Sensation
by Suz suzvoy@tesco.net
Disclaimer - MGM/Gekko/Double Secret own them.
Episode addition for 'Allegiance'. Spoilers for 'In The Line of Duty', 'Abyss' and 'Allegiance'.
For Tracy, who never lets up. Ever. Seriously.
*
He digs into his food with all the enthusiasm he can muster.
It should be more. The bad guy was killed; the enemies of the enemy found common ground, and for the first time since they arrived the Tok'ra and Jaffa are eating together.
Well, Jacob and Bra'tac are anyway. The rest'll just take a while longer.
The two old men (and by old he means great, not *old* old) converse animatedly: discussing theories, histories, opinions - never quite an argument, but never quite an agreement, either.
But they like each other. He can tell.
Carter, sitting to his left, contributes occasionally, but mostly she leaves them to it, just like he does.
And him...he's in a bad mood.
Why?
Because she still hasn't turned off that naquadah reactor, and he can still feel the tingling.
And he likes it. Too much.
He'd been kinda joking when he'd initially told her that, but now it's the absolute truth. Maybe it's just the length of time he's been exposed to it now but...he's really *really* liking it. And that's not a good idea at the moment.
He gets why she forgot to turn it off. What with the attack, and Bra'tac's return, and the relief, he completely understands why she forgot.
And as for why no one else seems to notice? Well, almost everyone at the Alpha Site has or had a snake of some kind in their bodies. No doubt they 'balanced out' or completely eliminated the sensation. Carter's body chemistry has never been the same since her Jolinar encounter, so that probably explained her, too.
In fact, him, Pearce, and a few other officers were the only 'normal' humans on the entire planet.
He wasn't forgetting for a single second about his own experience (even though it was something he *did* want to forget), but his body, at least, hasn't been completely screwed up.
The same can't be said for his mind.
When she stands up to get something he shivers, knowing he should tell her to just deactivate it, but also knowing that he...likes it.
"Jack?" Jacob has noticed, apparently. "You all right? You look a little freaked."
"I agree O'Neill," Bra'tac too. "Though I am not sure 'freaked' is a term I would have used."
Jack can't help it - he laughs. Or at least smiles. He doesn't really laugh that often. "I'm okay," He offers. "I just wish Carter would hurry up and turn off that damn reactor. I can still feel that tingling stuff."
Her dad frowns. "She already turned it off."
Surprised he glances towards her, realises she'd bending over and quickly glances away again. "She has?" That was unexpected.
"I saw her do it myself," Jacob nods.
"Oh." Jack doesn't know what to say - not an unfamiliar occurrence. He can definitely still feel it. Maybe it's an after-effect, or the feeling lingers...
Carter returns, brushing against him as she sits.
The sensation magnifies.
Oh.
Stupid.
He glances up at the old men - this time he really *does* mean old - and both of them are giving him what can only be classified as 'a look'.
Jack glares, fully intending to completely ignore Carter's inevitable confused reaction at his next words:
"Oh shut up."
Suddenly, he has a great deal more enthusiasm for his food.
~FINIS