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Story Notes: Thread of Destiny - 01 - Please do not post or distribute this story without the author's permission. Copyright by Blue Topaz, 2002


Chapter One : Prologue

"Jack, this is incredible. Come on, we have got to see it." Daniel as always is bouncing and dare I say wiggling his tail like a little puppy every time we encounter a new civilization.

"Daniel," I said in my most tolerant voice, "be patient. Didn't I tell you not to get excited first? We have to make sure that Hammond said yes first. Carter and Teal'c are on their way to report to him." I could almost feel that the 'big speech' coming out.

"Jack, this is a very rare opportunity for me, err sorry," he realizes his mistake after I gave him a warning look, "for us to study this celebration. They only held it once a year, this is their main ceremony, like say Christmas back on earth. Xian said that everybody in his village would be participating at this commemoration. Their culture is very different than us, we can learn a lot about them. If we're not hurry, we will miss it. And ..." I take off my sunglasses and let Daniel rambles along. I've learned a long time ago the best way to stop our resident Archeologist, Egyptologist, Linguist, Anthropologist and all around geek from his lecture is to ignore him. Funny how I still see him as a geek but not having problem with it.

"So, what do you want for lunch?" I make a move pass him and towards our ration pack. "We got stew beef, macaroni and cheese, turkey, ah ... and would you believe it, good ol' chicken."

"Jack, this is important. How could you think about food now?" Everything that is different from earth's culture is important for our Danny-boy. I couldn't care less.

"Because I'm hungry?" I picked one of the MRE randomly, they all taste the same anyway. "So, which one do you want?"

Daniel sighs and shrugs his shoulder, I guess he's given up on me. "I'm going to talk to Xian again, see if there's any other information he could gave us."

"Look Daniel, I'm sure this is interesting and exciting for you but we still have to wait for Hammond to give it a go OK?" And the timing couldn't be more perfect.

"*Colonel, are you there?*" Carter voice came out from the radio.

"Yeah, go ahead."

"*General Hammond said OK, but we have to be careful not to make any trouble with the natives.*"

"I though he'd have enough faith in us by now"

"*I'm sure he has Sir, he gave us 3 days to go and visit Xian's cave. Teal'c and I will be at our camp in an hour. Over.*" I could hear her smile though her voice. I love it when I make her smile.

"Copy that, O'Neill out." Daniel's face is full of delight.

"I'm going to tell Xian." Is all he says, I guess it's up to me to break out our camp then.

Half an hour later I finished all the packing, Daniel is still talking to Xian, a native to this planet, Hailin as they called it. We gated to this planet yesterday after the MALP showing a sign of naquada present in this planet. This is supposed to be a mineral survey type of mission. Personally, I'm against it, I don't like surveying. I prefer kicking Ghould butt or maybe meet and greet with some nice more advance civilization that has no problem in sharing their technology with us. But we really need the naquada, badly, that's why that we are here. We have to make sure that the planet has enough naquada for our need and pose no treat to earth. The UAV showed no sign of life but apparently it was wrong.

This morning Xian showed up at our camp, he was curious about us. His clothes are made of some sort of animal's skin. He doesn't speak English, but luckily for him Daniel speaks his language. It was ancient Chinese or at least that's what Daniel said, anyway Daniel chatted happily with him and manages to find out about the festival that they're going to have tonight. Daniel thinks that Xian's ancestors were taken from China a long long time ago, not that I couldn't guess it from his features.

Carter took some sample from the planet's dirt, water and plants yesterday, so she volunteered herself to go back to SGC, to put the samples in her lab and asked for Hammond's permission to stay longer in this planet. I wish she were here right now, Daniel is totally ignoring me.

Major Carter, that's what I call her. Sam, that's the name that my heart wanted to say, I know I said that name in my dreams over and over again. I can't call her Sam, I'm afraid if I did I will lost my self control and do something that will jeopardize her career. Damn regulations.

I have this dream. There were only the two of us, my eyes can only see her, nothing else matter. I look at her eyes and let myself being drifted, closer and closer, toward her. She will lift her left hand and the palm of her hand is facing me, at the same time my right hand mimicking her action. Our palms meet and our fingers are entwined around each other, I could feel something penetrates my palms and spreading throughout my body. It's something warm, comforting and safe. Her soft blue eyes never leave mine, we have a silent conversation that only our eyes could understand. Words and gestures are unnecessary, I never ever felt something like this before. Her love brings deliverance, I feel like I could do anything but yet we stand still, just let the moment be.

When I woke up I will smile and let the sensations from our touch faded slowly, after it's gone, my heart will always arch for more. When I realized that the dream is repeating I made a wishful thinking. If I can't have her in this reality, maybe, just maybe, we can be together in the dream. It's good enough for now. It has to. I wonder if she has the same dream.

I snap out of my wondering and try to focus on my surrounding. Daniel said that the Hailanese live in a city built inside a big cave and rarely leaves the safety of their home. That explains how the UAV didn't show any sign of human activity. Xian is an adventurer and storyteller, he explores the planet surface every year a month before the celebration and then share his stories about the outside world to his people during the main ritual. Sounds like he's the Hailanese version of Daniel, without the glasses. He was so excited to see us, obviously he never though that he will ever met someone from other planet.

"Jack, there's something that you need to know." Daniel decides to end his ignorance to me. About time, I'm getting bored.

"So, what's up? No Ghould here I hope."

"No, no. It just that the Hailanese are a bit strict on their ... dress code." He tries to hide his discomfort.

"Dress code?" I'm not sure if I like the sound of it.

"Yeah, apparently when entering their city we have to be properly attired."

"Daniel, get to the point. What do they want us to wear?"

"Well, erg ... on second though, I think I wait until Teal'c and Sam are here so that I don't have to explain it to them again." He's chicken out, something's fishy here. I was going to order him to tell me when I hear someone coming. I turn my head in time to see Carter and Teal'c approaching us.

"Carter, Teal'c, hurry up a bit, Daniel got something to tell us." I try to speed them up, they look at each other and then jog a bit.

"Nice to see you again too, Sir." Carter replies in lack of my greeting after they reach us. I smile at that comment, looks like she's been taking a lesson from my book of sarcasm. Not that I mind.

"What is it that you wish to inform us, Daniel Jackson?" Teal'c as always go straight to the point.

"Yeah Danny-boy. Please do inform us."

"Uhm, ah, where should I start? As we know, the Hailanese live inside a big cave. And they have this statue that was considered to be sacred. They have a tale to explain this, apparently once upon a time there's this emperor that ..."

"Daniel, cut to the chase and just tell me what do they want us to wear!" Time to bring my command tone out.

"They want us to wear a sarong." Daniel said it with a speed of light. "All of us, no exception."

"A WHAT?" They want me to wear a skirt? Over my dead body.

"I believe Daniel Jackson said sarong, O'Neill" Teal'c's face is impassive as ever, I guess he doesn't know what a sarong is.

"I know what he said Teal'c, I just want to make sure that he made a mistake when he said sarong."

"What is a sarong, Daniel Jackson?" I could hear giggling and I know who's the owner.

"Carter, what did I say about giggling?"

"No giggling, Sir. Sorry, Sir." She doesn't look sorry, not even a bit. Her eyes twinkling with laugh.

"Sarong is a piece of cloth Teal'c, we usually wear it by wrapping it around our waist." Daniel tries to explain.

"It's a skirt T. There's no way I'm going to wear it Daniel, no way."

"Jack, it's not a skirt. It's a sarong. Beside we still can wear our pants underneath it. Xian said that the sarong is special. They were handmade and washed seven times in different solutions and were purified, in some way. Look, they allow us to bring our weapons inside the city but we have to wear the sarong. The purpose of this sarong is to cover our, ehm, private parts."

"Daniel, my pant covers my private parts very well, thank you"

"Jack, they have this holy statue inside the city that was only shown to the public on this day and they want to keep it sacred. These people think of sex as something shameful to be talk about, pre-marital, uhm, intercourse is highly forbidden. Our private parts are, if I translate it literally, radiating negative vibes. The sarong will prevent the vibes from spreading. They don't want the statue get that bad, negative vibes."

"Interesting. I have never encounter such belief, I also wish to see this statue O'Neill." I can't believe it, Teal'c are agreeing to wear a skirt.

"Teal'c, you're going to wear a skirt. Don't let Daniel sweet talk you through this." If Teal'c says yes I know I have to give up.

"I do not see what the problem of wearing this sarong, O'Neill. Is it not true that in some parts of the earth man also wears a skirt? I believe they called it a kilt." And then I remember something, in Chulak they wear big long robes, I guess Teal'c doesn't think that wearing skirt is such an absurd idea.

I look at Daniel, he got this look that say 'please Jack, I really want to go and see this place'. I look at Teal'c and he just as stoic as a Jaffa can ever be. Finally I look at Carter, she's having a hard time controlling her laugh. She got this goofy smile.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Nothing. Permission to borrow Daniel's camera later on, Sir?" Her smile gets wider.

"No, no camera whatsoever. Are we clear on that?"

"Yes Sir"

"For crying out loud. Alright, alright, I wear the skirt. Just remember one thing, no one, I repeat NO ONE will ever know that I wear a skirt. Got it?" Daniel is not even bothering to thank me, he's off to Xian and telling him the good news. Teal'c bows his head slightly and let out a small smile. Carter is the only one who answers back, her goofy smile is still there.

"Yes Sir. But what about our mission report Sir?"

Aw crap, I completely forget about that.

- to be continue -




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