"Okay, Campers. I know you're all upset because I'm sending you off-world on Halloween, but I have a reason for it," Brigadier General Jack O'Neill told them. "I'm going with you on this mission. And, Carter, before you ask, you will be in charge. I'm just an observer on this one."
Sam looked at him and voiced her concern. "But, Sir, what about Siler's Halloween party? Didn't you already tell everyone on base that it was mandatory to attend it?"
Jack shook his head. "I said anyone who isn't off-world would have to attend it." He smirked.
They all smiled and nodded. None of them had wanted to go to the party this year. Last year's Halloween party had been a disaster, especially when the police and fire department had been called.
Daniel stood up. "So when do we leave, Jack?" He asked.
"Gear up now. We leave within the hour." He replied, also standing and heading to the locker room.
Teal'c, who was always the calm one, blocked the door and keeping them in the Briefing Room. "O'Neill, to which planet will we be traveling to?" He asked.
"Oh, I thought we'd gate to Cimmeria and check on Gairwyn and her people. Maybe camp out and tell ghost stories. Sounds like fun, eh, kids?" He asked them, sliding past Teal'c and leaving SG-1 standing there, speechless; they agreed and went to go gear up with O'Neill.
They stepped out of the Stargate and were met by Gairwyn. They chatted for a bit and unpacked the supplies that she had requested from her kin of Midguard. Then they asked her for directions to the best spot to camp. Of course, Daniel had to explain to her what camping was. Once that was done, they were on their way to the spot that Gairwyn had suggested.
Jack looked around the spot and decided that this was definitely it. "Okay, Campers. Let's set up here. This is gonna be so much fun." He said with a child-like innocence, unpacking the hot dogs and marshmallows.
Sam chuckled as she watched him. "Came prepared, huh, Sir?" She asked him, causing him to look at her like a little kid on his first camping trip, and it endeared him in her heart even more than usual.
"I always come prepared, Carter. You ought to know that." He smiled at her, while he finished unpacking the rest of the food and Daniel and Teal'c set up the tents.
Sam was setting up the sleeping bag and unloading things they'd need to cook the hot dogs with off of the MALP. She kept her eye on `her guys' as they set up the campsite. She loved these men; they were her very best friends. She didn't know what she'd do without them in her life. They'd been there for her when Janet had died almost a year ago. They had also been there for her when she had broken up with Pete Shannahan a few months ago. They'd been so supportive of her when she told them she was going to break up with him. They had even offered to be there for her when it eventually happened, telling her that they could all stay the night just in case she needed them or Pete came back. She did and they did.
"So, Jack. How long are we going to be here?" Daniel finally asked.
Jack stopped what he was doing and turned to face his friend. "We just got here, Danny Boy. Why rush it, huh? You're not going on any important missions at the moment. I gave almost everyone the weekend off for Halloween. You know, for Siler's party. I left a skeleton crew behind to keep an eye on the SGC. So, we've got a least the weekend here. Enjoy it."
Daniel just rolled his eyes and Teal'c raised an eyebrow, causing Sam to laugh at the scene the three men made. Had she mentioned that she loved these men? Yeah, she did and she wouldn't change that for all the Naquadah or Naquadria in the galaxy.
Jack looked at her as she giggled. "What's so funny, Carter? I thought it was a good idea to come out here camping and ditch the party. I even got the President's permission."
"Indeed." Was all Teal'c would say as he finished putting up the second tent.
Sam just shook her head and completed her task. "Are we gonna set up guard shifts tonight, Sir?"
"Can the `sir' on this trip, will ya, Carter? This is a pleasure trip, guys. I chose Cimmeria because it's an Asguard protected planet. I don't think we'll need to stand watches tonight." He replied, thinking about how much fun they were going to have.
She nodded. "Okay, Sir. I mean, Jack. Who's cooking dinner tonight?"
He looked at her. "I don't suppose you would like to cook the dogs tonight, Sam, huh?" He asked her, hoping that Maybourne wouldn't make an appearance and steal a dog from the fire.
She laughed at him. "Not really, Jack, but I will. I do know how to cook. Just because I'm never home to do it, doesn't mean that I can't do it."
Daniel and Teal'c watched the exchange and traded knowing looks. They knew that since Pete had literally been thrown to the curb, thanks to Teal'c, that Sam and Jack had seemed flirtier and smiled more at each other more openly again. Their behavior was reminiscent of times before he had ascended.
Once dinner had been cooked and eaten, Daniel poured each of them, except Teal'c, a cup of coffee and sat down next to Teal'c. He watched as Jack sat down close to Sam and kept sneaking glances at her. Daniel nudged Teal'c and they watched the couple pretend not to notice each other; Daniel noticing once or twice that Jack tapped her shoulder with his left knee and then pretended that he hadn't done it.
"So, are we gonna tell any ghost stories? After all, it's almost Halloween and we are camping." Sam asked the men, her slight grin hinting that Jack had tapped her shoulder again.
Daniel gave her an evil look and replied. "Yeah, why not? I've got a good ghost story for you guys."
Sam smiled at him, throwing a glance over to Jack and quickly back to Daniel. "I bet you do, Daniel. Why don't you tell us about it? You can go tonight and someone else can tell one tomorrow night."
They all settled down to hear Daniel's story. Sam moved a little closer to Jack, unconsciously, and held her cup of coffee between her hands and waited, tempted to rest her head on Jack's knee that he had kept tapping her with, but decided not to.
"It all happened many years ago. It was a dark and stormy night, the rain was coming down so very hard. A woman, we'll say her name is Lisa, is driving her car through the canyons. Her baby boy is in the seat next to her and is crying. She's tried everything to get him to stop crying, but nothing works.
The rain is making the road slick and she is having a hard time keeping the car on the road. She is coming to a sharp turn, but can't see it, and the baby lets out a loud cry. She turns her head to look at her son and misses the turn. Her car goes off the bridge, into the little stream, and crashes. The poor woman never had a chance; she died on impact. No one knows what happened to the little boy, he was never seen again.
When the ambulance arrived, only the woman was in the car. She was pronounced dead on impact. They searched for the little boy, but couldn't find him. After weeks of looking, they finally gave up." Daniel looked at everyone before he continued the story. He could see tears in Sam's eyes and Teal'c looked intrigued, but with Jack it was hard to tell, he looked sad but disbelieving at the same time. So he went on.
"Now, legend has it that the little boy had been taken out of the car by a wild animal, no one was ever quite sure what kind it was. He was raised by the animal as his own baby, growing up in the forest.
It's also told that if you go to that bridge, park your car on it and shut off the engine, place your keys under the seat and then sit on the bridge with your legs hanging over the side, and then if you're really quiet, you can see the boy. He's all covered with hair and looks scary, but don't make too sudden a move or he'll come and get you." Daniel finished his story and noticed that Sam was a lot closer to Jack, almost hugging his leg and was looking around the forest outside the of the fire, causing him to smile.
Jack wanted to place his arm around her, but knew that it wasn't the right thing to do, so he turned his attention back to Daniel. "Nice story, Danny Boy. Where is this bridge supposed to be located?"
Daniel shrugged. "Up in the hills in California. I heard about it once when I was visiting some friends. They even took me up there to check it out. It was pretty scary, but kinda cool."
Teal'c stood, his large frame edged by the fire. "I am going to Kelnoreem. I will see you in the morning, O'Neill, Colonel Carter and Daniel Jackson." He went to the first tent he had set up and went inside.
"I just wish he'd say that he was going to sleep. I mean, that's what he does now that he doesn't have Junior anymore," Daniel said as he stood up as well. "Well, I'll see you guys in the morning. Sleep well, Sam. Jack." He said with a smirk and then he joined Teal'c in the tent.
Jack stood up and reached out for Sam's hand, pulling her up next to him. "I guess you're stuck with me tonight. Don't worry, Car… Sam, I won't let anything happen to you."
She just gave him a funny smile. "I don't know what it was about that story, Jack, but it gave me the creeps. I'll try not to keep you up all night." She said, looking into his brown eyes.
He put his arm around her finally and pulled her into the second tent. "Don't worry, Sam. Everything will be okay. You just stay close to me. I won't let anything get you."
"I know that it was just a story, and I'm not usually like this. This was just too real sounding to be made up. I'm glad that I'm not sharing a tent with Daniel. He'd keep it up until I got no sleep." She said as she moved her sleeping bag closer to his.
Jack smiled at what she was doing. He didn't mind, but it was gonna be hard to not hold her during the night. He climbed into his bag and laid down next to her. "Sam?" He asked her quietly.
"Yeah?" She replied just as softly.
He looked at her, his eyes twinkling from the light that the campfire reflected in his dark orbs. "Would you like me to hold you tonight?"
She smiled and moved closer to him, her own eyes casting a twinkling of their own. "That would be great, Jack." She snuggled into his arms and felt at ease right away, as if it was meant to be. She looked up at him and smiled, realizing how handsome he was and how cute his lips looked when he was trying not to smile or grin, the way the right corner of his mouth twitched against the urge.
Jack was lost in her eyes and he couldn't help it. He bent over and kissed her, and to his surprise she reached up and kissed him back, feeling no reservations or hesitations. The kiss wasn't too long, but it wasn't a short kiss either. He slowly pulled back and could feel his heart pounding against his chest. She was looking at him with a respect that he hadn't seen since the Zatarc retests and they had admitted they cared about each other more than they should.
Jack continued to look into her eyes, wishing that he could just give in to the temptation that she held in her eyes and just in what made Samantha Carter who she was. He trailed his index finger over her left cheek and over her lips, watching her reaction as she kept her eyes on his. She slowly closed her eyes when his finger trailed back over her lips again and she kissed it softly, making Jack lean down and consume her lips possessively, yet tenderly.
Jack trailed his lips along her jawbone and down her neck, feeling the pounding rush of blood in the carotid artery as the moment intensified and they became aware of each other; they tried to memorize each other's bodies, their feelings and determination to have at least one intimate moment with the other not stopping them. As the moment got more and more intense, Jack dragged himself out of his bag and then pulled Sam out of hers. He decided that now was as good a time as any to make love to her the way that he had wanted to for a long while.
As the moment came to a slow, yet fulfilled end, Jack and Sam held each other lovingly. Sam lightly ran her fingers along his spine and over his shoulders, while Jack's fingers carefully still gripped her blonde locks as he sat up a bit and put his weight on his elbows and forearms. He looked down at her and then lowered his lips to hers in a passionate kiss that told her that he loved her and would wait for however long it took to finally be with her in all the right ways.
When they pulled back, Sam just smiled and replied, "Thanks, Jack."
"For what?" He questioned her, his breathing returning to normal.
"For bringing us here, for coming with us, for holding me. Just for…everything. Good night, Jack. Sleep well." She whispered as Jack rolled to the side and got back into his back, coaxing Sam into his as well.
"I will, Sam. I will." He said as he snuggled closer to her, pulling her as he moved closer.
THE END, HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Story Notes: AUTHOR'S NOTES: The story that Daniel tells is a story I've heard most of my life. It's some kind of legend here in Angeles National Forest. I'm not sure if it's true or not, but I have tried to do what Daniel tells them to do. This story is the result of a challenge from the Sam and Jack NC17 list. This story has been beta read by Tiffany Flowers, any mistakes are hers. Thanks to Tiffany as well for adding more Sam and Jack time. She even tried to keep it PG- 13. I hope you like it.
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters, settings, etc, are the property of their respective owners. Any original characters and plots are the property of the author. No money is being made from this work. No copyright infringement is intended. ... [ read more ]