Fluorescent Adolescent - Chapter 1

"What the hell did you press?!" Sam shouted as she sprinted to the back room of her lab where she'd left Cameron for only a few seconds to answer her phone, the receiver now hanging off the edge of the desk.

There was so much bluey-purple smoke billowing out of the little room that she had to wave her arm in front of her face in a vain attempt to see through it. It smelt of a sickening mixture of pear drops and body odour and it took all her will to not gag.

"CAM!" she called desperately. Eventually the smoke cleared enough for Sam to see about a metre in front of her and she made her way into the room, feeling along the shelves to where she'd last seen Cam.

"I'm here, Carter," came a voice. Unmistakeably Cameron's, but there was something different. Five seconds! Five seconds and he'd already managed to get himself into trouble. It was times like this that Sam was glad of her decision to re-join SG-1. the thought of Cam exploring the galaxy without her to watch his six made her cringe.

"Hang on, Cam, I'll help you out," she reached the source of his voice and found felt a soft body under her searching fingers. She hooked her hands under his arm-pits and started dragging him out of the storage room, avoiding shelves and boxes with expert precision.

Pulled clear of the smoke-filled cupboard, Sam dropped him gently to the floor and collapsed next to him, coughing out the smoke from her lungs.

"Please tell me what you pressed-" she started another bout of coughing. Damn that smoke was thick.

"Um, Carter? This isn't right is it?" Sam, curios both at the question and at the strange crack in his voice, lifted herself up onto her elbows and looked at Cameron for the first time.

The first thing that struck her was that his clothes seemed far too big for him. Then she realised that Cameron seemed to have been replaced by a 13-year-old boy. His face was so similar; he could have been his son.

"Mitchell, please don't tell me you touched the device labelled 'DO NOT TOUCH'?"

The boy shrugged, "reverse psychology," he replied simply.

"I don't believe you, Mitchell. You're coming with me right now to the infirmary!" She got to her feet and was on her way to the door when she realised Cameron was still lying on the floor. He seemed relaxed, and with no intention to go anywhere.

"Cameron!" Sam was exasperated.

"My name's Camz. With a 'z'. And I ain't goin' nowhere," he jumped to his feet and started snooping around the lab, touching everything of interest.

Sam just stood at the door, open-mouthed, staring at the stubborn boy in too-big clothes, wondering around her lab. He stopped and looked at her.

"Catchin' flies or you gonna do something useful and show me where the food's at?" Sam almost screamed and she turned and made her way to the infirmary. Carolyn better know what to do!

……..

"He's WHAT?!" Carolyn exclaimed as she left her laptop and followed Sam back out into the corridor and back to her lab.

"I don't know what happened," Sam explained, or rather, didn't explain, "I left him for a matter of seconds and now suddenly he's some stubborn teenager with an attitude problem. He's even worse than when General O'Neill got cloned and turned into a 15-year-old."

General Landry turned the corner in front of them and they all but collided, "In a rush, Colonel? Doctor Lam." He acknowledged.

"General! Yes, Sir, I think you need to see this. It's Colonel Mitchell, Sir,"

"Colonel Mitchell? What's he gone and done now?" He asked as he followed them to the lab.

…..

Sam stomach dropped when she found an empty lab on her return.

"He was in here, I swear, Sir," she told him. There was a clash of metal from the back room, "Cameron!" she called. There was a scuffling sound, then silence.

"Mitchell!" Landry called, "Son, if you think you can hide in that cupboard, it won't work. We're not going anywhere until you come out." When silence was his only reply he carried on, "Mitchell, we're not angry with you. We just need to talk and make sure you're okay, and you're not hurt,"

"You are angry with me!" came a squeaky shout from the other room, followed by a load sniff. "Colonel Carter's angry at me for touching that box, and now she went to get you! And now you're angry too!" there was a loud sob then the muffled sound of crying.

Sam, Landry and Carolyn exchanged bemused looks. Sam stepped forward towards the back room.

"Cameron, I'm not angry," she spoke in a soft voice, "you did something I didn't want you to, yes, but something happened to you and all we want to do is help sort it out." She'd reached the door to the other room and stepped inside.

The sight of the boy, so recently sure of himself and ridiculously rude to her, now crumpled in a heap in the corner, face red from tears. He looked scared, vulnerable even.

Sam knelt down in front of him and touched his shoulder. He looked up at her, suspicion in his blood-shot eyes. Then he suddenly lunged forwards and threw his arms around her, clutching hold of her as if she was about to slip away. Sam reached her arms up to him, one holding his head, the other rubbing his back. They stayed like this until his crying died away.

Then he jerked back, letting go of her, back to his protective position. Only this time he had bright red cheeks. He was obviously embarrassed.

"I- I didn't-" the boy stammered.

Sam's eyes lowered and she saw the cause for his embarrassment. She managed to suppress her laugh, but a smile made its way onto her lips.

"Cam…" she started, "Cam that's nothing to be ashamed of," she reached for his shoulder again but he moved out of her reach, terror in his eyes.

"Ok, I'll let you- calm down. Then I'll let Dr. Lam in to take you to the infirmary to check you out, Ok?"

Cameron nodded and Sam walked back out into the main lab, her smile now threatening to take over her whole face.

"Sam, is he Ok?" Carolyn asked, concerned, and confused at Sam's expression.

"Oh yeah, he'll be fine. Just a normal teenage boy. Just…give him a few minutes, Ok?"

General Landry raised his eyebrows at Sam's comment but didn't say a word. Carolyn just nodded knowingly.