FIC: Things That Can't Go On Forever, Don't - 3/5
Title: Things That Can't Go On Forever, Don't - But That's Okay - 3/5
Summary: The war is over and some more big changes are coming for our heroes.
Series Cliche Warnings: Yet ANOTHER Cabin!fic, "C'mere," Fishing, "Indeed," Beer Omelets, Danny-Whump.
Rating: G Word Count: ~1800
Category: S/J Romance, Missing Scenes
Spoilers: Season 8, Threads
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended, just having a little fun.
Notes: Each of the five chapters is a different style with different POV's and could stand alone as long as you know the basic premise of S/J, Threads and The Cabin. They range from serious to sweet to, hopefully, hilarious. Thanks to erinm_4600 for her input. And yeah, I'm subtle - but I assure you this is the chapter where "they get together."
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This can stand alone . However, the first two parts, posted AGES ago are linked below.
Part 1
Part 2
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jack had driven up from Colorado on a Wednesday to get things ready for the visit of his friends. The rest were scheduled to arrive on Friday evening. Daniel and Teal’c would drive up from Colorado together and meet Sam at the airport in Minneapolis. She was coming from visiting her brother in San Diego.
When they arrived at Jack’s cabin, it was late. So late in fact, that after unpacking the essentials - coolers and toothbrushes and such, the three travelers were ushered off to get ready for bed with a promise that fish were easier to catch in the morning than at night, so there was no use staying up.
The little cabin wasn’t as rustic as Sam had always imagined. There was electricity and running water, even a small gas hot water heater. There was an old noisy fridge and gas stove and room for an old sofa and rocking chair in the corner by the wood stove. A room off to the side held two cots, built against the walls with two-by-fours.
The second "bedroom" was a small nook off of the kitchen area that really was no more than a long closet and was clearly there to hold firewood back in a time when there was a wood cooking stove to both heat and feed the occupants. It was just wide enough to build in a narrow platform for a single mattress and just long enough to stand at the end. Jack had tacked up a curtain across the doorway.
It had been where Charlie slept when he was here and he now offered it to Sam, reasoning it would provide her with a little more privacy than sleeping on the sofa or on one of the cots in the other room with one of the guys. On Earth, she got to be a "girl" - modesty with the guys had usually been too much of a luxury when off-world.
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The next morning, she awoke on her little cot in the corner. It was early, but she felt rested and anxious to be out in the fresh air. It seemed like lately, she had spent so much time under the Mountain and in other dreary places, that any opportunity for being in the open was eagerly welcomed. Besides, it would be nice to spend some time alone, before the guys got up, just thinking about nothing and allowing the peace of her surroundings fill her.
She quietly arose and slipped a fleece over her tee shirt. She had slept wearing her sweatpants and socks, and she had left her muddy sneakers out on the porch.
She tried to softly walk across the floor and sneak out the door without disturbing anyone, but she cringed as she heard just one little squeak in the doorknob. She looked over at the sleeping Daniel on the sofa and he didn’t stir. She prayed the others also hadn’t heard and ventured out into the morning.
She sat on the edge of the dock, took off her socks and let her bare toes dabble in the water. It was hardly past dawn, and a thin fog still hung over the lake, obscuring the opposite shore. But looking up, it was evident that when the fog burned off, it was going to be another beautiful day. A great day for fishing…or whatever. She really doubted any fish were actually going to lose their lives here this weekend.
She had not been sitting out by the water more than ten minutes when she heard soft steps and looked up to see Jack walking toward her. Apparently, he had been up before her and been out for a walk. Even though he was disrupting her reverie, she didn’t mind.
Quietly, he spoke, “Good morning.”
She smiled and instead of the “Good morning, Sir” he expected to hear, she simply said, “Yeah. It is.”
“Mind if I sit?”
“Please.” As if he really had to ask. She scooted over a bit to make room for him at the edge. “Looks like it’s going to be a nice day.”
“Yup. You’re up early.”
“You, too. I thought I was the first one up.”
“Light sleeper. Danny’s still out, though. And it looks like T has already slipped out to take a stroll around the lake. I think I can just barely see him sitting over there in that stand of birches.” He pointed. She looked and nodded. “You sleep well?”
“Pretty good.”
“Yep. Nice day, I think. Maybe we’ll get some real fishing in today.”
“Ya’ sure.” She smiled.
They sat there in silence for a little while, enjoying the morning. Both somewhat surprised that neither of them felt awkward at this circumstance.
She eventually broke the silence, still speaking quietly, though, respecting the peacefulness around them, as though not to disturb its magic. “Thanks for inviting us up here.”
“For the umpteenth time!”
“Yeah, I know. But I know you understand why I’ve never been here before.”
He nodded slightly and said, “Why now?” And she saw him looking at her with that look again. The one that said, ‘I’m in your world, now. I’m listening.’
She mused a little, not exactly sure how to phrase it. She looked back at the water, swishing her toes a little more. In this moment, under this sky, on this dock, she felt so much freedom. So why not be honest?
“I guess one part of it is, that I’m just not feeling like I have to be on guard every minute anymore. With you I mean.” She paused a moment, a little surprised at how easy it felt to confess that to him. “So much has happened, so much is different now - Dad's passing, breaking off the wedding, not to mention the changes with the Jaffa, Goa'uld and Replicators and Daniel's little adventure - I just feel like we've all entered a new era where anything is possible."
She went on. “For so long, life has moved so fast. Everything has been so ‘Now. Now emergency. Now crisis. Now deal with this. Now deal with that.’ Even ‘Tomorrow will be just as intense as today, so get ready now.’ Things have slowed down so much. For the first time in a long time, I don’t have any idea what tomorrow might bring…it feels different, a little scary even, but good. You know?"
"Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are."
"Did you just make that up?"
"Nah, some Breck guy. Playwright or something. Nice hair, I hear."
Sam responded with the giggle and cheesy grin that Jack had come to treasure. "Where did you…? How did you…"
"Hang out with smart people." Jack flashed his most charming smirk.
"Speaking of changes, are there really no fish in your pond?”
He looked around nonchalantly. “Never caught any. That doesn’t mean they’re not there.”
“Not a very good fisherman are you?”
“Well, it might have something to do with not using any bait on my hook.” She looked at him incredulously. He gave the mischievous smirk he was known for. He continued, “Snagged a frog once, though. Yuk.”
“Eeeew.” She grinned, “So when you say you’re going ‘fishing,’ that’s just another way of saying…”
“…Give me the trees and the breeze and the buzz of a couple flies…no thinking, no problems, no ‘unscheduled off-world activations,’ no bad guys always keeping ya’ on the run…and a couple bottles of beer, hot dogs and all the donuts I want…That’s what ‘goin’ fishin’’ means to me.”
“Mmm. Does sound pretty great. You’re lucky to have this place.”
“Well, door’s always open, so…”
She just smiled and looked back at the water. She saw a little ripple a ways out in the water and she wondered if it might be a fish.
“George is retiring.” He just said it matter-of-factly. No time like the present.
“Wow. Have you talked to him? How’s he doing?”
“I saw him in last week. Seems fine. He said that he’s had his year of fun…that it’s time to spend some time with his granddaughters. And to do some fishing. I think he means the actual kind, though.”
“Well, good for him.”
“Hayes has asked me to replace him.”
She was speechless at first, but a few things started to click into place. "That's why you went to D.C.?"
He nodded. “Funny really, I had been thinking about retiring.”
“Sir, no!” She cringed. “Sorry. I mean Jack.” Both names sounded wrong. She tensed up a little. “This job would be too important. You can’t pass it up.”
“Don't worry, I've already said yes.”
“The SGC sure won't be the same without you. Of course, what am I saying. Nothing’s the same anyway - I won't be there either. I try not to think about it too much, but god, I'm going to miss everyone, so much."
"Not that I would condone use of government resources for personal gain, but have you considered that Prometheus is frequently in orbit? I'm sure you could find plenty of "official business" reasons to justify a quick beam over to the SGC or, say, the Pentagon. I'm sure the IOA will want to stay fully informed of your progress."
"Oh, I'm sure." Sam's grin spread from ear to ear. "And I'm sure the Head of Homeworld Security will be extremely interested in all the latest scientific research coming out of Area 51, too."
"Oh, most certainly."
Sam's grin eased into a wistful smile, "But what about you? You'll be so busy, will you ever be able to get away?"
“That depends.”
“On what?”
His pause was just long enough to look at her again. Actually, the look said everything but he used words anyway. “On having a reason to.”
She returned his gaze, laying her fingers over his where they rested on the dock boards. And then she gave him the reason: “You said, ‘Always.’”
He looked out over the water. The mist had cleared and he saw two loons swimming and diving a few yards out from the dock. One of them cooed it’s eerie call. He breathed in deeply and knew that for that moment, all was right with the world. Turning back to her, he said, “C’mere,” put his arms around her and pulled her to his chest.
On to Part 4: Teal'c 's Morning at the Cabin
"Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are." ~ Bertolt Brecht
http://www.dailycelebrations.com/02100a.htm
Summary: The war is over and some more big changes are coming for our heroes.
Series Cliche Warnings: Yet ANOTHER Cabin!fic, "C'mere," Fishing, "Indeed," Beer Omelets, Danny-Whump.
Rating: G Word Count: ~1800
Category: S/J Romance, Missing Scenes
Spoilers: Season 8, Threads
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended, just having a little fun.
Notes: Each of the five chapters is a different style with different POV's and could stand alone as long as you know the basic premise of S/J, Threads and The Cabin. They range from serious to sweet to, hopefully, hilarious. Thanks to erinm_4600 for her input. And yeah, I'm subtle - but I assure you this is the chapter where "they get together."
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
This can stand alone . However, the first two parts, posted AGES ago are linked below.
Part 1
Part 2
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Jack had driven up from Colorado on a Wednesday to get things ready for the visit of his friends. The rest were scheduled to arrive on Friday evening. Daniel and Teal’c would drive up from Colorado together and meet Sam at the airport in Minneapolis. She was coming from visiting her brother in San Diego.
When they arrived at Jack’s cabin, it was late. So late in fact, that after unpacking the essentials - coolers and toothbrushes and such, the three travelers were ushered off to get ready for bed with a promise that fish were easier to catch in the morning than at night, so there was no use staying up.
The little cabin wasn’t as rustic as Sam had always imagined. There was electricity and running water, even a small gas hot water heater. There was an old noisy fridge and gas stove and room for an old sofa and rocking chair in the corner by the wood stove. A room off to the side held two cots, built against the walls with two-by-fours.
The second "bedroom" was a small nook off of the kitchen area that really was no more than a long closet and was clearly there to hold firewood back in a time when there was a wood cooking stove to both heat and feed the occupants. It was just wide enough to build in a narrow platform for a single mattress and just long enough to stand at the end. Jack had tacked up a curtain across the doorway.
It had been where Charlie slept when he was here and he now offered it to Sam, reasoning it would provide her with a little more privacy than sleeping on the sofa or on one of the cots in the other room with one of the guys. On Earth, she got to be a "girl" - modesty with the guys had usually been too much of a luxury when off-world.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
The next morning, she awoke on her little cot in the corner. It was early, but she felt rested and anxious to be out in the fresh air. It seemed like lately, she had spent so much time under the Mountain and in other dreary places, that any opportunity for being in the open was eagerly welcomed. Besides, it would be nice to spend some time alone, before the guys got up, just thinking about nothing and allowing the peace of her surroundings fill her.
She quietly arose and slipped a fleece over her tee shirt. She had slept wearing her sweatpants and socks, and she had left her muddy sneakers out on the porch.
She tried to softly walk across the floor and sneak out the door without disturbing anyone, but she cringed as she heard just one little squeak in the doorknob. She looked over at the sleeping Daniel on the sofa and he didn’t stir. She prayed the others also hadn’t heard and ventured out into the morning.
She sat on the edge of the dock, took off her socks and let her bare toes dabble in the water. It was hardly past dawn, and a thin fog still hung over the lake, obscuring the opposite shore. But looking up, it was evident that when the fog burned off, it was going to be another beautiful day. A great day for fishing…or whatever. She really doubted any fish were actually going to lose their lives here this weekend.
She had not been sitting out by the water more than ten minutes when she heard soft steps and looked up to see Jack walking toward her. Apparently, he had been up before her and been out for a walk. Even though he was disrupting her reverie, she didn’t mind.
Quietly, he spoke, “Good morning.”
She smiled and instead of the “Good morning, Sir” he expected to hear, she simply said, “Yeah. It is.”
“Mind if I sit?”
“Please.” As if he really had to ask. She scooted over a bit to make room for him at the edge. “Looks like it’s going to be a nice day.”
“Yup. You’re up early.”
“You, too. I thought I was the first one up.”
“Light sleeper. Danny’s still out, though. And it looks like T has already slipped out to take a stroll around the lake. I think I can just barely see him sitting over there in that stand of birches.” He pointed. She looked and nodded. “You sleep well?”
“Pretty good.”
“Yep. Nice day, I think. Maybe we’ll get some real fishing in today.”
“Ya’ sure.” She smiled.
They sat there in silence for a little while, enjoying the morning. Both somewhat surprised that neither of them felt awkward at this circumstance.
She eventually broke the silence, still speaking quietly, though, respecting the peacefulness around them, as though not to disturb its magic. “Thanks for inviting us up here.”
“For the umpteenth time!”
“Yeah, I know. But I know you understand why I’ve never been here before.”
He nodded slightly and said, “Why now?” And she saw him looking at her with that look again. The one that said, ‘I’m in your world, now. I’m listening.’
She mused a little, not exactly sure how to phrase it. She looked back at the water, swishing her toes a little more. In this moment, under this sky, on this dock, she felt so much freedom. So why not be honest?
“I guess one part of it is, that I’m just not feeling like I have to be on guard every minute anymore. With you I mean.” She paused a moment, a little surprised at how easy it felt to confess that to him. “So much has happened, so much is different now - Dad's passing, breaking off the wedding, not to mention the changes with the Jaffa, Goa'uld and Replicators and Daniel's little adventure - I just feel like we've all entered a new era where anything is possible."
She went on. “For so long, life has moved so fast. Everything has been so ‘Now. Now emergency. Now crisis. Now deal with this. Now deal with that.’ Even ‘Tomorrow will be just as intense as today, so get ready now.’ Things have slowed down so much. For the first time in a long time, I don’t have any idea what tomorrow might bring…it feels different, a little scary even, but good. You know?"
"Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are."
"Did you just make that up?"
"Nah, some Breck guy. Playwright or something. Nice hair, I hear."
Sam responded with the giggle and cheesy grin that Jack had come to treasure. "Where did you…? How did you…"
"Hang out with smart people." Jack flashed his most charming smirk.
"Speaking of changes, are there really no fish in your pond?”
He looked around nonchalantly. “Never caught any. That doesn’t mean they’re not there.”
“Not a very good fisherman are you?”
“Well, it might have something to do with not using any bait on my hook.” She looked at him incredulously. He gave the mischievous smirk he was known for. He continued, “Snagged a frog once, though. Yuk.”
“Eeeew.” She grinned, “So when you say you’re going ‘fishing,’ that’s just another way of saying…”
“…Give me the trees and the breeze and the buzz of a couple flies…no thinking, no problems, no ‘unscheduled off-world activations,’ no bad guys always keeping ya’ on the run…and a couple bottles of beer, hot dogs and all the donuts I want…That’s what ‘goin’ fishin’’ means to me.”
“Mmm. Does sound pretty great. You’re lucky to have this place.”
“Well, door’s always open, so…”
She just smiled and looked back at the water. She saw a little ripple a ways out in the water and she wondered if it might be a fish.
“George is retiring.” He just said it matter-of-factly. No time like the present.
“Wow. Have you talked to him? How’s he doing?”
“I saw him in last week. Seems fine. He said that he’s had his year of fun…that it’s time to spend some time with his granddaughters. And to do some fishing. I think he means the actual kind, though.”
“Well, good for him.”
“Hayes has asked me to replace him.”
She was speechless at first, but a few things started to click into place. "That's why you went to D.C.?"
He nodded. “Funny really, I had been thinking about retiring.”
“Sir, no!” She cringed. “Sorry. I mean Jack.” Both names sounded wrong. She tensed up a little. “This job would be too important. You can’t pass it up.”
“Don't worry, I've already said yes.”
“The SGC sure won't be the same without you. Of course, what am I saying. Nothing’s the same anyway - I won't be there either. I try not to think about it too much, but god, I'm going to miss everyone, so much."
"Not that I would condone use of government resources for personal gain, but have you considered that Prometheus is frequently in orbit? I'm sure you could find plenty of "official business" reasons to justify a quick beam over to the SGC or, say, the Pentagon. I'm sure the IOA will want to stay fully informed of your progress."
"Oh, I'm sure." Sam's grin spread from ear to ear. "And I'm sure the Head of Homeworld Security will be extremely interested in all the latest scientific research coming out of Area 51, too."
"Oh, most certainly."
Sam's grin eased into a wistful smile, "But what about you? You'll be so busy, will you ever be able to get away?"
“That depends.”
“On what?”
His pause was just long enough to look at her again. Actually, the look said everything but he used words anyway. “On having a reason to.”
She returned his gaze, laying her fingers over his where they rested on the dock boards. And then she gave him the reason: “You said, ‘Always.’”
He looked out over the water. The mist had cleared and he saw two loons swimming and diving a few yards out from the dock. One of them cooed it’s eerie call. He breathed in deeply and knew that for that moment, all was right with the world. Turning back to her, he said, “C’mere,” put his arms around her and pulled her to his chest.
On to Part 4: Teal'c 's Morning at the Cabin
"Because things are the way they are, things will not stay the way they are." ~ Bertolt Brecht
http://www.dailycelebrations.com/02100a.htm