agreed that for this particular occasion, it was essential to be frank. The facts needed to be aired; plus, they'd help cut down on the wild rumors flourishing around the base.

Jack had gone through the Stargate. He had been “out” there. He had lived through Abydos and Chulak and his words, though rooted in the facts, possessed an emotional immediacy that cold reports could never capture.

The silence was almost unnerving while Jack spoke; everyone listened intently. When he came to the end of the story he paused to look across the assembled personnel.

“What I’ve told you is what happened. Without Teal’c’s involvement we never would have escaped from that prison, much less survived to get back to the Stargate. Without Teal’c, we all would have died, the Stargate would have been buried, and there would be no SGC.”

Jack stopped to look around again. He saw interested faces, uncertain faces, fearful faces and some without any emotion at all. For the first time he allowed a little annoyance to escape.

“I hope you’re hearing me, people. If any of you still question Teal’c’s role with the SGC, let me know. Or if you'd rather, you can talk to Major Kawalsky. He was there, too. He saw it all.”

Jack’s gaze stopped on one small figure who was staring up at him with wide blue eyes. He smiled. “And so was Daniel.”

Daniel nodded in agreement. A rumble of amusement swept over the assembly and Jack felt some of his tension ease.

"Now for the fun part." He wasn’t about to waste time. "The floor is open for questions." A few awkward, silent minutes passed and he did nothing to break it. Rumors had been flying around the base for weeks and Jack was determined no one would leave this room until those issues were aired, even if he had to stand up there all day.

After a few more excruciating minutes yielded nothing but dead air, one tentative hand inched its way slowly upward. Jack silently cursed the crowded room of Airmen and Marines, officers and civilians alike for not having the guts to ask the question themselves.

"Yes, Daniel?" Jack stared proudly at his son, hoping his approving gaze was boosting the eleven-year-old's confidence level.

"What if Teal'c turns bad again?" In a trembling voice, Daniel asked the same question he'd asked a couple of days ago.

Everyone clearly heard the question in the quiet room and there were ripples of approval and even a smattering of applause.

Jack swallowed his annoyance at the situation and addressed his boy directly. "That's a very good question, Daniel.” He looked up at the rest of the group and added, "Thank you for having the courage to ask it." A few heads ducked under his gaze and he knew they'd read his meaning loud and clear.

"Let's let Teal'c answer that one himself." It was a legitimate question and Jack had no doubt it was the same question on the mind of every person in attendance.

The military didn't look kindly on traitors. 'Once a traitor, always a traitor' was the age-old maxim. The military and civilian personnel of the SGC needed to understand that in Teal'c's case, that rule didn’t apply. Teal'c hadn't turned against his people, he'd turned against his captors. That was a critical distinction.

"Teal'c, what Daniel is asking," he emphasized Daniel's name as his eyes swept the room, "is that since you changed your mind about fighting with the Goa'uld, what's to stop you from changing your mind again and rejoining the Goa'uld? Is that right, Daniel?"

The boy nodded.

Teal'c took a step forward and stood with his hands clasped behind his back. Despite the stoic demeanor, Jack was confident the alien would be able to get his point across.

"You have my word," Teal'c answered.

That may not cut it, big guy. Jack wasn’t worried, Daniel's question had cut to the heart of the issue and he had no doubt the rest of the group would get to the crux of the problem soon enough. He was right, it didn't take long.

"You turned against your people before, how do we know you won't turn against us? Aside from just your word."

That was Lieutenant Colonel Makepeace, the new C.O. of SG-3. His cold glare said more about his distrust of the alien in their midst than any words could have expressed.

Teal'c raised an eyebrow but his words remained calm. "I have in fact, never turned against my people. I am Jaffa, we have been slaves to the Goa'uld for thousands of your years. I will fight with the Tau'ri to free all Jaffa from their enslavement. If you do not wish me to remain on this world I will leave and continue the fight on my own."

Jack suppressed a grin. That summed it up nicely. As predicted, once the subject was raised it opened up a floodgate of questions and Teal'c patiently answered each and every one. Jack knew the animosity in the room had sufficiently cooled when the questions began focusing more on battle techniques, personal training advice and Jaffa social practices.

When the questions turned toward Jaffa mating habits Jack called an abrupt end to what had turned into a two-hour 'meet your Jaffa' at work' day. He had no doubt Teal'c would share those facts as openly as he had every other question thrown his way and Jack had no desire to live with those visuals whatever they might be. Not to mention Daniel was sitting in the front row listening intently.

Jack was under no illusions that this assembly would solve all their problems overnight. Still, he was satisfied the meeting had served its intended purpose of bringing resentments and fears into the light of day where they tended to have less power and validity.

He had decided to end the meeting with a pep talk of sorts and now he made his case directly to Daniel.

"To say that what we're doing here at the SGC is important minimizes the scope and significance of this program. We are here at this moment in history at a time when the future of the planet has never been in greater peril. It's up to us, people. For whatever reason, we have been entrusted to guard Earth's safety. It's time to put aside past prejudices and old ideas. It's a brand new day. Let's open our minds and live and work accordingly. Dismissed."

The meeting broke up on an upbeat, positive note, though it would take time for the full results to be determined.

While base personnel filed out of the room, Daniel remained in his seat. Jack decided to try and measure the success of the message by discussing it with his son. He walked over and gestured for Teal'c to follow. Daniel's eyes widened as the Jaffa approached but he didn't flinch back. Of course, Jack was right there and Kawalsky and Ferretti still flanked him.

"What did you think?" Jack patted the boy's shoulder.

"It, it was good, Jack." Daniel's slight stutter was understandable with Teal'c within striking distance, only a few feet away.

"Thanks, kiddo. And I want to thank you for asking the first question and getting the ball rolling. That took a lot of guts."

Daniel blushed and beamed up at him all the while keeping an eye on the Jaffa.

"And I was thinking." Jack crouched down to Daniel's level. "What if you and me and Teal'c get together sometime soon so we can get to know each other better? What do you say?"

Daniel was silent for a long minute, his eyes skipping from Jack to Teal’c and back. He licked his lips. "Maybe,” he suggested, “we could have lunch together. All three of us," he quickly added so there'd be no mistake.

"You up for that, Teal'c?" Jack asked.

"I would be pleased to share a meal with you and O'Neill, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c agreed, sealing the deal.

Jack watched with pride when Daniel bit his lower lip, gathered his courage and reached out in friendship.

"Welcome to Earth, Teal'c."

"Thank you, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c bent low and gently shook the offered hand.

Chapter 16

A few days after the big assembly Daniel was back at the SGC. The morning flew by as he tackled several new linguistic puzzles he'd found in his inbox. Two of the most complicated required a trip to the Linguistics Department where he happily engaged in a round-table discussion with Dr. Kerrigan, Dr. Shaw and Dr. Abrams. Ideas and theories were tossed out for consideration, examined, then thrown out or noted for further discussion.

In the midst of the conversation the telephone rang and Dr. Kerrigan glared at it. “Hold that thought,” he told Daniel with a mock frown before grabbing the annoying piece of equipment.

“Kerrigan,” he snapped. A few seconds later his expression changed and he looked over at Daniel.

“Yes, he is... no, at least not here. Just a minute.” The linguist lowered the receiver and looked at Daniel. “Have you eaten lunch yet?”

Daniel blinked in confusion. “No, it’s too early – ” he stopped short when he glanced at his watch. Where had the morning gone?

Dr. Kerrigan sighed and turned back to the phone. “I’ll tell him, Colonel.” He hung up and grinned on the boy.

“What does Jack want?” Daniel asked, although he had a good idea.

“He wants you to go to the commissary and get some lunch.”

Daniel sighed. As busy as Jack was, how did he have time to worry about his son’s eating habits? He couldn’t figure it out but he knew he'd be in trouble if he ignored Jack’s order. Worse, the linguists might get in trouble, too.

“All right.” He climbed out of his chair and looked hopefully at his colleagues. “Is anyone else going to have lunch now?”

Dr. Kerrigan smiled sympathetically. “I’m afraid we have a meeting scheduled with the members of the Archeology Department...” he looked at the clock on the wall. “In ten minutes.”

“Okay.” Daniel tried to hide his disappointment. “I guess we can finish this later.”

Dr. Shaw laughed. It always surprised Daniel to hear that loud, boisterous sound come out of such a skinny, frail-looking man.

“Don’t worry, Daniel,” he patted his shoulder, “we’re not going to figure out all the different dialects this week.

“Hardly,” Dr. Kerrigan said. “We aren’t even sure how many Goa’uld dialects exist.”

How many dialects of Goa'uld were there? Daniel wondered a few minutes later as he walked down the corridor toward the elevators. No one seemed to know. How many Goa'uld were there, would be the next logical question but he wasn’t going to worry about that today. He was at the SGC for another three hours and nothing could be better than that. Besides, Jack said he worried too much so there was no reason to ruin his happiness today with sobering thoughts of the Goa'uld.

"Hey, Daniel.”

"Hi, Sergeant Mac!” Daniel gave the Airman an enthusiastic wave.

The Sergeant's real name was MacDonnell. Jack had introduced them a few weeks ago and now the Sergeant always said hi. When Daniel had originally called him Sergeant MacDonnell the man had winked at him and insisted his friends called him Mac.

Friends were one of the best things about Cheyenne Mountain. The SGC had become Daniel's home away from home. He was comfortable here. He had friends. For those with clearance, the Abydos away team was the most popular, elite group of people on the base and, much to Daniel’s astonishment, that included him.

Jack and Major Kawalsky and Captain Ferretti were always briefing new personnel about that mission. Daniel supposed it was because Abydos was their only mission through the Stargate to date. What would it be like when they were going through the Stargate all the time? That would be exciting. They'd probably meet all kinds of aliens, make new friends and allies, and bring back lots of exciting artifacts and other pieces to study and translate. He couldn't wait.

The SGC was the opposite of school. It wasn't that school was bad, it just wasn't good. Despite being Charlie's brother, Daniel still felt like an oddball who lived on the fringes. Since the run-in with Tommy the bully last summer, no one bothered him or treated him badly, but he never felt truly accepted either.

He read all his assignments and did his homework since those were some of the conditions Jack and Sara had set in order to for him to continue working at the Mountain. Occasionally, he learned new things because of school, but even those were mainly because when a subject interested him he'd make a note of it and look it up later on the internet. He didn't really trust the teachers and schoolbooks to give the whole story and several times he'd discovered he’d been right to do the research himself.

"So, DJ, how goes it in the world of languages?" Sergeant Mac asked as he stepped into the elevator and held the door open. "Up or down?"

"Up, please. Level 22."

The Airmen and the Marines always called him DJ or some other variation of his name. The scientists never did that, they always called him Daniel. Jack said military guys were big into nicknames and it was true. Daniel didn't mind at all, especially since Jack said it meant they liked him. Just like everyone called Sergeant MacDonnell, Sergeant Mac.

"It goes great!" Daniel smiled up at the Sergeant. "How goes it in the world of guarding the gate?"

It must have been a clever thing to say because Sergeant Mac chuckled and winked at him.

"So far so good," he answered. "Knock on wood." He rapped his knuckles against the elevator door after it closed.

Daniel refrained from pointing out that the elevator door wasn't made out of wood. The Sergeant probably knew that. It was just a superstition that seemed to be another habit of the military personnel on the base. Scientists rarely did silly things like knock on wood, or bless themselves, or toss salt over their shoulder. The civilian staff and the military staff couldn’t be more different so it surprised Daniel how well he got along with both groups.

More amazing still was the fact that they all seemed to like him. He had friends here at the Mountain and he had a purpose. It didn't matter that his friends were adults, they were genuine friendships. Life would be perfect if only he didn't have to go to school.

With Sergeant Mac beside him, Daniel stifled a giggle. If Sara only knew how far from normal his life was she wouldn't worry about that any more.

If Sergeant Mac was going to the commissary maybe Daniel could join him for lunch. He'd met a lot of his friends on the base by sharing lunch with them when Jack wasn't available. The other scientists rarely went to the commissary. They ate their lunch in the lab and kept right on working. He couldn’t wait until he was old enough to do that.

Unfortunately, Sergeant Mac waved goodbye on level 21. Maybe Major Kawalsky or Captain Ferretti would be in the commissary. It was always fun eating lunch with them.

As soon as Daniel exited the elevator he could smell the food. Jack always joked about the food but it was actually quite good. He hoped Linda the lunch manager was working today. She made the best macaroni and cheese and she was always really nice to him. She also made sure to tell him the best dish on the daily menu and she was always right.

The commissary was pretty crowded and Daniel hurried to get in line. His stomach was growling and he didn't want to spend too much time in here. With the linguists and archeologists going to a meeting, just like Jack, Daniel had the entire afternoon to himself to work on whatever project he deemed important.

Linda wasn't out front so he took a turkey sandwich with a dish of mac and cheese on the side. He was going to grab a carton of milk when he noticed the chocolate milk sitting next to the white. The chocolate looked better.

For the first time Daniel wondered if Jack had to pay for the food. He never saw anyone pay but maybe they took the money out of Jack's paycheck. If they did, it couldn't be too expensive because Jack always encouraged him to eat and take as much as he wanted. Maybe he'd ask that question on the drive home. If it was expensive he could be a little more conservative or pack a lunch like Charlie did.

For now, he grabbed the chocolate milk. He was in too good of a mood to worry about it today.

Daniel balanced his lunch tray - the sandwich, the mac and cheese, his carton of milk and an apple he'd picked up at the last minute – and walked toward the back of the room, scanning for a familiar face. The commissary never made him nervous like the cafeteria at school did.

He stopped dead in his tracks and took back what he’d just been thinking. The cafeteria at school never made him feel as scared as he felt right now. The Nightmare was sitting at the last table in the far corner.

Teal'c, he corrected himself as his palms began to sweat. Since Jack's big assembly, Daniel tried to think of the Jaffa by his real name. Something very hard to do at the moment.

Teal'c was sitting at a table by the wall eating alone. He hadn't looked up from his newspaper so Daniel was reasonably sure he hadn't been spotted. He could turn around and take the tray of food to his office. Jack would understand that this was a special situation. That was the best idea so why couldn't he seem to move?

He looked at Teal'c again and wondered why no one was sitting with him, especially after Jack's great speech on why it was important to work together. Daniel knew better than anyone how hard it was to be the new kid and not fit in. How much more difficult must it be for an alien on a whole new world? Did Teal'c feel bad that no one wanted to eat with him or was he happier eating alone? Daniel needed to do some research on Jaffa social habits. Of course he couldn't Google that. The only source for that kind of research was sitting alone at the table a few yards away.

Daniel tried to quell the fear inside by remembering Jack's words at the meeting. Earth couldn't do it alone, they needed friends and Teal'c was one of those friends.

Teal'c wasn't his worst nightmare. Teal'c was Earth's new friend.

Maybe if he could find the courage to sit down with Teal'c then other people would do the same. Daniel’s hands shook so much that the apple rolled around on the tray. It's just walking, he told himself, put one foot in front of the other and when you get close enough, say hello. He was on the base. He was safe. Teal'c was Earth's new friend.

His stomach felt queasy as he inched closer. When Teal'c looked up from the mound of food on his plate Daniel's throat went dry. His voice sounded strained and hoarse when he finally croaked out a weak hello. He needed to do better.

"Is it okay if I sit here?" Daniel forced out the words and tried to sound a bit more friendly.

"It would be my honor to share a meal with you, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c bowed his head.

Daniel bounced the tray down on the table, relieved to be rid of it. He took his seat and forced down a bite of sandwich and concentrated on chewing. With Teal'c directly across from him, he wasn't sure how much he'd be able to eat. Even the chocolate milk had lost its appeal. At least the table was hard and solid between them.

Apparently Teal'c didn't have much to say so Daniel took a deep steadying breath and tried to break the ice.

"Do you like the food here, Teal'c?"

It was a pretty safe bet the answer was yes if the amount piled on the alien's plate was any indication. If it turned out people did have to pay for the food here, then the Jaffa was going to need to make an awful lot of money.

"It is most satisfactory." Teal'c nodded his approval.

"Good." Daniel scooped up a forkful of mac and cheese for something to do. Maybe Teal'c was nervous, too, because he wasn’t very talkative.

"Would you mind if I asked you a few questions, Teal'c? I'm trying to learn more about the Jaffa." Daniel forged ahead, hoping the alien couldn’t hear the slight quiver in his voice. "It's always good to understand other cultures.”

"Indeed it is," Teal'c agreed. "I do not mind."

That was a relief.

"Would you rather eat by yourself or with friends?"

Daniel pushed up his glasses and willed himself to keep his eyes on the Jaffa. It would be rude to ask a question and then not appear interested in the answer. He liked the way Teal'c paused to think before responding.

"It depends on who those friends might be."

"That's true," Daniel agreed. "If the friends are mean it would be much better to eat alone. Except then they wouldn't really be friends, they'd be..." he stopped himself, not wanting to say the word 'enemies' and get off on the wrong track.

Teal'c nodded and popped a few grapes into his mouth while Daniel took another bite of his sandwich and opened up his chocolate milk.

"Do you have any other questions, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c was just about finished with his big lunch.

Daniel blushed at the question he wanted to ask. His heart pounded at the thought, but despite how scared he was and not knowing how the Jaffa might react, he desperately wanted to know the answer. Maybe his question was rude but then again Jack always said it was good to clear the air.

"One more question." He lowered his voice to be sure he wouldn't be overheard.

"When you kidnapped me and Skaara, did you know it was wrong? Did you know Apophis was a false god?" Daniel knew it was a loaded question but he really wanted to understand the Jaffa's motives. Maybe then he could stop being afraid.

Teal’c paused for a long minute and so did Daniel’s heart, or at least it felt like it did. When the Jaffa finally spoke, his deep voice was thoughtful.

"I had suspected for many years that the gods were not true gods. But I am Jaffa. We exist to serve the Goa'uld. It is all I knew."

"No, Teal'c, that's not right!" The remnants of Daniel's nervousness disappeared, swallowed up by anger. He thought of Abydos and of Earth's own often shameful past. "Nobody should exist solely to serve others."

Teal'c stared at him for a few long minutes before answering. "I will serve this world faithfully and work towards the freedom of all Jaffa from their slavery." He bowed his head. "I am indebted to the Tau'ri and to you, Daniel Jackson."

"Me?" Daniel's eyes went wide with amazement.

"Indeed. Your actions on Chulak had much to do with showing me the truth about the false gods.”

“Really?” It was all he could think to say.

“Indeed, Daniel Jackson. I give you my word that I shall protect you from all enemies and if ever you find yourself in need of my assistance, ask and I shall be at your side.”

"Wow, Teal'c, that's great, thank you.” Daniel’s heart slowed down and he felt a little lightheaded with relief. “I don't think I'll need anything so you don't have to worry. Jack and Sara take good care of me." He thought for a second. "Will you help us get Skaara and Tracy back?"

"I shall do everything in my power to assist in their rescue."

"Good."

Now that Daniel was no longer afraid, all sorts of questions popped into his head. Before he could begin to grill Teal'c, they were interrupted by Sergeant Cody from Supply.

"Excuse me, Daniel." The Sergeant stood beside the table licking his lips and trying not to look nervous while giving a furtive glance in Teal'c's direction.

“Hi, Sergeant Cody.”

Daniel smiled wide, showing his teeth. He hoped he looked comfortable sitting with their alien ally because he wanted to be a good example of putting Jack's words into action.

The Sergeant smiled back and then nodded at Teal'c. At least it was a start.

"The shipment you and the other scientists ordered is here. I’ve already advised them but there's a big box with your name on it," he winked. "Books. As soon as I have a man available I'll have it sent to your office. We're a little shorthanded right now. It seems like everyone is in meetings today."

"Thank you, Sergeant!" Daniel was jubilant. "I've been waiting for those to come in."

Sergeant Cody’s smile widened. “You’re welcome. I hope they’re worth the wait.”

“They are,” Daniel assured him.

With another nod at Teal’c, Sergeant Cody left.

"Daniel Jackson, perhaps I can be of some assistance."

“Assistance how?” Daniel didn’t understand.

"I would be pleased to secure the box and bring it to your office."

The nervousness was back in a flash. It was one thing to be in a public setting like the commissary with the night... with Teal'c. Being alone, just the two of them in his office might be a whole lot scarier. Then again, Daniel had the entire afternoon free and he really wanted those books.

Earth couldn't do it alone, they needed friends and Teal'c was one of those friends. Remembering Jack's mantra helped. He pulled the straw out of his carton and gulped down the last of his chocolate milk.

"I'm ready, Teal'c. Let's go."

Ten minutes later Daniel sat in his office wondering if he should page Jack. Jack was in a meeting and shouldn’t be interrupted unless it was important. Daniel understood that and figured his nervousness probably didn’t qualify as important.

Teal'c had sent him back to wait after assuring Daniel he could handle the box himself. That was easy to believe. Teal'c was a lot like Superman, incredibly strong with a cold, bone-crushing grip that could...

He stopped himself before getting sidetracked with the really scary stuff. The point was that Teal'c didn't need any help. He could probably carry lots of boxes, no matter how heavy.

Daniel had been fine in the elevator but now, sitting at his desk, he worried about being alone with the alien. Worst of all, what if Teal'c noticed his nervousness and felt hurt or insulted? Daniel had tried Jack's door but it was locked so the meeting must still be going strong. It was so tempting to page Jack. Before he could decide Teal'c appeared in the doorway with three big boxes. At the sight, Daniel's nerves gave way to excitement.

“You got them!”

"Sergeant Cody was mistaken. Three boxes have the name Daniel Jackson written on them."

Superman Teal'c wasn't carrying the boxes. He had them stacked on a dolly. For some reason, the sight was reassuring. Teal'c wasn't Superman after all. He wheeled in the boxes just like any Airman would.

"Wow, Teal'c, that’s great! Bring them over here!”

Teal'c wheeled the boxes into the office and unloaded them in front of the bookshelf that ran the length of the far wall.

"Can you help me?" Daniel knelt on the floor, waging war with the shipping tape on the first box. It wouldn't budge. "There're scissors in my desk drawer," he added helpfully.

"I can assist you, Daniel Jackson." Teal'c knelt beside him and easily tore open the first seal on the first box. At Daniel's direction he tore open the other cartons as well.

"Look, Teal'c!" he picked up the book on top. “This is Volume 1 of Petrie’s A History of Egypt. I’ve got all six volumes.” Noticing Teal’c’s blank expression Daniel realized he needed to explain. “William Flinders Petrie is considered the father of Egyptian archeology.”

He paused, thinking about what he'd just said. That needed an explanation, too. “Here on Earth, I mean. He revolutionized excavation methods and laid the basis for modern archeological techniques.”

Daniel looked fondly at the volume, remembering the times he'd seen a copy of this book in his father’s hands. He hadn’t found these books in his parents’ library yet and figured there must be other boxes of their belongings Jack and Sara hadn’t shown him yet. Well, that didn’t matter right now. Just holding this book made his dad feel close.

"Petrie’s History is one of my favorites." He patted the book affectionately. Before Teal'c could answer Daniel pulled out another worthy prize. "This is one of my favorites, too. And this one!"

"It appears you have many favorites," Teal'c observed.

"I do. I really do."

Daniel looked over the cartons filled with books. How lucky that the Air Force allowed him, just a kid, to order any books he thought necessary.

"Oh, this one might help us with translating some of the Goa'uld. It gives an analysis of Ancient Egyptian roots and origins." He flipped through the pages. "We can use it in the lab."

Teal'c stood up. "SG-4 requires my presence in the gymnasium in approximately seven minutes. Do you have everything you need?”

“Yes, everything,” he mumbled, barely looking up from his treasures.

“Then I will see you at a later time.” Teal’c inclined his head slightly and turned away.

"Teal'c, wait!" Daniel called as the alien reached the corridor. "I forgot to say thank you. Thank you for bringing up my books, and for opening the boxes."

The Jaffa stood ramrod straight with his hands clasped behind his back. "It has been my pleasure, Daniel Jackson. Remember to call upon me whenever you find yourself in need of my assistance."

"I will." Daniel let out a contented sigh. "And you can call me if you ever need my assistance, too. Okay?” He hoped it was polite to return the slight bow.

"Indeed." Teal’c raised an eyebrow and left for the gym as Daniel turned back to his new books.

~~~

Two boxes were empty and he had just started on the third when Jack showed up at the door. Daniel checked the clock in disbelief. Arranging books must somehow speed up time, he decided.

"Hey, kiddo, how goes it?"

Jack had been in meetings all day to confirm the details of what the New Year held in store for the Stargate program. As exciting as it was, he was ready to leave 'the Colonel' at the Mountain for a few hours and go home to relax with his family where, hopefully, his most important decisions would center around how much to eat at dinner and what to watch on television.

"It's going great, Jack. Look! All the books I ordered came in. I've been arranging them by category so I'll be able to find what I need." Daniel's eyes reflected his zeal for the project.

Of course he was arranging. Jack smiled down at the young boy sprawled on the floor surrounded by books and boxes and packing tape.

"Excellent."

He mustered up some enthusiasm. Two cartons empty and the kid was still thrumming with excitement. Jack ran his hand across a few of the volumes on the shelf and marveled at his pint-sized genius.

"You ready to hit the road?"

"I have one more box to go through," Daniel answered.

Jack ignored the pleading, hopeful look. He’d had enough of the base for today. It was time to head home and unwind. Besides, he'd already called Sara and she was expecting them home for dinner in forty-five minutes.

"Just five more minutes," Daniel pleaded.

Yeah, right. Daniel surrounded by books could easily drag five minutes into five hours.

"Afraid not, buddy. I talked to Sara and she's making a chicken dinner for us. I promised we wouldn't be late. So get your stuff."

"But I want to see what's in this last carton. I haven’t found Petrie’s journals so they should be in there.” His face glowed at the thought.

Who in the hell was Petrie? Never mind, Jack didn’t want to know. Petrie’s journals? Oh yeah, that got his blood pumping.

"I need to get all these arranged and I want to see what books the other scientists ordered,” Daniel pleaded. “I bet they'll have theirs all arranged by the end of today."

Jack hadn't heard this much whining since last year when Charlie had been sent to bed before the end of a World Series game that had dragged on past midnight. Boys and their passions. And he had no doubt the geek squad down the hall would have their new collection of books all categorized and stowed away before sundown. They probably alphabetized their DVDs and CD's and labeled their underwear drawer for good measure. None of that changed the fact that Sara was making dinner and he was in desperate need of some R & R.

"And I don't come in tomorrow," Daniel continued to make his case. "So I really should stay late today."

One of his Colonel looks ought to do the trick.

The boy sighed, a frustrated sound. "How come you won't answer me?" he complained.

"I did answer you. I said no." Jack checked his watch. "Quite a while ago, too. Now grab your stuff, we're going."

To his relief, Daniel finally recognized he wasn't getting anywhere and closed up the box.

"Five minutes wouldn't make us late," he grumbled as he stood up and searched out his jacket and backpack.

"Whoa!" Jack intervened when Daniel struggled to lift up the pack. "What do you have in here? Bricks?" It weighed a ton and was bursting at the seams.

"It's books, Jack." The expression on Daniel's face clearly questioned his sanity. "I told you I won't be back for a few days and I can't wait to read them. Unless you think maybe I could come in tomorrow after school for a special day?"

"'Fraid not, kiddo."

Although Jack sympathized, Sara would never go for it.

The pile of books strewn over the couch caught his attention. "Are those your schoolbooks?" They'd obviously been dumped out of the backpack to make room for the important stuff.

"I already did my homework," Daniel explained.

"That may be but don't you think you might need those for your classes tomorrow?"

"Oh, yeah." Daniel sighed and loaded the less than exciting books into a canvas bag.

"Hey, I want to talk to you about something else."

Jack decided a diversionary tactic was in order to change the boy's mood. Sara tended to attribute Daniel's occasional sour moods to too much time at the Mountain when Jack suspected the opposite was true. Maybe he could change his son's mindset before they arrived home.

“Hmm?” Daniel said absently as he tried to rearrange the books in his pack.

"What's a good day for us to get together with Teal'c for lunch?"

Jack didn't want this to be stressful but Daniel had agreed and he was holding the kid to it. Teal'c was a member of his team and Daniel's acceptance would make things easier on all of them.

A confused look passed over Daniel's features. Maybe he'd forgotten their agreement. At least his expression was one of confusion rather than fear.

"Lunch. You, me, Teal'c. Remember?" Jack squeezed Daniel's shoulder in support.

"Oh," Daniel exclaimed, the confusion lifting. "I had lunch with Teal'c today.”

"You, you did?" Now Jack was the one confused. "Lunch. With Teal'c?"

Daniel nodded as if it made perfect sense. "You said Teal'c is Earth's new friend and he was eating by himself so I had lunch with him."

"I said...?" The kid never failed to surprise him.

"At the big meeting, Jack, remember?"

"I did say that, didn't I?" He had to be careful what was said around Daniel. The boy took everything to heart. In this instance it was a good thing but that wouldn't always be the case.

"So how'd it go?" Jack prodded. Daniel looked fine so he assumed it went okay but a few details would be nice.

Daniel looked down at the concrete floor. "I was a little scared at first,” he admitted before looking up again, “but then it went fine. Oh, and Teal'c brought the boxes of books to my office, too. Wasn't that nice of him?"

"Nice," Jack agreed, still a little dumbfounded. "Anything else?” With Daniel he never seemed to ask the right questions to get all the pertinent information.

Daniel thought for a few minutes. "Teal'c eats an awful lot."

That was certainly true. Jack had to chuckle as he hoisted the weighted backpack and the bag full of schoolbooks.

"Hey, Jack, that reminds me of something." Daniel put on his jacket and found his gloves in the pockets. "Do you have to pay for the food we eat in the commissary?"

This time Jack laughed out loud. "Why would you worry about something like that?" Where did the kid come up with this stuff?

"I was worried about Teal'c. You should have seen all the food he ate. If you do have to pay I hope he makes a lot of money.” Daniel tucked two more books under his arm.

Leave it to Daniel to stumble over the whole issue of status and paychecks. That was one of the things they'd been discussing in that interminable meeting.

"How about you let the Air Force worry about that?" Jack couldn't resist tousling his son's hair. "You and I have a date with a chicken dinner."

Chapter 17

Jack opened the front door and yelled "Honey, I'm home!" in his best Jack Nicholson impersonation.

Silence greeted him.

As excited as he was about the Stargate officially opening for business he'd miss this, the regular, fairly predictable hours and occasionally getting out early to surprise his wife.

Jack needed to tell Sara their lives were about to get a whole lot crazier. He'd be going out on missions again and working all hours. It wasn't a conversation he was looking forward to, but that was for another day. Today he had a private little plan of his own to implement that had nothing to do with work and the Stargate.

The boys were at Spencer's playing some new play station game and they were staying for dinner. He remembered that much. Sara hadn't mentioned any plans and she wasn't working today so he figured she must be around here somewhere.

"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," he tried again.

Still no answer.

"Sara!" He changed tactics. His references to "The Shining" obviously weren't impressing her.

Suddenly suspicious, Jack went outside and opened the garage door. No car. Damn it, she wasn't home and he'd been so optimistic.

He walked through the back door into the kitchen and found a note on the table in Sara’s handwriting.

“Jack, the boys are at Spencer’s and staying for dinner and I’m out Christmas shopping. I won't be too late."

Christmas shopping? Today? How could she? Granted she didn't know what time he'd be home but still... it was rare to have the house to themselves and he'd been hoping for a little alone time with his wife. Christmas, bah humbug.

After sulking for a minute, Jack decided to go on the offensive. It was early afternoon, this could still work out. He ran upstairs to shower and shave and change into something more comfortable. His soft, faded blue jeans should do the trick. He even patted on a hint of Sara's favorite aftershave, just enough to make her smile, not enough to make her sneeze. That always put her in the mood.

He decided to dig up a bottle of her favorite white zinfandel and throw some logs in the fireplace. When the fire was roaring he set out two crystal glasses with the bottle of wine. So far, so good.

Next step, he opened the fridge to see if there was anything he could whip up to nibble on. Strawberries would be ideal, out of season and unrealistic, but ideal. He settled for cutting up a few hunks of cheese and pieces of fruit and arranging them on a plate with some grapes. Not bad, he could be as romantic as the next guy when he put his mind to it. Hopefully she'd come home in a good mood and not all cranky from the insanity of the shopping season. If someone had cut ahead of her in line or cut her off in the parking lot there'd be little chance of romance.

No point in dwelling on the negative, besides, the stars seemed to be aligned correctly, even the weather was cooperating, it was cold and the sky was overcast, gray and cloudy, the perfect afternoon for some serious snuggling by the fire. He was on the verge of calling Sara on her cell but that would ruin the spontaneity. She liked good surprises and she liked when he was spontaneous. He'd call if he had to, but for now he decided to give her a little more time.

Jack checked the room, adjusted the lighting and noticed something was missing. He ran upstairs to the bedroom and threw open the closet doors in search of the quilt they'd used the few times they'd laid on the floor in front of the fire.

Ah-hah, found it. He was just about to close the doors when something caught his eye, his uniforms, all cleaned and pressed and shiny. Jack had no idea why but Sara, like a lot of women, was a sucker for a man in uniform. In Sara's case, she was specifically a sucker for his formal dress blues.

Hmm, if he 'dressed up' for her, she'd melt no matter how chaotic the mall had been. He'd have to take the uniform back to the dry cleaners afterwards but it'd be well worth it.

What the hell, Jack decided to go for broke. He put on his dress blues like he'd done hundreds if not thousands of times in the past. He even put on a crisp white shirt and knotted his regulation tie perfectly. Mugging in front of the mirror, he smiled at the memory of Sara’s comment Halloween night. Even after years of marriage, she still thought he was a fine figure of a man. He chuckled and hoped they'd have as much fun this afternoon as they'd had that night. One last thing. He put on his hat, adjusted it for maximum effect, grabbed the quilt and headed downstairs.

Jack sat down on the sofa and gazed longingly at the bottle of wine and the dancing fire. Everything was perfect, except that he was alone. The uniform felt odd and extremely uncomfortable for sitting around his living room. The collar was chafing at his neck and he was tempted to loosen the tie, not to mention he'd never gone commando in his dress blues before.

Was this crazy? Maybe he should go upstairs and change back to his ancient but oh so comfortable jeans. Imagining Sara's surprised expression and her appreciation for his efforts stopped him. Maybe a glass of wine would help, he could get a head start. He poured himself a glass but before he had a chance to take a sip he heard the car pull into the driveway. Hallelujah.

Jack poured both glasses, leaving one by the fire and taking the other one to the door to greet his wife. He opened the back door before she had a chance to get out her keys.

"Surprise..." the word trailed off and died in his throat. It took him a second to recover.

"Carter?" he squeaked. This could not be happening.

"Sir?” She stood in the doorway carrying a bunch of shopping bags and her purse.

"Jack, what are you doing?" Sara was right behind her. "Let Sam in and help her with the bags."

He'd been holding out the glass of wine for Sara but he realized he needed it more. He took a huge gulp before gesturing Carter inside and mumbling, "Let me take those for ya." As if his 2IC needed help with a few measly bags. He'd seen her in action on Chulak.

"Important meeting, sir?"

Carter was eyeing the uniform with a perplexed frown and Jack felt a flush of warmth on his neck. He was rarely embarrassed and there was no need to be now since she couldn't possibly know his intentions. He'd just play along. He muttered something incoherent about a meeting and the Joint Chiefs.

Sara was right behind Carter with more bags and his wife wasn’t at all cautious or discreet as the Captain had been.

"Jack, why are you in your dress uniform?" She eyed him critically. "And why are you still wearing your hat and tie?"

Crap, she knew him too well. The first thing Jack did when he walked in the door was to take off his hat and loosen his tie, if he hadn't already done so in his truck on the drive home.

Sara was studying him thoughtfully. She'd figure out in a minute. He was drinking wine out of a crystal glass for crying out loud. Even if he'd been to a real meeting he would've had his uniform off by now and he'd be drinking a beer. At the moment she was too preoccupied by the bags and Carter to figure it out but it wouldn't be long.

She dropped her purse on a chair and smiled at the Captain. "Sam, I can’t thank you enough. Would you like to stay for dinner?"

Good god, no! Now he'd have to somehow sneak unobserved into the living room and get rid of the quilt, the wine and the plate of food he'd set in there as they'd pulled into the driveway. As for the roaring fire, he’d blame it on the weather.

“Is this bag yours or mine?”

Damn it, Carter, forget the bag and answer the dinner question. He needed to plan his next move.

Sara shot him a suspicious look and opened the bag just wide enough to peer inside. “Oh, this is yours.”

“Then these are yours.”

The women piled the contents of the bags on the kitchen table and sorted out their purchases while Jack polished off his glass of wine and debated pouring another. He was waiting for the right moment to make his move to the living room for the clean-up mission. He needed to time his exit perfectly so no neither of them followed.

"I didn't know there were bigwigs at the Mountain today. Did I miss anything, Colonel?" Carter was putting her purchases in one of the shopping bags, separating her stuff from Sara's.

"You don't know everything that goes on at the base, Captain." Jack realized he might have sounded a little testy when Sara shot him a dirty look.

"Yes, sir.”

That was one of the things Jack liked best about Carter. She always took the hint and backed off. She was smart that way.

Sara opened another bag then quickly closed it. "You can't see this one. I'm going to stick it in the front closet."

Before Jack could say anything his wife picked up the bag and left for the living room. She'd know his intentions now. Hopefully she'd have the good sense to hide the evidence in case Carter stayed for dinner, if not it would be beyond awkward.

When Sara came back into the kitchen she caught his eye. He could see her lips trembling with the effort of suppressing her laughter. Oh yeah, she definitely knew.

While they finished sorting their purchases, Sara kept sneaking glances at him and Jack hoped she wouldn't blow a gasket with the effort she was making to keep a straight face. She looked like the cat that swallowed the canary.

"I don't have anything prepared but we could order out dinner if you'd like to stay, Sam," she offered.

Jack admired his wife's subtlety and willed his 2IC to decline.

"Oh, no, thank you for the invitation but I need to get going.”

To his relief, she grabbed her bags and her purse. Smart. Yep, that Carter was one smart cookie, even when she didn't have a clue what was going on.

"See ya, Carter," Jack said cheerfully and gave her a little wave.

His relief quickly turned to apprehension when he realized Sara was walking the Captain out the front door. The front door beyond the living room. Crap, Sara!

By the time he rushed into the room after them they were already at the door. A quick look around eased his mind. The quilt was thrown innocently over the back of the sofa and there were no glasses or wine bottles or snacks in sight. Both women stared at his sudden entrance.

"Everything okay, sir?" Carter asked in that same confused tone.

"Everything's fine. Why wouldn't it be? I just wanted to a... to say goodbye, again.”

Sara's shoulders were shaking slightly and Jack wasn't sure she'd last until the Captain left. The two women hugged and said their goodbyes.

"Goodbye, sir," Carter added as she pulled on her hood and headed out into the wind and cold.

Sara stood at the front door with her back to him and waved goodbye. She stayed that way until Carter's car pulled away from the curb. Jack thought she was going to say something when she turned around to face him but instead of talking she burst out laughing, louder than he thought necessary.

He gave her what he thought was more than sufficient time to recover before muttering, "I don't see what's so funny.”

His declaration only made her laugh harder. Tears were streaming down her face and she didn't seem to be able to stop. So much for romance.

Jack waited with forced patience until the laughter slowed down to intermittent giggles before repeating, "It wasn't that funny.”

That was obviously the wrong thing to say. His words started her off on a new round of hysteria.

"Okay, maybe it was a little funny," he finally conceded, wrapping his arms around his wife and giving in to the hilarity. The sound of Sara's laughter was contagious and it felt good to hold her and join in the fun.

"Stay right there," she ordered when they both wound down and she was able to speak coherently again. "Don't move."

He watched while she took the quilt off the sofa and spread it back out on the floor in front of the fireplace, then she grabbed the food and the wine from their hiding place inside the china cabinet and set them next to the quilt.

"Can I move now?" Jack smiled.

"Nope, not yet. One more thing." She disappeared into the kitchen but was back in an instant. "Put this back on."

She held out his hat and he obeyed, adjusting it properly as per regulations. "There, how's that?"

"Perfect." She leaned in and kissed him full on the mouth. Then she removed the hat and kissed him again.

"Why'd you make me put it back on if you were just going to take it off?" Jack wasn't sure why he bothered to ask. He never truly understood women or their motives, not even his wife.

"Because I wanted to take it off," Sara said, as if it made perfect sense.

Next she loosened his tie, unbuttoned his jacket and then the top button of his shirt. She was taking her time, knowing he liked that. When he reached for her blouse she brushed his hand away.

“Not yet,” she said softly and pressed kisses against his neck and throat.

They were still standing though he was hoping that would change soon. Sara undid his pants only to stop and look at him in surprise.

"You don't have anything on underneath."

"Why would I?" Jack was surprised to feel the heat in his cheeks. He couldn’t believe he was blushing. "It was just for you."

"Well, that must have been awkward for you, honey."

"Ya think?" She didn't know the half of it.

Sara started giggling again and he cut her off with a kiss, hoping to prevent another round of hysterics. It worked. He guided her down to the quilt and she forgot all about laughing.

~~~

Some days at the hospital were crazier than others. Today was a perfect example.

“Never mind,” Sara said out loud into the comfortable silence as she walked through her front door. “It’s over and you’re home.”

She checked her watch. Charlie was staying after school to participate in some sport or another and Daniel was at the library with Karen. They'd be home for dinner but that was over an hour away. Jack would probably be home before the boys today. That meant she actually had a block of free time to do what she'd wanted to do for the last few days. Take a break from life and get organized for the upcoming Christmas holidays.

After changing into jeans and one of Jack’s tee shirts, Sara went down to the kitchen to make coffee. She dug a tote bag out of the pantry, slipped into Jack’s study for a quick raid, then returned to the kitchen to finish preparations.

When everything was finished she headed back upstairs and pulled the fold-up staircase down from the ceiling. When it locked in place she pushed the straps of the tote bag higher up on her arm and made sure she had a firm grip on the small carafe, then climbed up the stairs.

When Sara reached the attic, her own private sanctuary, she set the carafe down on the small table beside her favorite rocker and placed the boom box she’d borrowed from Jack’s study on another table she drew up to the other side of the rocker. When everything was in place she removed the small Tupperware container from the tote and popped the lid off. The fragrance of the gingerbread she’d baked last night wafted deliciously through the air.

One more thing. She inserted a CD into the boom box and settled back in the rocker. Ella Fitzgerald’s rich, throaty voice drifted through the attic space and she smiled in satisfaction. Who needed an MP3 player? She'd take this old dinosaur of a disc player any day.

“Perfect,” she said happily and pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket.

She unfolded it and laid it on her lap, then poured coffee from the carafe into a mug, saving just enough room to add a touch of milk and sugar. Taking a bite of gingerbread, she savored the spicy sweetness before chasing it down with a sip of coffee. No doubt about it; she'd attained perfection.

It was a rare thing to have the house to herself and she wanted to relish every second so it was frustrating that, instead of being able to enjoy the relaxing atmosphere, she couldn’t shake an edge of discomfort that was intruding on her tranquil thoughts.

As much as she enjoyed having the house to herself, she always worried about the guys when they weren't around. Charlie and his wild stunts, Daniel's penchant to talk to and try to help complete strangers, and Jack. Worrying about Jack was an ingrained habit she never expected to get over.

Not now, she chided herself. Charlie was at school being supervised by coaches, Daniel was reading at the library and Jack was at the most secure place on Earth, Cheyenne Mountain, not off on some top-secret, incredibly dangerous mission.

She took another sip of coffee and made a conscious decision not to worry about them today. Today was all about indulging herself and she was determined to enjoy the peace and quiet.

“Mmm.”

Sara took another bite of gingerbread and reviewed the Christmas list she'd organized last night. Even though over half of the items were checked off there was still plenty left to buy.

“Incredible,” she muttered as her eyes swept over the list again.

They'd always enjoyed Christmas. It helped that she and Jack were of the same mindset when it came to how much was too much. In addition to the usual assortment of clothes, Charlie had always been content with two or three fun gifts under the tree. Both Jack and Sara had been careful not to overindulge their son and turn him into a spoiled brat.

Sara took another satisfied bite of gingerbread, smiling when she thought about her husband. She could only rein him in so much. Jack was like a little kid at Christmas and always managed to surprise her with a few special gifts he had covertly figured out she wanted.

In the past, the O’Neill family spent their holidays focusing on fun and friends and family without indulging in an excessive amount of material gifts. This year was going to be different.

Was going to be different? The year had been nothing but different. Daniel had joined the family and this would be his first O'Neill Christmas. They'd nearly lost Charlie, and then there was the secret mission to God knows where Jack had dragged Daniel off on. She shivered at the memories.

"Let it go," she ordered, her voice sounding loud in the quiet of the attic.

She needed to let it go. It was in the past and everyone was okay. Even as she had the thought, a small voice in the back of her mind spoke up. Were they all okay? After returning home from the mysterious mission, Daniel had suffered from nightmares for weeks, though she was happy to see those were becoming a thing of the past.

If she was going to be honest with herself, Daniel had other problems they needed to address. She hated to admit it but he was bored in school. There was no getting around that, she'd confirmed it with his teachers. As much as she resisted the idea of home schooling, Sara had to prepare herself for the possibility that it might be the best thing for him. It was a subject she'd have to talk through with Jack after the holidays.

So much had changed this last year, and with the boys getting older more changes were inevitable. Maybe it was time for her to dig out some of her own long-held dreams and see if it was time to do something about them.

Sara looked back down at the list and decided to save her dreams for another day. Christmas was coming fast and she needed to be ready.

This year, because of all the changes and close calls, she and Jack had decided to throw caution to the wind and go hog wild for Christmas. Sara had to admit it was fun playing Santa. Daniel needed a lot of kid things and Christmas was the perfect excuse to indulge him.

Charlie was another matter completely. Charlie's gift sent shivers down her spine. Their son had made his wishes clear enough. Jack insisted it was inevitable and for the best, but even after agreeing Sara still had her doubts. She had tried to talk Jack out of it when she'd seen the cost but he knew her too well. The money had nothing to do with her concerns. Money hadn't really been a problem these past few years and was even less of an issue since dad died and named her and Charlie as the beneficiaries of his extremely successful business.

Sara swallowed hard. For the first time since she'd been old enough to enjoy Christmas, one name was missing from her gift list. Her father’s name. This would be her first Christmas without the strong, caring presence of her dad, Mike Ridgeway. Even when she'd lived thousands of miles away, Dad had been there even if only in the background, checking up on her. He had always called a few days before Christmas under the guise of making sure his presents had arrived safely and on time, but they both knew he really called to make sure she was happy. One Christmas season when Jack was out of the country, he flew out to California at the last minute to make the holidays fun for her and Charlie. After she and Jack and Charlie had moved back to Colorado, Dad had been an integral part of their holidays.

Tears slid down her cheeks and she wiped them away. The pain of her father’s death was still strong. Hopefully it would ease over time just as it had after Mom died. Sara was lucky; she had a wonderful, rambunctious family who, in their individual ways, helped her deal with Dad's death. That’s what she needed to focus on, that and the memory of her father’s character and love.

Thank goodness for Jack and the boys.

Sara smiled at the thought of her husband. Her life had gone in such a different direction than the one she'd envisioned the day she said "I do" to Jack O'Neill. She had married the handsome young Lieutenant a few months after he graduated from the Air Force Academy. Even back then, she understood his dedication to his chosen profession would always be his top priority, in time if not in affection. Still, she didn't have a clue what she was actually getting herself into, only that marrying Jack was her agreement to accompany him on that journey.

Even now Sara occasionally wondered about her naïve decision so long ago. She had fallen deeply in love and wanted to spend the rest of her life with Jack.

Reality had proven to be far different than that long-ago dream. Sometimes it felt as if she'd spent more years apart from her husband than she'd spent with him. Marriage to a man who was married to his career had required numerous moves across the country and around the world. Worst of all were the times he’d been out of the country on one of his damned secret missions. She'd been forced to be both Mom and Dad to Charlie while worrying she’d never see her husband again.

Despite it all, Sara had held on to her marriage. The reason was simple. When she vowed to be with him in sickness and in health, for as long as they lived, she meant it. All these years later, that vow helped her remain strong even when her emotions told her otherwise. One thing she'd never doubted was their love. She loved Jack and was confident in his love for her. She was his wife and she'd stick by him, whatever life threw at them.

All of that made sense to Sara. Charlie following in his father’s footsteps made no sense her heart could accept. She shivered. Don’t automatically assume the worst, she ordered herself. Let it go for now.

Sara forced away depressing thoughts of Charlie wearing the uniform and being dropped behind enemy lines. She had come up here for a reason and she was wasting time. Checking the next name on her list made her smile. Daniel. She hoped he'd like what she and Jack had come up with for him.

She'd done a little online research and found out that an ancient Egyptian exhibit would be touring the Denver museum in January so she'd bought three tickets, one each for her and Daniel, and an extra one for him to invite a friend.

The next item was books. Two books she hoped would help Daniel reclaim a piece of his past while leaving the more painful memories behind. One was The Language of the Pharaohs: Decoding Egyptian Hieroglyphs, by Claire Ballard Jackson. It was the first book Daniel’s mother had published. The other book was entitled Rediscovering Ancient Egypt: Archeology’s Gift, by Melbourne Jackson. Not the first book Daniel’s father had written but it had been published early in the man’s career.

Sara hoped they weren't making a mistake. Her instincts told her the boy was healing in the loving, if occasionally hectic, home she and Jack and Charlie provided. If all went according to her plan, the books would be treasured memories rather than tragic reminders.

Ice skates were next on the list. Those had been added at Jack's insistence. Sara chuckled at her husband’s eloquent speech on the subject. It didn’t matter that Daniel grew up in the deserts of the world, hated the cold and didn’t have a clue how to ice skate. He hadn’t known about sledding either and he had loved that.

Jack and Charlie loved ice skating and she suspected their enthusiasm would be enough to coax Daniel into giving it a try. If he enjoyed it half as much as Jack insisted he would, it'd be worth it.

Her smile widened at the sight of the next item. Finally, Daniel would have his own bike. She hoped the gift would be well-received. Her father had taught Charlie to ride a bike when he was five because Jack had been out of the country at the time.

Sara checked the last name on the list and chuckled. She couldn't wait to see Jack's reaction when he opened up his new telescope. Since her knowledge of telescopes was limited to knowing how to spell the word, she had enlisted Sam's help. Jack’s current telescope was almost as old as Charlie and since they were going overboard on the boys this Christmas, she was determined to go overboard on her husband as well. Getting him a new, state-of-the-art toy to play with seemed like the perfect gift. Thank goodness for Sam.

She laughed again, thinking how close Jack had come to catching her when she and Sam had come home from the mall. Fortunately, he was so caught up in planning his romantic rendezvous he hadn’t noticed her secretiveness. She snuck the telescope in last night while he was in the shower. She could be sneaky, too, when it counted.

A flush of warmth swept through her at the memory of his plan for them in front of the fireplace. Even after all these years he still had the ability to surprise her. To the rest of the world he was Colonel O’Neill, career military, ex-Special Ops, a genuine hard-nosed, sarcastic, bad-ass, soldier extraordinaire. Sara was the only one lucky enough to see his softer, romantic side.

The front door banged open loud enough for her to hear all the way up in the attic.

“Honey? You home?”

Speak of the devil. She set aside her now cold cup of coffee, folded the list and stuck it deep into her pocket.

“Just a minute, Jack,” she called before climbing down the stairs to the second-floor landing. Maybe, she thought with a spurt of mischief, they'd have time for another romantic rendezvous before Charlie and Daniel came home.

When she reached the first floor she was surprised Jack wasn't in the living room. His voice had sounded as if he'd been at the bottom of the stairs. But volume wasn't always the best indicator since her husband could bellow with the best of them. His voice had sounded close but –

"Hi, honey."

Her heart leaped into her throat as she whirled around. He was standing in the kitchen doorway and from the look on his face he was definitely up to something.

"Where were you?" he asked.

"What are you up to?" Sara countered suspiciously.

"I asked you first," he smirked.

"I was in the attic going over my Christmas list. And don't go up there," she warned.

After all she'd gone through to find his new Sky Watcher Pro high performance refractor and smuggle it into the house, she was prepared to kill him if his snooping uncovered the surprise.

She hoped the telescope was more than a fancy name. Sam assured her it was and the salesman had dubbed it 'the race car' of telescopes. She didn't really get that analogy but she didn't need to, she just a needed a gift to wow her husband on this very special Christmas.

"Okay, I get it. Top-secret Christmas stuff," he winked. "With that thought in mind, don't ask me too many questions either."

"Hmm," Sara looked him over carefully. "All right but don't sneak up on me like that." She checked her watch. It'd be tough to squeeze in any afternoon delight today. The boys would be home in twenty minutes.

"I'm hungry," Jack announced, rubbing his stomach and squelching any remaining hope Sara had entertained for romance. "I didn't have time to eat lunch," her oblivious husband continued. "I think I'm going to make myself a sandwich."

Just as well. Sara followed him to the fridge, poured herself a glass of juice and sat down at the table while he worked on his lunch. In her younger days she would have warned him against eating so close to dinner. Over the years she'd learned that nothing ruined the appetites of her guys. Watching him gave her an idea. Maybe they could discuss Charlie's ultra-expensive Christmas gift before their son arrived home.

"Sara." The deliberate, casual way Jack said her name made her forget about Charlie's gift. He was definitely up to something. "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course." She hoped it wasn't a serious work thing. Christmas was right around the corner and she wanted it to be fun for everyone.

“How did you and Carter end up going Christmas shopping together?"

It took a mighty effort not to laugh. His tone was casual but Sara wasn’t fooled. She'd known Jack O'Neill for a lot of years. Something about the shopping trip was obviously bugging him.

She had to steer him clear of the idea that she needed Sam's shopping expertise for a specific reason. It'd be easier if he'd just let it go. She decided to take a page out of Jack's playbook and play dumb.

"What do you mean?"

He was at the counter spreading mayo on his sandwich so she couldn't see his eyes but she could still watch him squirm.

"I mean, who called who? How did that come about?" He was trying for a light casual tone and it was increasingly difficult for her not to laugh.

"Why would you care?"

Sara was pleased with herself at how skillfully she'd avoided answering the question. Jack could be extremely intuitive when he put his mind to it. If she gave him that bit of intel he just might figure out the rest.

He came over and sat down with his sandwich and a glass of milk and after a few big bites forged ahead with his informal interrogation.

"What did you talk about?"

Sara struggled for a moment until she was able to quell her laughter. "What did we talk about? Why would you care what we talked about?"

When in doubt, repeat the question or answer it with another question. Jack had inadvertently taught her that strategy years ago.

"I don't understand why it's a secret." His brow wrinkled in confusion. "Carter wouldn't tell me either."

"Jack!" Sara shook her head in amazement. "I don't believe you. Tell me you did not ask Sam what we talked about."

When Jack shrugged Sara knew he'd not only asked the poor Captain but he also didn't see anything wrong with asking her.

"What did you do, order her to tell you?"

"Not in so many words," Jack defended himself, guzzling milk to wash down his sandwich.

"I was joking!" Sara stared at him in disbelief. "I can't believe you actually asked her.”

"She didn't tell me anything," Jack reiterated, taking another unrepentant bite out of his ham and cheese sandwich.

Sam may not have told him anything but Sara figured she better come up with something or he'd never let it go.

"I didn't want to go to the mall alone and my other friends were working or busy so I called her. I didn't think it would bother you so much.” Time for distraction. “Of course, the way it ended up with you answering the door in your dress blues..."

"Ack! Let's not go there." Jack raised his finger to stop her. "It doesn't bother me, it's just... you didn't talk about me, did you?"

That's what he was worried about? That she had unintentionally revealed some deep personal embarrassing information about him? Sara was back to amusement, this time tinged with exasperation.

"My, someone has a big ego."

"I didn't mean..." his voice trailed off.

"As hard as this may be for you to believe, Jack O’Neill, we had plenty of things to discuss that had nothing to do with you.”

"I was just wondering," he mumbled, finishing off the last of his milk.

His little-boy pout got to her every time. Thank god he didn’t know that. Taking pity on him, Sara decided to throw him a bone.

"You don't have to worry, honey. I know you're second in command of the base and I'd never mention anything personal about either one of us." She chuckled at the relief that crossed his face.

"So, just shopping?" He raised his eyebrows with a hopeful expression.

"Just shopping," she assured him.

He leaned in to kiss her but Charlie's, "Mom, I'm home!" startled them and made them both laugh. Daniel's, "Sara, wait until you see this!" followed a few seconds later.

"We're in here, guys" Sara yelled as Jack winked at her and took his dish and glass to the dishwasher.

Chapter 18

Sara pulled the blankets up over her head and tried to block out the sound of Jack rustling around getting dressed. She was warm and cozy and utterly relaxed.

“Honey?”

She pulled the blanket down and opened her eyes to find him standing over her.

“I’m going into the Mountain for a few hours but I’ll be back before the party starts to help. Promise.”

“Mmm-hmm,” she murmured, too deliciously comfortable to move.

“See you in awhile.” Jack leaned down and kissed her goodbye.

She closed her eyes again and listened to his footsteps walk away from the bed. Then she heard the faint rattle of the door handle and his muttered, “Gotta fix that,” before the door closed behind him.

It warmed her heart when she thought how considerate her husband could be when he put his mind to it. Then again, there was a lot about Jack that impressed her.

A giggle escaped. Jack was all too aware how she felt about him; she certainly showed him often enough. Like most men, her husband preferred action to words and she tried to oblige him whenever possible.

Laughter bubbled up and Sara muffled it against her pillow. “Okay, fine,” she muttered.

There was no way she was going to fall back asleep, not now that she was thinking about Jack’s attributes. Besides it was going to be a busy day. Christmas was a week away but their Christmas Open House was scheduled to begin today at noon.

Sara showered and dressed while musing on how different this Christmas would be compared to the last few. The last two Christmases had been intentionally low-key, shared with just the immediate family. Dad had been with them.

And the Christmas before that – Sara shied away from those memories. Jack had been missing for several months, the result of a mission gone bad. How he'd made it back home she'd never know. It didn’t matter. As far as she was concerned, Jack's return qualified as a genuine miracle.

What she hadn’t allowed herself to consider until she saw her husband in the hospital was the obvious suffering and hardship he'd undergone during those missing months. Thanks to her medical training, Sara knew all about post-traumatic stress disorder. It was a different matter having to deal with a husband suffering from PTSD than it was treating and encouraging strangers.

During the worst of Jack’s suffering, Sara had feared her husband might not be able to get past his pain. There were times she'd feared their family might not survive his ordeal intact. Months had passed before she saw the first signs of the old Jack reemerging.

Here they were nearly three years later and her family was stronger than ever. And with the inclusion of Daniel, that much richer. Except for the hole in her heart that her father had filled.

“I miss you, Dad,” she whispered, and blinked back the tears that seemed especially close these last few days.

Sara opened her eyes and looked around the room but she was alone. She touched her head in wonder. For a second it had felt as if a gentle weight had rested there, almost like the loving caress her father used to give her when she was a child. Most people would probably say it was only her imagination. She chose to believe it was something more and the pain in her heart eased a little.

It was time to stop dallying and get moving. There was still a good bit to be done to get ready for the open house. She dressed quickly and when she strapped on her watch, she groaned. She'd been so busy wool-gathering that she was already behind schedule and the day had barely begun.

Sara hurried down the stairs to find the kitchen empty. Obviously, the boys were sleeping in. She envied them.

“Focus, woman,” she said aloud.

Today, for the first time since they'd moved to Colorado Springs, the O’Neills were hosting a holiday Open House. Sara had no idea who was coming. She had spread the word among her friends and posted a notice on the staff bulletin board at the hospital and she knew Jack had done the same at the base. Whether a few showed up or a big crowd, she needed to be ready. What they didn’t eat could always be stuck in the freezer in the garage or given away.

Sara rubbed her hands together in anticipation. She really did love cooking; it was one of her favorite forms of relaxation. Between deciding what to make and then preparing all of the hors d’oeuvres for today, she'd had a lot of fun.

She had deliberately spread out the preparations over several days, doing a little bit at a time. Now that the day had arrived she gave herself a pat on the back. Everything was ready, except for the few last-minute details. Jack wasn’t the only person in the family who knew how to strategize. Preparations were over, now it was time to decide how to arrange the day.

Sara took the time to peel an orange and munched on the segments while pulling out trays of food and rearranging the contents of the refrigerator and freezer. Cut vegetables, check, dips, chips and nuts, check, fruit salads and green salad, check. Hmm, she needed to make a couple more green salads. She had three trays of mini-quiches, two more trays of mini-pizzas, another of crab puffs and several varieties of meat pastries and... she stopped cataloging and started calculating in what order the trays would need to go into the oven.

“Morning, Mom!”

Sara started and the tray in her hands slipped sideways. Fortunately she was by the counter and the tray of mini-quiches landed safely.

“Nice save,” Charlie grinned as he approached.

She mock-glared at him. “Consider yourself lucky. You’d be in a heap o’ deep if those had ended up on the floor.”

Charlie looked around the kitchen and his grin widened. “Are you kidding? You’ve got enough here to feed an army.”

“We just may have the entire army over here today,” she laughed. “Or at least a good part of the Air Force, not to mention all our friends.”

“Oh, yeah, Spencer said he and his folks are coming by in the afternoon.” He nodded his approval. “It smells good.”

“You ain’t seen nothing yet, buddy,” Sara tried to growl but it didn’t come out very grow-lish. They both laughed

“Once all these start going into and out of the oven, it’s going to smell much better,” she added.

“I can’t wait.”

“Really? Good. Grab some breakfast and then you can help.”

“Okay.” Charlie disappeared into the pantry and came out with a box of Cheerios. “Where’d you move the bananas?”

Sara looked around the kitchen. The counters were filled to capacity. She'd been pulling things out of the refrigerator and pantry since she’d come down.

“There they are,” she noted. “Behind the fruit salad.”

“Hey, can I have some fruit salad instead?”

“No, let's save that for the open house. Have a banana.” She tossed one over and he easily caught it. “Is Daniel still asleep?”

“I guess so. I didn’t hear him.” Charlie peeled the banana over his bowl of cereal. “You want me to wake him up?”

“Let him sleep. It’s going to be a busy day.” She pulled out the bags of mushrooms and carrots she'd bought on the way home yesterday. Something caught her attention and she spun around. “Charlie, don’t do that.”

“This works fine, Mom.” He gave her a cheeky grin and continued to break up his banana into smaller pieces.

She made a face. “It’s much neater, not to mention cleaner, to cut it up with a knife.”

“All done,” he declared, dropping the last, slightly mushed pieces of banana into his cereal. “See? It's a lot faster than getting out a knife and then having to wash it and put it away again?”

“At least wash your – ” Sara stopped and shook her head as Charlie finished wiping his hands on his jeans.

“Milk?” he asked with his most innocent smile.

Sara swallowed a smile of her own. It wouldn’t do to encourage her son. Give Charlie an inch and he'd take two miles.

“In the fridge.”

A few minutes later Charlie was scarfing down his breakfast – he had moved to the dining room because the kitchen table was covered with bowls of food – while Sara finished putting together another green salad. That made two. She had been generous with her portions and she debated whether to make another one.

“Holy Cow, Daniel!”

Sara turned around to see Daniel standing in the doorway looking... embarrassed?

“Oh, no,” she breathed. “What on earth happened?”

Daniel tried to smile and winced as Sara moved toward him. “Sit down,” she ordered.

He obediently slid into one of the kitchen chairs. Charlie followed him into the kitchen and leaned around his mother for a closer look.

“Cool shiner,” he admired.

“Charlie,” Sara warned without looking at him.

“I'm just saying...”

“Don’t.”

As a nurse, Sara had seen a lot of black eyes. Daniel’s was by no means the most spectacular but she knew it must be painful. She took comfort that his eye wasn’t swollen shut, as sometimes happened.

“What happened, honey?” she asked again.

Daniel shrugged, his good eye shifting from her to a grinning Charlie and back. “I woke up during the night to, uh,” he coughed, “anyway, I didn’t think I needed to turn on the light in the bathroom but I thought wrong.” He made a face and winced again. “When I left I ran into the door jam.”

“Ouch,” she murmured sympathetically. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

Daniel sat up a little straighter. “I didn't want to wake you guys up. I know what to do for a black eye. I took some ice from the freezer and wrapped it up in a wash cloth and put it on my eye. For fifteen minutes at a time,” he added anxiously, as if Sara was about to criticize his first aid skills. “Fifteen minutes on then fifteen minutes off, over and over. It worked too. It's not even that swollen.”

How did Daniel know – down, girl, she warned herself. Kids received minor injuries every day. Thanks to her son's gung ho attitude and love of sports, even Charlie knew how to take care of sprains and strains. Black eyes, too. The fact that Daniel knew how to take care of a black eye didn’t have to carry any ominous undertones.

Sara tamped down her suspicions and focused on the task at hand. “You did a great job,” she noted, “but I still wish you would have woken us up. You’ve been up all night, haven’t you?”

“I didn’t want to stop with the ice.” His good eye slid away from her.

“At least you got the swelling down,” Charlie observed. “You’re gonna be a real hit at the open house.” He snickered. “A real hit. Get it? A hit?”

Daniel’s good eye widened in alarm and Sara turned her head and gave her son an exasperated look. While Charlie would have showed off the shiner and bragged to whoever would listen, Daniel would most likely be embarrassed by the ordeal.

“If you’re finished with your breakfast, rinse out your bowl and put it in the dishwasher,” she ordered. “Then go out to the garage and start bringing in the other trays of food.”

“Yeah, okay.” After depositing his bowl in the dishwasher, a still snickering Charlie disappeared out the back door. As soon as he was gone Daniel looked up at her.

“I don’t want everyone to see me like this,” he whispered.

“It’s okay. You didn't do anything wrong. This isn’t a big deal,” she said.

“But I tripped in the bathroom,” he argued. “That’s really stupid.”

Oh, Daniel.

“No, it wasn’t stupid. It was an accident. That’s all.”

The back door blew open, startling both of them, and Charlie entered holding a large tray in each hand.

“It’s cold out there!” he shouted. “I bet it starts snowing soon.”

Sara jumped up to rescue the trays that looked in imminent danger of falling. “Put them on the counter.”

“Where?”

She looked around. Good question. She needed to organize things better. “Put them out on the dining room table for now.”

“’kay.” He carefully set them down before turning back. “There’re still three more trays outside. You want them in, too?”

“Yes.”

Charlie nodded and took a step before she caught his arm. “Daniel's embarrassed," she whispered, pointing to her eye to shorten the conversation. "See what you can do to make him feel better.”

He nodded his understanding. “Hey, Daniel, you want to help me bring in the other trays?”

“Sure.” Daniel jumped to his feet.

Sara stayed where she was and the last thing she heard before the door closed behind the boys was Charlie’s voice.

“Did I mention how cool your eye looks?”

She had to laugh. Charlie had his own unique way of making people feel better.

Still, Daniel’s eye would be a major topic of conversation during the open house and there was nothing Sara could do about it. Unless, hmm, carefully applied make-up might do the trick. Of course getting an eleven-year-old boy to agree to wear make-up would be a trick in itself.

Her mind skipped over several approaches as she re-arranged some of the trays. Halloween! That might convince him since make-up had been part of their costumes. Now it would be a matter of coming up with the right spin to sell the idea. Charlie could probably help with that, too.

Feeling better, Sara began cutting up the carrots and mushrooms.

~~~

When Jack pulled into the garage, the clock in the dash read 11:00 a.m. Perfect. Sara couldn’t accuse him of avoiding the dirty work. He was in time to help with the last-minute details that always needed to be done before a party.

Jack closed the garage door and waited for Kawalsky to meet him at the front door. They'd left the base together and the Major had volunteered to help with the preparations.

“This ought to be fun.” Kawalsky rubbed his hands together to ward off the cold.

“Yeah,” Jack agreed.

It had been a while since he'd thrown a shindig this big for colleagues and friends. He was sure Sara had so readily agreed because he was a Colonel and she understood that's what good officers did, they took care of the people under their command.

Not everyone had the luxury of going home for the holidays and this kind of occasion gave them a chance to get out and celebrate and bond with each other. Jack still remembered parties from long ago when he was a junior officer who had to work the holidays and he and Sara were stationed far from home. He had no doubt she remembered, too.

As second in command of the SGC, he felt an obligation to reciprocate the kindness he’d experienced years ago. That was a good enough reason to celebrate. Then this morning General Hammond had called him in to confirm that if everything remained on schedule, teams would begin going through the Stargate in six weeks. Talk about an even better reason to celebrate.

Six weeks. Other than Jack and Hammond, no one on the base knew the time table. The General would inform base personnel within the next few weeks. Meanwhile, Jack had to sit on his excitement. It was especially difficult with his best friend walking beside him.

Jack pushed open the front door and was struck by the aroma of – damn, the food smelled great.

“Have I died and gone to heaven or what?” Kawalsky groaned.

Sara popped out from the kitchen. Over her shoulder Jack saw Daniel in front of the stove, stirring something in a sauce pan. He was pleased everyone was helping out with the party prep.

“Good,” she said, “you’re home. Hi, Charlie," she acknowledged. "Jack, you can bring in some firewood. Make sure to bring in plenty.”

“Okay – ”

“Charlie, if you could run upstairs to the attic and bring down the card table that would be a big help. I need more space to put things.”

“Sure, Sara – ”

“Hi, Dad! Hi, Uncle Charlie!”

Jack laughed. He hadn’t spotted Charlie right away because the boy was on his knees in front of the china cabinet, half-hidden by the open doors.

“What are you doing down – oh, I see.”

Charlie had pulled out several serving platters. As Jack and Kawalsky watched, he also removed the sugar bowl and gravy bowls.

“Move it, guys.” Sara clapped her hand twice with the words. “We don’t have a lot of time before people start arriving.”

Oops. Jack knew that clipped tone. “On it, honey.” He threw Kawalsky a quick look. “The card table is behind the boxes in the attic.”

“Right.” Kawalsky grinned and gave Sara a crisp salute before taking the stairs two at a time.

Jack went back and forth between the house and the woodshed until Sara was satisfied he'd brought in enough wood to get them through the day. He laid a fire, lit it, and paused a minute to enjoy the aroma the apple wood gave off as it burned.

Kawalsky brought down the card table and Sara sent the boys upstairs to get additional table cloths from the linen closet. She put the men to work, moving furniture around to make room for the tables and extra chairs – which necessitated more trips to the attic.

Jack had been distracted from his chores only once. The first time he got a good look at Daniel he did a double-take. He opened his mouth to ask questions but Sara had been standing behind Daniel shaking her head and making a face, clearly asking him not to mention it. So Jack had closed his mouth and continued following her instructions. He knew he’d find out eventually and with Sara in command-mode the smartest thing to do was to follow orders.

When his wife finally deemed everything was ready, Jack headed for the food-laden dining room table.

“Don’t even think about it,” she warned and he stopped, hand hovering over the plate stacked high with hot, just-out-of-the-oven mini-pizzas.

“Come on, honey,” he said with his most appealing look. "They're appetizers and I have an appetite."

The doorbell rang and Sara smiled in satisfaction. “Let in our first guests and then you can start eating.”

“All right!” Charlie snatched the mini-pizza Jack had been about to grab.

Jack glared at him before heading for the front door. “Watch it kiddo, you’re out of your weight class.”

“Yeah, but I’ve been trained by the best!” His son laughed.

Jack laughed, too. “Can’t argue with that,” he agreed and swung the door open.

“Welcome!”

Chapter 19

As the day wore on, Daniel grew increasingly comfortable with the make-up covering his black eye.

Sara had been great about it, Charlie, too. He'd been hesitant about the idea of wearing make-up but Charlie had reminded him they'd both worn it to look scary on Halloween.

“Today it’ll help you look normal,” Charlie had insisted.

“There’s nothing wrong with the way you look, Daniel,” Sara had quickly corrected. “It will just help you look less... bruised.”

Daniel was glad he had agreed. Even under close scrutiny, he could barely see any bruising once Sara had finished with him. He was even more pleased by the fact that none of the people attending the open house seemed to notice anything out of the ordinary. True, Sergeant Siler had given him a second look after he said hello, but he hadn’t mentioned anything. And Robert, Dr. Rothman, gave him a similar look and then, for the very first time, gave him a hug. That surprised Daniel in a good way.

“Is Dr. Lee coming?” Daniel asked.

It was fun greeting his friends and there were far more military personnel here than scientists, though that made perfect sense since there weren't that many scientists working at the base compared to soldiers.

“No,” Robert shook his head, “he and his wife went to spend the holidays with his in-laws out of town.”

Dr. Lee was married? Daniel was astonished. He had no idea. “Um, are you married, too?” he asked hesitantly.

Robert smiled and shook his head. “No, just married to my work, I guess.”

Was he going to be alone for Christmas? Daniel didn’t like that idea at all. Maybe Dr. Rothman could come over here. He wondered where Sara was so he could ask her.

“I don’t actually celebrate Christmas,” Robert continued, as if reading Daniel’s mind. “But I will be spending next weekend with my sister and her family for a belated Hanukah.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t even think about that.” He wished he’d known Robert celebrated that holiday so he could’ve wished him a Happy Hanukah."

Robert’s smile widened. “You have nothing to be sorry for, Daniel. There was no reason for you to think about it.”

Daniel wasn’t so sure. Dr. Lee and Dr. Rothman were his friends and he hadn’t taken the time to find out anything about their personal lives.

Dr. Rothman patted him on the shoulder. “I need to give my respects to Colonel and Mrs. O’Neill, then maybe you could show me around all that wonderful-smelling food.”

“I can do that." Daniel brightened. "I helped with some of it.”

“Great.”

Considering how nervous he'd been about the whole open house concept, Daniel was happily surprised to be having such a good a time. He talked to Dr. Rothman for awhile longer, and then guided him to a couple other scientists from the SGC so his friend wouldn’t be alone.

It was amazing how many people came and went throughout the day. Some of them were strangers to him, especially Sara’s friends from the hospital. Daniel recognized some of the soldiers from the base and some he didn't recognize at all. They all looked very different out of uniform.

Even if he didn't recognize them it was obvious they were military by the way they greeted Jack. Jack greeted each and every soldier and introduced them to Sara before showing them to the food tables and telling them to stock up. The younger soldiers joked with Charlie and then gathered around the various food stations. No wonder Sara had made so much, she knew how much young soldiers could eat.

Even Dr. Fraiser came by for a little while. So did General Hammond. Daniel was surprised to see that the General had a little girl with him.

“Hello, Daniel,” the General greeted.

“Hi, General Hammond.”

“Who’s this, Grandpa?” the little girl asked, resting comfortably in the General’s arms.

General Hammond ran a gentle hand over her dark curls. “Sweetheart, this is Daniel, one of Colonel and Mrs. O’Neill’s sons. Daniel, this is my granddaughter, Tessa.”

“Hi, Daniel,” Tessa said with the assurance of a much older child and stuck out her hand.

Daniel was so startled by the General’s words he almost missed the gesture. He took the tiny hand in his own and shook it while General Hammond beamed.

“Let’s get you something to eat, honey,” the General said to his granddaughter. “How about you, Daniel?”

“I already ate, sir.”

“We’ll see you later, then.”

How about that? The General thought of him as ‘one of Colonel and Mrs. O’Neill’s sons.’ It was amazing how a few simple words could make him feel so accepted.

People continued to arrive, stayed for awhile to eat and chat, and then left, just in time to make room for more people. The snow flurries outside didn’t seem to slow anyone down and Daniel was secretly impressed by how much they ate, especially the young Airmen and Marines. Wow.

He heard Charlie’s yelp of delight when Spencer and his parents showed up. There were plenty of other kids, too, some from the neighborhood and others from school or kids that belonged to the military personnel at the SGC. Daniel was especially pleased when Mrs. Lindsey dropped by with Karen and Adam. Tomorrow they were leaving for their grandparents’ home to spend Christmas vacation so they couldn't stay very long, but at least Daniel had a chance to say goodbye and wish them a Merry Christmas.

When he wasn’t distracted by other people, Daniel tried to keep an eye on Jack and Sara. They looked so happy, smiling and laughing, always at the center of a crowd. Charlie, too, always seemed to be in a crowd, usually of other kids but he seemed equally at home chatting with grown-ups, especially the young military types.

Watching, Daniel felt a surge of envy. Charlie belonged here in this house, with Jack and Sara. He didn’t struggle with self-doubt or feelings of insecurity. He just belonged.

“One of Colonel and Mrs. O’Neill’s sons,” General Hammond had called him. Other people believed he belonged here, too. If only he could get rid of those niggling self-doubts.

“Daniel, honey?”

He started. Hadn’t Sara just been in the kitchen? How did she get out here so fast to be standing by the fireplace?

“Hi, Sara. This is great party. There's so many people.”

“Yes, it is ,” she agreed, as she looked around the crowded room before turning back to him. “How are you doing?” She wrapped her arm around his shoulders.

“Great.” He leaned into her embrace. “Except, I’m getting hungry again.”

“Well, I know how we can take care of that!”

Sara was so neat, always looking out for him. Jack did too, except he wasn’t so obvious about it. He was more casual, which Daniel generally preferred. But sometimes Sara’s touch was just right.

The next time the doorbell rang Daniel answered it. "Merry Christmas," he spouted to the black-haired woman standing outside. “Hi, Ms. Haley.”

Diane Haley put a finger to her lips before giving him a quick hug. “Hi, Daniel.” She came in and took off her coat which Daniel hung up in the closet.

“Where's Sara?”

He looked over the crowd. “I’m not sure. I saw her in the kitchen a few minutes ago.”

Diane laughed. “Good. I can surprise her.” She gave him a conspiratorial wink. “Since I was just here on Thanksgiving she won’t be expecting me.”

“She’ll be surprised,” he agreed.

Jack spotted her as he walked out of the back hall. He grinned broadly and swept her up in a hug.

“You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?” he laughed.

“I knew Sara wouldn’t be expecting me so I couldn’t resist.”

“Does this mean you’re staying till Christmas?” Jack drew back to look at her.

“No.” She shook her head with regret. “I have to be back for Monday and Tuesday classes, then finish up a few odds and ends.” She grimaced. “I won’t be able to fly back here until Christmas morning. I’ve already made reservations so I’m trusting there won’t be any problems.”

“We’ll keep our fingers crossed,” he promised and looked at Daniel. “Where was Sara the last time you saw her?”

“Going into the kitchen.”

“What a surprise.” Jack rolled his eyes.

“Less sarcasm if you please, Colonel.” Diane punched him lightly in the arm.

“Ow.” He grinned and rubbed his arm.

“Let’s go find Sara.” She smiled sweetly.

Daniel’s curiosity was piqued and he followed them. They found Sara standing near the kitchen table talking to Hank Eckerly.

“Oh, Sara?” he sing-songed, so casually that if Daniel were Sara, he'd immediately be suspicious.

She turned around and Jack stepped aside. Sara’s eyes widened. “Diane!” she yelped so loudly that people nearby turned around. “You sneak!” The laughing women gave each other hugs while Jack stood by, smirking.

“When did Ms. Haley get here?” Charlie appeared at Daniel’s side.

“I guess she just flew in to surprise Sara. Then she’s going back home and flying back again for Christmas.” He shook his head. “That’s a lot of traveling for just a few days.”

Charlie shrugged. “They’re best friends,” he said as if that explained everything, which Daniel guessed it did. Charlie waggled his eyebrows, like Jack sometimes did and they both laughed.

Across the room, Jack heard the boys giggling and gave them a quick once-over. Nope, it looked like all was well. They’d probably just come up with something only comprehensible to someone in their age group.

“Hey, Diane’s here!”

Jack turned around to find Kawalsky had come up behind him and was eyeing Sara’s best friend.

“Yeah,” Jack grinned. “You haven’t seen her since Thanksgiving, have you?”

“Nope.”

“Had a nice time chatting over coffee that night, did you?”

“As a matter of fact, we did.” Kawalsky eyed his friend suspiciously.

“So what’d you talk about?” Jack had been meaning to ask the man since Thanksgiving but he kept forgetting. This seemed like the perfect time.

“This and that, how long I’ve known you and Sara, life in the military, you know.”

“So you didn’t talk about her?” Jack’s amusement grew.

“Well, sure, uh...” Kawalsky looked sheepish. “No, I guess we didn’t. She kept asking questions and it was easier to just keep answering them.”

“And you were happy to answer,” Jack snorted.

“She didn’t seem to mind,” the Major said defensively.

“Yeah, well, you missed something.”

“What?”

“You sure you want to know?” Jack was having a hard time swallowing his laughter.

Kawalsky’s eyes narrowed. “Spill it,” he demanded.

“Okay. Diane Haley has her own dojo in Phoenix. And she ran one in Denver, too, before she moved.”

“What?” Kawalsky’s narrowed eyes widened.

“Yeah, she teaches martial arts full-time. According to Sara, Diane has black belts in several of the martial arts, all high-level black belts. She’s been studying that stuff practically all her life.”

The sight of his mouthy Major speechless was more than Jack could stand. He burst out laughing and it took a few minutes before he regained control.

“She never said a word,” the big man said in disbelief.

“It doesn’t sound like she was able to get a word in edge-wise,” Jack tweaked his old friend.

The hangdog look on Kawalsky’s face was priceless and Jack slapped him on the shoulder.

“You had a good time over coffee last month, right?”

“Yeah.”

“So just take it from there. But this time,” Jack couldn’t resist adding, “make sure you ask her questions about herself.”

Charlie suddenly appeared in front of him and Jack’s amusement disappeared in the face of his son’s wide-eyed alarm.

“What’s wrong?”

Charlie leaned closer until he was practically leaning against his father and whispered something too softly for Jack to hear. Jack exchanged concerned looks with Kawalsky and bent over the boy.

“I didn’t hear you. Is someone hurt?”

“No!” Charlie exclaimed sotto voce. “She’s here!”

“Who’s she?” Kawalsky asked at the same time Jack said, “Who’s here?”

“Mrs. Beardsley!” Charlie gave them an agonized look.

“Mrs. – ”

Charlie cut him off. “And Daniel has a black eye!”

“Who’s Mrs. Beardsley?” Kawalsky stared from the boy to Jack.

“Crap!” Jack looked around for Sara. “Daniel’s social worker,” he muttered. “Where is she?”

“You invited Daniel’s social worker to your open house?” Kawalsky looked confused.

“No!” Jack snapped. “Sometimes she drops by unannounced. Where's Sara?”

“Especially since your secret mission,” Charlie added, looking at the Major. “And she’s still at the door. That’s where I left her anyway.”

Jack was moving now, his eyes scouring the crowd. A minute ago Sara had been right in front of him. How had she disappeared so fast?

Wait a minute. What had his son said? Jack turned to the boy. “You left her standing outside?” he demanded in horror.

“No, no, she’s inside. I let her in before I closed the door.” Charlie sounded indignant and Kawalsky laughed.

“The Big O knows how to do things right.”

Charlie smiled briefly at his godfather before turning another worried look up at his father who was walking quickly, offering superficial smiles and apologies as he slid through the crowd.

“What are we going to do?” he hissed, keeping his voice down so there was no chance of Mrs. Beardsley overhearing. “Daniel looks pretty good with Mom’s make-up on but if he stands under a light you can see his black eye.”

“Light,” Jack mumbled and stopped in his tracks. “Charlie, get Daniel to go stand in the hallway and then turn off the overhead light in there. I don’t think she’d be able to get a good look at him there.”

“I’ve got an idea,” Kawalsky interrupted. “Why don’t you just tell her the truth, that Daniel had an accident?”

Jack gave him an exasperated look and Charlie piped up. “A lot’s happened to Daniel since he came to live with us. And ever since you guys were gone so long on your secret mission, I think she’s been kind of suspicious.”

“She has,” Jack agreed. “That’s probably why she’s stepped up her unannounced visits. We’re not going to give her one more thing to worry about.” He waved at his son. “Go.”

Daniel was offering a glass of hot apple cider to one of the neighbors when Charlie appeared at his elbow.

“Excuse us,” he said, giving the elderly woman a quick smile before pulling Daniel away.

“Charlie, what are you – ”

“Mrs. Beardsley’s here!” Charlie blurted out in an excited whisper.

Daniel's caught his breath. His heart dropped to his feet as he put his hand up to his black eye.

“Now? She's here now?" And the party had been going so well. Sometimes life just wasn’t fair.

“Come on.”

“What – ”

“In here.”

Charlie pulled him into the hallway and didn’t stop until they were standing by the stairs.

“Stay right here,” he ordered.

“Why?”

Ignoring the question, Charlie darted to the wall and slapped his hand against the light switch. The overhead light went off and Daniel found himself standing in semi-dimness.

“What are you doing?”

“It’s all about tactics and strategy,” Charlie explained which only confused Daniel more.

“What?”

Charlie pointed a finger at him. “You stay put. I’m going to bring Mrs. Beardsley in here.” Daniel started to protest but Charlie raised his voice and spoke over him.

“She’s gotta see you for the visit to count, right? Don’t worry, she won’t be able to see much of anything in here. It’s not bright enough. And Dad and Mom should be here in a minute to distract her. It’ll be okay.”

With that his brother was gone, leaving Daniel standing there with his mouth hanging opened. It’ll be okay, he repeated Charlie’s last words for reassurance. Charlie, Jack and Sara will make sure of that.

A few minutes later a nervous Daniel heard Charlie’s approaching voice.

“There’re so many people it’s hard to keep track of who’s where,” he was saying to someone. Daniel gulped and straightened up when he realized who that someone must be. "Daniel and I needed a break from all the people so we were hanging out in here."

A few seconds later Charlie came into the hall, followed by – Daniel gulped again and prayed his voice would sound normal.

“Hi, Mrs. Beardsley,” he greeted with only the faintest quiver.

“Hello, Daniel,” she gave him a warm smile. “Merry almost Christmas.”

“You, too.” He managed a smile of his own.

Charlie looked from one of them to the other. A smile was fixed on his face but Daniel could see the anxiety in his eyes. Fortunately, the social worker wasn't focusing on Charlie. Where the heck were Jack and Sara?

Despite her power over his life, Mrs. Beardsley didn’t look the least bit threatening. Middle-aged, middle-sized, with brownish-gray hair and dark eyes framed by glasses, Daniel would have found her a pleasant figure under different circumstances. But the fact was that Mrs. Beardsley was the arbiter of his future. Considering how unconventional his life sometimes was between the SGC and the O’Neills, Daniel was a little afraid of her, though she had never been anything but nice to him.

“How are you enjoying Christmas vacation?” she asked with what sounded like sincere interest.

“It’s been good,” Daniel assured her unable to think of anything clever to say.

“There you are,” sounded a familiar voice and he stiffened his legs so he wouldn’t collapse with relief at the sight of Jack and Sara approaching.

“We’re so glad you’re here,” Sara said warmly. “Are you hungry? We have lots of food.”

“Tons,” Jack agreed with his most charming smile. “I know there’s something out there on the tables with your name on it.”

Mrs. Beardsley laughed. “It smells wonderful but I don’t want to intrude. I just wanted to wish Daniel happy holidays.”

“Aren’t you nice,” Sara smiled. “Come, you can’t go back outside into that stormy weather without something to eat. And something hot to drink, perhaps?”

With her hand on the social worker’s arm, Sara drew the older woman away. When they disappeared from sight all three guys looked at each other and laughed.

“Is Mom cool or what?” Charlie said in admiration.

“Very smooth moves,” Jack agreed. He put an arm around each of the boy’s shoulders and gave them a squeeze. “Why don’t you two hide out here for a little while longer. We’ll stuff Mrs. Beardsley with food and compliments and then slide her on out of here.”

Daniel’s anxiety faded. He wasn’t alone anymore. That was something he still needed to remind himself of sometimes. Jack, Sara and Charlie were all on his side. He belonged to this family now.

“I’m still hungry,” Charlie complained. "I've been pacing myself."

“Of course you are,” Jack tousled his son's hair. “I’ll fill a couple plates for both of you. Be back in a few minutes.”

As he walked away Charlie sat down on the stairs. “This may take awhile,” he grinned, “so we might as well get comfortable.”

Daniel sat down beside him and they were silent for a minute before Charlie nudged him.

“How’s the eye?”

“I don’t even feel it anymore,” he answered. It was the truth. In the O'Neill household he felt nothing but good.

“That’s good,” Charlie said in obvious relief. He rubbed his hands together. “I can’t believe Christmas is in less than a week. I can’t wait.”

Neither could Daniel. His last two Christmases in foster care weren’t worth remembering but he was pretty sure this one was going to be different. Just like this Thanksgiving had been different from the last two. This year it had been fun and Charlie’s tales of past Christmases made Daniel hopeful that this special holiday would be fun, too.

“We get to open one present each on Christmas Eve, remember?” Charlie asked.

“I remember.” His older brother had mentioned this ritual before. It must be important.

“You wanna open the biggest one,” Charlie advised with a knowing nod.

“Why?”

“Cuz it won’t be clothes,” Charlie winked.

Daniel laughed. Today’s open house had turned out to be so great that now he couldn’t wait for Christmas to get here, starting with Christmas Eve and the 'choose one gift' ceremony. He wasn't sure how many gifts he'd have but he vowed to follow Charlie's advice if possible.

Chapter 20

Christmas Eve.

Just the thought was enough to calm Jack, even after the worst of days.

It had taken him a long time to figure out why this holiday was so important. Yeah, his family’s heritage was Irish-Catholic and if he tried, he could still see Sister Margherita standing in the center of a circle of five-year-olds, including one Jonny O’Neill, telling them the story of Christmas. It had been the very next year when Jonny insisted he'd no longer answer to his nickname. Once he turned six years old he no longer considered himself a little boy. From then on he required a more ‘grown-up’ name – Jack.

Even now the memory made him smile. Name change notwithstanding, Jonny/Jack O’Neill had grown up in a family who considered Christmas not so much in regard to the religious aspects but as the quintessential family holiday, focusing on the importance of being together as a family.

Jack’s earliest memories included Christmas with his grandparents. Every year his family showed up, as did their extended family, uncles, aunts, cousins. Not until he was eleven years old did the main gathering place change to his own home, and that only because of his grandparents’ increasingly poor health.

The O’Neill clan was by no means a perfect family. They had their problems, disagreements, feuds, and divorces. Despite it all, every Christmas brought them back together and for those few days all that was unpleasant was disregarded. It was a time of celebration, of belonging, and knowing nothing could ever change that.

His background probably had a lot to do with why Jack enjoyed the holiday now that he was officially middle-aged. Damn, he hated that phrase; he was only as old as he felt, right? The extended family Christmas get-togethers had become more intermittent as the aunts and uncles grew older, the cousins moved away and had their own families to attend to. But they still exchanged phone calls and e-mails of Christmas greetings during the holidays.

Jack and Sara's focus had always been on making the holidays as special for Charlie as it had been for them growing up. They wanted Charlie to be able to look back on his childhood and remember the Christmases of his youth with fond memories.

Now Daniel was part of their family. Jack had no idea what his last couple of Christmases had been like. The kid hadn’t volunteered anything, but Jack had his suspicions. This year was going to be different. Daniel would experience Christmas as it was meant to be experienced, surrounded by a loving family.

Damn, O’Neill, you’re getting old, meandering through ancient memories instead of focusing on the here and now, which happened to be the living room of their home on Christmas Eve. He chuckled when Charlie flung himself down in front of the Christmas tree and reached eagerly for an oversized present.

“Don’t even think about it,” Jack warned, trying to keep a straight face.

“Come on,” Charlie pleaded.

It was close to a whine and across the room Jack saw Sara put her hand over her mouth to cover her own amusement. Their son was officially beyond hyped-up and there was no telling how long the roof would survive.

“Let’s all sit down,” Sara suggested as she settled on the ottoman.

Daniel was hovering by the sofa, as if hesitant to join Charlie by the tree. Jack walked up behind him, put an arm around his shoulders and pulled the boy along.

“You heard her,” he grinned. “Why don’t you sit with Charlie?”

That must have been what the kid needed. He smiled shyly at Sara and Jack and dropped to the floor. Charlie gave him an excited grin.

“Remember,” he lowered his voice, “go for the biggest one.”

Jack and Sara exchanged amused looks. Charlie was too excited to whisper and they had no trouble hearing him.

“Daniel,” Sara said, “Our family tradition is to have one person at a time open his or her present so everyone can see who gave what to whom. No simultaneous mass destruction.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Daniel snuck a sideways glance at the pile of presents under the Christmas tree.

“And tonight, I’ll hand out the presents,” Jack proclaimed and stifled a chuckle when Charlie’s face fell. “One each on Christmas Eve.”

“I already told Daniel that.” Charlie was still eyeing the mound of gifts.

Jack swallowed a grin and leaned closer to his son. “I’ll try to avoid the clothes presents,” he whispered.

That won him a relieved smile. Jack glanced over his shoulder and caught Sara’s expression and knew she was fighting not to laugh. They both dreaded the day when Charlie lost his excitement over the holidays.

“Okay.” Jack sat down between the boys and reached under the tree. “Hmm, what’s this?” The package was small and square. The creased edges and excess of tape made it obvious Sara hadn’t wrapped it. “From Daniel to..." Jack took his time. "Charlie.”

It was hard to figure out how Charlie could bounce in place when he was sitting on the floor but he managed.

“Thanks, Daniel!” He took the present from Jack and tore off the wrapping.

Jack threw Sara another look and she rolled her eyes. She liked to recycle wrapping paper if it remained in good condition. Any wrapping paper used on Charlie's gifts never survived long enough to recycle. Charlie’s method of opening presents made that impossible.

Jack picked up his DVD camcorder and filmed Charlie’s no-holds barred attack on the wrapping.

“Boy, you used a lot of tape,” Charlie grunted as he struggled with the cardboard flaps.

“I didn’t want it to open by accident.” Daniel seemed nervous.

“And it looks like you did a good job,” Jack assured him while Sara made affirmative noises.

“Hah!” Charlie triumphantly ripped the box apart and dug through the crumpled wad of newspaper. After a few seconds he lifted a small, thin package that had also been covered with Christmas wrap.

“Yes!” Charlie exclaimed as he ripped it apart.

From where he was sitting, Jack couldn’t see what it was but from the look on his son’s face, it was a big deal.

“Oh, man, this is great! I’ve been looking for this forever!” Charlie’s eyes were shining; his whole face was aglow. “Where the heck did you find it?”

Jack wasn't sure he’d ever seen such a big grin on Daniel’s face. As thrilled as Charlie was, Daniel seemed even more thrilled that his gift had gone over so well.

“I looked all over the internet,” Daniel enthused. “Spencer gave me some ideas where to look and I finally found it in a sports memorabilia store in Chicago.”

As he explained, Daniel turned shining eyes on Jack who immediately decided that allowing the boy to take a very small advance on his inheritance from his parents had been more than worth it. It had taken a lot of time, a hell of a lot of paperwork and calling in a couple more favors, but Jack had managed to put what was left of the Jacksons’ estate in trust for Daniel. It wasn’t a huge amount; the Jacksons had been academics and working archeologists. Still, it was a nice nest egg that would enable Daniel to attend the university of his choice and have something left over afterwards.

Originally, Jack had offered Daniel a loan but the boy had turned it down. He wanted his gift to come from him and Jack understood that thinking. He was glad that, unlike some baseball cards, this one didn’t cost an arm and a leg.

“See, Dad? It's the card I've been looking for.”

Charlie’s voice brought him out of his daydreaming.

“Yeah, I see it. Hold it up.”

For the first time Charlie noticed the camcorder pointed at him. He crossed his eyes, then chuckled and held up the card which was protected inside a hard plastic case.

“This is the Derek Jeter MVP card I’ve been looking for for so long! Isn’t it great? Holy Cow, Daniel, this is in great condition, too! Thank you. I totally wasn't expecting it.”

“You’re welcome,” Daniel answered, beaming almost as much as Charlie.

After a few more minutes of gloating, Charlie looked back at the tree. “That was mine, now someone else needs to open a present. Wait a minute, I see something!”

Before anyone could react, he lunged under the tree.

“Charlie!” Sara exclaimed, half-amused and half-annoyed. “If you knock over that tree – ”

“I got it.” Charlie's voice was slightly muffled as he crawled back out on his hands and knees. When he emerged with ruffled hair and a wrinkled shirt he was holding up a present wrapped in red paper covered with Santa Clauses.

“Put it back,” Jack ordered. “You’ve already opened yours for tonight.”

“It’s not for me,” Charlie grinned. “It’s for you.” Without ceremony he tossed it to his father.

“Smart ass,” Jack snorted as he set down the camcorder.

“Oh, no, you don’t.” Sara held out a demanding hand.

With a put-upon sigh, Jack handed her the camcorder and then studied his present trying to guess what was inside. The paper was wild enough for Charlie but the neat wrapping and minimum use of tape told him who it was from. For confirmation, he turned the package over and saw, half-tucked beneath the bow, a tag bearing Sara's familiar handwriting – “To Jackie boy with love from Santa.”

Jack chuckled and looked up at his wife to see her aiming the camcorder at him. He mugged briefly before saying, “Thanks Santa, honey,” and digging into the present. Charlie hovered anxiously over him so Jack deliberately took his time. Carefully, he unstuck one edge of the paper, then the other, then turned the present over to do the same on the opposite side.

“For crying out loud, Dad,” Charlie muttered, “you better hope whatever's in there doesn’t have an expiration date.”

Jack burst out laughing; so did Sara, which set off Daniel. Charlie remained exasperated but Jack could tell the kid was fighting off his own giggles. It took a few minutes for everyone to calm down, then Jack resumed his careful attack on the present, dragging it out until he could feel Charlie beside him vibrating with impatience.

When the box started to slide out of the paper Jack forgot all about teasing his son. “Sara!” he yelped in delight. “You didn’t!”

“Cool!” Charlie pronounced.

“What is it?” Daniel leaned forward, pushing his glasses higher up his nose and frowning.

Jack turned it around so they could all see the front cover before going up on his knees to throw his arms around his wife.

“If I didn’t love you before, I do now!”

“Breathing, Jack. I can’t breathe.” Sara coughed theatrically.

He released her and stared at the cover. “I don’t believe it,” he marveled.

Daniel’s expression had cleared and he was smiling. “That’s the cartoon you like to watch, isn’t it?”

“Not just a cartoon, Daniel,” Jack proclaimed in his most sonorous tone. “‘The Simpsons’ are a cultural icon.” He laughed and gave up his attempt to sound serious. “Look at this! All the seasons up through last year. I didn’t know there was a complete set.” He favored Sara with his most loving look. “You’re the absolute best, honey.”

“I’m glad you like – ” was as far as she got before Jack grabbed her again and gave her a long, smacking kiss.

“Ewww!” Charlie said, closing his eyes and turning his head away. “I thought I wasn’t allowed to watch anything over PG-13.”

Jack let go of his flushed, smiling wife and gave his son a look. “Watch it,” he warned, trying to hide a grin. “You’re hardly in a position to criticize. I remember all the drooling you were doing when Allison was here.”

“That’ll be enough from both of you,” Sara chuckled as Charlie blushed. Jack smirked at his son, reluctantly set his gift aside, and turned back to the important matter at hand.

“Let’s see.” He rummaged through the pile of presents. “Sara and Daniel still need to open a present. Daniel, here you go.”

He lifted the package, then remembered what was in it and threw a quick look over at Sara. Her eyes went soft and she nodded slightly so no one but he would have noticed. She was right. It was as good a time as any to give this to Daniel.

Wide-eyed, Daniel accepted the gift and set it in his lap. Jack was close enough that he could see the boy’s hands trembling in anticipation. Damn, he hoped Sara was right about this.

“The paper's beautiful,” Daniel murmured, running his hand over the heavy, deep blue paper stamped with multiple pictures of the manger scene with a brilliant star overhead.

Charlie shifted impatiently. “But it’s what’s inside that’s important,” he hinted broadly.

Jack laid a hand on his son’s knee, stilling him. When Charlie looked up Jack shook his head to let his son know this wasn’t the time for joking around.

Daniel took his time, pulling the taped ends of the paper free one at a time, careful not to tear it. Watching, Jack realized that this part, opening the present, was just as meaningful to the kid as whatever was inside. Daniel wanted to enjoy the entire experience.

The last of the wrapping paper came free, then he removed the heavy brown paper that formed a second layer. When he pulled the last piece of tape away the contents spilled into his lap.

“Books!” Daniel said, eyes shining in delight. He turned them over so he could read their covers. The blood drained from his face and Sara put down the camcorder and sat beside him, one arm around his shoulders and her free hand resting on his.

For a minute Jack could only see the bowed blonde head. When Daniel looked up, his vulnerable eyes shifted from Jack to Sara and back.

“My- my parents wrote these,” he said softly.

Jack cleared his throat but Sara spoke first. “Yes, they did,” she agreed with a gentle smile.

“I have lots of, of their books.”

“You have the books they used to own,” Jack said, “but I don’t remember seeing any written by your mom or dad.”

Jack was certain the Jacksons hadn’t included their own publications among the library that now belonged to Daniel. He was certain of it because he’d spent a couple of long hours one Saturday morning in Daniel’s new office going through every last one of those damned books to make sure.

“This one...” Sara touched one of the covers, “Was the very first book your mother had published.” She opened the front cover and flipped through the first few pages. “See? It was published before you were born.”

“Uh-huh.” Daniel managed a watery smile.

“And this one,” she tapped the other book, “was written by your father a few years later. We couldn’t find the first book he had published but I thought you'd like this, especially when you see the year it was published.”

This time Daniel found the publication date on his own and his smile widened as his eyes filled with tears. “That was the year I was born,” he whispered.

“Yes it was,” Sara hugged him tightly.

Jack had enough of sitting around and leaned over to put his arms around both of them. He heard a couple suspicious sniffs behind him and then Charlie piled in to turn the embrace into a group hug. When they broke apart Sara and Daniel were wiping their eyes while Charlie was doing a more furtive brush across his face with his shirt sleeve. For his part, Jack bestowed a benevolent smile on his family and was grateful for the fact he wasn’t so sentimental. He just had something in his eye was all.

“This is the best,” Daniel finally said. His eyes were still bright but he was in control again. “The absolute best. Thank you, all of you.”

“You’re very welcome, honey,” Sara answered and Jack and Charlie echoed her, though they left off the endearment. Glancing at Charlie, Jack figured his son was thinking the same thing. Daniel would die of embarrassment if they all called him ‘honey.’ It was okay for Sara; it was one of those mom things. But guys calling other guys that? No way, no how.

Jack cleared his throat a couple more times. “All right, that just leaves you, Sara. Hang on.”

He burrowed beneath the tree once again and after a minute of studying various packages, pulled one out. “Here ya go.” After he handed it over he picked up the camcorder and pointed it at her.

Sara read the tag out loud. “Merry Christmas, Mom, from the Big O.” She gave her son a mock glare. “Thank you, but isn’t it enough that Charlie K calls you that? You better not expect me to.”

Charlie gave her a smug smile and Jack pretended to swat the kid’s head with his free hand. “Never mind him, let’s see what’cha got.”

She made a face at him and began unwrapping the gift. Like Daniel, Sara took her time opening presents and both Jack and Charlie were squirming by the time she removed the last of the paper. Underneath, covered in tissue paper, was a square, box-shaped something. Finally abandoning discretion, Sara tore the tissue paper away and stared, transfixed.

The seconds ticked by in silence until Charlie's nervous cough broke the silence. “I know it’s not store-bought but I thought...” he stopped when his mother turned tear-filled eyes on him.

“Now, Mom – ”

That was as far as he got before his breath escaped his lungs in an explosive whoosh under the force of Sara’s hug. Grinning, Jack took the gift out of her loosened grasp to get a better look. Daniel scooted closer and Jack let him see it, too.

“It’s pretty,” Daniel observed. “What do you call it?”

“I think it’s called a shadow box.” Jack glanced at his wife for confirmation but she was too busy hugging the stuffing out of their son to pay attention.

“Charlie, did you make this yourself?” He caught the faint nod of the boy’s head, half-buried in his mother’s arms. “Where’d you get the wood? Is it from the scrap lumber in the back yard?”

“Uh-huh,” Charlie gasped as he finally managed to free himself from Sara’s embrace. “Yeah, I got the wood from the back yard. The plastic pieces I got from the art store near school.”

“Hmm,” Jack said thoughtfully as he examined the box.

The case was fully enclosed, the back side was covered with black-tinted plastic while the front was clear plastic in order to see the display inside. The joints were snug and so tight the seams were almost invisible and the honey-colored wood had been sanded to satin smoothness.

Carefully mounted within the box were several perfectly dried flowers. A large, fully-opened white rose took center stage with the other flowers providing a colorful backdrop. Apart from the rose, Jack had no idea what kind of flowers they were but Sara would know.

He handed the box to a hovering Daniel and picked up his camcorder again.

“Did all these flowers come from the back yard, too?” Daniel asked.

Charlie nodded while keeping a wary eye on his mother in case she decided to burst into another emotional demonstration. At the moment she was sitting quietly, a smile on her lips and misty-eyed.

“Yeah,” he said. “Last spring when I was helping Mom do some yard work, she kept talking about how much she loved all the flowers blooming and how she wished they’d last longer. So I, uh...” for the first time he fumbled for words and looked a little embarrassed.

Swinging the camcorder between Sara and Charlie, Jack smiled at his son. “So you made it possible for her to enjoy some of the flowers all year long.”

“Yeah,” Charlie admitted, looking as guilty as if he'd just robbed a bank.

“You did a great job making it,” Jack said. “The joints are perfect, the seams are barely visible, and I can’t believe how good the wood looks. You must have sanded it for hours to make it look like this. I just have one question.”

“What?” Charlie was beaming with pride under his father’s praise.

“You said these flowers are from the back yard. Where’d you learn to dry them and put them together like this?”

Charlie leaned forward to take another look at his creation. “I found a website on the internet that explained everything, how to dry flowers and how to display them.” He shrugged.

“One of the displays was for a shadow box and that’s what I decided to do. Drying the flowers, well, I killed a lot of flowers before I finally got it right – ” he darted a nervous look at his mother but she just kept smiling. “And the box, well, that took awhile to make, too.”

“You did a great job,” Jack repeated, and slapped his son on the back.

“A wonderful job,” Sara murmured. Jack made sure he had a tight focus on her face as she continued. “It’s absolutely beautiful and every time I look at it I’ll remember that day you helped me in the garden.”

Turning the camcorder on his son Jack was tickled to see Charlie’s face turning pink.

“It’s really pretty,” Daniel confirmed, admiring the box.

Taking pity on his son, Jack let the camcorder do one last sweep before turning it off and setting it down. He clapped his hands together.

“Okay, that was fun but now it’s time to clean things up and get ready for bed.”

“What?” Charlie protested. “Not yet. It’s Christmas Eve, Dad. We should stay up late on Christmas Eve.”

“You know you’re going to be up at the crack of dawn,” Jack retorted. “Just like every Christmas morning. And tomorrow’s going to be a busy day so you need your sleep.”

“Yeah, but – ”

“How about,” Sara interrupted, “we clean this up and then we have some hot chocolate before bed.”

Daniel sat up straighter. “Homemade?” he asked hopefully.

She laughed. “Of course, homemade. That’s the only acceptable kind of hot chocolate during the holidays.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Jack agreed. “Come on guys, the faster we clean this up, the faster we’ll get the hot chocolate.”

Without a word, Charlie began grabbing at the torn paper surrounding him.

Grinning, Jack joined in the clean-up while Sara went into the kitchen. Since he'd been so neat about unwrapping his own present, Daniel didn’t have much to clean up so as soon as he finished his pile, he began helping Charlie.

Jack watched with pleasure as his boys worked together, Charlie cracking jokes and Daniel playing the amused straight man. If he listened carefully, he could hear Sara in the kitchen, opening and closing cabinet doors and rattling pans as she prepared the hot chocolate.

Tonight was confirmation of all Jack's reminiscing of past Christmases. This was Daniel's first Christmas Eve with them and it was one he'd always remember.

On to Part 3

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