My new story. As always whump and more whump (but also friendship, fluff and maybe some cuddles!). This takes place early (maybe Season Two) but this time on Earth. Hope you all enjoy.

"It'll be fun guys, you'll see." Jack was practically bouncing as he walked out of the mountain, followed by the rest of his team. It was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and he'd conned the rest of SG1 into going away for the long weekend. Going all the way to Minnesota was a little too far, so he'd borrowed a friend's cabin on Mount Evans, just west of Denver.

The last few missions had been stressful and he figured they could use a little down time. He'd also noticed that tempers had been flaring and even Teal'c was a bit 'snarky'. So, he reasoned, a little 'team bonding' in a relaxed atmosphere would be good, hence the trip.

"Jack, my idea of fun is not going to some wilderness area and hiking in frigid temperatures. Sounds way too much like another mission to me."

"I concur O'Neill – I would much rather be at home watching movies and eating popcorn."

"Teal'c! You've been corrupted! Where's your spirit of adventure? Where's your Jaffa desire to conquer the elements, to pit man against nature and win? To boldly go where no Jaffa has gone before?"

"I believe it is on Chulak."

"Huh?" Jack turned a confused eye on his large friend.

"My desire to conquer the elements O'Neill. It is on Chulak. On Earth I prefer to watch the elements on the Discovery Channel." Jack was sure he heard a snort from Carter.

"Okay Carter, at least you're with me right? You appreciate a good wilderness adventure don't ya?" He looked at her expectantly.

She thought he looked like a 10 year old, wanting his parents to love Disneyland as much as he did. She really didn't want to disappoint him, she really wanted to say 'yes Sir, I love going on a wilderness adventure after 5 straight missions tramping around alien planets, getting shot at, swarmed by large alien biting insects and practically getting drowned in a flash flood on P9Y 22Z but her heart really wasn't in it.

"Uh – yes Sir", she replied, refusing to look at her Commander.

"Come on Sam, you don't sound very enthusiastic."

"Well, actually Sir, I kind of had plans this weekend."

"Plans. Really? What kind of plans?"

"If you must know I wanted to get my hair done and go for a manicure and pedicure! It's been a while since I've been!"

This pronouncement was greeted by dead silence on the part of the three men on her team. Glancing at them she could almost hear their thoughts. "Sam Carter, a girly-girl?, Sam Carter getting her nails done!" Geesh, what did they think? Just because she was a damn good soldier didn't mean she didn't enjoy being feminine once in a while.

"Ah, okay Carter. I tell ya what, you can go next week for all that …. stuff and we won't say a thing!"

"Why thank you Sir. How kind of you!" with that she walked ahead to her car, parked in the lot at Cheyenne Mountain.

"So Carter – we'll be by to pick you up in about an hour." He called to her retreating back. Go figure, who would have thought Sam to have been into 'beauty treatments'! He remembered that Sara used to try and go regularly, said it made her feel better, but he'd never thought Carter would like that kind of thing. He pretty much thought of her as 'one of the guys' – although now that he thought about it, she was a pretty woman.

As he walked to his car, followed silently by Daniel and Teal'c, he thought about Carter and the role she played on his team. She was a damn fine officer – he could honestly say one of the best he'd ever served with. After their little adventure in Antarctica he'd felt like they'd grown closer, as team mates. But, he could honestly say that he'd never really thought of her as a woman, per se – she was just a comrade, a team-mate – someone he served with and kicked Goa'uld butt with (yes, you believe that - you really do O'Neill!)!

The thought of Carter – no – Sam – in a beauty salon getting her nails done kinda made him look at her in a bit different way.

Giving his head a quick shake (can't go there O'Neill!) he turned to Daniel.

"So Danny Boy – you all set? All packed? Got your survival gear all ready?"

"Survival gear? I thought we were going to a cabin. You know, fireplace, bathroom, full kitchen, hot tub – all the necessities for a cabin in the wilderness."

Jack just looked at him and smirked.

"Na, what would be the fun in that? Might as well stay home if you want those things."

"What a good idea Jack. I think I'll do that."

"No way Daniel. You're coming and you're going to have a wonderful time! You too Teal'c – you're going to experience a real Earth adventure in the majestic Rocky Mountains, one of the most beautiful places on Earth – or in the universe!"

Realizing how much this weekend meant to their friend, Daniel and Teal'c looked at each other. A silent message passed between them – they could at least pretend to have a good time.

"Indeed O'Neill. I look forward to it."

"See, there ya go! That's the spirit. What about you Daniel?"

"I guess I can try Jack. Just tell me that there is a bathroom at least?"

"Of course. It's not that primitive!"

"Implying that it is somewhat primitive?" Daniel groaned.

"Hey, what's the use of going to the wilderness if you bring your house with you. Anyway, I got us a treat."

"What?'

"You'll have to wait and see. Okay Daniel, I'm gonna swing home and grab my things and I'll be by to pick you and then Carter up. Teal'c you comin' with me?"

"I have my things with me O'Neill. I can go with Daniel Jackson and help him get ready."

"Okee Dokee. See you shortly." Jack walked (no – he really was bouncing, thought Daniel) to his truck, waving haphazardly at his friends.

Yup – it was gonna be a great weekend, he thought. No System Lords (up yours Apophis!), no Jaffa (alright, except for his friendly, personal Jaffa buddy), no sleet covered alien planets, just three friends, a cabin and fresh mountain air. What a great way to spend Thanksgiving.

"So, what kinda music you wanna listen to?" Jack asked as they started on the highway. Teal'c was in the front seat with him, Daniel and Sam in the back. Thank goodness he had a big truck and not a little itsy bitsy car like his teammates had.

"Country/Jazz/Pop" came at once from his three friends. He looked at Teal'c in surprise,

"Country?" He somehow couldn't imagine Teal'c listening to Vince Gill or Garth Brooks – now, Shania Twain! yeah, even he'd listen to country for her!

"All right. Classical it is!" He reached over and switched his favorite Classical music station on. As the strains of Mozart filled the car he could feel the tension begin to seep from his body.

The drive normally wouldn't be too long – just over 2 hours – but tonight the weather wasn't cooperating. It had started to snow as they drove higher into the mountains. It wasn't a soft, fluffy snow but rather an icy, sleeting kind that made driving particularly treacherous.

The occupants of the car were quiet, knowing Jack needed to concentrate in order to drive. As visibility got worse he slowed until he was driving at almost a crawl. They'd been driving for almost 3 hours when Jack saw lights ahead.

"Okay guys, let's take a break. I need to get a cup of coffee and rest my eyes. Driving into the snow is hard on em."

"Are you sure it's safe to go on Jack? Maybe we should stop somewhere for the night." Daniel was feeling really nervous about the conditions. Some of the cliffs to the side of the road were pretty steep!

"No where to stop Daniel. We passed the last town miles ago. It would take us longer to go back than to go to the cabin. This little coffee shop is the last place for miles. Don't worry, it'll be okay. I'm from Minnesota right. We're used to conditions like these and my truck is a four wheel drive. I'm going real slow just to be on the safe side. We should get there soon."

"Do you think we'll be stuck for a while Sir? It looks pretty bad."

"I don't think so. Usually these blow over in a day or so. With my truck we shouldn't have any trouble getting out. Nervous about being stuck with three guys in an isolated cabin Carter?" he grinned.

"Yes Sir – at least nervous about being stuck with you and Daniel for days. I can just hear all the arguing. Teal'c now – him I could take." She laughed back at her CO. He had been right – getting away from the mountain had been a good idea. Even though she was nervous about the drive she could feel the tension of all their missions melt from her the farther they got from Cheyenne Mountain.

"Ha! You wouldn't say that if we really were stuck. Teal'c doesn't have any experience of surviving a snow storm in the mountains – but I do!" he looked quite pleased with himself, as if this gave him something to 'lord over' Teal'c.

"That is true O'Neill. I have always avoided being stuck in a place with freezing temperatures and ice. Putting myself into a position where I had to learn those skills did not seem wise."

"Maybe not – but you sure missed a lot of fun!" As he was speaking Jack slowly pulled into the parking lot of the tiny coffee shop and gas station. They could see a light on inside but it didn't appear as if there were any customers.

The team quickly ran in doors, their coats still packed in the trunk. Sam made a beeline for the Ladies room and the guys sat at a bench. An old man who couldn't have been much under 80 came up to the table.

"Surprised to see you here in this weather. Most folks stayed away today. Where ya headed?"

"We're going to Jim O'Reilly's place for the holidays. He's a buddy of mine."

"Air Force are ya?"

"Yup. We've come from Colorado Springs."

"Hmmm. Haven't seen Jim in a while. He's a good guy. Never the same after the Gulf of course. It's a miracle he made it home."

"Uh … yeah. So – could we get some coffee and maybe something to eat?"

"Sure – coffee's no problem. My cook didn't make it in so all I've got are some baked goods. Pie is good if you want a piece of that?"

"Yeah – pie sounds great. Teal'c? Daniel? You guys want pie too?"

"What kind do you have?" asked Teal'c.

"I have apple, chocolate cream or blueberry. They're all good – wife makes em."

"Then I am honored. I shall have the blueberry."

"Apple for me" added Daniel.

"Well then – I'll go with the chocolate. Uh, there's a lady with us – she'll have a coffee with double cream, no sugar. Not sure if she'll want pie."

"No problem, I'll bring yours first."

"Jack?"

"Yeah?"

"How do you know how Sam likes her coffee?"

"Whatya mean? I've known her for a couple of years – seen her drink coffee enough."

"Yeah, but she doesn't usually take cream."

"Not when she's off world but she does when she's at home."

"Really? I didn't know that. So, do you know how Teal'c or I take our coffee?"

Jack sat and stared at his friend. He had absolutely no idea. Why that made a frisson of 'something' travel up his spine he didn't know. Suddenly he started to feel rather – breathless. He could even feel his heart rate increase.

"Uh – you take coffee anyway you can get it Daniel. I think you'd take it in an IV if you could." (Nice save O'Neill, if I do say so myself!)

"That is true O'Neill. But what about me. How do I take my coffee?"

"Hey, what's with the interrogation here guys? I simply ordered the woman – uh I mean Carter – a coffee. What's the big deal?"

"It's just that you usually don't notice those kind of details Jack. It seemed kind of weird."

"It's not weird, I'm just being a gentleman."

Daniel laughed. "You, a gentleman? Come on Jack – you're the guy who challenged us to a farting contest on Drizendia."

"So – and your point? You gotta admit they were the most uptight people in the world. I just wanted to let off some steam." Daniel choked back another laugh at this. "I swear that those guys must have had giant sticks up their - Carter – you're back!"

"Yes Sir. Did you think I wouldn't be?"

'No, no, of course not. Just didn't see you there for a minute."

"Oh, okay. So what were you guys talking about?"

Jack choked. "Nothing, nothing at all. Just wondering if you wanted pie?"

"Mmmm there's pie? What kind?"

"Apple, blueberry, chocolate." He answered, relieved that he'd gotten through that conversation relatively unscathed.

"Chocolate, of course! So, did anyone order me a coffee?"

"Yes, O'Neill ordered one for you."

"Thanks Sir. I'd better ask the man to bring cream. I always like it in my coffee when I'm home."

"Jack already asked for double cream for you." Daniel had a small smirk on his face. Jack looked over and gave him a very 'evil eye'.

"Oh – thanks. I didn't know you knew I liked cream Sir."

"Must have seen you order it somewhere Carter." he muttered. Please, change the subject for God's sake.

"Well thanks again. Anyway, I agree with the Colonel."

"You do Sam?", said Daniel. "Agreed with what?"

"That the people on Drizendia were the most uptight people in the universe. I don't think it was a stick sir – I think it was a tree trunk! And I still say I won the contest!"

He couldn't help but laugh, both at Sam and at Daniel's expression. He grew to lo– like his Captain more and more each day. Only she seemed to truly appreciate his humor. In fact, he suspected, more and more, that she had a pretty wicked sense of humor of her own. One day he'd love to see her as herself and not as his Second. He knew there would always be a bit of restraint between them because of that. Oh well – maybe one day they'd be able to get to know each other outside of a chain of command..

"See Daniel – I told ya. Sometimes you need to let off some steam!"

The old man – Frank by name – returned shortly with their coffee and pie. He went back to get a piece for Sam but when he brought it he stopped to chat. He hadn't had many customers that day, and none for hours, and he was a man who liked to talk!

"So mister – howdya you know Jim?" he asked, looking at O'Neill.

"We met overseas."

"Really? Were you in the service together?"

"Uh – sort of."

"Now, what do you mean by 'sort of'? You youngsters, never can speak plain English."

Jack raised his eyebrows. It had been many years since he'd been referred to as a youngster. He really didn't want to talk about this but was afraid Frank was going to push it.

"We weren't in the same unit but we were both in the Air Force."

"So, howdya meet?" Frank was really not going to let this go.

"We met in the Gulf."

"You were there too, were ya? Heard it was a nasty war. Not like Viet Nam though. Nothin was like that. My oldest was a soldier in Nam. Never was the same when he got back. So what was it like in the Gulf?"

"Hot" Jack hoped that his short answers would discourage the man but they hadn't seemed to as of yet.

"Yeah, I bet. So you ran into old Jim there did ya? Did you know him before he was captured?"

"No"

"So, it was after he was released? Wait though - I thought he was shipped back immediately. He was in bad shape when he got out. Told me the only reason he survived was because of an officer who helped him in prison. Said the guy was a real jokester – but always seemed to be able to distract the guards from hurting the other prisoners. Said he used to make the guards so angry they'd pick on him rather than the others. Jim said at first they all thought he was an idiot but then they realized he did it intentionally. He soon became a hero to the guys. Jim idolizes the man."

There was complete silence at the table. His teammates had stopped eating and were staring at him. Shit, this was so not what he wanted.

"Probably just doin' his duty. Uh, could I have some more coffee?" he asked Frank, hoping to distract the man.

"Sure, refills are on the house." He walked over and got the pot and refilled everyone's cup. He then continued to stand there.

"Yup – quite some guy this one was. A Major, Jim said. He was there longer than most and I guess by the time they were released he was in pretty bad shape. Jim said he was surprised he survived. I guess the Iraqis liked to torture him quite a bit. Did things to him that no one should have to go through. Why, he told me they even -"

"Uh, no offense, but I think we should be going", Jack interrupted quickly. He really couldn't stand listening to a description of Iraqi torture methods. "Could we get the bill? We should be getting on the road."

"Na – for a friend of Jim's – and a veteran – it's on the house."

"Thanks, but you don't need to do that."

"My pleasure! If Jim ever has that Major up here I'd do more than give him pie and coffee! I'd feed him till he was fit to burst and then I'd like to shake his hand and thank him for all he's done for our country. It's men like that that make me proud to be an American! Hey – you didn't know him did you?"

"Don't think so." Jack was standing up, refusing to look at anyone. His team still hadn't uttered a word.

"What was his name? Let me think. I know Jim told me. Talked about him all the time."

"Thanks so much for the pie and coffee Frank. Tell your wife it was fantastic. You're a lucky man. Have a good night." Jack quickly turned and walked to the door, followed by his friends. He opened the door and walked into the frigid night.

"Jack. It was Jack – that was his name. Sure you didn't know him?" but Frank was speaking to an empty room.

"Hmmpp – young people – always in a hurry!" Frank turned and began cleaning up the table.

As Jack turned the car engine on and pulled out, slowly, from the little café, he realized his former feeling of relaxation had fled. Instead he felt incredibly embarrassed and a host of long-supressed memories came flooding back.

"So Jack…..?"

"Leave it Daniel." There was a pause as the younger man contemplated the back of his friend's head.

"I was just going to ask how long until you think we'll arrive."

Letting out a huff of relief Jack entered into a conversation about the estimated arrival time as well as plans for the next few days. All of them had agreed, silently, to not refer to what they'd heard in the diner. They all knew a bit of Jack's history – but this was the first they heard that he'd been tortured. It didn't surprise any of them – it only made them love and respect him even more.

"Let's see what's happening in the world." Jack muttered. He needed to get his mind off things and music just wasn't cutting it.

He turned on a news station and they all listened to the very depressing news. Mostly it was nothing new – economic woes, war overseas, political infighting, theft, murder, extortion – it was all the same. A local trustee had embezzled millions of dollars from a local school board, a bank had been robbed in Denver and three people had been killed. The robbers were still on the loose.

"You know, we spend so much time off world, dealing with tremendous evil – with Goa'ulds and other bad aliens - that I sometimes forget we have our own evil right here. Somehow I always think of Earth in positive terms when I'm away but we have our fair share of bad guys." Sam sat shaking her head. Her good mood of earlier had also dissipated.

"Yeah - we have our own snakes!"

"I did not know you had Goa'ulds here on Earth O'Neill. No one has told me of that." Jack laughed softly as he heard a note of pique in Teal'c's voice. The Jaffa thought they'd been hiding something from him.

"No Teal'c – not real snakes – metaphorical ones."

"Metaphorical snakes. I do not know of these." He answered, sounding very confused.

"All Jack means is that we have really evil people here who act like they have snakes – we don't have any Goa'uld, at least as far as we know."

"Ever the optimist Dr. Jackson?

"Just a realist Jack."

"Yeah – I guess. Hey, we're almost there. The turn off is just ahead. Soon we'll be in front of a toasty fire guys."

All of them looked forward to getting out of the car and getting warmed up.

After a few minutes they'd arrived and they pulled their things from the car. There were also some boxes which Jack had brought although they didn't know what was inside.

"What's in the boxes Jack?'

"You'll see Daniel, you'll see. Okay, I get first dibs on the bathroom! Make yourselves at home. Jim said he'd left the heat on for us so it should be warm. Decide where you want to sleep – I think there are three rooms so two of us can share." Jack turned and went down the hall. All that coffee was making itself heard.

After he'd left, the other three stood and looked at each other. Daniel was, of course, the one to break the silence.

"Well, that was uncomfortable."

"Yes – for O'Neill. It must have been very difficult for him to be reminded of that time."

"He's never spoken of it." Sam added, worried about her CO.

"No, and I don't think he ever will. That's not Jack's way. I do think it's probably brought back some ugly memories so I, for one, plan to have a wonderful time the next few days. It's going to be very busy and filled with lots of things to do."

Sam and Teal'c looked at him and nodded. Yes, she thought, it was up to them to take the Colonel's mind off bad things and create a wonderful holiday for him.

By the time he'd returned they were all busy unpacking their things. When each of them had gone into their respective bedrooms (Daniel and Teal'c were sharing the one with the twin bunk beds) Jack pulled the boxes into the kitchen and started putting his 'surprise' away.

When they'd all finished and returned to the main living area (quaint but with comfy couches and a roaring fire) they were ready to sit and relax. Jack noticed that Carter (not Sam, O'Neill, not Sam) had changed into cozy pajamas. He decided to go and put some sweats on. As he was leaving he turned to his friends.

"So, anyone up for a game of poker?"

"Yes Sir"

"That'd be great Jack."

"Indeed O'Neill, that would be most welcome."

He looked a little in surprise at the ready agreement of his team, but then shrugged. He guessed they were getting into it after all.

Yeah – he was really looking forward to this weekend!