Dog Heaven: Pack Mates - Part 3/5
Title: Dog Heaven: Pack Mates
Summary: Jack gets in touch with his animal side after accidently participating in a ritual off-world.
Timeframe: Mid-season two-ish
Characters/Pairing: Team, Sam/Jack, Janet
Genre: Humor, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, UST to RST
Rating: G
Part Three
The Colonel was still groggy from the anesthetic when Sam took him home. She wished she’d been able to carry him, because he’d barely been able to get out of the car when they got there, but he was too heavy for her. He half-walked, half-hopped into the house, his unsteadiness from the drugs causing him to waver drunkenly as he attempted to keep the weight off his left hind leg.
Sam followed him in after holding the door, then gathered some blankets and folded them on the floor in the living room to make a soft bed for the Colonel to lie on. When he’d settled down, she brought in the Tupperware from the kitchen floor that she’d been using as his food and water bowls. If he was hungry or thirsty she didn’t want him to have to go very far. Sam still felt weird giving him dog food, but he hadn’t snubbed his nose at it before so she assumed it was just fine according to his new canine taste buds. She felt like she should be giving him real, fresh meat, like a steak or ground hamburger at the very least.
Sprawled on his right side on the pile of blankets in front of the couch, the Colonel was out for the count when she returned with a full bowl of a canned/dry dog food mix and fresh water. Sam stretched out across the couch and after a moment’s hesitation, reached down to lightly stroke the Colonel’s side while he slept.
It was late, and Sam was tired, both physically and emotionally. The day had been quite long, and this recent emergency with the Colonel had put some strain on her. Soon, she was drifting off right there on the couch, one arm still draped over the side, her hand resting on Colonel O’Neill’s furry ribcage.
.
Jack opened his eyes when his jerking legs sent a spike of pain all the way up his spine, jarring him awake. He felt a heavy hand on his side and rolled over partly to look up into the worried face of Carter. Jack quickly realized that he’d been dreaming, and while she’d been touching him, he’d accidently been sending her flashes of that dream. He tried for an embarrassed grimace, but it probably looked more like he was baring his teeth in a snarl.
Sorry, Carter, he thought, and watched her jerk. She sat up completely on the couch with eyes widened in shock.
“Sir!” she exclaimed, grogginess from sleep a mere distant memory. “I heard that!”
“Rr?” He made a confused noise and cocked his head. Jack started to get up and then remembered the pain in his left leg with sudden clarity. He winced, an involuntary whine of pain escaping.
Carter was no longer touching him, and by her lack of immediate response Jack guessed that she could only sense things from him when she was touching him. “This is amazing, sir. I wonder if this Coming of Age ceremony goes through stages? I know I couldn’t hear your thoughts before, and I didn’t even start getting images and feelings from you until last night, after you’d been shot.”
Jack huffed out a sigh and then, against some part of him that suggested this was just so wrong, rested his chin on her knee so she could ‘hear’ him. I have to pee, Carter, can we talk about this later?
“Uh,” Carter actually looked dumbfounded, probably for the first time in her entire life. “Um, right. Uh, of course, sir. Sorry,” she fumbled, rubbing her eyes and getting to her feet as she reached for the lamp next to the couch and turned it on.
Squinting from the sudden brightness, Jack realized it must have been the middle of the night/early morning. His night vision was so good that he hadn’t noticed how dark it was at first.
Jack painfully hopped to the back door and Carter let him out. He noticed her hovering at the half open door while he went out there, but he wasn’t embarrassed because he knew she couldn’t really see anything since the outside light was off and it was dark. He did his business not far from the back door, lifting his leg on a flowerbed before hopping back inside. It was too painful to go much farther and he was already exhausted.
Returning to the living room with Carter hovering close by, Jack ate a little of the food she’d left for him earlier, lapped up some water, and then gratefully sank down on the soft pile of blankets once more. He closed his eyes for a moment, and upon opening them, discovered that Carter was gone. Thinking she’d left to spend the rest of the night in her own bed, Jack was surprised when she came back and crouched in front of him. She was holding a plastic tube that looked like a syringe without the needle.
Carter? he questioned when she placed her hand on his head.
“It’s your painkiller, sir,” she explained, holding out the tube with the gel-like substance for him to look at. “I’m supposed to stick this in the back of your mouth and depress the plunger.” An abashed expression flashed across Carter’s face.
Jack just gave a nod, allowing her to do whatever it was she needed. Normally he would have preferred to stay lucid, as painkillers often made him groggy, but things were a little different right now. Maybe this stuff wouldn’t make him drowsy. Maybe it would suppress the wolfy urges. But then again, he thought with some alarm, what if it allowed the wolf side of him to take over?
Carter gently peeled back one side of his lip and stuck the tube opening at the back of his teeth. She depressed the plunger, and the gel stuff squirted into Jack’s mouth. It tasted awful, but he had no choice but to swallow it.
Moving his tongue around and shaking his head in a poor attempt to get rid of the taste, Jack grunted and then sunk back to lie down on his blankets.
“Sorry, sir.” Carter grimaced apologetically.
Jack just dropped his head down, absently watching Carter as she disappeared from his line of sight. He closed his eyes for a moment, and shortly thereafter, he heard a noise, got a whiff of Carter’s scent, and looked up to see her coming back into the living room. She had changed into some sleep pants and a t-shirt, and carried the blanket from her bed and a pillow.
If he could, Jack would have smiled. He lifted his head and nodded gratefully at her, appreciating the fact that she was staying close by. Although he’d never let her know (if he could help it, with the way things were going), Jack didn’t really want to be alone.
Shifting carefully and snuggling into his pile of blankets, Jack felt a wave of fatigue wash over him, probably from the drugs. He let it take him, closing his eyes and breathing out slowly as he listened to Carter settling down on the couch, heard her click off the table light.
.
Sam heard the soft jangling of Colonel O’Neill’s dog tags as he limped into the kitchen the next morning, making his way to the back door. She let him out, then went to get him some food and fresh water, waiting patiently for his return. Sam was a little concerned, as she hadn’t had a chance to touch him or really talk to him yet this morning. She didn’t know how much of him was wolf right now.
After a few minutes, Sam checked by the back door. She smiled with relief when she saw him limping slowly toward her as she opened it. “Ready for another round of painkillers, sir?”
He paused on his way in and gave her a mock-baleful glare before hopping by and into the kitchen.
By just that look alone Sam knew he was all Colonel at the moment; at least mentally. She followed him to the living room where she’d put the fresh food. “I mixed the antibiotics in with your food. Thought it might be easier for you to get the pills down that way, but I couldn’t do the same for the painkiller. Sorry.”
O’Neill glanced up at her with an approving sort of nod and then started eating. He seemed hungry and finished up pretty quickly. Sam considered it a good sign. When he was done, he drank some water, then she asked him to lie down so she could check his wound.
She gave him the painkiller first, which she knew the Colonel wasn’t too happy about, nor was he happy about her messing with the bullet hole in his leg. The disgruntled curses and flashes of pain Sam received when she touched him were a clear indication of that.
Carter, the Colonel’s voice growled in her head as she worked on unwrapping the bandage. It’s fine; just leave it wouldja?
“I can’t do that, sir. Sorry,” Sam quickly apologized as she cleaned the wound on O’Neill’s leg, thankful the vet had shaved the area for the surgery, giving her easier access without all that fur in the way.
All three of the Colonel’s other legs kicked out as Sam worked on him, and he growled at the discomfort. She wasn’t getting any thoughts from him now, only random bursts of emotion, and Sam was sure that the wolf was pushing to the forefront of his mind while he was hazy from pain. She silently pleaded for the meds to kick in soon so the Colonel part of him would be back in control. Sam wasn’t too confident that she wouldn’t get bit if he went all wolf right now.
Sam stopped what she was doing when she received a flash of pain, irritation, and disorientation from the Colonel. She barely pulled away in time when he snapped at her, snagging the edge of her t-shirt in the process and tearing it. “Okay, okay; I’m done,” Sam said calmly, slowly backing away and rising from her crouch on the floor beside him.
Not wanting to risk a bite-more to do with concern over Colonel O’Neill’s guilt trip than actually getting bitten-Sam made the decision to finish re-bandaging his leg after the painkillers kicked in. She watched him stretch out on his side cautiously, then went into her bedroom to shower and change while giving him time to come back to himself.
When she went to check on the Colonel again, she was surprised to see him struggling to all fours, wobbling precariously and trying not to put any weight on his rear left leg as he limped around the couch. “Colonel?” Sam tested hesitantly.
Woof. His head turned in her direction, bobbing once.
“Glad you’re back, sir.” Sam couldn’t help her soft sigh of relief. She smiled down at him tightly as he limped over to her. “You weren’t exactly yourself a little while ago.”
The Colonel snorted and lightly butted his head into her hand. I’m sorry, Carter.
“You remember?” she asked him with a small grimace. Sam turned her hand and placed it on his large, furry head, brushing her thumb against the base of one ear.
Kinda. He leaned his head into her hand.
“Will you let me wrap up your leg?”
O’Neill nodded, slowly lowering himself to the hardwood floor, not bothering to go back to his blankets in front of the couch. He must have still been feeling a little groggy from the meds, because he was very compliant and kind of sulky as Sam carefully bandaged his leg, and she was getting very few thoughts from him. The most prominent feeling she sensed was incertitude regarding his situation.
“We’ll figure this out, sir,” Sam told him softly when she’d finished, one hand on his side in case he wanted to communicate with her. “I’m going to call Daniel this afternoon and see if he has any new information. I know he was going to talk to the general to see about going back there. The people were friendly and this wasn’t intentional or malicious in any way, so I don’t see why Hammond would say no if Teal’c or another team went with him.”
Thanks, Carter. The Colonel’s dark eyes tracked to her, and he huffed softly as she pulled her hand away.
Sam let him lie there in peace while she stepped into the kitchen to make herself something for breakfast. He didn’t look like he was very inclined to move at the moment, and that was just fine with her.
.
Part Four
Summary: Jack gets in touch with his animal side after accidently participating in a ritual off-world.
Timeframe: Mid-season two-ish
Characters/Pairing: Team, Sam/Jack, Janet
Genre: Humor, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, UST to RST
Rating: G
Part Three
The Colonel was still groggy from the anesthetic when Sam took him home. She wished she’d been able to carry him, because he’d barely been able to get out of the car when they got there, but he was too heavy for her. He half-walked, half-hopped into the house, his unsteadiness from the drugs causing him to waver drunkenly as he attempted to keep the weight off his left hind leg.
Sam followed him in after holding the door, then gathered some blankets and folded them on the floor in the living room to make a soft bed for the Colonel to lie on. When he’d settled down, she brought in the Tupperware from the kitchen floor that she’d been using as his food and water bowls. If he was hungry or thirsty she didn’t want him to have to go very far. Sam still felt weird giving him dog food, but he hadn’t snubbed his nose at it before so she assumed it was just fine according to his new canine taste buds. She felt like she should be giving him real, fresh meat, like a steak or ground hamburger at the very least.
Sprawled on his right side on the pile of blankets in front of the couch, the Colonel was out for the count when she returned with a full bowl of a canned/dry dog food mix and fresh water. Sam stretched out across the couch and after a moment’s hesitation, reached down to lightly stroke the Colonel’s side while he slept.
It was late, and Sam was tired, both physically and emotionally. The day had been quite long, and this recent emergency with the Colonel had put some strain on her. Soon, she was drifting off right there on the couch, one arm still draped over the side, her hand resting on Colonel O’Neill’s furry ribcage.
.
Jack opened his eyes when his jerking legs sent a spike of pain all the way up his spine, jarring him awake. He felt a heavy hand on his side and rolled over partly to look up into the worried face of Carter. Jack quickly realized that he’d been dreaming, and while she’d been touching him, he’d accidently been sending her flashes of that dream. He tried for an embarrassed grimace, but it probably looked more like he was baring his teeth in a snarl.
Sorry, Carter, he thought, and watched her jerk. She sat up completely on the couch with eyes widened in shock.
“Sir!” she exclaimed, grogginess from sleep a mere distant memory. “I heard that!”
“Rr?” He made a confused noise and cocked his head. Jack started to get up and then remembered the pain in his left leg with sudden clarity. He winced, an involuntary whine of pain escaping.
Carter was no longer touching him, and by her lack of immediate response Jack guessed that she could only sense things from him when she was touching him. “This is amazing, sir. I wonder if this Coming of Age ceremony goes through stages? I know I couldn’t hear your thoughts before, and I didn’t even start getting images and feelings from you until last night, after you’d been shot.”
Jack huffed out a sigh and then, against some part of him that suggested this was just so wrong, rested his chin on her knee so she could ‘hear’ him. I have to pee, Carter, can we talk about this later?
“Uh,” Carter actually looked dumbfounded, probably for the first time in her entire life. “Um, right. Uh, of course, sir. Sorry,” she fumbled, rubbing her eyes and getting to her feet as she reached for the lamp next to the couch and turned it on.
Squinting from the sudden brightness, Jack realized it must have been the middle of the night/early morning. His night vision was so good that he hadn’t noticed how dark it was at first.
Jack painfully hopped to the back door and Carter let him out. He noticed her hovering at the half open door while he went out there, but he wasn’t embarrassed because he knew she couldn’t really see anything since the outside light was off and it was dark. He did his business not far from the back door, lifting his leg on a flowerbed before hopping back inside. It was too painful to go much farther and he was already exhausted.
Returning to the living room with Carter hovering close by, Jack ate a little of the food she’d left for him earlier, lapped up some water, and then gratefully sank down on the soft pile of blankets once more. He closed his eyes for a moment, and upon opening them, discovered that Carter was gone. Thinking she’d left to spend the rest of the night in her own bed, Jack was surprised when she came back and crouched in front of him. She was holding a plastic tube that looked like a syringe without the needle.
Carter? he questioned when she placed her hand on his head.
“It’s your painkiller, sir,” she explained, holding out the tube with the gel-like substance for him to look at. “I’m supposed to stick this in the back of your mouth and depress the plunger.” An abashed expression flashed across Carter’s face.
Jack just gave a nod, allowing her to do whatever it was she needed. Normally he would have preferred to stay lucid, as painkillers often made him groggy, but things were a little different right now. Maybe this stuff wouldn’t make him drowsy. Maybe it would suppress the wolfy urges. But then again, he thought with some alarm, what if it allowed the wolf side of him to take over?
Carter gently peeled back one side of his lip and stuck the tube opening at the back of his teeth. She depressed the plunger, and the gel stuff squirted into Jack’s mouth. It tasted awful, but he had no choice but to swallow it.
Moving his tongue around and shaking his head in a poor attempt to get rid of the taste, Jack grunted and then sunk back to lie down on his blankets.
“Sorry, sir.” Carter grimaced apologetically.
Jack just dropped his head down, absently watching Carter as she disappeared from his line of sight. He closed his eyes for a moment, and shortly thereafter, he heard a noise, got a whiff of Carter’s scent, and looked up to see her coming back into the living room. She had changed into some sleep pants and a t-shirt, and carried the blanket from her bed and a pillow.
If he could, Jack would have smiled. He lifted his head and nodded gratefully at her, appreciating the fact that she was staying close by. Although he’d never let her know (if he could help it, with the way things were going), Jack didn’t really want to be alone.
Shifting carefully and snuggling into his pile of blankets, Jack felt a wave of fatigue wash over him, probably from the drugs. He let it take him, closing his eyes and breathing out slowly as he listened to Carter settling down on the couch, heard her click off the table light.
.
Sam heard the soft jangling of Colonel O’Neill’s dog tags as he limped into the kitchen the next morning, making his way to the back door. She let him out, then went to get him some food and fresh water, waiting patiently for his return. Sam was a little concerned, as she hadn’t had a chance to touch him or really talk to him yet this morning. She didn’t know how much of him was wolf right now.
After a few minutes, Sam checked by the back door. She smiled with relief when she saw him limping slowly toward her as she opened it. “Ready for another round of painkillers, sir?”
He paused on his way in and gave her a mock-baleful glare before hopping by and into the kitchen.
By just that look alone Sam knew he was all Colonel at the moment; at least mentally. She followed him to the living room where she’d put the fresh food. “I mixed the antibiotics in with your food. Thought it might be easier for you to get the pills down that way, but I couldn’t do the same for the painkiller. Sorry.”
O’Neill glanced up at her with an approving sort of nod and then started eating. He seemed hungry and finished up pretty quickly. Sam considered it a good sign. When he was done, he drank some water, then she asked him to lie down so she could check his wound.
She gave him the painkiller first, which she knew the Colonel wasn’t too happy about, nor was he happy about her messing with the bullet hole in his leg. The disgruntled curses and flashes of pain Sam received when she touched him were a clear indication of that.
Carter, the Colonel’s voice growled in her head as she worked on unwrapping the bandage. It’s fine; just leave it wouldja?
“I can’t do that, sir. Sorry,” Sam quickly apologized as she cleaned the wound on O’Neill’s leg, thankful the vet had shaved the area for the surgery, giving her easier access without all that fur in the way.
All three of the Colonel’s other legs kicked out as Sam worked on him, and he growled at the discomfort. She wasn’t getting any thoughts from him now, only random bursts of emotion, and Sam was sure that the wolf was pushing to the forefront of his mind while he was hazy from pain. She silently pleaded for the meds to kick in soon so the Colonel part of him would be back in control. Sam wasn’t too confident that she wouldn’t get bit if he went all wolf right now.
Sam stopped what she was doing when she received a flash of pain, irritation, and disorientation from the Colonel. She barely pulled away in time when he snapped at her, snagging the edge of her t-shirt in the process and tearing it. “Okay, okay; I’m done,” Sam said calmly, slowly backing away and rising from her crouch on the floor beside him.
Not wanting to risk a bite-more to do with concern over Colonel O’Neill’s guilt trip than actually getting bitten-Sam made the decision to finish re-bandaging his leg after the painkillers kicked in. She watched him stretch out on his side cautiously, then went into her bedroom to shower and change while giving him time to come back to himself.
When she went to check on the Colonel again, she was surprised to see him struggling to all fours, wobbling precariously and trying not to put any weight on his rear left leg as he limped around the couch. “Colonel?” Sam tested hesitantly.
Woof. His head turned in her direction, bobbing once.
“Glad you’re back, sir.” Sam couldn’t help her soft sigh of relief. She smiled down at him tightly as he limped over to her. “You weren’t exactly yourself a little while ago.”
The Colonel snorted and lightly butted his head into her hand. I’m sorry, Carter.
“You remember?” she asked him with a small grimace. Sam turned her hand and placed it on his large, furry head, brushing her thumb against the base of one ear.
Kinda. He leaned his head into her hand.
“Will you let me wrap up your leg?”
O’Neill nodded, slowly lowering himself to the hardwood floor, not bothering to go back to his blankets in front of the couch. He must have still been feeling a little groggy from the meds, because he was very compliant and kind of sulky as Sam carefully bandaged his leg, and she was getting very few thoughts from him. The most prominent feeling she sensed was incertitude regarding his situation.
“We’ll figure this out, sir,” Sam told him softly when she’d finished, one hand on his side in case he wanted to communicate with her. “I’m going to call Daniel this afternoon and see if he has any new information. I know he was going to talk to the general to see about going back there. The people were friendly and this wasn’t intentional or malicious in any way, so I don’t see why Hammond would say no if Teal’c or another team went with him.”
Thanks, Carter. The Colonel’s dark eyes tracked to her, and he huffed softly as she pulled her hand away.
Sam let him lie there in peace while she stepped into the kitchen to make herself something for breakfast. He didn’t look like he was very inclined to move at the moment, and that was just fine with her.
.
Part Four