Little Rascals part 2
Title: Little Rascals
Summary: Jack and Daniel have been turned into little kids and they’re driving Sam (and everyone else) crazy!
Timeframe: Slight AU, Season Three-ish.
Characters/Pairing: Established Sam/Jack and Janet/Daniel.
Genre: Humor, kidfic, AU, Drama, Hurt/Comfort
Rating: PG.
Part Two
Much to Sam's stupefaction and inner fury, the boys were nowhere to be seen when she returned to their room with a piece of chocolate-peanut butter cake and a big chocolate-chip walnut cookie. She searched under the bed, the couch, and even the bathroom, wardrobe, and closet, but the two little rascals were nowhere to be found.
Then she saw it. The suspiciously open grate to the air ducts.
Sam hurried over, knelt down to peer inside, and cursed. The two munchkins had flown the coop. Dammit. Abandoning the desserts on the coffee table, Sam dashed out of the room to inform the SF outside, and begin her search. This was going to be a long night.
.
"Do you even know where we're going?" Daniel grumbled after nearly colliding with Jack's butt for the third time when the boy stopped abruptly in front of him. The dusty ventilation ducts had him sneezing every couple of feet, and his eyes were itchy and watery. This was not fun at all.
"To the commissary! Duh," Jack muttered from up front, as though the answer was obvious.
Pausing to sneeze into the crook of his elbow, Daniel heaved a sigh. "I know that. But do you know how to get there?"
"Of course I do!" Jack peered from left to right, deciding which turn to take in the dark duct.
Not quite believing him, Daniel began to crawl forward again when Jack turned left, but stopped short when his friend suddenly yelped and disappeared. "Jack!"
"Ahh!" he heard the other boy cry out, the sound growing faint with the accompanying thumps along the sides of the duct.
Carefully inching forward, Daniel realized that the left turn Jack had taken led down to a steep slide that went somewhere he couldn't see. "Uh-oh," he murmured, afraid to follow after his friend. Gulping, and momentarily chewing on his lower lip, Daniel called down into the dark abyss, "Don't worry, Jack! I'll go get help!"
Turning around in the small space, Daniel quickly scampered back down the duct the way they'd come, hoping he could remember his way back.
.
Jack finally slid to an ungraceful stop when he crashed into a grate at the end of the incline, the force of his momentum causing him to break through, tumbling out onto the hard floor. "Ow," he grumbled, rubbing his head as he climbed to his feet, squinting while he waited for his eyes to focus in the dim lighting. Having no idea where he was, Jack brushed the dust off his pajamas and took a few tentative steps forward as his eyes continued to adjust.
As he took a good look around, gazing at the shelves and boxes that were surrounding him, Jack realized that he was in some sort of storage area. He snuck around quietly, worried about being found out, rounding a shelf and grinning when he discovered the door. "Yes!" he cheered quietly, reaching for the handle. "Time to get my snack!"
Carefully creeping out of the storage closet, Jack looked both ways as he poked his head out into the hall. Seeing no one, he closed the door behind him and scampered down the corridor, his sock-clad feet virtually silent on the smooth cement floor.
.
With the latest medical emergency dealt with, Janet returned to the VIP suite where the boys had disappeared from. She had run into Sam, who quickly informed her of the boys’ little Houdini act, and had then offered to go back to the scene of the crime in case the kids wound up back there.
Janet was sitting not-so-patiently at the small table in the suite when a dusty, sneezing little Daniel rolled out of the still-open air duct. Maternal and doctor’s instincts kicking in, she grabbed a box of Kleenex and hurried over to him.
“Daniel!” she exclaimed, crouching in front of the bewildered, sniffling five-year-old, and quickly bringing a tissue up to wipe his nose. “Where have you been?”
He sneezed loudly, and she gingerly took his hand, wordlessly leading him into the bathroom as the fit continued. Her miniature fiancé was struggling to catch his breath, and she quickly lifted him onto the counter as tears streaked down his dirty cheeks.
“It’s okay,” Janet soothed, finding a wash cloth and soaking it in warm, soapy water to wash his face of the dust and grime. “It’s okay; just breathe, alright?”
Daniel’s shaky gasps slowed to a normal breathing pattern as Janet washed away the source of his sneezing fit. She washed his hands next, and then got him changed into a clean pair of pajamas before trying to get anymore information out of the little escapee.
Sniffling as Janet set him on the bed, and rubbing at his red, itchy eyes beneath the big glasses, Daniel stuck out his trembling lower lip. “We just wanted our snacks,” he murmured, his chin dipping down to his chest shamefully.
“Daniel,” Janet crouched in front of the bed, her hands on the little boy’s shoulders as she looked into his bloodshot blue eyes. “Where’s Jack?”
As if suddenly remembering his missing friend, Daniel jumped up and off the bed, scrambling toward the wall vent. “He’s in there somewhere!” he cried excitedly, pointing. “We got lost, and . . . Oh! There was a big drop and he slid down!”
Eyes widening in alarm, Janet followed Daniel to where he knelt in front of the vent, pointing inside. “And you don’t know where he went?” she asked calmly.
“Uh-uh.” Daniel shook his head. His nose was running, and he quickly swiped his sleeve across his face. “I yelled, but he didn’t answer so I turned around and came back to get help.”
Sighing, Janet put a hand to her forehead and took in a calming breath, reaching down to give Daniel an encouraging pat on the head. “I appreciate you coming back to let someone know, Daniel. That was very smart of you.” She motioned to the door when he smiled up at her. “Come on, let’s go get you something to help with your allergies.”
“But what about Jack?” Daniel sounded appalled that she would leave his friend behind. Some things hadn’t changed.
Smiling down at him reassuringly, she said, “Don’t worry, Sam and probably half the base are out looking for him now.” Janet grimaced internally as she led Daniel out of the room, telling the SF outside to keep sharp in case Jack came back the way Daniel had.
The General wasn’t going to be very happy if he found out about this. Luckily, as far as Janet knew, Hammond had gone home for the night already, leaving Colonel Reynolds in charge of the skeleton crew. Now all they had to do was get Jack back without incident, and the man in charge didn’t need to find out.
Fat chance of that, Janet thought ruefully, giving Daniel a Kleenex from her pocket when he started sneezing again.
.
Heart hammering away in his chest with the thrill of this new, fun game, Jack tip-toed around another corner without being seen. He was surprised that there were so little people in this big place at night. During the day there were people everywhere!
Feeling triumphant and more than a little gutsy, Jack strutted down the corridor and came to an intersection without checking it first. The shout from the hall to the right caught him by surprise, and he jumped, suddenly alert.
“Hey! Kid! How’d you get down here?”
The SF startled him, and Jack’s eyes widened as the guard strode determinedly his way. Not wanting to be caught, he quickly ran down the other corridor and dashed into an open door, the guard’s loud boots clomping behind him.
His sock-clad feet slipped on the smooth floor, and before he could right himself, Jack careened into a cabinet, the sound of breaking glass shattering the silence as fragile objects rained down on and around him.
The sharp, stinging pain in his back didn’t register until the SF grabbed a hold of him, wrapping a muscled arm about his small frame and carrying him out of the room under his arm like a sack of potatoes.
“I don’t know who you are or how you got down here, but you’re sure in trouble now, little fella.”
Jack squirmed frantically, which only increased his pain. He gasped, still wiggling, as tears streamed freely down his cheeks. “Lemme go! Lemme go!”
When the SF carrying him turned a corner, Jack noticed a familiar figure striding across the hall ahead of them. An ally. Someone he could trust to help him, he was sure of it. “Tea’uk!” he cried out, doing all he could to squirm so that the SF would put him down. “Tea’uk! HELP!”
“Kid, stop it, will you?” the Airman grunted as Jack’s flailing legs kicked at him. The guard swung him up, wrapping both arms around the five-year-old and holding him to his chest.
“Lemme go! Tea’uk!” Jack squeaked one last time, sniffling and sobbing now as adrenaline faded and he realized his back was ablaze with agony, pressed to the Airman’s chest. Jack might not remember who she was, but he wanted his mommy.
.
Teal’c stopped short at the sound of the small voice calling for him. He backed up in the corridor and spied his miniaturized friend, caught up in the grips of an SF, who was struggling to hold onto the wailing, squirming youngster.
Moved by the cries of pain, Teal’c swiftly strode toward his friend as the guard looked pleadingly at him. “O’Neill. Major Carter has been searching for you.”
The SF sergeant still hung onto the boy. “I found him just walking the halls, and chased him into a lab. He broke some stuff in there,” he explained.
“Tea’uk, help.” O’Neill pleaded, sniffling. His wide brown eyes looked up pitifully.
Seeing the tear-streaked face, Teal’c became alarmed at the whimpers emitting from the five-year-old. “Release him at once.”
“Yes, sir. You’ll take him back to . . . wherever he’s supposed to be?”
“I shall.” Teal’c nodded, and as the SF released O’Neill, the boy sunk to his knees on the floor, head hanging as he continued to whimper, his small body quaking. Teal’c’s eyes widened with both anger and alarm at the sight of blood staining the back of young O’Neill’s torn nightshirt.
Brows creasing, Teal’c’s eyes flashed angrily at the airman, who looked just as shocked as he. “Did you not see that he is injured?” He bellowed, not caring that the guard took a wary step back when Teal’c moved toward the boy.
“I - I didn’t know, sir!” the SF exclaimed earnestly. “He’d broken some stuff in the lab, but I wasn’t aware that he’d been hurt. I was only concerned about getting a hold of him before he damaged anymore equipment.” He looked suitably nervous as Teal’c crouched beside O’Neill and glared up at the airman. “I apologize, sir.”
Heaving a loud breath that sounded more like a snorting bull, Teal’c growled, “Leave us. I shall take him to the infirmary.”
The guard gulped audibly. “Yessir.” He then beat a hasty retreat.
“It is alright, O’Neill,” Teal’c assured the sniffling boy, his voice low. “You are safe.”
O’Neill looked up at him with bloodshot eyes, then winced as he reached up his arms to wrap around Teal’c’s thick neck.
Lifting the boy gingerly, and without touching his upper back, Teal’c carried O’Neill toward the elevator to bring him to the infirmary for treatment, and to let everyone know that he had been found.
.
Janet sat with Daniel on a bed in the infirmary after giving him some antihistamines for his allergies. It was very late by now, and he was leaning against her tiredly, but wouldn’t allow himself to sleep. Every time Janet suggested it, he sat up straighter and told her that he couldn’t sleep until he knew Jack was okay. That had made her smile.
At the approaching sound of heavily booted feet, Janet looked towards the door to see Teal’c striding purposefully into the infirmary, the once-missing five-year-old held carefully in his arms.
“Doctor Fraiser. O’Neill requires medical assistance. He has been injured.”
Forcing herself to remain calm when she noticed the blood stains on the back of Jack’s pajama top, Janet quickly motioned for Teal’c to take Jack to a bed, and then hurriedly tugged the curtain closed when Daniel was trying to see what was going on.
“What happened to him?” Janet asked as the Jaffa gingerly lowered the unresisting five-year-old to the bed.
“A guard discovered O’Neill roaming the corridors and chased the him into a lab where O’Neill fell, and was apparently injured by some broken glass objects.” A frown darkened Teal’c’s stern features. “The guard was not aware that O’Neill had been damaged, and caused the boy further distress by restraining him.”
Janet felt her brow twitch. She studied the silent boy sitting stiffly on the bed, his cheeks red and stained with dried tears. “Jack? I need to cut your shirt off so I can take a look at your back, okay?”
The little boy sniffed, his face scrunching up with discomfort. “But I like this shirt,” he mumbled in a small voice, pouting.
Looking up at Teal’c for a moment, Janet smiled, then placed a comforting hand on Jack’s shoulder. “We’ll get you a new one just like it, okay?”
Jack sighed, nodding after a moment, and Janet left him with Teal’c to get the scissors and some other medical supplies she may need.
After prepping a cart, Janet made a quick call, finding Sam making the rounds on Level 28, and informing her that their missing charge had been rounded up, and was in her care. Sam had assured Janet that she was on her way. And not a moment too soon. Janet doubted that Jack was going to be so compliant much longer, especially if he required stitches, which she suspected he did.
.
Janet gingerly cut away the youngster’s blood-stained pajama shirt while Teal’c kept him still. It didn’t help that Daniel had hopped off his own bed to come around the curtain and see what was going on.
“What are you doing to Jack? Can I see?” the mini-archaeologist asked curiously, climbing up on the bed and sitting cross-legged in front of Jack for a moment before Teal’c picked him up and set him back on the floor.
“I believe it is best that you didn’t, Daniel Jackson,” Teal’c informed the other boy as Jack started to squirm.
“Ow, that hurts,” Jack whined, trying to twist around and see what Janet was doing when she gingerly pulled the fabric away from his injury.
Janet tried not to gasp, not wanting to frighten the little boy. “I know it hurts, sweetie, but I’m going to fix you up and you need to keep still.”
There were bits of glass sticking out of several small abrasions on his upper back, most of which didn’t look too deep, but there were a few that definitely required sutures. The worst part was that she’d have to flush the wound, then pick out all the tiny bits of glass before she could do anything else.
“I wanna see!” Daniel tried to come around the bed so he could get a look at his friend’s back, but Teal’c quickly grabbed him.
“Maybe it’s best if you take Daniel back to the suite, Teal’c,” Janet suggested somewhat forcefully.
The big Jaffa bowed his head slightly in agreement. “Indeed.” He gave Jack a reassuring pat on the leg and then lifted Daniel into his arms. “Come, Daniel Jackson.”
“But I wanna stay!” he whined, nudging the big glasses back up the bridge of his nose.
“It’s way past your bed time, Daniel. Now go,” Janet said in a soft, yet commanding, motherly tone. Sam was on her way, and Janet figured she’d be able to handle Jack on her own until then.
Teal’c glanced back briefly before taking Daniel out of the infirmary.
.
Striding quickly into the infirmary, Sam found Janet trying to coax Jack out from under a bed in a far corner of the room. “What’s going on?”
Janet spun around, looking relieved when she saw her. “Sam, thank God!” She heaved a sigh. “Jack’s got some bits of glass in the cuts on his back, and when I went to give him a local anesthetic before cleaning out the wounds, he saw the needle and went ballistic,” the doctor explained.
Sam froze halfway into the room and cocked her head with confusion. “I don’t understand. You had to draw blood when we brought Jack and Daniel through the gate, and there wasn’t a problem.”
One of Janet’s eyebrows climbed, and she quickly cast a glance behind her at Jack, who still wasn’t coming out of hiding. “If you remember, they were both unconscious at the time.”
“Oh. Right.” Sam grimaced, then rubbed at her arms. “Well, Jack’s always had a thing about needles, as you know.” She shrugged. “Maybe now that he’s a child again, it’s worse; amplified.”
Janet sighed softly, nodding. “He needs to calm down so I can clean his wounds. I don’t want him to get an infection, or do anything to push those bits of glass in deeper.”
“I’ll try.” Sam walked slowly towards the bed Jack was hiding under, kneeling down and peering at him with a kind, genuine smile. “Hey, Jack, will you come out of there?”
Lifting his head from arms that were wrapped securely around his knees, Jack peered at her as if only now realizing that she was there. His bloodshot brown eyes widened, and he scrambled out of his hiding place to barrel into her arms. “Sam!”
Sam was careful as she wrapped her arms around his naked back, mindful of the wounds there. She glanced at the cuts as she held him, aware that a few were still bleeding sluggishly. Gingerly picking him up, Sam carried the little boy back to the bed. “It’s okay, honey; no one’s going to hurt you.”
“Uh-huh.” Jack buried his face in the side of her neck, nodding with disagreement. “Doc Janet was gonna stick me with that needle!” he exclaimed, his small voice wary. “Don’t let her, Sam! Please!”
Catching the hurt look flash briefly across Janet’s face, Sam stroked the back of her pint-sized husband’s head calmingly. “She’s not trying to hurt you, Jack. Janet just needs to give you one little shot so then she can fix you up, okay? She’s a doctor; she just wants to help.”
“No, no, no,” Jack shook his head against her and started to squirm. “I don’t want a shot!”
Sam sighed, trying to keep him still as she sat on the edge of the bed with the five-year-old in her lap. Janet was keeping her distance for now, making no moves toward the tray which held the needle. “It’ll be okay, Jack. I’m going to stay right with you. There’s only going to be a little pinch, then your back won’t hurt so much anymore.”
Jack leaned back, tempted with the idea. His wide, dark eyes studied her face as if searching for a hint of a lie. “Promise?”
“I promise.” She smiled at him, then nodded for Janet to come forward.
“Okay,” he mumbled into Sam’s neck, squeezing her.
Janet prepared the needle and came up behind Jack, facing Sam as she held him. “Now hold still, alright sweetie? There’s just going to be a quick pinch.”
Sam felt him tense, and his grip on her tightened for a moment when Janet injected the needle. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
“It still hurts,” Jack muttered, pulling his face back from Sam’s neck and sticking out his lower lip.
“That should go away in a few minutes, Jack,” Janet assured him. “Now, Sam, if you’ll bring him into the infirmary showers, I’ll get some warm saline and we’ll flush the wounds.”
“I already had my bath!” Jack complained, frowning.
Sam laughed softly. “You’re not getting another bath, Jack. We’re just going into the showers for a minute so the bed doesn’t get all wet, okay?”
Jack nodded, making a face like he didn’t quite understand. Then he started wiggling in her arms when Sam stood up with him and began carrying him to the infirmary showers.
“What’s the matter?”
“It tingles.” He leaned away to look at her, his nose scrunching up.
Sam smiled. “That’s just the medicine working. I bet your back doesn’t really hurt anymore, does it?”
Jack’s head tilted in thought, his eyes roaming upwards before settling on her face again. “No.”
.
After getting rid of the tiny bits of glass with the saline, they patted Jack dry and laid him on his stomach on the bed so Janet could pick out the more deeply imbedded pieces with some forceps.
Sam sat on the edge of the bed, her hand absently stroking Jack’s hair while Janet worked. She’d given him some children’s extra strength liquid Tylenol after they’d returned from the showers, and he was being surprisingly compliant as long as Sam was nearby.
Janet had already started with the sutures when Sam realized her miniature Colonel was snoring softly. She stopped stroking his hair for a moment, leaned down to see his face, and smiled. He was fast asleep.
Janet paused in her work for a moment and looked at Sam curiously. “Is he-”
“Sleeping; yeah.” Sam laughed. “It’s been a long night.”
Sighing, Janet nodded in agreement. “It sure has.”
.
Part Three
Summary: Jack and Daniel have been turned into little kids and they’re driving Sam (and everyone else) crazy!
Timeframe: Slight AU, Season Three-ish.
Characters/Pairing: Established Sam/Jack and Janet/Daniel.
Genre: Humor, kidfic, AU, Drama, Hurt/Comfort
Rating: PG.
Part Two
Much to Sam's stupefaction and inner fury, the boys were nowhere to be seen when she returned to their room with a piece of chocolate-peanut butter cake and a big chocolate-chip walnut cookie. She searched under the bed, the couch, and even the bathroom, wardrobe, and closet, but the two little rascals were nowhere to be found.
Then she saw it. The suspiciously open grate to the air ducts.
Sam hurried over, knelt down to peer inside, and cursed. The two munchkins had flown the coop. Dammit. Abandoning the desserts on the coffee table, Sam dashed out of the room to inform the SF outside, and begin her search. This was going to be a long night.
.
"Do you even know where we're going?" Daniel grumbled after nearly colliding with Jack's butt for the third time when the boy stopped abruptly in front of him. The dusty ventilation ducts had him sneezing every couple of feet, and his eyes were itchy and watery. This was not fun at all.
"To the commissary! Duh," Jack muttered from up front, as though the answer was obvious.
Pausing to sneeze into the crook of his elbow, Daniel heaved a sigh. "I know that. But do you know how to get there?"
"Of course I do!" Jack peered from left to right, deciding which turn to take in the dark duct.
Not quite believing him, Daniel began to crawl forward again when Jack turned left, but stopped short when his friend suddenly yelped and disappeared. "Jack!"
"Ahh!" he heard the other boy cry out, the sound growing faint with the accompanying thumps along the sides of the duct.
Carefully inching forward, Daniel realized that the left turn Jack had taken led down to a steep slide that went somewhere he couldn't see. "Uh-oh," he murmured, afraid to follow after his friend. Gulping, and momentarily chewing on his lower lip, Daniel called down into the dark abyss, "Don't worry, Jack! I'll go get help!"
Turning around in the small space, Daniel quickly scampered back down the duct the way they'd come, hoping he could remember his way back.
.
Jack finally slid to an ungraceful stop when he crashed into a grate at the end of the incline, the force of his momentum causing him to break through, tumbling out onto the hard floor. "Ow," he grumbled, rubbing his head as he climbed to his feet, squinting while he waited for his eyes to focus in the dim lighting. Having no idea where he was, Jack brushed the dust off his pajamas and took a few tentative steps forward as his eyes continued to adjust.
As he took a good look around, gazing at the shelves and boxes that were surrounding him, Jack realized that he was in some sort of storage area. He snuck around quietly, worried about being found out, rounding a shelf and grinning when he discovered the door. "Yes!" he cheered quietly, reaching for the handle. "Time to get my snack!"
Carefully creeping out of the storage closet, Jack looked both ways as he poked his head out into the hall. Seeing no one, he closed the door behind him and scampered down the corridor, his sock-clad feet virtually silent on the smooth cement floor.
.
With the latest medical emergency dealt with, Janet returned to the VIP suite where the boys had disappeared from. She had run into Sam, who quickly informed her of the boys’ little Houdini act, and had then offered to go back to the scene of the crime in case the kids wound up back there.
Janet was sitting not-so-patiently at the small table in the suite when a dusty, sneezing little Daniel rolled out of the still-open air duct. Maternal and doctor’s instincts kicking in, she grabbed a box of Kleenex and hurried over to him.
“Daniel!” she exclaimed, crouching in front of the bewildered, sniffling five-year-old, and quickly bringing a tissue up to wipe his nose. “Where have you been?”
He sneezed loudly, and she gingerly took his hand, wordlessly leading him into the bathroom as the fit continued. Her miniature fiancé was struggling to catch his breath, and she quickly lifted him onto the counter as tears streaked down his dirty cheeks.
“It’s okay,” Janet soothed, finding a wash cloth and soaking it in warm, soapy water to wash his face of the dust and grime. “It’s okay; just breathe, alright?”
Daniel’s shaky gasps slowed to a normal breathing pattern as Janet washed away the source of his sneezing fit. She washed his hands next, and then got him changed into a clean pair of pajamas before trying to get anymore information out of the little escapee.
Sniffling as Janet set him on the bed, and rubbing at his red, itchy eyes beneath the big glasses, Daniel stuck out his trembling lower lip. “We just wanted our snacks,” he murmured, his chin dipping down to his chest shamefully.
“Daniel,” Janet crouched in front of the bed, her hands on the little boy’s shoulders as she looked into his bloodshot blue eyes. “Where’s Jack?”
As if suddenly remembering his missing friend, Daniel jumped up and off the bed, scrambling toward the wall vent. “He’s in there somewhere!” he cried excitedly, pointing. “We got lost, and . . . Oh! There was a big drop and he slid down!”
Eyes widening in alarm, Janet followed Daniel to where he knelt in front of the vent, pointing inside. “And you don’t know where he went?” she asked calmly.
“Uh-uh.” Daniel shook his head. His nose was running, and he quickly swiped his sleeve across his face. “I yelled, but he didn’t answer so I turned around and came back to get help.”
Sighing, Janet put a hand to her forehead and took in a calming breath, reaching down to give Daniel an encouraging pat on the head. “I appreciate you coming back to let someone know, Daniel. That was very smart of you.” She motioned to the door when he smiled up at her. “Come on, let’s go get you something to help with your allergies.”
“But what about Jack?” Daniel sounded appalled that she would leave his friend behind. Some things hadn’t changed.
Smiling down at him reassuringly, she said, “Don’t worry, Sam and probably half the base are out looking for him now.” Janet grimaced internally as she led Daniel out of the room, telling the SF outside to keep sharp in case Jack came back the way Daniel had.
The General wasn’t going to be very happy if he found out about this. Luckily, as far as Janet knew, Hammond had gone home for the night already, leaving Colonel Reynolds in charge of the skeleton crew. Now all they had to do was get Jack back without incident, and the man in charge didn’t need to find out.
Fat chance of that, Janet thought ruefully, giving Daniel a Kleenex from her pocket when he started sneezing again.
.
Heart hammering away in his chest with the thrill of this new, fun game, Jack tip-toed around another corner without being seen. He was surprised that there were so little people in this big place at night. During the day there were people everywhere!
Feeling triumphant and more than a little gutsy, Jack strutted down the corridor and came to an intersection without checking it first. The shout from the hall to the right caught him by surprise, and he jumped, suddenly alert.
“Hey! Kid! How’d you get down here?”
The SF startled him, and Jack’s eyes widened as the guard strode determinedly his way. Not wanting to be caught, he quickly ran down the other corridor and dashed into an open door, the guard’s loud boots clomping behind him.
His sock-clad feet slipped on the smooth floor, and before he could right himself, Jack careened into a cabinet, the sound of breaking glass shattering the silence as fragile objects rained down on and around him.
The sharp, stinging pain in his back didn’t register until the SF grabbed a hold of him, wrapping a muscled arm about his small frame and carrying him out of the room under his arm like a sack of potatoes.
“I don’t know who you are or how you got down here, but you’re sure in trouble now, little fella.”
Jack squirmed frantically, which only increased his pain. He gasped, still wiggling, as tears streamed freely down his cheeks. “Lemme go! Lemme go!”
When the SF carrying him turned a corner, Jack noticed a familiar figure striding across the hall ahead of them. An ally. Someone he could trust to help him, he was sure of it. “Tea’uk!” he cried out, doing all he could to squirm so that the SF would put him down. “Tea’uk! HELP!”
“Kid, stop it, will you?” the Airman grunted as Jack’s flailing legs kicked at him. The guard swung him up, wrapping both arms around the five-year-old and holding him to his chest.
“Lemme go! Tea’uk!” Jack squeaked one last time, sniffling and sobbing now as adrenaline faded and he realized his back was ablaze with agony, pressed to the Airman’s chest. Jack might not remember who she was, but he wanted his mommy.
.
Teal’c stopped short at the sound of the small voice calling for him. He backed up in the corridor and spied his miniaturized friend, caught up in the grips of an SF, who was struggling to hold onto the wailing, squirming youngster.
Moved by the cries of pain, Teal’c swiftly strode toward his friend as the guard looked pleadingly at him. “O’Neill. Major Carter has been searching for you.”
The SF sergeant still hung onto the boy. “I found him just walking the halls, and chased him into a lab. He broke some stuff in there,” he explained.
“Tea’uk, help.” O’Neill pleaded, sniffling. His wide brown eyes looked up pitifully.
Seeing the tear-streaked face, Teal’c became alarmed at the whimpers emitting from the five-year-old. “Release him at once.”
“Yes, sir. You’ll take him back to . . . wherever he’s supposed to be?”
“I shall.” Teal’c nodded, and as the SF released O’Neill, the boy sunk to his knees on the floor, head hanging as he continued to whimper, his small body quaking. Teal’c’s eyes widened with both anger and alarm at the sight of blood staining the back of young O’Neill’s torn nightshirt.
Brows creasing, Teal’c’s eyes flashed angrily at the airman, who looked just as shocked as he. “Did you not see that he is injured?” He bellowed, not caring that the guard took a wary step back when Teal’c moved toward the boy.
“I - I didn’t know, sir!” the SF exclaimed earnestly. “He’d broken some stuff in the lab, but I wasn’t aware that he’d been hurt. I was only concerned about getting a hold of him before he damaged anymore equipment.” He looked suitably nervous as Teal’c crouched beside O’Neill and glared up at the airman. “I apologize, sir.”
Heaving a loud breath that sounded more like a snorting bull, Teal’c growled, “Leave us. I shall take him to the infirmary.”
The guard gulped audibly. “Yessir.” He then beat a hasty retreat.
“It is alright, O’Neill,” Teal’c assured the sniffling boy, his voice low. “You are safe.”
O’Neill looked up at him with bloodshot eyes, then winced as he reached up his arms to wrap around Teal’c’s thick neck.
Lifting the boy gingerly, and without touching his upper back, Teal’c carried O’Neill toward the elevator to bring him to the infirmary for treatment, and to let everyone know that he had been found.
.
Janet sat with Daniel on a bed in the infirmary after giving him some antihistamines for his allergies. It was very late by now, and he was leaning against her tiredly, but wouldn’t allow himself to sleep. Every time Janet suggested it, he sat up straighter and told her that he couldn’t sleep until he knew Jack was okay. That had made her smile.
At the approaching sound of heavily booted feet, Janet looked towards the door to see Teal’c striding purposefully into the infirmary, the once-missing five-year-old held carefully in his arms.
“Doctor Fraiser. O’Neill requires medical assistance. He has been injured.”
Forcing herself to remain calm when she noticed the blood stains on the back of Jack’s pajama top, Janet quickly motioned for Teal’c to take Jack to a bed, and then hurriedly tugged the curtain closed when Daniel was trying to see what was going on.
“What happened to him?” Janet asked as the Jaffa gingerly lowered the unresisting five-year-old to the bed.
“A guard discovered O’Neill roaming the corridors and chased the him into a lab where O’Neill fell, and was apparently injured by some broken glass objects.” A frown darkened Teal’c’s stern features. “The guard was not aware that O’Neill had been damaged, and caused the boy further distress by restraining him.”
Janet felt her brow twitch. She studied the silent boy sitting stiffly on the bed, his cheeks red and stained with dried tears. “Jack? I need to cut your shirt off so I can take a look at your back, okay?”
The little boy sniffed, his face scrunching up with discomfort. “But I like this shirt,” he mumbled in a small voice, pouting.
Looking up at Teal’c for a moment, Janet smiled, then placed a comforting hand on Jack’s shoulder. “We’ll get you a new one just like it, okay?”
Jack sighed, nodding after a moment, and Janet left him with Teal’c to get the scissors and some other medical supplies she may need.
After prepping a cart, Janet made a quick call, finding Sam making the rounds on Level 28, and informing her that their missing charge had been rounded up, and was in her care. Sam had assured Janet that she was on her way. And not a moment too soon. Janet doubted that Jack was going to be so compliant much longer, especially if he required stitches, which she suspected he did.
.
Janet gingerly cut away the youngster’s blood-stained pajama shirt while Teal’c kept him still. It didn’t help that Daniel had hopped off his own bed to come around the curtain and see what was going on.
“What are you doing to Jack? Can I see?” the mini-archaeologist asked curiously, climbing up on the bed and sitting cross-legged in front of Jack for a moment before Teal’c picked him up and set him back on the floor.
“I believe it is best that you didn’t, Daniel Jackson,” Teal’c informed the other boy as Jack started to squirm.
“Ow, that hurts,” Jack whined, trying to twist around and see what Janet was doing when she gingerly pulled the fabric away from his injury.
Janet tried not to gasp, not wanting to frighten the little boy. “I know it hurts, sweetie, but I’m going to fix you up and you need to keep still.”
There were bits of glass sticking out of several small abrasions on his upper back, most of which didn’t look too deep, but there were a few that definitely required sutures. The worst part was that she’d have to flush the wound, then pick out all the tiny bits of glass before she could do anything else.
“I wanna see!” Daniel tried to come around the bed so he could get a look at his friend’s back, but Teal’c quickly grabbed him.
“Maybe it’s best if you take Daniel back to the suite, Teal’c,” Janet suggested somewhat forcefully.
The big Jaffa bowed his head slightly in agreement. “Indeed.” He gave Jack a reassuring pat on the leg and then lifted Daniel into his arms. “Come, Daniel Jackson.”
“But I wanna stay!” he whined, nudging the big glasses back up the bridge of his nose.
“It’s way past your bed time, Daniel. Now go,” Janet said in a soft, yet commanding, motherly tone. Sam was on her way, and Janet figured she’d be able to handle Jack on her own until then.
Teal’c glanced back briefly before taking Daniel out of the infirmary.
.
Striding quickly into the infirmary, Sam found Janet trying to coax Jack out from under a bed in a far corner of the room. “What’s going on?”
Janet spun around, looking relieved when she saw her. “Sam, thank God!” She heaved a sigh. “Jack’s got some bits of glass in the cuts on his back, and when I went to give him a local anesthetic before cleaning out the wounds, he saw the needle and went ballistic,” the doctor explained.
Sam froze halfway into the room and cocked her head with confusion. “I don’t understand. You had to draw blood when we brought Jack and Daniel through the gate, and there wasn’t a problem.”
One of Janet’s eyebrows climbed, and she quickly cast a glance behind her at Jack, who still wasn’t coming out of hiding. “If you remember, they were both unconscious at the time.”
“Oh. Right.” Sam grimaced, then rubbed at her arms. “Well, Jack’s always had a thing about needles, as you know.” She shrugged. “Maybe now that he’s a child again, it’s worse; amplified.”
Janet sighed softly, nodding. “He needs to calm down so I can clean his wounds. I don’t want him to get an infection, or do anything to push those bits of glass in deeper.”
“I’ll try.” Sam walked slowly towards the bed Jack was hiding under, kneeling down and peering at him with a kind, genuine smile. “Hey, Jack, will you come out of there?”
Lifting his head from arms that were wrapped securely around his knees, Jack peered at her as if only now realizing that she was there. His bloodshot brown eyes widened, and he scrambled out of his hiding place to barrel into her arms. “Sam!”
Sam was careful as she wrapped her arms around his naked back, mindful of the wounds there. She glanced at the cuts as she held him, aware that a few were still bleeding sluggishly. Gingerly picking him up, Sam carried the little boy back to the bed. “It’s okay, honey; no one’s going to hurt you.”
“Uh-huh.” Jack buried his face in the side of her neck, nodding with disagreement. “Doc Janet was gonna stick me with that needle!” he exclaimed, his small voice wary. “Don’t let her, Sam! Please!”
Catching the hurt look flash briefly across Janet’s face, Sam stroked the back of her pint-sized husband’s head calmingly. “She’s not trying to hurt you, Jack. Janet just needs to give you one little shot so then she can fix you up, okay? She’s a doctor; she just wants to help.”
“No, no, no,” Jack shook his head against her and started to squirm. “I don’t want a shot!”
Sam sighed, trying to keep him still as she sat on the edge of the bed with the five-year-old in her lap. Janet was keeping her distance for now, making no moves toward the tray which held the needle. “It’ll be okay, Jack. I’m going to stay right with you. There’s only going to be a little pinch, then your back won’t hurt so much anymore.”
Jack leaned back, tempted with the idea. His wide, dark eyes studied her face as if searching for a hint of a lie. “Promise?”
“I promise.” She smiled at him, then nodded for Janet to come forward.
“Okay,” he mumbled into Sam’s neck, squeezing her.
Janet prepared the needle and came up behind Jack, facing Sam as she held him. “Now hold still, alright sweetie? There’s just going to be a quick pinch.”
Sam felt him tense, and his grip on her tightened for a moment when Janet injected the needle. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?”
“It still hurts,” Jack muttered, pulling his face back from Sam’s neck and sticking out his lower lip.
“That should go away in a few minutes, Jack,” Janet assured him. “Now, Sam, if you’ll bring him into the infirmary showers, I’ll get some warm saline and we’ll flush the wounds.”
“I already had my bath!” Jack complained, frowning.
Sam laughed softly. “You’re not getting another bath, Jack. We’re just going into the showers for a minute so the bed doesn’t get all wet, okay?”
Jack nodded, making a face like he didn’t quite understand. Then he started wiggling in her arms when Sam stood up with him and began carrying him to the infirmary showers.
“What’s the matter?”
“It tingles.” He leaned away to look at her, his nose scrunching up.
Sam smiled. “That’s just the medicine working. I bet your back doesn’t really hurt anymore, does it?”
Jack’s head tilted in thought, his eyes roaming upwards before settling on her face again. “No.”
.
After getting rid of the tiny bits of glass with the saline, they patted Jack dry and laid him on his stomach on the bed so Janet could pick out the more deeply imbedded pieces with some forceps.
Sam sat on the edge of the bed, her hand absently stroking Jack’s hair while Janet worked. She’d given him some children’s extra strength liquid Tylenol after they’d returned from the showers, and he was being surprisingly compliant as long as Sam was nearby.
Janet had already started with the sutures when Sam realized her miniature Colonel was snoring softly. She stopped stroking his hair for a moment, leaned down to see his face, and smiled. He was fast asleep.
Janet paused in her work for a moment and looked at Sam curiously. “Is he-”
“Sleeping; yeah.” Sam laughed. “It’s been a long night.”
Sighing, Janet nodded in agreement. “It sure has.”
.
Part Three