Title: A Little Light Coercion.

(Originally posted on LJ for the Daniel/Vala 5th Anniversary Contest - Took 2nd place!)

By: Bkwurm1

Pairings: Daniel/Vala, some Cam/Lam, mention of Sam/Jack and Teal'c/Ishta

Rating: PG-13 to be safe

Summary: Vala plans a much belated celebratory spring break/anniversary at the cabin with the team, only to find her friends conniving behind her back with matchmaking in mind. Toss in too much mud, a shared shower, and a rather pleasant misunderstanding and Vala won't ever forget the fifth anniversary of the day she and Daniel first met.

Part 1

Everyone was leaving her stranded and Vala could hardly muster up the energy to protest.

Taking General O'Neill up on his offer to use his cabin in Minnesota in the month of March might not have been her brightest idea, but then a girl might have assumed her closest friends would have given her the scoop about gloomy skies, cold driving rain, and mounds of dirty snow. Geography really wasn't her forte, climatology left her snoring and who could remember the longitude and latitude of fifty separate states anyway?

So in her ignorance, when Jack mentioned a holiday at the cabin, she'd jumped at the offer. The timing was impeccable. This little trip would commemorate her fifth anniversary with the SGC. Well, technically, five years since she attempted to liberate an SGC spaceship, but the encounter on the Prometheus led to the first team up between her and Daniel, so it counted even if their adventure ended with a breakdown in communication.

Now if one wanted to be exceedingly precise, the actual anniversary date fell closer to about a month after winter solstice, putting it near the end of January, which by her calculation only meant they needed to celebrate extra hard to make up for the delay.

She presented her getaway plan to the team and with a little persistence on her part, all of SG-1, minus Daniel, agreed to take a spring break away from their normal duties. Of course, she didn't take Daniel's no for an answer. Daniel needed to come along. After all, it was his anniversary as well and despite his initial refusal, she was certain she could wear him down before departure.

The man hadn't changed.

Five years ago when they bonded over Super Soldier Suits, hand held healing devices, some light combat, and strip searches he refused to take a step back and just enjoy himself. Now, half a decade later, he remained stubbornly determined not to bend, going off on his own, saying the cabin was going to be too crowded.

Right up until he left, Vala thought she'd be able to change his mind. After all, lately Daniel seemed to want her company. She worked closely with him as he cataloged artifacts and assisted him in creating all those little tutorials designed to initiate newbies into the Stargate program. (As dry and dull as the spots turned out, she could only shudder to imagine what would have been produced if no on had been there to try and reign in Daniel's speed talking and propensity toward information over load.)

She and Daniel didn't just spend an inordinate time together at work. They hung out with the team on the weekly movie nights and always drove together to the restaurant of choice for after mission dinners. She usually managed to persuade him at least two or three times a month that two friends and co-workers should explore whatever cultural offerings the Colorado Springs area had to offer and on top of that, he was the one to purchase season tickets to the Spring's Philharmonics just this last January.

Naturally, they had breakfast and dinner together since despite the apartment Daniel kept in town, he virtually lived on base. Lunch was something Daniel invariably forgot and Vala got in the habit of bringing a couple sandwiches by and prodding him to eat something. On the days she was too busy, he often came looking for her, so she'd been honestly surprised at his refusal to even consider going with the team to the cabin.

Apparently, despite their growing friendship, seven days in close quarters with her was too much. He left the base early Thursday and she tried not to be hurt when he slipped away without saying goodbye.

Still, Vala refused to ignore this milestone and instead of dwelling on her disappointment, she concentrated on her coming plans for Saturday. There were important decisions to be made, like choosing the best movies to bring along or deciding how many bikini's would be appropriate. It was demanding work, particularly the part where she pretended a bubbling enthusiasm she just didn't feel now that Daniel would not be going. The days passed so slowly that she actually worked ahead on the cataloging project just to fill her hours.

The Hammond was in orbit Friday night, bringing two bonuses: Sam's smiling presence and their ride from Colorado to Minnesota. Even General Landry and Dr. Lam agreed to pop in at the cabin for the afternoon since Sam, bless her practical little heart, said the beaming technology was due for a diagnostics run anyway, making their little excursion officially sanctioned travel. General O'Neill generously arranged to have the cabin stocked with supplies and fresh linens and even promised to have a driver bring a car in from town Saturday evening so they wouldn't be without transport during their stay.

At eleven thirty am, Saturday morning, Vala dragged her luggage down to the gateroom where they would be beamed out as a group. Well, she carried her make-up and hair kit while two helpful marines managed the other four suitcases. Teal'c was already waiting.

"Hello Muscles." Vala glanced around, but didn't see his luggage. "I know you're one for traveling light, but I'd say this is extreme even for you…unless you're planning to turn our retreat into some kind of nudist experiment." She shrugged and clapped her hands together. "Can't say it was my first thought, but if everyone is game, I'm not going to be a spoiledspot."

"Spoilsport," he corrected.

"Right, spoilsport. Is being a nudist really much of a sport?" She tilted her head thoughtfully. "Surprised Mitchell is up to the show and tell, if you ask me, for as many times as he has lost his pants, he has a bit of a prude thing going on."

Cam scowled as he descended the stairs from the control room. "Now why do you even have to go there?" He pointed at her stack of luggage. "Bags were to be left tagged in your quarters, Princess, all a part of testing the beaming system. Didn't you read the briefing?"

"Silly boy, why would I check the briefing on the first day of vacation?"

"Can't say I'm surprised." He chuckled, more amused than he should be, but the arrival of General Landry kept Vala from commenting on his odd behavior.

"I see you brought your belongings." The General noted dryly.

Mitchell smirked. "She didn't read the briefing." When his odd smugness prompted Landry to raise a bushy eyebrow, Cam tacked on a respectful, "Sir."

Landry made a dismissing gesture. "No matter." He called up to the control room. "Walter, let Col Carter know to include Ms. Mal Doran's bags in the gateroom beam out."

"Have advised." His tinny voice confirmed just as Carolyn Lam joined them.

Landry shouted up to the control room. "Our party is all here."

"On standby for departure."

"Thank you Walter!" Vala called up. The airman came back on the speaker.

"Have a good time. Beaming out in 5…4…3…2…"

Light flashed and they found themselves on the bridge of Stargate Command's newest ship.

"Welcome to the Hammond." Sam greeted them, already dressed in civilian clothing.

"Sam!" Vala enthusiastically leaped forward to hug her friend. Sam laughingly returned her embrace.

Teal'c raised a brow. "Did you not just have dinner with Col Samantha Carter last evening?"

"Yes, but she is away so often that I don't get to give her enough welcome homes."

Mitchell blanched. "Dear lord, I know it shouldn't, but that actually made sense to me."

Vala flashed him a smile, hooked her elbow through Sam's, and whispered loudly, "Ask him about his plans to start his own nudist colony." Sam's eyebrows shot up. Landry frowned and intriguingly, Dr. Lam looked intrigued.

Cam started sputtering. "No, no, not me, that was Teal'c." Every face, including Teal'c's, adopted a skeptical expression. "No, I don't mean…there are no nudists." He scowled at Vala. "Stop that."

Landry chuckled, much to Cam's relief, and gestured at Sam. "You might want speed up the next beam out before we give your crew even more to talk about."

"Yes, Sir." Sam turned and nodded to her second in command. "You have the bridge. Beam us down."

Another flash of light and the group found themselves on the secluded private driveway in front of Jack's cabin in Minnesota. The road wasn't paved, just a mix of crushed rocks and dirt, or rather, a mix of crushed rocks and sticky yellow mud. Vala took a step forward and her three-inch snakeskin heel squished down through two inches of sludge.

Mitchell hefted one of her suitcases, groaning a little under the weight, and shook his head as he passed by. "If you had read the briefing, you might have known to wear your combat boots instead of the pointy girly things." He headed for the cabin.

Vala pulled her foot out of the clinging mud and looked around. "Wait, this can't be right." Ridges of gritty, dirt-encrusted snow lined the drive. The nearby woods looked like a horde of dry, brittle skeletons holding out their decaying arms and gnarled fingers. The grass before them was a sickly sea of grayish green. Behind the cabin, Vala could see dark shadows of ice still entombing the pond.

Teal'c responded to her as he effortlessly tucked two of her cases under one arm and lifted the remaining one with his other hand. "This is indeed General Jack O'Neill's cabin."

"But there is still snow on the ground!" Vala protested.

General Landry chuckled. "What did you expect mid March in northern Minnesota?"

"But it's spring!" Vala exclaimed as she balanced on one foot. "General O'Neill offered his cabin for a spring break. I wasn't expecting sandy beaches and coconut umbrella drinks, but spring means soft breezes, pale green buds on trees, thick verdant grasses and flowers beginning to bloom. Not pock marked snow banks, sticky mud and," Vala yelped as the dark sky opened up and a heavy soaking rain plummeted straight to the earth, "ice cold rain. This is worse than Cheyenne Mountain!" She abandoned efforts to keep her shoes out of the mud and dashed with the others underneath the protection of the front porch.

Sam placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. "Astronomically speaking, the 20th was the vernal equinox and based on the angle of the sun, should technically be the middle of spring, but in the Northern Hemisphere daytime temperatures lag behind by several weeks because the earth and sea have thermal latency and take time to warm up."

"Translation, winter has hardly released its grip on the land." She blew a stringy wet stand of hair out of her eyes.

"Cheer up," Landry clapped Vala on the back as he went inside, "the forecast calls for this same heavy rain over the next few days. By the time it lets up, the rest of the snow should be gone." Vala's jaw dropped in dismay. Soggy ground, muddy roads, icy lakes and unrelenting rain?

Sam smiled and squeezed Vala's shoulder. "Come on inside. I'm beaming in barbeque from that rib place Mitchell likes so well." Vala nodded morosely and slipped off her mud dipped shoes. Sam directed the boys to put Vala's bags in the big room in the back with the queen size bed.

Vala roused herself out of her impending funk to protest. "Sam you should have the larger space. You've been stuck with cramped ship quarters for months; this is your vacation too."

Sam winced. "Yeah, well about that." She paused and bit her lower lip.

Vala put her hands on her hips. "Samantha," she said her friend's name suspiciously, "what aren't your telling me?"

Sam cringed, took Vala's elbow and urged her down the hall and into the bathroom. "I'll explain while we save your shoes."

Vala waited until Sam shut the door and then let the drama flow. "You're abandoning me, aren't you!"

"Abandoning is a little strong."

"What else would you call it? Give me one good reason why I should let you get away with this."

Sam grabbed a washcloth and gently worked to remove the mud on Vala's black and white patterned high heel. "You remember what we talked about last night?"

A small frown line wrinkled Vala's forehead. "You mean about increasing the soundproofing for your quarters so you don't have to worry about the crew hearing you scream Jack's name when you…"

Sam made a choked sound and stopped Vala before she could finish, "I never said that!" She hissed and then frowned in concern, "Did I?"

Vala nodded. "I believe it was after the fourth bottle of Champagne, right before you passed out."

Sam shook her head. "Wait a second. I woke up feeling fine. How could I possibly have drunk so much that I would talk about…you know?"

"Don't you remember?" Vala hopped up on the countertop next to the sink. "I promised you when we opened the second bottle that I wouldn't let you leave with a hangover." Sam looked at her quizzically. "At the end of the evening, you obediently downed a couple glasses of water before dropping off and then I just borrowed the hand held healing device and gave you a once over. Good as new. A far better cure than that hairy dog Mitchell brags about."

"Hair of the dog." Sam corrected absently. "I really told you about, you know?" She asked with a crimson face.

"Yes, in vivid detail."

Sam whimpered.

"You went on and on about the ratio of thickness needed in the steel alloy doors and the merits of substituting a synthetic compound for the aluminum shielding and blah, blah, blah."

Sam dropped her head in relief. "I went on and on about how to sound proof the room, not about…"

"What rocks your world?" Vala snorted. "You very properly thanked me for that bunny contraption I gave you for your birthday and then spent fifteen minutes explaining the chemical compound of every applicable alloy. If that's not what you were referring to from last night's conversations, what did you mean?"

"I meant the conversation we had earlier in the evening about the chances of a call coming from D.C.,"

"Ooohhh, you mean you got the call?" Vala leaned forward in excitement, noting another blush gracing Sam's cheeks.

She nodded and set down the first shoe and went to work on its twin. "I'll beam back to the ship later this afternoon and then directly to D.C. I'd thought after last time it just wouldn't work out, but I think we've found a way."

Vala hopped down, gave Sam a quick hug, and then pulled back. "You are off the hook and officially forgiven. As the saying goes, all's fair in love."

"And war." Sam automatically finished the quote.

"Pfftt." Vala tossed her head and then tuned to examine her reflection in the mirror. "Like war is ever any kinds of fair."

Sam smiled and finished drying off Vala's shoe. "I am kind of sorry I won't be here the rest of the week." She smiled again, this time with a twinkle in her eye. "I have a feeling you are really going to enjoy yourself."

Vala's face fell for a moment and then she pasted a on a bright smile. "Right, you might have abandoned me and Daniel might miss our anniversary- since he can't stand the idea of being stuck here with me, but I still have the boys to torture."

Sam frowned. "I'm sure that's not what Daniel said."

"Oh he blathered on about the cabin being too crowded, but that was just an excuse. I thought that…never mind, it doesn't matter." Vala picked up the first shoe Sam cleaned. "My dearest Samantha, this looks good as new. How fortunate that I bought the faux snakeskin."

Sam continued to look worried and as she handed Vala the other shoe, she opened her mouth as if to speak, hesitated and then reached for Vala's hand. Vala looked up and Sam gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "I really think you are going to be fine." Before Vala could say anything in return, a knock came on the door.