Fic: Operation Stepford
Okay. This was supposed to be just a little indulgent one-shot to go with a phase I was going through of: why don't we see much of S & J out and about on Earth ... ooo ... let's give them a mission on Earth - that sounds cool ...
and it grew and the writing ... got steadily worse
BUT I will forgive myself "any plot problems, roadblocks, or plain old laziness"
for which I ask you to forgive me.
I'll update once a day (I'm going to hope that ficamnesty lasts as long as the posting started on 25th July?? ) until it's all up (should be done this week)
Title Operation Stepford
Part One
World: Stargate
Pairing: Sam/Jack (... have I ever written anything else?)
Summary: When given a mission by themselves in a world that they're not sure they understand - Col. O'Neill and Maj. Carter are forced to navigate the dark, and treacherous waters of Operation Stepford
Jack was looking forward to the weekend. Considering it was the first bit of leave he’d managed to grab between the planet imploding (or was that exploding?), a personal threat by Ba’al, the massive pile of ever-growing paperwork in his inbox (thankfully he never quite admitted to having an office so most of it never found him) and the fact that he’d walked in on Carter and Doc Fraiser giggling in the infirmary about that Cop - he could be forgiven for wanting to lie down on the couch and never get up.
He’d managed to actually get to the couch (something he considered an achievement) before his cell phone rang. He had the vain hope that maybe (just maybe), it might have been Danny or Carter asking about a team night for the weekend.
“O’Neill.”
“Colonel, Malcolm Barrett has come to the SGC, he requires a briefing ASAP.”
“General Hammond?”
“Yes Colonel?”
“…” Jack had the vague idea of trying to get out of a meeting where most of the speaker’s time would be spent ogling Carter. Then he remembered that there was someone who was actually allowed to ogle at Carter and he groaned. “I’m on my way Sir.”
He dropped the beer into the bin as he passed and back out the door, into the truck. With a sigh, he drove back to the mountain he left only an hour ago.
The guard at the last checkpoint gave him a wry grin as he drove in, “Back already Sir?”
“Can’t keep away,” Jack called back. He parked next to a silver Volvo and involuntarily broke in a grin; a blonde head of hair was slipping out of the driver’s seat. “Carter!”
She spun around, a small smile on her face. “Sir.”
“Well, I was about to get something to eat but the planet started to get into trouble yet again. What about you?”
She just shrugged, “Putting jelly on toast.”
They chatted comfortably about the briefing, both slightly dreading whatever it was that brought Malcolm Barrett from DC. “Whatever it is,” Jack said as they got to the first internal checkpoint. “Ten bucks says I’ll be missing the Simpsons this weekend.”
Carter turned back to him with a sly grin, “You’re on Sir. Ten bucks.”
He raised an eyebrow, “Why would you take that bet? The chances are that whatever Mal wants will leads us onto a Tel’tak headed for Ne’tu.” Sam just shrugged.
“Call it a hunch,” she told him.
“A hunch? Who are you and what have you done with Major Carter?” One of the SFs on duty gave him a look and reached for the phone. “I was kidding Airman,” Jack blurted out. “A joke, if you will.”
He followed his 2IC into the lift before mock whispering; “Kids these days, no sense of humour.”
Sam smiled at him again before a cloud shifted across her face. He could tell the exact moment when she realised that she was being too open and needed to stop. He gave her an understanding look before taking a step back and waiting for the lift to go down the twenty or so floors it took to reach the Briefing Room.
A quick glance at his watch and Jack swore, they wouldn’t have time to head to the locker rooms to get changed before the meeting. “Sorry General,” Jack said as they both slipped into their seats.
Without another word, the General turned to Malcolm Barrett and invited him to continue. Daniel’s barely noticeable shrug told Jack that nothing had happened yet to indicate what the NID wanted this time.
“Last week we intercepted a coded message from a known rouge agent, Mr. Robert Pollack.” Barrett began as an image flickered onto the screen. The man was tall and balding, wearing a bad sweater and holding what looked to be a Pokémon backpack. “This photograph was taken roughly four years ago. We finally cracked the code late last night and have spent the time since planning Operation Stepford.” Jack’s internal warning system went haywire at the title of the operation and suddenly a Tel’tak to Ne’tu seemed to be the least of his problems. “The message contained details of an unknown operative’s move into a house near Mr. Pollack and for them to carry out ‘His’ orders. Now we’re working on finding out who they are working for but this is being treated as an intergalactic terror threat.”
Daniel coughed and glanced up from his folder, “Are we part of an intergalactic war on terror that I was not aware of?”
Malcolm shook his head, “It has become apparent over recent months that there are peoples not on this planet who pose a real threat to us.”
“Alright,” Daniel had to agree, “But I will not be part of invading anywhere for invisible weapons of mass destruction.”
General Hammond gave the archaeologist a look and Daniel sunk back into his seat.
The next picture up on the screen was of a suburban street seen from the air. Three houses on the street were marked A, B and C. “House “A” is Mr Pollack's current address. We have had him under observation for the past four months. He lives there with his wife, Rebecca and son James. This house, “B”, is exactly the coordinates indicated in the message so the mystery operative is expected to move in there sometime in the next twenty four hours. The surrounding houses are occupied by families and couples; most of whom have been there for over two years.
“This is where we come in,” Jack murmured.
“Correct Colonel,” Malcolm smiled. “You and Major Carter will take up residence in House “C” and find out everything you can about Mr. Pollack and the Mystery Guest.”
Jack decided to ignore the first part and said, “So we go in at night, sweep the houses, pocket the info and bring it all back here.”
The General shook his head, having spent long enough with Colonel Jack O’Neill to know when he was being dim on purpose. “Wrong Colonel. You and Major Carter are going undercover indefinitely. We highly suspect that Pollack has alien technology in his house and we need you to get him to trust you enough to tell you, while also unveiling his future plans. “
“So, objectives?” Sam asked. Jack could see determination etched across her forehead as she spoke.
Malcolm counted on his fingers as he went through then, “Ascertain the threat of Pollack’s company and his objectives, find out the extent to which alien tech has been leaked and his contacts and to protect those at risk.”
“What will Danny and Teal’c be doing while Major Carter and I are playing happy families?”
“Doctor Jackson has been asked to speak to the prospective archaeologists that will be joining the program,” The General told him - of course Jack had known this but had wanted to believe that his still slightly exhausted brain was getting confused. “And Teal’c, I’m sorry to say, would not go under the radar in suburban Virginia.” Again Jack had known this - but he had been an optimist in hoping that it wouldn’t be just him and Carter alone.
“This is such a cliché,” he murmured not loud enough for anybody to hear - except, it seemed, Sam who gave him a quick smile and a shrug.
The General handed them each a thick folder with names, details and relevant history of everyone who lived in the street. It was about eight families.
“When do we leave?”
“Tonight. First report is due Friday. Doctor Jackson and Teal’c will be able to contact you in the case of an emergency and you will both need to make a list of people who may need to get a hold of you in the next few months. We have no idea how long this deployment will take, nor do we know what Pollack is planning.”
They were given another sealed package: “Your IDs and personal information. I suggest you read them on the flight. Your transport leaves at 2330 tonight.”
The General stood and they followed, “Dismissed people. Colonel, Major - a moment if you will.”
They followed him into his office where he motioned for them to sit. “I am incredibly sorry,” he told them. “I know this situation is far from ideal but we need our best on this. I know this will be difficult for both of you-“ he held up his hand to stave of the beginning protests. “I’m not blind.” He said simply. “But I trust the two of you to be professional at all times.”
“Yes Sir,” Jack saluted before the General dismissed them once again.
Back in the briefing room he turned to Sam. “You should go talk to Paul,” he said, “let him know what’s going on.” He probably imagined it - but he swore he caught her sigh.
“Yes Sir,” she nodded.
“How about you pack, organise everything you need to then come over to mine for dinner? we can find out who we’re going to be for the next while, have some pizza-“
“Chinese.”
He couldn’t help his grin - it was an involuntary reaction. “Fine, Chinese. And head over to Peterson from my place.”
“Sounds good.” She thanked him and left to put an entire life on hold.
It was only once she had left that he realised she hadn’t corrected him on her boyfriend’s name.
He spent the name with Daniel as they went through the various alien tech that may have been interesting or available to Pollack. Jack was in special ops soldier mode as he absorbed every word of Daniel’s rapid-fire education. Pollack was an engineer so it was safe to say he would gravitate towards machinery rather than historical artifacts. Daniel had to concede that Jack on a mission was an impressive (and slightly intimidating) sight.
Finally it got to about 1700 hours and Jack needed to organise everything else he would need for the trip. Before he left, Daniel turned to him; “Be careful Jack,” he said.
Jack just grinned, “Of course. I always am.”
“I’m not talking about the mission.”
Jack could only nod; he’d known exactly what Daniel had meant.
Sam was having a significantly more difficult time preparing for this mission. Unlike Jack whom had years of Special Ops behind him and had some experience dealing with the prospect of an entirely new identity and putting the old one on hold, Sam was not used to having time to organise everything. The way things worked at the SGC was that she didn’t know she wouldn’t be away for long periods of time until she was half way through the long period of time.
Unfortunately, neither was Pete used to having his girlfriend disappear on him without at least some warning.
“I’m sorry Pete, I can’t tell you.”
“Are you going to be on this planet?”
“That’s classified.”
“Come on Sam! Give me something?”
“Like what?” She snapped back. “Like that I have several folders of information all saying Classified, For My Eyes Only. Come on Pete, what do you expect me to do?”
“Give me something so I know you’re coming back.”
She shrugged, tired of the circles the argument had already taken and knowing that they’d been at it for an hour with no signs of slowing down. “You’ve got my word Pete. That’s all I’ve got.” She picked up the last of her bags and got into the car, concentrating on the well-worn route between her house and the Colonels.
He opened the door, a box of noodles in one hand and the other held a fork that seemed halfway to his mouth. “Carter!” he grinned and she immediately realised why her heart had felt lighter on the drive over here.
“Sir. You started without me!”
He just shrugged and smiled, letting her inside. “Care to join?”
She handed him a bag before going back to her car for the other one. When they were both settled around the living room table, boxes of Chinese in his hands; they opened their new IDs.
Jack poured the contents onto the table, quickly noting hi new name: Jack Denton. There were the usual; birth certificates, passport, records of employment - it seemed he taught High School History - and a marriage certificate. It was with a small feeling of dread (and a large one of joy that we’ll ignore) that he took the small band of silver and looked up at Sam.
She seemed to have reached the same part he hand. The look in her eyes was dark and troubled, love and hope and cruel reality seemed to mingle with the clear blue of her eyes. Jack forced a smile, “I’m sorry Sam,” he whispered.
“I’m not,” she said without thinking. “Anyway,” she went on; forcing everything else back behind the Major Carter Wall of No-Emotions. “I’m Samantha Denton, High School Physics Teacher.”
“Jack Denton, High School History.”
“History?”
He shrugged, “I have a master in it from years ago. Specialised in Military History of course but I loved-“
“You have a masters?”
Jack gave her a quick grin - secretly glad to have surprised her after seven years. “That’s one of them.”
She smirked, “Daniel owes me twenty bucks.”
“What?” So much for surprising her.
“I said you’d have more than one degree, Daniel thought you only got enough to get you into the Air Force.”
He shook his head unable to hide his smile. “I have four.”
Sam grinned and slipped on her wedding band. “So how did we meet?”
Jack had a bad feeling about where this conversation could go, but found himself wanting to drive on despite the warnings. “At work.” He murmured.
She smiled, “Yes, you were surprised that a woman would be a physics teacher.”
“Not true! I just never liked physics. Anyway, you were all - “if a man can, I can.””
She ran a finger over the wedding band and leant forward, “The school we were at didn’t like teacher’s getting involved.”
“But neither of us were fond of the reg… the rules.”
Sam bit her lip - this was one of those moments where you knew something bad was about to happen - but still you went steadfastly towards it. And instead of feeling terror or dread, she was silently urging it on. “So during the summer holidays a few years ago,” she said, “We just ducked off to Minnesota where you’ve got family and got married.”
“You in a white dress you’d bought the day before, me in the cleanest and closest thing to a suit I had.”
All this time they had been inching closer towards each other - the food and back story long forgotten. “It was perfect,” Sam sighed.
“Kids?” Sam asked.
“With your eyes and brains and my ability to play hockey? Sam? We’ll need at least six!” A very small part of her was leaping up and down going SCREW THE REGS! … THEN SCREW HIM! But she forced herself to shake her head. “Two would be perfect.”
He reached up a hand to caress her cheek, her heart started going haywire (was 36 too young for a heart attack?). Then the moment was lost thanks to four thundering knocks on the front door.
Jack was almost physically pulled back by the sound and he swore as he got up; giving her a look that said “later”. “I swear if you’re Daniel,” he muttered as he opened the door.
But he never got to finish his thought as Pete (the one responsible for breaking the mood) had swung a punch just as the door opened - catching Jack in the jaw and throwing him back.
“Sir!” Sam cried, leaping around the couch to see what had happened. She forgot, of course, that she was still wearing the wedding ring and that until a few hours ago, the man at the door had been her boyfriend. Though now she thought of it - she had never exactly dumped him.
“Sam!” Pete called out stopping her in her tracks - his voice was cold and angry, something Sam had only heard once; when she accused him of following her after the Osiris operation. “So this is why you left?” he asked, pointing at O’Neill who was holding his jaw with a dirty look.
“Colonel O’Neill and I working on a mission Pete.” Sam said, absently wondering why she was bothering. “We leave later tonight.”
Pete stepped back and smirked. “A mission? Sure, with wedding rings and Chinese food? Did you two get beamed up to Las Vegas and get married by an Elvis impersonator?” For a Detective (who must have gone undercover at least once), Pete wasn't very good at seeing both sides of a picture.
Sam glanced down at the wedding ring and bit her lip - not wanting to take it off. “Quite often we come across cultures who don’t like women travelling alone. I pretend to be married to the Colonel. It just makes things easier.”
Sam looked to Jack, wondering why he remained so quiet at the intrusion into his house. The Colonel was still against the wall, but his arms were now crossed over his chest and his stance and gaze immediately to her that he was there if she needed him. But he was doing something she had always loved about him - he was letting her fight her own battles.
“So you expect me to believe this bullshit? Seriously?”
Sam had had enough. This had been a constant argument over the past few months and she was sick of the snide comments and muttered asides Pete made whenever the Colonel or SG-1 was mentioned. “Pete, I think you should leave. What the Colonel and I are doing is top secret, classified and way beyond that. I’m sorry that you’re feeling left out but that’s the way it is. Now, we have a lot of work to do before we leave and its time you went home.” She spoke with all the force and power her rank and standing had given her, walking towards Pete who backed up and out the front door.
She smiled sweetly, “Bye Pete,” and closed the door in his face.
Neither one of them said anything for a while. The Colonel was watching her intently while Sam was staring at the closed door. Pete was gone. Probably for good. The first, best and most normal relationship she’d had in almost ten years was over.
She knew that it wasn’t Pete the individual she was sad about loosing - she had always known there was a time limit for them. She’d known it since he’d sat in the infirmary and been told that she visited different planets on an almost weekly basis.
It was more the lost opportunity, the chance to have the 2.3 kids, white picket fence (even through she never really liked those) and a dog named Spot or Flash or Patchy.
Then she turned around and saw the Colonel. He stood with his hands in his pockets and an expression of deep sympathy on his face. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I know-’
“I’m sorry,” she interrupted. Silence reigned again as they both just looked at each other. There was no need to elaborate on her words; they both knew what she meant.
I’m sorry I abandoned the room
I’m sorry about Pete
“Come on,” Jack finally said after clearing his throat. “I’ve got to pack and then we’ve got a flight to catch.”
As she packed away their things and threw out the last of the dinner - the irony was not lost on Sam that this mission into suburbia might be her best chance to experience ‘normality’.
Daniel and Teal’c met them at Peterson to see them off. “We’ll send you our mission reports,” Daniel said. “You’ll need to write up your versions of ours so the NID stay off our backs.”
“Great,” Jack grumbled, “I don’t even get out of paperwork?”
They would have a private plane to Indianapolis, and then transfer to a commercial flight to DC.
They spent the private jet leg of the journey going over the backgrounds of their new neighbours, finding out that they were variations of the normal suburban family unit; many had one or two kids while there was one couple hoping to adopt.
The house they would be in was one of about ten in a cul-de-sac. All were quite wealthy and as two teachers they would be almost eclipsed by the range of CEOs, scientists, doctors and various over professionals.
Just before they started the descent, Sam slipped into the bathroom, changing her uniform BDUs for jeans and sweater, slipping on some gold earrings and the wedding band. She could only grin at the unguarded look Jack gave her when she stepped out. This was a look that was matched when he finished changing into dark jeans and a blue sweater. It really wasn’t fair that she should have such a sexy CO.
The plane had landed at about 1700 hours; they’d grabbed their bags, found the rental car (a simple Toyota Camry that Jack swore was going to get changed for something ‘sensible’ as soon as possible) and headed out towards their house. They hadn’t really spoken during the commercial flight or the drive, both instead concentrating on getting stories and emotions straight. Jack seemed to be constantly reminding himself that this was a mission, not a happily ever after. Sam, on the other hand, had decided that while maintaining the utmost professionalism and dignity, secretly, she would be enjoying this.
They drove up to the house just as the moon was rising and the cold really began to set in - not that it hadn’t been absolutely freezing before, but now it was so cold that the wind seemed to get through Sam’s thick jacket and directly into her bones. If there had been any doubt before, the moment Sam saw the house she and Jack would be living in; the title Operation Stepford made a lot more sense. Despite the images of long blonde hair, gingham aprons and plastic smiles - she really couldn’t help but fall in love with this house. It was a classic family house with white walls, large garden out the front and what looked like a bigger one out the back, two car garage and a mailbox that had “Dentons” already written on it.“Come on,” Jack said, “Let’s get inside and turn the heating on. The moving guys should get here early tomorrow so …”
“We just have to camp out till then,” She smiled at him through chattering teeth. “Inside sounds good.”
Neither one could help the casual yet intent sweeping look they gave both the quiet street and the front hall as Jack opened the door. Sam had hoped that her intake of breath (masking a gasp) hadn’t been heard by her companion (and CO), but his twitch of a smile said otherwise. It was just something about the panelled walls, the varnished wood floor and the window at the end overlooking what looked like a very large garden.
“We can afford this?” she asked, looking through the kitchen with its marble counters and glass cupboards. Jack leant in the doorway; arms crossed over his chest (seriously - should he be allowed to do that? - surely that was dangerous to her heart) and chuckled. The look he gave her said, “not us, the air force” and she smiled. They were running under the assumption that their house (or at least parts of it) would be bugged and had agreed on a code to indicate that they needed to talk at which point they would find somewhere secluded and clean of devises.
“We’ll need to go food shopping tomorrow,” Sam murmured glancing at the empty fridge, “oh, and unpack everything, and go up to the school and get all that registration stuff organised and-“
“Sam?” She looked up and cocked her head to him, a shy smile on her lips. “Lets get to all that tomorrow okay? I need to sleep and you’re exhausted.”
She shrugged and walked over towards him, ‘Yeah. Sleep sounds good.”
“We’ll get the welcoming committee tomorrow,” Jack told her as they made their way upstairs. “I’m guessing casseroles.”
“Come on S-Jack,” she found herself smiling despite herself, “We’re not in a cliché.”
“Wanna bet?”
They found the master bedroom and despite her exhaustion Sam managed to find the walk-in-closet, the huge bathroom with a beautiful (really, that’s the only way to describe it) bathtub, the door out to the porch and the closet situated in the tower (they had a tower!!) that she immediately claimed as her own before Jack called her back inside. He’d managed to bring the blankets and two pillows from the car and set them up on the floor. They closed the curtains and turned the heat up before each pulling on an extra jumper and crawling under the covers. Sam closed her eyes tightly, refusing to let the fact that she was sleeping next to Jack O’Neill, the guy she’d been (let’s face it) in love with for at least seven years and coincidentally, her CO; make any difference to her. She took a deep breath and curled further into the covers and prayed for sleep.
Jack was right. They did get the welcoming committee the next day. Thankfully they were given a chance to unpack part of the kitchen before they were discovered. Sam had her eyes glued to a set of very nice blue and gold trimmed china that she had decided was a wedding present from Jack’s mother - he’d grinned at that and nodded muttering that it sounded like his mother. She was carefully placing it all in a wooden cabinet that had arrived earlier while Jack was up in the observatory fiddling with his telescope (she figured it had been a gift from Daniel).
The woman who came to meet them had a young boy of about five with her, and a baby not older than two months in her arms. “Dianne Archer,” she introduced herself, “Of number thirteen and this is Luke and Grace.”
Sam grinned despite her faded jeans, much too large old t-shirt and the grime that she seemed to be coated in.
“I’m Sam Denton, my husband Jack is around somewhere.”
Dianne grinned, “Isn’t that always the case? Well we saw the trucks and figured we’d come and say hi, maybe invite you to dinner tonight? I know food must be the last thing on your mind at the moment.”
Sam grinned, “Sounds fantastic.”
Dianne’s little boy - Luke, looked nervous before finally speaking up, “Mrs Denton?”
Sam bent down - already taken by the boy. Yes Luke?”
“Do you have any kids … my age?”
Sam had to shake her head, “I’m sorry I don’t, are all the kids around here older than you?” Luke nodded a little sadly. Dianne frowned, “Sorry,” she murmured. “Just had a run in with the Horace’s boys - I have yet to meet a family of bigger thugs.”
Sam thought for a moment before smiling and asking if Dianne was headed anywhere for the next few hours. Once she’d said she wasn’t, Sam ducked back into the house and called for Jack. He came down the stairs, a sheepish grin on his face. “Okay, so I got a little distracted with the telescope and there are heaps of star charts-“ he stopped in his tracks at the sight of his guests and smiled at Sam in an I-told-you-so manner before shaking Dianne’s hand. “Jack Denton.”
Luke seemed in awe of him, the boy’s big blue eyes wide as he took in the man in front of him. Jack had a dark blue t-shirt on with jeans - but even in that he was an imposing sight (to which Sam thought just wait till you see the dress blues). “You have a telescope?” the boy asked and Jack grinned.
“Yup, thought Sam here is the real expert.” The boy shared a grin with his mother who looked so relieved that a Sam was a bit scared she’d fall over.
“How about we go get lunch started,” Sam said, “and Jack can go show off his observatory.”
Dianne looked lost for a moment and Sam quickly realised that she could be weary the first time she met people as well. “Or! Come, on, we can all go show off the observatory.” Dianne smiled as Jack and Luke led the way, Jack talking animatedly about the way the hemispheres impacted on the stars.
They spent a good half hour in the observatory as both Sam and Jack taught the boy about the stars from the charts that the SGC had given them.
“How about we leave them and organise some food?” Dianne eventually said as Grace started to stir in her arms.
Down in the kitchen Dianne sat on a stool as Sam puttered around the kitchen trying to remember where she had put everything. “I’m afraid it’ll be sandwiches,” she admitted.
Dianne just grinned. “After what you and your husband just did? That is the happiest and most talkative I have ever seen Luke!”
She’d got this strange buzz when she’d seen the boy’s eyes glow at the sight of the star charts. When Jack had issued the open invitation to come and stargaze through the telescope any night he liked, Sam was sure the boy would physically burst. Perhaps this was why people became teachers and spent their entire lives encouraging young children - it was for that look.
Dianne was quite happy to give her a run down of the entire street - information Sam made a note to write down somewhere. “Well, Terry and I are in number thirteen, The Horaces with their three small thugs are on your other side. Next to us in twelve are Jasper and Timothy - lovely guys - they’re trying to adopt but stupid services are giving them grief. James and Vicky are next to them in number ten, they have a seventeen-year-old Samuel - though he’s the most polite seventeen year old you will ever meet. Keep him in mind while you’re dealing with some of those kids at the school - there are teenagers able to hold a conversation.” Sam laughed, a niggling worry about teaching high school once again coming to the forefront of her mind - but she pushed it away, determined to ignore it. She remembered her years at high school well enough.
“They’re both getting on a bit now, had Sam when they were quite old. Then Robert and Rebecca Pollack in number eight with their son James. A young couple moved into number six but,” Dianne shrugged, “they don’t socialise.”
Sam had to grin; they already had intel on the mystery guests.
After lunch and one more story about Orion, Dianne took Luke and the baby home - reiterating the invitation to dinner. Jack watched them go before turning and smiling at Sam. “Well, there’s hope for the suburban housewife yet,” he said. Sam rolled her eyes.
“If she wants to stay at home with her kids then that’s fine,” Sam said - having always found the divide between women who chose to stay at home and those who chose to work, really very annoying.
Jack bit his lip before bursting into a grin and went into the study to start unpacking the library. Sam had seen the several boxes labelled “books” and immediately tore one open to have a look. She was amazed to see the mixture of textbooks, journals and the occasional first edition interspersed with some books she knew she had at home (and had never admitted to owning). She had originally tried to hide the titles like Girl Next Door, Do Not Disturb and Passion from Jack, but he’d seen her clutching one to her chest and sneaking it into their room.
“Alright!” she’d sighed, “I like to read chic-lit okay? It’s fun and helps me stop thinking and it’s a way to relax and…“
“Sam?” he smiled and she stopped, “It’s okay. You’re allowed to like them.”
She stared at him, the book still clutched in her hands. “What?”
He chuckled, “You’re allowed to like them. I watch the Simpsons; you read these books,” he shrugged, “No big deal.”
She just looked at him and, yes; let’s admit it, she fell a little more in love with him. “Pete was … shocked,” she murmured.
Jack just shook his head and went back to unpacking the box at his feet, “Pete was an idiot.”
She watched for a while before turning back to the books and placing them on the shelves. “Want to order Chinese and watch the Simpsons?”
He looked up with a look of such tiredness and relief that she couldn’t help but grin. They’d been unpacking all day, going through the odds and ends the Air Force seemed to decide they needed. There was a collection of scarves from Hong Kong that while Sam admitted they were very beautiful - she just couldn’t see herself wearing them; a very expensive set of golf clubs that made Jack laugh at the thought of either the teacher Jack Denton or the soldier Jack O’Neill ever being able to afford them and medical records from the past five years that had some very interesting excuses for the various scars and medical issues they may ever have (with a very clear note that under no circumstances was any treatment be taken, or blood taken from either Jack or Samantha Denton without a phone call to their previous doctor).
“That sounds perfect,” he muttered, “But somebody promised Dianne that we’d head over there for dinner.”
Sam swore, glanced at her watch and almost dove into the shower - the sound of Jack’s laughter echoing through the room. As Sam stood under the strong spray she swore again and took a deep breath. At this moment, it seemed that finding out the alien terror ring would be a hell of a lot simpler than pretending to be married to Jack O’Neill. “Damn him,” she muttered.
Dinner with Dianne and her family was an interesting affair. Her son Luke sat next to Jack the entire time and while he spoke occasionally, the boy seemed more than happy to just listen to whatever the older man was saying, hanging onto Jack's every word.
Dianne’s husband Terry was a very nice man, despite being an accountant. Overall, they had a lot of fun and even managed to relax.
The next day was spent unpacking and going to the high school to get their registration over and done with. They would start the next Monday. By the weekend they had briefly met Mr. and Mrs. Horace after their eldest son Junior had draped toilet paper over one of their hedges as a welcome gift. “I never got the naming a kid Junior thing,” Jack muttered after they closed the door. “But that kid is just like his father.”
Sam grinned, “Looks like his mother though. I’ve never seen anybody look quite so much like a bull dog.” The Pollack family hadn’t visited yet, but Dianne promised that they would be at the big lunch on Saturday. It seemed to be a bit of a tradition in this street, every Saturday one of the families would put on a huge lunch, with everybody bringing something and all getting together. In summer they had a BBQ, but the snow and cold tended to spoil that in winter so they stayed inside.
Jack had a small alcove in the observatory that he was positive was a blind spot for any bugs. Every time he walked in, he always swept that corner before doing anything else. There was a shelf that had a series of books about Minnesota, but behind them was a small notebook, barely larger than his palm. It was in this, and in a cipher he’d created the first time he was in Iraq, he made his notes. He had given Sam the keyword back on the private flight. When he checked just before the lunch, he was a little surprised (and happy) to see that she had added in her own notes around his. She had noted the familial links in each house, and any distinguishing factors about any of the people they had already met.
In the five days they had been here, he had watched proudly as his 2IC had risen to every occasion. She had calmly and confidently outlined her previous work experience to the principal of the school, helped Dianne with Grace and Luke with a poise and smile he had never seen before and faced down Bernard Horace as his middle son Jeff tried to hack up the flowers in their front garden. He knew she was nervous at the prospect of the lunch and meeting everybody that weekend, as well as her first day as a teacher on Monday but he was embarrassingly proud of her and couldn’t help but grin every time.
“Jack?” he jumped and slipped the notebook back behind the books before coming out into the hall. “Come on,” she smiled, “We have to go.”
He nodded, only partially registering what she was saying. He was a little busy staring at her. He knew that in a few minutes a large jacket would cover her up, but at the moment she was in a pair of very well fitting jeans and a sweater of the same gray-blue as her eyes. She had silver earrings in and a simple necklace. She was stunning. Of course, as always, his eyes tracked down to the wedding ring on her finger and he burst into a grin. “Must get you an engagement ring sometime,” he murmured.
She smiled sadly at him, “later,” she said. “We can … renew our vows … with everybody around this time.”
He looked up, vaguely wondering if she had just proposed to him. She smiled again - that same sad smile she had whenever they had to make up a story about their wedding. He felt the sudden urge to kiss her cheek and hug her, to tell her that yes - there would be a later and yes, it would come complete with an engagement ring but he refrained.
“Yeah,” he sighed, “Better go into the lion’s den.”
She lightly punched him in the shoulder with a grin, “it’s not that bad.”
He pretended to groan, “I know,” he told her, “But I have to be polite! It’s hard!”
She gave him an indulgent look and led him down the stairs, “I know, but I’m not doing in there without somebody to watch my six.”
Sam quickly decided that her favourite person in the street was Jasper Kennedy. He was roughly 30 years old with dark hair and deep olive skin. He was a writer who when he wasn’t writing his latest novel, spent his time travelling the world writing for the Times. When she and Jack arrived at lunch at Dianne’s house, Jasper leapt up to her, arms outstretched with a large grin. “Fresh meat!” he laughed and hugged her tightly. “Welcome!”
His partner, Timothy, smiled to Jack, “You’ll never get her back,” he told him.
Jack just grinned, “I’m sure she’ll manage.” Tim was quieter than his partner, and a little older. He was a university lecturer in English literature and was surprised at Jack’s ready conversation in it. They sat on one of the couches with a beer each and happily talked about James Joyce and whether or not a medal should be awarded for all of those who managed to finish Ulysses. Whenever Jack looked over to Sam he saw her happily in conversation with Jasper, Dianne and Luke. They both kept their eyes peeled for the Pollack family or the people from the house next to them, but neither made any sort of appearance. “That’s usual,” Harry said. “Rebecca’s probably overseas on business.”
The afternoon finished with only Dianne, her kids, Jasper, Tim, Sam and Jack left. Terry and Bernard Horace had taken the older kids down the road to have a snowball fight. By the time Sam and Jack eventually left it was 2200 hours and Sam was hiding her yawns behind her hand. Jack casually wrapped an arm around her shoulder, bringing her close to him. He was immensely glad when; instead of flinching away she seemed to lean closer towards him. Be careful, Daniel’s voice warned him and for once he had to agree with the disembodied voice (Daniel seemed fond of that).
and it grew and the writing ... got steadily worse
BUT I will forgive myself "any plot problems, roadblocks, or plain old laziness"
for which I ask you to forgive me.
I'll update once a day (I'm going to hope that ficamnesty lasts as long as the posting started on 25th July?? ) until it's all up (should be done this week)
Title Operation Stepford
Part One
World: Stargate
Pairing: Sam/Jack (... have I ever written anything else?)
Summary: When given a mission by themselves in a world that they're not sure they understand - Col. O'Neill and Maj. Carter are forced to navigate the dark, and treacherous waters of Operation Stepford
Jack was looking forward to the weekend. Considering it was the first bit of leave he’d managed to grab between the planet imploding (or was that exploding?), a personal threat by Ba’al, the massive pile of ever-growing paperwork in his inbox (thankfully he never quite admitted to having an office so most of it never found him) and the fact that he’d walked in on Carter and Doc Fraiser giggling in the infirmary about that Cop - he could be forgiven for wanting to lie down on the couch and never get up.
He’d managed to actually get to the couch (something he considered an achievement) before his cell phone rang. He had the vain hope that maybe (just maybe), it might have been Danny or Carter asking about a team night for the weekend.
“O’Neill.”
“Colonel, Malcolm Barrett has come to the SGC, he requires a briefing ASAP.”
“General Hammond?”
“Yes Colonel?”
“…” Jack had the vague idea of trying to get out of a meeting where most of the speaker’s time would be spent ogling Carter. Then he remembered that there was someone who was actually allowed to ogle at Carter and he groaned. “I’m on my way Sir.”
He dropped the beer into the bin as he passed and back out the door, into the truck. With a sigh, he drove back to the mountain he left only an hour ago.
The guard at the last checkpoint gave him a wry grin as he drove in, “Back already Sir?”
“Can’t keep away,” Jack called back. He parked next to a silver Volvo and involuntarily broke in a grin; a blonde head of hair was slipping out of the driver’s seat. “Carter!”
She spun around, a small smile on her face. “Sir.”
“Well, I was about to get something to eat but the planet started to get into trouble yet again. What about you?”
She just shrugged, “Putting jelly on toast.”
They chatted comfortably about the briefing, both slightly dreading whatever it was that brought Malcolm Barrett from DC. “Whatever it is,” Jack said as they got to the first internal checkpoint. “Ten bucks says I’ll be missing the Simpsons this weekend.”
Carter turned back to him with a sly grin, “You’re on Sir. Ten bucks.”
He raised an eyebrow, “Why would you take that bet? The chances are that whatever Mal wants will leads us onto a Tel’tak headed for Ne’tu.” Sam just shrugged.
“Call it a hunch,” she told him.
“A hunch? Who are you and what have you done with Major Carter?” One of the SFs on duty gave him a look and reached for the phone. “I was kidding Airman,” Jack blurted out. “A joke, if you will.”
He followed his 2IC into the lift before mock whispering; “Kids these days, no sense of humour.”
Sam smiled at him again before a cloud shifted across her face. He could tell the exact moment when she realised that she was being too open and needed to stop. He gave her an understanding look before taking a step back and waiting for the lift to go down the twenty or so floors it took to reach the Briefing Room.
A quick glance at his watch and Jack swore, they wouldn’t have time to head to the locker rooms to get changed before the meeting. “Sorry General,” Jack said as they both slipped into their seats.
Without another word, the General turned to Malcolm Barrett and invited him to continue. Daniel’s barely noticeable shrug told Jack that nothing had happened yet to indicate what the NID wanted this time.
“Last week we intercepted a coded message from a known rouge agent, Mr. Robert Pollack.” Barrett began as an image flickered onto the screen. The man was tall and balding, wearing a bad sweater and holding what looked to be a Pokémon backpack. “This photograph was taken roughly four years ago. We finally cracked the code late last night and have spent the time since planning Operation Stepford.” Jack’s internal warning system went haywire at the title of the operation and suddenly a Tel’tak to Ne’tu seemed to be the least of his problems. “The message contained details of an unknown operative’s move into a house near Mr. Pollack and for them to carry out ‘His’ orders. Now we’re working on finding out who they are working for but this is being treated as an intergalactic terror threat.”
Daniel coughed and glanced up from his folder, “Are we part of an intergalactic war on terror that I was not aware of?”
Malcolm shook his head, “It has become apparent over recent months that there are peoples not on this planet who pose a real threat to us.”
“Alright,” Daniel had to agree, “But I will not be part of invading anywhere for invisible weapons of mass destruction.”
General Hammond gave the archaeologist a look and Daniel sunk back into his seat.
The next picture up on the screen was of a suburban street seen from the air. Three houses on the street were marked A, B and C. “House “A” is Mr Pollack's current address. We have had him under observation for the past four months. He lives there with his wife, Rebecca and son James. This house, “B”, is exactly the coordinates indicated in the message so the mystery operative is expected to move in there sometime in the next twenty four hours. The surrounding houses are occupied by families and couples; most of whom have been there for over two years.
“This is where we come in,” Jack murmured.
“Correct Colonel,” Malcolm smiled. “You and Major Carter will take up residence in House “C” and find out everything you can about Mr. Pollack and the Mystery Guest.”
Jack decided to ignore the first part and said, “So we go in at night, sweep the houses, pocket the info and bring it all back here.”
The General shook his head, having spent long enough with Colonel Jack O’Neill to know when he was being dim on purpose. “Wrong Colonel. You and Major Carter are going undercover indefinitely. We highly suspect that Pollack has alien technology in his house and we need you to get him to trust you enough to tell you, while also unveiling his future plans. “
“So, objectives?” Sam asked. Jack could see determination etched across her forehead as she spoke.
Malcolm counted on his fingers as he went through then, “Ascertain the threat of Pollack’s company and his objectives, find out the extent to which alien tech has been leaked and his contacts and to protect those at risk.”
“What will Danny and Teal’c be doing while Major Carter and I are playing happy families?”
“Doctor Jackson has been asked to speak to the prospective archaeologists that will be joining the program,” The General told him - of course Jack had known this but had wanted to believe that his still slightly exhausted brain was getting confused. “And Teal’c, I’m sorry to say, would not go under the radar in suburban Virginia.” Again Jack had known this - but he had been an optimist in hoping that it wouldn’t be just him and Carter alone.
“This is such a cliché,” he murmured not loud enough for anybody to hear - except, it seemed, Sam who gave him a quick smile and a shrug.
The General handed them each a thick folder with names, details and relevant history of everyone who lived in the street. It was about eight families.
“When do we leave?”
“Tonight. First report is due Friday. Doctor Jackson and Teal’c will be able to contact you in the case of an emergency and you will both need to make a list of people who may need to get a hold of you in the next few months. We have no idea how long this deployment will take, nor do we know what Pollack is planning.”
They were given another sealed package: “Your IDs and personal information. I suggest you read them on the flight. Your transport leaves at 2330 tonight.”
The General stood and they followed, “Dismissed people. Colonel, Major - a moment if you will.”
They followed him into his office where he motioned for them to sit. “I am incredibly sorry,” he told them. “I know this situation is far from ideal but we need our best on this. I know this will be difficult for both of you-“ he held up his hand to stave of the beginning protests. “I’m not blind.” He said simply. “But I trust the two of you to be professional at all times.”
“Yes Sir,” Jack saluted before the General dismissed them once again.
Back in the briefing room he turned to Sam. “You should go talk to Paul,” he said, “let him know what’s going on.” He probably imagined it - but he swore he caught her sigh.
“Yes Sir,” she nodded.
“How about you pack, organise everything you need to then come over to mine for dinner? we can find out who we’re going to be for the next while, have some pizza-“
“Chinese.”
He couldn’t help his grin - it was an involuntary reaction. “Fine, Chinese. And head over to Peterson from my place.”
“Sounds good.” She thanked him and left to put an entire life on hold.
It was only once she had left that he realised she hadn’t corrected him on her boyfriend’s name.
He spent the name with Daniel as they went through the various alien tech that may have been interesting or available to Pollack. Jack was in special ops soldier mode as he absorbed every word of Daniel’s rapid-fire education. Pollack was an engineer so it was safe to say he would gravitate towards machinery rather than historical artifacts. Daniel had to concede that Jack on a mission was an impressive (and slightly intimidating) sight.
Finally it got to about 1700 hours and Jack needed to organise everything else he would need for the trip. Before he left, Daniel turned to him; “Be careful Jack,” he said.
Jack just grinned, “Of course. I always am.”
“I’m not talking about the mission.”
Jack could only nod; he’d known exactly what Daniel had meant.
Sam was having a significantly more difficult time preparing for this mission. Unlike Jack whom had years of Special Ops behind him and had some experience dealing with the prospect of an entirely new identity and putting the old one on hold, Sam was not used to having time to organise everything. The way things worked at the SGC was that she didn’t know she wouldn’t be away for long periods of time until she was half way through the long period of time.
Unfortunately, neither was Pete used to having his girlfriend disappear on him without at least some warning.
“I’m sorry Pete, I can’t tell you.”
“Are you going to be on this planet?”
“That’s classified.”
“Come on Sam! Give me something?”
“Like what?” She snapped back. “Like that I have several folders of information all saying Classified, For My Eyes Only. Come on Pete, what do you expect me to do?”
“Give me something so I know you’re coming back.”
She shrugged, tired of the circles the argument had already taken and knowing that they’d been at it for an hour with no signs of slowing down. “You’ve got my word Pete. That’s all I’ve got.” She picked up the last of her bags and got into the car, concentrating on the well-worn route between her house and the Colonels.
He opened the door, a box of noodles in one hand and the other held a fork that seemed halfway to his mouth. “Carter!” he grinned and she immediately realised why her heart had felt lighter on the drive over here.
“Sir. You started without me!”
He just shrugged and smiled, letting her inside. “Care to join?”
She handed him a bag before going back to her car for the other one. When they were both settled around the living room table, boxes of Chinese in his hands; they opened their new IDs.
Jack poured the contents onto the table, quickly noting hi new name: Jack Denton. There were the usual; birth certificates, passport, records of employment - it seemed he taught High School History - and a marriage certificate. It was with a small feeling of dread (and a large one of joy that we’ll ignore) that he took the small band of silver and looked up at Sam.
She seemed to have reached the same part he hand. The look in her eyes was dark and troubled, love and hope and cruel reality seemed to mingle with the clear blue of her eyes. Jack forced a smile, “I’m sorry Sam,” he whispered.
“I’m not,” she said without thinking. “Anyway,” she went on; forcing everything else back behind the Major Carter Wall of No-Emotions. “I’m Samantha Denton, High School Physics Teacher.”
“Jack Denton, High School History.”
“History?”
He shrugged, “I have a master in it from years ago. Specialised in Military History of course but I loved-“
“You have a masters?”
Jack gave her a quick grin - secretly glad to have surprised her after seven years. “That’s one of them.”
She smirked, “Daniel owes me twenty bucks.”
“What?” So much for surprising her.
“I said you’d have more than one degree, Daniel thought you only got enough to get you into the Air Force.”
He shook his head unable to hide his smile. “I have four.”
Sam grinned and slipped on her wedding band. “So how did we meet?”
Jack had a bad feeling about where this conversation could go, but found himself wanting to drive on despite the warnings. “At work.” He murmured.
She smiled, “Yes, you were surprised that a woman would be a physics teacher.”
“Not true! I just never liked physics. Anyway, you were all - “if a man can, I can.””
She ran a finger over the wedding band and leant forward, “The school we were at didn’t like teacher’s getting involved.”
“But neither of us were fond of the reg… the rules.”
Sam bit her lip - this was one of those moments where you knew something bad was about to happen - but still you went steadfastly towards it. And instead of feeling terror or dread, she was silently urging it on. “So during the summer holidays a few years ago,” she said, “We just ducked off to Minnesota where you’ve got family and got married.”
“You in a white dress you’d bought the day before, me in the cleanest and closest thing to a suit I had.”
All this time they had been inching closer towards each other - the food and back story long forgotten. “It was perfect,” Sam sighed.
“Kids?” Sam asked.
“With your eyes and brains and my ability to play hockey? Sam? We’ll need at least six!” A very small part of her was leaping up and down going SCREW THE REGS! … THEN SCREW HIM! But she forced herself to shake her head. “Two would be perfect.”
He reached up a hand to caress her cheek, her heart started going haywire (was 36 too young for a heart attack?). Then the moment was lost thanks to four thundering knocks on the front door.
Jack was almost physically pulled back by the sound and he swore as he got up; giving her a look that said “later”. “I swear if you’re Daniel,” he muttered as he opened the door.
But he never got to finish his thought as Pete (the one responsible for breaking the mood) had swung a punch just as the door opened - catching Jack in the jaw and throwing him back.
“Sir!” Sam cried, leaping around the couch to see what had happened. She forgot, of course, that she was still wearing the wedding ring and that until a few hours ago, the man at the door had been her boyfriend. Though now she thought of it - she had never exactly dumped him.
“Sam!” Pete called out stopping her in her tracks - his voice was cold and angry, something Sam had only heard once; when she accused him of following her after the Osiris operation. “So this is why you left?” he asked, pointing at O’Neill who was holding his jaw with a dirty look.
“Colonel O’Neill and I working on a mission Pete.” Sam said, absently wondering why she was bothering. “We leave later tonight.”
Pete stepped back and smirked. “A mission? Sure, with wedding rings and Chinese food? Did you two get beamed up to Las Vegas and get married by an Elvis impersonator?” For a Detective (who must have gone undercover at least once), Pete wasn't very good at seeing both sides of a picture.
Sam glanced down at the wedding ring and bit her lip - not wanting to take it off. “Quite often we come across cultures who don’t like women travelling alone. I pretend to be married to the Colonel. It just makes things easier.”
Sam looked to Jack, wondering why he remained so quiet at the intrusion into his house. The Colonel was still against the wall, but his arms were now crossed over his chest and his stance and gaze immediately to her that he was there if she needed him. But he was doing something she had always loved about him - he was letting her fight her own battles.
“So you expect me to believe this bullshit? Seriously?”
Sam had had enough. This had been a constant argument over the past few months and she was sick of the snide comments and muttered asides Pete made whenever the Colonel or SG-1 was mentioned. “Pete, I think you should leave. What the Colonel and I are doing is top secret, classified and way beyond that. I’m sorry that you’re feeling left out but that’s the way it is. Now, we have a lot of work to do before we leave and its time you went home.” She spoke with all the force and power her rank and standing had given her, walking towards Pete who backed up and out the front door.
She smiled sweetly, “Bye Pete,” and closed the door in his face.
Neither one of them said anything for a while. The Colonel was watching her intently while Sam was staring at the closed door. Pete was gone. Probably for good. The first, best and most normal relationship she’d had in almost ten years was over.
She knew that it wasn’t Pete the individual she was sad about loosing - she had always known there was a time limit for them. She’d known it since he’d sat in the infirmary and been told that she visited different planets on an almost weekly basis.
It was more the lost opportunity, the chance to have the 2.3 kids, white picket fence (even through she never really liked those) and a dog named Spot or Flash or Patchy.
Then she turned around and saw the Colonel. He stood with his hands in his pockets and an expression of deep sympathy on his face. “I’m sorry,” he murmured. “I know-’
“I’m sorry,” she interrupted. Silence reigned again as they both just looked at each other. There was no need to elaborate on her words; they both knew what she meant.
I’m sorry I abandoned the room
I’m sorry about Pete
“Come on,” Jack finally said after clearing his throat. “I’ve got to pack and then we’ve got a flight to catch.”
As she packed away their things and threw out the last of the dinner - the irony was not lost on Sam that this mission into suburbia might be her best chance to experience ‘normality’.
Daniel and Teal’c met them at Peterson to see them off. “We’ll send you our mission reports,” Daniel said. “You’ll need to write up your versions of ours so the NID stay off our backs.”
“Great,” Jack grumbled, “I don’t even get out of paperwork?”
They would have a private plane to Indianapolis, and then transfer to a commercial flight to DC.
They spent the private jet leg of the journey going over the backgrounds of their new neighbours, finding out that they were variations of the normal suburban family unit; many had one or two kids while there was one couple hoping to adopt.
The house they would be in was one of about ten in a cul-de-sac. All were quite wealthy and as two teachers they would be almost eclipsed by the range of CEOs, scientists, doctors and various over professionals.
Just before they started the descent, Sam slipped into the bathroom, changing her uniform BDUs for jeans and sweater, slipping on some gold earrings and the wedding band. She could only grin at the unguarded look Jack gave her when she stepped out. This was a look that was matched when he finished changing into dark jeans and a blue sweater. It really wasn’t fair that she should have such a sexy CO.
The plane had landed at about 1700 hours; they’d grabbed their bags, found the rental car (a simple Toyota Camry that Jack swore was going to get changed for something ‘sensible’ as soon as possible) and headed out towards their house. They hadn’t really spoken during the commercial flight or the drive, both instead concentrating on getting stories and emotions straight. Jack seemed to be constantly reminding himself that this was a mission, not a happily ever after. Sam, on the other hand, had decided that while maintaining the utmost professionalism and dignity, secretly, she would be enjoying this.
They drove up to the house just as the moon was rising and the cold really began to set in - not that it hadn’t been absolutely freezing before, but now it was so cold that the wind seemed to get through Sam’s thick jacket and directly into her bones. If there had been any doubt before, the moment Sam saw the house she and Jack would be living in; the title Operation Stepford made a lot more sense. Despite the images of long blonde hair, gingham aprons and plastic smiles - she really couldn’t help but fall in love with this house. It was a classic family house with white walls, large garden out the front and what looked like a bigger one out the back, two car garage and a mailbox that had “Dentons” already written on it.“Come on,” Jack said, “Let’s get inside and turn the heating on. The moving guys should get here early tomorrow so …”
“We just have to camp out till then,” She smiled at him through chattering teeth. “Inside sounds good.”
Neither one could help the casual yet intent sweeping look they gave both the quiet street and the front hall as Jack opened the door. Sam had hoped that her intake of breath (masking a gasp) hadn’t been heard by her companion (and CO), but his twitch of a smile said otherwise. It was just something about the panelled walls, the varnished wood floor and the window at the end overlooking what looked like a very large garden.
“We can afford this?” she asked, looking through the kitchen with its marble counters and glass cupboards. Jack leant in the doorway; arms crossed over his chest (seriously - should he be allowed to do that? - surely that was dangerous to her heart) and chuckled. The look he gave her said, “not us, the air force” and she smiled. They were running under the assumption that their house (or at least parts of it) would be bugged and had agreed on a code to indicate that they needed to talk at which point they would find somewhere secluded and clean of devises.
“We’ll need to go food shopping tomorrow,” Sam murmured glancing at the empty fridge, “oh, and unpack everything, and go up to the school and get all that registration stuff organised and-“
“Sam?” She looked up and cocked her head to him, a shy smile on her lips. “Lets get to all that tomorrow okay? I need to sleep and you’re exhausted.”
She shrugged and walked over towards him, ‘Yeah. Sleep sounds good.”
“We’ll get the welcoming committee tomorrow,” Jack told her as they made their way upstairs. “I’m guessing casseroles.”
“Come on S-Jack,” she found herself smiling despite herself, “We’re not in a cliché.”
“Wanna bet?”
They found the master bedroom and despite her exhaustion Sam managed to find the walk-in-closet, the huge bathroom with a beautiful (really, that’s the only way to describe it) bathtub, the door out to the porch and the closet situated in the tower (they had a tower!!) that she immediately claimed as her own before Jack called her back inside. He’d managed to bring the blankets and two pillows from the car and set them up on the floor. They closed the curtains and turned the heat up before each pulling on an extra jumper and crawling under the covers. Sam closed her eyes tightly, refusing to let the fact that she was sleeping next to Jack O’Neill, the guy she’d been (let’s face it) in love with for at least seven years and coincidentally, her CO; make any difference to her. She took a deep breath and curled further into the covers and prayed for sleep.
Jack was right. They did get the welcoming committee the next day. Thankfully they were given a chance to unpack part of the kitchen before they were discovered. Sam had her eyes glued to a set of very nice blue and gold trimmed china that she had decided was a wedding present from Jack’s mother - he’d grinned at that and nodded muttering that it sounded like his mother. She was carefully placing it all in a wooden cabinet that had arrived earlier while Jack was up in the observatory fiddling with his telescope (she figured it had been a gift from Daniel).
The woman who came to meet them had a young boy of about five with her, and a baby not older than two months in her arms. “Dianne Archer,” she introduced herself, “Of number thirteen and this is Luke and Grace.”
Sam grinned despite her faded jeans, much too large old t-shirt and the grime that she seemed to be coated in.
“I’m Sam Denton, my husband Jack is around somewhere.”
Dianne grinned, “Isn’t that always the case? Well we saw the trucks and figured we’d come and say hi, maybe invite you to dinner tonight? I know food must be the last thing on your mind at the moment.”
Sam grinned, “Sounds fantastic.”
Dianne’s little boy - Luke, looked nervous before finally speaking up, “Mrs Denton?”
Sam bent down - already taken by the boy. Yes Luke?”
“Do you have any kids … my age?”
Sam had to shake her head, “I’m sorry I don’t, are all the kids around here older than you?” Luke nodded a little sadly. Dianne frowned, “Sorry,” she murmured. “Just had a run in with the Horace’s boys - I have yet to meet a family of bigger thugs.”
Sam thought for a moment before smiling and asking if Dianne was headed anywhere for the next few hours. Once she’d said she wasn’t, Sam ducked back into the house and called for Jack. He came down the stairs, a sheepish grin on his face. “Okay, so I got a little distracted with the telescope and there are heaps of star charts-“ he stopped in his tracks at the sight of his guests and smiled at Sam in an I-told-you-so manner before shaking Dianne’s hand. “Jack Denton.”
Luke seemed in awe of him, the boy’s big blue eyes wide as he took in the man in front of him. Jack had a dark blue t-shirt on with jeans - but even in that he was an imposing sight (to which Sam thought just wait till you see the dress blues). “You have a telescope?” the boy asked and Jack grinned.
“Yup, thought Sam here is the real expert.” The boy shared a grin with his mother who looked so relieved that a Sam was a bit scared she’d fall over.
“How about we go get lunch started,” Sam said, “and Jack can go show off his observatory.”
Dianne looked lost for a moment and Sam quickly realised that she could be weary the first time she met people as well. “Or! Come, on, we can all go show off the observatory.” Dianne smiled as Jack and Luke led the way, Jack talking animatedly about the way the hemispheres impacted on the stars.
They spent a good half hour in the observatory as both Sam and Jack taught the boy about the stars from the charts that the SGC had given them.
“How about we leave them and organise some food?” Dianne eventually said as Grace started to stir in her arms.
Down in the kitchen Dianne sat on a stool as Sam puttered around the kitchen trying to remember where she had put everything. “I’m afraid it’ll be sandwiches,” she admitted.
Dianne just grinned. “After what you and your husband just did? That is the happiest and most talkative I have ever seen Luke!”
She’d got this strange buzz when she’d seen the boy’s eyes glow at the sight of the star charts. When Jack had issued the open invitation to come and stargaze through the telescope any night he liked, Sam was sure the boy would physically burst. Perhaps this was why people became teachers and spent their entire lives encouraging young children - it was for that look.
Dianne was quite happy to give her a run down of the entire street - information Sam made a note to write down somewhere. “Well, Terry and I are in number thirteen, The Horaces with their three small thugs are on your other side. Next to us in twelve are Jasper and Timothy - lovely guys - they’re trying to adopt but stupid services are giving them grief. James and Vicky are next to them in number ten, they have a seventeen-year-old Samuel - though he’s the most polite seventeen year old you will ever meet. Keep him in mind while you’re dealing with some of those kids at the school - there are teenagers able to hold a conversation.” Sam laughed, a niggling worry about teaching high school once again coming to the forefront of her mind - but she pushed it away, determined to ignore it. She remembered her years at high school well enough.
“They’re both getting on a bit now, had Sam when they were quite old. Then Robert and Rebecca Pollack in number eight with their son James. A young couple moved into number six but,” Dianne shrugged, “they don’t socialise.”
Sam had to grin; they already had intel on the mystery guests.
After lunch and one more story about Orion, Dianne took Luke and the baby home - reiterating the invitation to dinner. Jack watched them go before turning and smiling at Sam. “Well, there’s hope for the suburban housewife yet,” he said. Sam rolled her eyes.
“If she wants to stay at home with her kids then that’s fine,” Sam said - having always found the divide between women who chose to stay at home and those who chose to work, really very annoying.
Jack bit his lip before bursting into a grin and went into the study to start unpacking the library. Sam had seen the several boxes labelled “books” and immediately tore one open to have a look. She was amazed to see the mixture of textbooks, journals and the occasional first edition interspersed with some books she knew she had at home (and had never admitted to owning). She had originally tried to hide the titles like Girl Next Door, Do Not Disturb and Passion from Jack, but he’d seen her clutching one to her chest and sneaking it into their room.
“Alright!” she’d sighed, “I like to read chic-lit okay? It’s fun and helps me stop thinking and it’s a way to relax and…“
“Sam?” he smiled and she stopped, “It’s okay. You’re allowed to like them.”
She stared at him, the book still clutched in her hands. “What?”
He chuckled, “You’re allowed to like them. I watch the Simpsons; you read these books,” he shrugged, “No big deal.”
She just looked at him and, yes; let’s admit it, she fell a little more in love with him. “Pete was … shocked,” she murmured.
Jack just shook his head and went back to unpacking the box at his feet, “Pete was an idiot.”
She watched for a while before turning back to the books and placing them on the shelves. “Want to order Chinese and watch the Simpsons?”
He looked up with a look of such tiredness and relief that she couldn’t help but grin. They’d been unpacking all day, going through the odds and ends the Air Force seemed to decide they needed. There was a collection of scarves from Hong Kong that while Sam admitted they were very beautiful - she just couldn’t see herself wearing them; a very expensive set of golf clubs that made Jack laugh at the thought of either the teacher Jack Denton or the soldier Jack O’Neill ever being able to afford them and medical records from the past five years that had some very interesting excuses for the various scars and medical issues they may ever have (with a very clear note that under no circumstances was any treatment be taken, or blood taken from either Jack or Samantha Denton without a phone call to their previous doctor).
“That sounds perfect,” he muttered, “But somebody promised Dianne that we’d head over there for dinner.”
Sam swore, glanced at her watch and almost dove into the shower - the sound of Jack’s laughter echoing through the room. As Sam stood under the strong spray she swore again and took a deep breath. At this moment, it seemed that finding out the alien terror ring would be a hell of a lot simpler than pretending to be married to Jack O’Neill. “Damn him,” she muttered.
Dinner with Dianne and her family was an interesting affair. Her son Luke sat next to Jack the entire time and while he spoke occasionally, the boy seemed more than happy to just listen to whatever the older man was saying, hanging onto Jack's every word.
Dianne’s husband Terry was a very nice man, despite being an accountant. Overall, they had a lot of fun and even managed to relax.
The next day was spent unpacking and going to the high school to get their registration over and done with. They would start the next Monday. By the weekend they had briefly met Mr. and Mrs. Horace after their eldest son Junior had draped toilet paper over one of their hedges as a welcome gift. “I never got the naming a kid Junior thing,” Jack muttered after they closed the door. “But that kid is just like his father.”
Sam grinned, “Looks like his mother though. I’ve never seen anybody look quite so much like a bull dog.” The Pollack family hadn’t visited yet, but Dianne promised that they would be at the big lunch on Saturday. It seemed to be a bit of a tradition in this street, every Saturday one of the families would put on a huge lunch, with everybody bringing something and all getting together. In summer they had a BBQ, but the snow and cold tended to spoil that in winter so they stayed inside.
Jack had a small alcove in the observatory that he was positive was a blind spot for any bugs. Every time he walked in, he always swept that corner before doing anything else. There was a shelf that had a series of books about Minnesota, but behind them was a small notebook, barely larger than his palm. It was in this, and in a cipher he’d created the first time he was in Iraq, he made his notes. He had given Sam the keyword back on the private flight. When he checked just before the lunch, he was a little surprised (and happy) to see that she had added in her own notes around his. She had noted the familial links in each house, and any distinguishing factors about any of the people they had already met.
In the five days they had been here, he had watched proudly as his 2IC had risen to every occasion. She had calmly and confidently outlined her previous work experience to the principal of the school, helped Dianne with Grace and Luke with a poise and smile he had never seen before and faced down Bernard Horace as his middle son Jeff tried to hack up the flowers in their front garden. He knew she was nervous at the prospect of the lunch and meeting everybody that weekend, as well as her first day as a teacher on Monday but he was embarrassingly proud of her and couldn’t help but grin every time.
“Jack?” he jumped and slipped the notebook back behind the books before coming out into the hall. “Come on,” she smiled, “We have to go.”
He nodded, only partially registering what she was saying. He was a little busy staring at her. He knew that in a few minutes a large jacket would cover her up, but at the moment she was in a pair of very well fitting jeans and a sweater of the same gray-blue as her eyes. She had silver earrings in and a simple necklace. She was stunning. Of course, as always, his eyes tracked down to the wedding ring on her finger and he burst into a grin. “Must get you an engagement ring sometime,” he murmured.
She smiled sadly at him, “later,” she said. “We can … renew our vows … with everybody around this time.”
He looked up, vaguely wondering if she had just proposed to him. She smiled again - that same sad smile she had whenever they had to make up a story about their wedding. He felt the sudden urge to kiss her cheek and hug her, to tell her that yes - there would be a later and yes, it would come complete with an engagement ring but he refrained.
“Yeah,” he sighed, “Better go into the lion’s den.”
She lightly punched him in the shoulder with a grin, “it’s not that bad.”
He pretended to groan, “I know,” he told her, “But I have to be polite! It’s hard!”
She gave him an indulgent look and led him down the stairs, “I know, but I’m not doing in there without somebody to watch my six.”
Sam quickly decided that her favourite person in the street was Jasper Kennedy. He was roughly 30 years old with dark hair and deep olive skin. He was a writer who when he wasn’t writing his latest novel, spent his time travelling the world writing for the Times. When she and Jack arrived at lunch at Dianne’s house, Jasper leapt up to her, arms outstretched with a large grin. “Fresh meat!” he laughed and hugged her tightly. “Welcome!”
His partner, Timothy, smiled to Jack, “You’ll never get her back,” he told him.
Jack just grinned, “I’m sure she’ll manage.” Tim was quieter than his partner, and a little older. He was a university lecturer in English literature and was surprised at Jack’s ready conversation in it. They sat on one of the couches with a beer each and happily talked about James Joyce and whether or not a medal should be awarded for all of those who managed to finish Ulysses. Whenever Jack looked over to Sam he saw her happily in conversation with Jasper, Dianne and Luke. They both kept their eyes peeled for the Pollack family or the people from the house next to them, but neither made any sort of appearance. “That’s usual,” Harry said. “Rebecca’s probably overseas on business.”
The afternoon finished with only Dianne, her kids, Jasper, Tim, Sam and Jack left. Terry and Bernard Horace had taken the older kids down the road to have a snowball fight. By the time Sam and Jack eventually left it was 2200 hours and Sam was hiding her yawns behind her hand. Jack casually wrapped an arm around her shoulder, bringing her close to him. He was immensely glad when; instead of flinching away she seemed to lean closer towards him. Be careful, Daniel’s voice warned him and for once he had to agree with the disembodied voice (Daniel seemed fond of that).