Sam kept quiet during the ride up in the elevator, playing the part of the perfect escort. Kinsey was busy trying not to look like a pissed off petulant child. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the meeting hadn't gone quite like he'd planned, especially once the Nox had arrived. She was puzzled by Kinsey’s attempt to trick them into talking about the zatarc. He wasn't the most subtle man, but normally he didn't tip his hand so blatantly. And he was shrewd enough to know that SG-1 wouldn't discuss the incident without confirmed approval from Hammond or the President. Something clicked in her mind. The senator had used the zatarc as a decoy, to deflect their attention. The question was, deflect them from what?

Leading the way, Sam entered the main laboratory. The room was divided by the two occupant's projects. Both had equipment and tools strewn about, however while McKay's side had the look of organized chaos, Felger's was just plain chaos. McKay acknowledged their arrival with a resigned sigh, knowing his time would inevitably be wasted by having to stop and explain what he was doing to the senator. Felger on the other hand, had the exuberance of a puppy having new visitors in his yard.

He jumped up from his seat. "Senator Kinsey, back again so soon?" He held out his hand and in doing so his elbow knocked the tray of vials hanging partway over the edge of the workbench. The handshake turned into a panicked catch of the equipment.

Sam's reflexes caught an errant test tube before it smashed to the floor. A frown touched her face. "Back?"

"Yes, inspection time comes around quickly, doesn't it?" Kinsey smoothly interjected.

Felger blinked blankly for a second, then was distracted by a mutter from McKay.

"The man's a walking disaster area."

"It was just an accident." Sam backed up the smart but always klutzy scientist, mainly because she naturally felt the urge to bicker whenever McKay was near.

"Yeah, second one in an hour," he groused, not looking up from the device he was tweaking under the microscope.

Felger looked wounded, but perked up when Sam defended him. He leant close to the major. "How long is he," he gave an exaggerated eye wiggle at the arrogant scientist who'd been sharing 'his' lab for the last week, "going to be here?"

"Just until he gets the memory device modified." She gave him an encouraging arm pat and he almost shivered with delight. Sam deflected his adoring gaze away from her. "Jay, why don't you tell the Senator about your project?"

He gave an eager nod, his face lighting up, because for once in his not so illustrious career with the SGC, everything was going right. He held up a test tube with a red stopper stuck securely in place. "I've been working on synthetically synthesizing weasel toxin. Making it more potent than what the animals themselves naturally produce."

Kinsey forced himself not to flinch. "This is what taxpayer's money has been funding?"

The scientist's smile faltered under the senator's glare and he shot Sam a befuddled imploring look.

"Senator, it's being developed as a non-lethal weapon," Sam explained. "The rancid smell overpowers the olfactory senses to point that the ensuing reaction overrides any other action except to flee. It would be useful in instances of a hostile mob or revealing the position of people lying in ambush."

Kinsey well recalled with horrifying detail being on the receiving end of a dose of that vile stench. The mere memory made his stomach churn. "Which will be useless if it also incapacitates our people."

"That's what this is for!" Felger snatched up a second tube, this one with a blue stopper, and practically waved both tubes under Kinsey's nose. "It's a neutralizer! I...um...unexpectedly had the chance to test it just this morning..." He ignored the snort of mocking derision from McKay. "And it works! I'm hoping to present my report to General Hammond today. Fingers crossed he'll approve my request to oversee it's production at the Alpha site."

The senator backed away a couple of steps to avoid the man's flaying arms, keeping a wary eye on the red stopper that looked like it was working its way loose. "We'll just see about that." He couldn't think of a worse situation than having a stockpile of that sickening product on hand. In walking backwards he accidentally bumped McKay's elbow.

"Oh, perfect!" McKay bitched, dropping the soldering iron he'd been using and pressed his eye closer to the lens of the microscope. "It's bad enough that I have to put up with him pawing through my work..."

"I told you I haven't touched anything on that side of the room!" Felger protested.

McKay waved his hand at the man in disbelief. Rodney knew someone had been going through the equipment. Earlier in the day the room had to be evacuated because Doctor Fumble-Fingers dropped a pipette filled with that synthesized venom and then couldn't find where he had put the neutralizing agent he'd concocted. McKay would have put his clumsiness down to being enamored by the unexpected visit of Sam a few minutes beforehand, since he'd caught Fumbles daydreaming in the past after being anywhere near her. However, that excuse could only be attributed to half of the accidents that seemed to befall the man on a regular basis. McKay had taken the opportunity to get a snack and when he'd returned to his desk he'd noticed that his paraphernalia and research had been moved. Fumbles was the only one who had any reason to be in the room, ergo it had to have been him. "Now I'm being barreled into while performing a highly delicate procedure. I cannot work under these conditions."

Sam silently prayed for patience. Stick to the plan, just stick to the plan. "McKay, was it damaged?"

McKay took a few seconds to study the tiny wires he'd been fusing together. "Thanks to my lightning fast reflexes, no."

"Doctor McKay is modifying a memory device, using the information we gained from the altered timeline, to assist Annika with her visions."

It was just as well that no one was expecting an apology for knocking into McKay, because Kinsey had no intention of offering one. "I read the progress report. The Tok'ra were surprisingly forthcoming with letting us use their surplus stock."

McKay gave a huff though he didn't stop his resumed work with the soldering iron. "Yes. A dozen discs and none of them work. It's taken me this long to get them even halfway to their original functionality." Well, that was a slight exaggeration. Four of them had only needed minor tweaks and replacement parts, which he had cannibalized from the remaining discs. But admitting that the task had been easy wasn't McKay's style. "I still don't know why I couldn't have used the working discs we have at Area 51."

"Because they are still being studied," Kinsey replied. "How long before you complete the modifications?"

"We did a test run yesterday, but the picture was too blurred to make out what Annika's vision was. Don't know if it was even picking up the vision at all, it could have been just residual static."

"So you don't know," the senator pressed. If he could have found a way to stop this project he would have, and it was for purely selfish reasons. One touch and the damned woman had known the numbers of his offshore and not so legal bank accounts. It was bad enough that the psychic tended to hone in on things he'd rather keep secret, but having only one person witness the visions he could bluff his way through an explanation, claiming misinterpretation. If everyone could see whatever she saw, then it wouldn't be so easy to talk his way out.

McKay let out a sigh of irritation. "I know it will take less time if I'm not constantly being asked how long it'll take."

"You think this is a valid use of resources?" Kinsey's tone expressed that he did not.

Sam began ushering the senator from the room. "Don't you?"

"I see it as nothing more than a woman using government funds to pander to her whim to alleviate herself from the responsibility of deciphering hallucinations."

"If you saw the emotional impact some of Annika's visions have on her, then you would know that it's not 'pandering' at all." Sam couldn't keep the bite from her tone. They had known that some of Annika's premonitions had the tendency to be emotional, yet it wasn't until this last mission that they truly realized the degree. She had always played down the issue, accepting it as one of the drawbacks of her gift. If approval hadn't been given for McKay to work on the device, then she would have done it on her own time. Nobody should have to go through that kind of trauma. "And even if it were, it would be no different than taking an aspirin to alleviate a headache, or wearing glasses to improve eyesight." She paused, switching to less personal reasons. "Annika's visions have been instrumental in our work. The injury rate has dropped by almost half since she's been employed here due to the forewarning she's been able to give. The problem is that sometimes the visions come so fast and compacted that it's impossible for her to identify them all. With the memory device modifications we'll be able to record whatever she sees and go through it at a slower pace so we don't miss anything."

Any response the senator may have made was cut off when suddenly the transparent image of the psychic appeared not two inches in front of him. Both man and ghost reeled back.

"Damn! This isn't where I wanted to be at all." Annika's expression was a perfect display of annoyance and exasperation. "Senator, I don't suppose you have a cockroach in your pocket?" she asked hopefully.

Kinsey took a deep breath to calm the rapid thump of his heart from her unexpected and close appearance. "Do you really expect me to answer that idiotic question?"

"Why is it idiotic?" She tilted her head in bewilderment. "The mess crew have noticed a sudden increase in the little buggers scurrying around the food stores. I'm helping out, trying to hone in on the nest. It's a safe way for me to practice control of my astral projection."

"You don't seem to have much control," he replied sarcastically.

"Yeah, which is odd. Normally I get pretty close." She tapped her chin in thought.

"Perhaps it's a side effect from the adjustment to your abilities?" Sam suggested. "A slight convergence of your mind's way of processing your destination with your visions? From how you've described your gift, your mind quite often relays things by association or metaphorically."

"So I zoned in on a metaphorical roach?" She shot a sideways look at Kinsey. "Gee, wonder who that could be."

Kinsey held off on a retort, knowing the woman was only trying to bait him.

Annika shrugged, "Oh, well, I guess I'll just try again." In the blink of an eye she disappeared.

"Can we move along now?" The senator was about to take a step when Casper was irritatingly back.

"Sam, I almost forgot. MacKenzie's looking for you."

The major nodded, "I'll only be a few more minutes."

Annika gave a finger waggle goodbye and flickered from sight again.

Kinsey waited a good five seconds before taking a hesitant step forward. His eyes darting around the corridor for further signs of ghostly movement, not trusting that the woman wouldn't repeat her magical act just to grate on his nerves.

Sam slyly observed the senator's jumpiness. It was well known that he avoided being in Annika's presence as much as possible. Having Casper pop up willy nilly was already having the desired affect, playing on his normal sense of paranoia, and she'd only done it twice so far. Time to begin the next phase of their op. The hand that was casually resting in her side pocket pressed the radio control, giving the signal to Jack and Teal'c. With her other hand she gestured to the second lab further down the hall. "Doctor Lee is developing a ceramic polymer for the tac vests..." There was a returning click in her ear, just as a blur of dark brown emerged from the room they'd just left and streaked down along the wall into the next room. Sam didn't react to it, just continued speaking. "As I'm sure you're aware, Kevlar doesn't stop the energy blast from a staff weapon..."

Kinsey, already hyper vigilant, also saw the furry movement. Under normal circumstances, the sighting of what could have been a rat wouldn't have caused his heart to pound. However, given that the topic of conversation a few minutes ago had brought to the forefront of his mind the rather unpleasant memories of the last time he was at the SGC, his first thought was that it was a weasel. He swallowed the bile that rose in his throat. Carter hadn't twitched. Had she missed seeing it? How could she have missed it?

"...And the armor plating in other bulletproof protection gets super heated from the plasma and basically cooks the wearer..."

Sam paused at the lab entrance, and Kinsey was forced to stop right near the door where the...rat...it had to be a rat, had disappeared. From the corner of his eye he saw slight movement, then what looked like the same animal raced in a wavy arc into an air vent. Surely Carter must have seen it this time.

"...We're hoping that it will not only stop the blast but resist the heat." Sam quirked an eyebrow at his inattention to her briefing. "Am I boring you, Senator?"

"No, not at all," Kinsey hastily assured. "How close are we to a viable prototype?" Forcing himself not to look towards where the critter had gone, he stepped into the room.

A  A  A

Annika slipped into the storeroom. The first round had been a complete success. McKay's and particularly Felger's projects had made the man a little more paranoid than usual, and the short zips of fur had been brief enough to have Kinsey doubting he saw them at all, especially since no one else had apparently seen them. Her double appearance had made him edgy and they were planning to keep him that way for the entire time he was on base. Kinsey wasn't due on this level for a good twenty minutes. Plenty of time to set up the second wave of Houdini ghosts, providing that is, she could find her scrap of fur. If she hadn't lost it here, then she had no idea where else to look. Her eyes gave the room a quick once over, her eyes landing on a piece of equipment that in her haste to get to the briefing room she had forgotten about. Oops, better get that back to the armory. Shifting the P-90 aside, she began searching amongst the boxes around the quantum mirror, being careful not to trip the laser alarms. Leaning over to check behind a stack of crates she caught a glimpse of furriness snagged on the wood. How in the world did it get there? she grumped, having to stand on tip toe and bend herself practically into a U shape to reach it.

"Well, isn't that a delightful sight?" Daniel grinned broadly from the doorway.

"Stop ogling my ass, and give me a hand, will ya'?" Annika had to use her free hand to balance herself and now found herself stuck.

"I'm allowed to ogle." Daniel pushed off the door jam to assist. "Husband's prerogative." His hands couldn't help themselves as he cupped the soft mounds so nicely displayed before him.

"If you've finished playing," she chuckled, a flash of desire at his touch making her squirm. "I'm about to slip and set off the alarms."

"Spoil sport," he groused, sliding his hands upwards supporting her around the waist.

Annika managed to snag the errant scrap of fur and with Daniel's help wiggled off the crates. Safely away from the trip lasers she spun around in his arms and planted a kiss on his lips. "Thank you, don't know what I'd do without you."

"Send the base into lockdown?" he teased, taking an indulgent few moments to kiss her back. Reluctantly he drew back, eyeing the fur that she was holding triumphantly in her hand. "How'd it get down there?"

"No idea," she shrugged. "Maybe it's possessed by Houdini's spirit."

"You want me to set it up? I've got just the place."

"Sure." She handed over the fur with the spool of fishing line attached at one end.

With a mischievous gleam to his eyes Daniel was out the door. Remembering to grab the P-90 she started to follow him. Hand on the door handle, she gave a yelp of surprise at her name being called from behind her. Heart thumping she spun around, inadvertently slamming the door closed. Seeing a familiar blonde in the reflection of the mirror, she slumped against the door, grateful for its solid support and also that guns had safety switches. "Holy shit, Casey! A bit of warning would have been nice!"

"Sorry," Casey mumbled. "Look, I know we just met and all, but I really could use your help! Kasuf is really in a bad way and we have to find somewhere to send them and the sooner I can get Sha’re through that thing the better even though Daniel might not feel the same way and since you’ve already worked this mirror and know about more realities than I do I thought maybe you could give me a clue what to look for."

It took a moment for Annika to comprehend the continuous stream of words. And with the comprehension she registered this was the first Casey she'd accidentally stumbled across this morning. "Damn! All in one breath. I'm impressed."

"Yeah, I do that sometimes."

The grin the blonde gave was both genuine and anxious at the same time. Cocking her head sideways, Annika studied the woman's aura. Whoa. She had never seen that before. For lack of a better description, the rainbow of colors seemed to be weeping. "Things still going bad?"

The blonde averted her eyes from the intensity of her gaze. "You could say that."

"Something happened." Annika considered those two words the biggest understatement ever. In less than two hours Casey had gone from being upset to having her heart broken. She slung the strap of the P-90 over her shoulder. Instinct told her that once this conversation was over, the last thing on her mind would be to return the weapon unless she had the memory trigger of the gun itself to remind her.

Casey gave an unladylike snort. "Yeah, well, Wifey Number one waltzed into his office, called me a...." She took a deep breath. "Called me a slut and a whore. So he grabbed her and left with her. That’s when I came in here the first time, and we...uh..." She waved her hand toward the mirror.

Violet eyes narrowed slightly. "I see." It wasn't a figure of speech. She could literally see the events of the blonde's day replaying like a movie on fast forward above her head, just like the first time she'd seen SG-1. With every scene, Annika felt her anger start to simmer.

"Then...everywhere I go, that bitch is either already there, or she shows up. Daniel is spending his time with her...or must be...except when he came into the storeroom." One slender shoulder moved up and down, unaware of the fact that her pain was plainly visible. "He didn’t believe me about the device," she said, pointing to the stone hanging on the front of the mirror.

Annika fought down her anger, she really shouldn't get involved. This Casey and Daniel were different than the couple she was more familiar with, but the fundamentals were the same. Surely Daniel was aware of how fragile his wife was emotionally, especially in regards to needing reinforcement of his love for her. "He loves you," she said firmly.

Casey's eyes filled with tears. "No matter how many people tell me that, it doesn’t make it true. Unless I hear it directly from him..." she shrugged again.

"Daniel may be a genius but he can be a complete idiotic fool," she muttered under her breath. If her husband pulled that kind of stunt, she'd give him such a roasting...

"Look, I know you’re busy, but...Kasuf is dying," Casey said softly. "As much as I’d like to kick Sha’re’s ass, I’d rather see that man somewhere safe, somewhere that he won’t suffer like he is now. I just need to know how to use this," she said, holding up the controller, "and how to figure out if I’ve hit the right reality."

Annika forced herself out of her silent rant. "The only way to know that is to talk to someone there. You don’t want to actually step into another reality unless it's absolutely necessary, you might get trapped there." She saw Casey shudder and guessed what the blonde was thinking. "Yeah, been there, done that. You so don't want the t-shirt."

"I need to get on this now...he doesn’t have long...it’s really...it’s really bad."

"No way to just ship him to another reality, give him more time?" Annika asked.

Casey shook her head. "He goes to the ‘right’ reality now...or he’s going to die, either here, or as soon as he steps through the mirror."

Annika began to pace, trying to remember if any of the realities she'd channeled surfed earlier had given any clue as to whether the Abydonian trio were still alive there. There was only one that she could cross off the list. The one where Sha're, infested by Amaunet, had been leading Daniel around like a dog. As for the rest, short of checking out each and every universe there was no way of knowing, and from the sound of it Kasuf didn't have time for them to play eeny meeny miny moe. She stopped short as a possible solution practically hit her in the face. "Um, here," she waved her hand about, indicating her world, "Kasuf and Skaara Ascended, and Sha're died going on six years ago."

Hope lit up green eyes. "You'd be willing to take them?"

"Well, it's not up to me," Annika shrugged. "But I can ask General Hammond and he'd probably have to run it by the President..."

"I...er...meant you personally," Casey interrupted.

"Oh." Annika was a little taken aback. Why would I have a problem...? Her thought cut off as Casey's aura seemed to glow brighter and the light dawned. "Um, thank you for asking but...how can I put this tactfully? I don't have the same hang ups about Sha're. And even if I did, we're talking life and death here. We could always try and find another reality for them if things don't work out here."

"Oh, okay. In that case do you think the General would agree?"

"Only one way to find out." She was about to run off to gather the troops, when she had a sudden thought. If they switched off the mirror, when they turned it back on again it wasn't going to connect to the same universe. This morning it had taken a good twenty minutes to find this one. "Given the time factor, maybe we should consider leaving the mirror on, at least until I get a yea or nay from my end. You've got alarms set up on your side, right?"

Casey nodded.

"So do we. And I'm assuming that there's no enemy threat ready to waltz on through?"

"Not from here."

"Cool. I'll get this hayride moving." Annika strode over to the wall phone and dialed the general's extension. He picked up after the second ring and she gave a quick explanation of the request that had been made. Listening to the CO's response she could almost feel Casey's eyes boring into her back, hoping for an immediate positive answer. "Yes, sir. Well, Daniel's within earshot of me and Teal'c is on his way down with the senator." She hoped the general didn't question how she had such up-to-date information about Kinsey's movements. To her relief he simply ended the call. She turned back to the blonde. "He wants a bit more information. He's going to call a briefing ASAP."

"Okay. I'd better bring my general up to speed too. Even if you can't take them, using the mirror is the only solution we have..."

The blonde turned away. There was a slump to her shoulders and Annika knew that her thoughts had returned to Daniel's treatment of her. She had the sudden urge to make Casey smile. "Hey, Casey!"

She twisted her torso back to her. "Hmm?"

"Don’t suppose you’ll accept a trade, Sha’re for Kinsey?"

Casey seemed to seriously consider the suggestion. "We've got one of our own. Your Kinsey would suffer entropic cascade failure."

With a poker face that would make Teal'c proud, Annika replied, "And your point is what exactly?"

The psychic blinked at the deadpan response and then a giggle escaped. "I'll ask. I know Jack won't have any objections."

"Sweet! You give a girl hope!" Annika waggled her fingers in farewell. "Talk to you in bit. Hopefully it won't be more than an hour." She watched as the blonde gave a wave of her own and hurried away. Annika's smile faded as that sad aura once again encased her retreating figure. Her anger at Casey's Daniel began to once more bubble to the surface. Someone should give that man a swift kick in the pants. Didn't he realize what his actions were doing to Casey? If I could I'd give him a piece of my mind... She paused. Hmmm, why can't I? It would take a few minutes for the General to track down Jack and for Sam to wrap up her session with MacKenzie. That was oodles of time. With a determined grin she closed her eyes in concentration. A second later her astral self stepped through the mirror.

She stalked out of the room that was so similar to her universe and down the corridor before she realized what she was doing. Why in God's name am I walking? She drifted over to one of the main supporting walls. Without pause she moved inside the cement and zoomed at top speed downwards. Remaining hidden inside the walls would prevent her running into anybody. She really didn't want to start an inter-universe incident, just wanted to open Daniel's eyes to his behavior. Automatically she headed for level twenty-six, when halfway down it occurred to her that in this reality, Daniel's office probably hadn't been moved from level eighteen. With a self-berating eye roll she reversed back the way she'd come. Counting the levels by the seams in the concrete, she cautiously poked her head out into the archaeological level. Found the corridor empty. Heard movement from within one of the rooms.

Peeking inside, the sight of her husband's counterpart rummaging through a box only fueled her ire. Casey was probably at this moment crying her eyes out and Daniel was going about his day like nothing was wrong? Folding her arms across her chest, her foot tapping in anger even though she was floating six inches in the air, she cleared her throat to draw his attention.

He turned around. Obviously not expecting a pissed off transparent redhead, he almost went bug-eyed and stumbled back, tripping over the crate he'd been searching and landed in an ungainly heap on his butt. If she weren't so mad she would have found it funny. "Howdy. Good position." She looked down at him, eyes blazing. "Keeps you in place while I tell you what a jerk you've been."

For a moment he was too stunned to speak. Eventually after a couple of attempts he found his voice. "Who are you?"

"Call me the ghost of your wife's love," she quipped.

He closed his eyes, then slowly reopened them. "Ghost, huh? Must mean it’s dead."

"Oh, no, but just like Ebenezer Scrooge, you get a chance to redeem yourself." She drifted closer and got right in his face. She could tell that he had to fight the urge to shy away. "Do you realize what you have done to your wife from the moment you woke up this morning? You've acted like a friggin' tyrannical Goa'uld over what was supposed to be a mischievous gift. You have fawned and taken the side of your dead first wife. Totally dismissed her theory on the device she tried to share with you, which, by the way, happens to be spot on. You have rejected her in every possible way. Are you so enamored with seeing an alternate version of Sha're that you have forgotten how fragile Casey's heart is?"

Daniel had been trying to get a word in but she hadn't given him the chance. Now that she had paused for a breath he jumped in. "I've been trying to apologize all day."

Annika gave a snort of disbelief. "Yeah, well, ya' can't have been trying too hard because as we speak she is shattering into a million pieces."

He visibly flinched. The pain and guilt in his eyes at her sarcastic but true comment was equally visible in his aura. "Do you happen to know where Casey is now?"

"Not precisely but she'll be at the quantum mirror in a bit." She saw the determination on his face and she knew that he wouldn't tolerate any more delays in seeing his wife. My work is done! she thought with smug satisfaction. Back in her SGC, her physical self caught sight of the wall clock ticking over. How could that be the time? And she still had to let Teal'c and their 'guest' know about the emergency briefing. "Shit, I've gotta fly and scare the bejeebers out of Kinsey."

"A ghost's work is never done, huh?" He gave her a bemused smile.

"Nope," she grinned back. "But this haunting will be a lot more fun." She disappeared from the room and that universe, leaving a still stunned Daniel behind.

A  A  A

Daniel double checked that the silent pulley he'd rigged was all set to go. It was on a timer, ready to be activated the moment Kinsey entered the hall. The fur would zip down the hall and end up inside one of the heavy vases inside his office. The beauty of this round of 'Houdini's Ghost' would be that no one had to be at the end of the fake weasel's trip through the hall. In fact Daniel planned to be with Annika in plain sight at the other end of the corridor. It would go a long way to squash Kinsey's suspicion that they were playing tricks on him if they were nowhere near the furry scraps. The other fake Houdini was also rigged with a pulley but was only going to be a short run across the floor when the elevator opened, and would disappear into one of the air vents.

Wondering what was taking Annika so long, he tucked the remote controls in his pocket and poked his head back into the room with the quantum mirror. Annika was turned slightly to the side staring intently at a spot on the wall. He opened his mouth to speak, then recognized the vacant stare. She had gone astral. Which made no sense. According to their plan she wasn't due to freak Kinsey out until after the Houdinis, and nothing had come through the radios to alter the sequence of events. Also, he couldn't miss the unmistakable signs of her being madder than a hornet. Stepping into the room and closing the door behind him, he asked, "My Angel, what are you doing?"

"Telling you to get your head out of your ass and talk to your wife."

She’s mad at me? How did that happen? And when? Five minutes ago there had been no problem. "Oh, okay. Am I listening?"

"Jury's still out," she growled.

Totally baffled by the entire situation he probed for more information, "Annika, where is this conversation taking place?"

"Your office...I think."

"Right." And that totally did not make any more sense than anything else she'd said, but he thought he was getting the hang of this odd third person double talk. "Well, did you want to wait until I actually get there, so you don't have to repeat yourself?"

"Huh?" His comment brought her mind partly back into the room in which they stood. "Oh, it's not you you, it's another you..."

Her hand flapped towards the mirror and he only now realized that it was switched on and connected to an alternate reality. Ah, now I knew there was a logical explanation...

"...With Casey, but not our Casey, another Casey."

As his mind translated that, her arms wrapped around him in a hug.

"You'd never do what he did," she said with confidence.

Glad that he wasn't the object of his wife's wrath, he rested his chin on her shoulder. "And what was that?" Daniel was curious to know what his counterpart had done to deserve a visit from a ranting Casper, if only so that he could learn from the experience and not 'repeat' it himself.

Annika began a brief rundown of her encounters with this new Casey and the Abydonians' plight and moved on to that Daniel's behavior.

As he listened, Daniel saw the transparent projection of Annika appear in the mirror then blinked into their universe. However rather than merge with her physical body Casper immediately drifted upwards. "Where are you off to now?" he interrupted.

"Oh, didn't I mention it? We've got a briefing in five. I've gotta let Teal'c know." She wore a wicked grin, which Daniel knew the reason for. Round two of 'Houdini's Ghost' would have to wait until after the briefing, but she was bringing forward Casper's task, adapting Plan A. "Speaking of which, we'd better get a move on."

They started to head for the elevator, and Annika continued on with relaying what Casey had told her. As she counted on her fingers the list, Daniel was giving single nods of his head with each point, waiting for her to tell him what his counterpart had done wrong. He assumed she was leading up to it.

Stepping into the lift Annika gaped at her husband, identifying what those nods meant. "I don't believe it. You're agreeing with him!"

Daniel knew he was walking on dangerous ground by the narrowing of her eyes, but he wouldn't lie just to keep the peace, he had to be honest with her. "Well, yeah, his actions seem logical to me."

"You're telling me that you'd react that way if I got a tattoo?" She slapped at the button to take them to level twenty-eight.

"Okay, no, not in regards to the tattoo," he admitted, scoring inadvertent brownie points. "I mean I hope that you would at least consult me before doing it, but ultimately it's your body to do with as you will."

"Thank you very much, Doctor Jackson," she grumbled dryly.

The couple paused as the radios in their ears came to life. They listened to a slight change of plans that Jack was issuing for Teal'c. When he tagged on a request to Annika, she gave an involuntary shiver. "We're in luck, I can do it in a few seconds. But you'll owe me, Colonel. You know it always gives me the willies."

"Your dinner tonight will be on me," he promised.

Annika chuckled. It was Jack's turn to treat them all at O'Malley's anyway. "Just for that I'm getting the lobster."

"Deal."

Jack signed off, and husband and wife resumed their debate as though they hadn't been interrupted.

"But the rest of it...I don't see what the problem is." Daniel didn't quite believe they were arguing over this. He was defending himself for things he hadn't even done! Yet he felt an obligation to justify the other Daniel's actions, at least giving the man an ally even if it was in a totally different universe. "You're saying he took Sha're's side over Casey's? He said that?"

The lift doors opened and the couple continued their rather heated discussion as they walked, oblivious to the half amused, half worried looks from the personnel. The base's resident lovebirds rarely quarreled and the topic of their disagreement made no sense to any of them.

"His actions spoke louder than words." The gun, totally forgotten about, bumped at Annika's waist. "Crap, I've still gotta return this."

"I can do that for you," Sergeant Harriman hesitantly offered, who was one of the onlookers to the odd debate.

"Thanks, Walter, you're a gem!" Annika passed over the P-90, grateful to have one less thing to do, then turned her full attention back to Daniel.

"You mean escorting Sha're from the room?" Daniel picked up the conversation once again as they entered the briefing room. They were the first of their team to arrive and neither saw any reason not to continue their talk.

"Yes," she confirmed. "Among other things."

"He wasn't intentionally alienating Casey." Daniel automatically headed for the coffee pot and poured cups for both of them. "He was diffusing the situation as quickly as possible."

"It didn't work." Annika stirred in the sugar in both cups and they took their usual seats.

"I beg to differ. It stopped a potential catfight. If Daniel had taken Casey from the room, Sha're would have followed, that I know from personal experience. And the fight would have continued out into the hall."

"Well, he should have explained that to Casey after he got rid of her."

"He probably tried, but you know how things get at the SGC." He absently noticed Casper merge back with her physical body. How she was able to have a full on debate with him while having a completely different discussion elsewhere while she was split literally in two, never ceased to amaze him. "Interruptions and sidetracks are a constant part of the day."

Annika reluctantly conceded that point. She only had to use this day as an example. In between Operations 'Houdini's Ghost' and 'Daffy Evasion' and the communication from both Casey's, she was certainly being kept on her toes.

Daniel saw her grudging agreement and added another point. "I guess he assumed that she would know and understand what he was doing." He wondered if his counterpart was having a similar conversation with his wife.

"She's psychic, not a mind reader," Annika replied exasperated. She could feel his own exasperation at the argument as well as his amused disbelief that it was happening at all. "Why are we arguing?" she asked with a chuckle.

"Whiling away the time until the others get here?" he suggested grinning. He draped an arm across her shoulders and they leant into each other. "So given that we have already had this debate, and 'my' actions in regards to Sha're are explained, if she does end up here, then we won't have to go through this again?" Oh, he hoped it would be so. He didn't think he could do this twice.

"If you act like he did, then you'll be dealing with me and not Casper," she warned playfully.

"I consider myself forewarned."

A  A  A

Jack had three explanations he could spout off to Hammond should they happen to get busted over Operation 'Houdini's Ghost'. Two of them were actually legit. Hammond himself had provided the first, though he was unaware of that fact. He had charged them with the mission of finding out Kinsey's ulterior motives. If the senator were kept off balance he'd be more likely to let something slip. The second was for morale and a training exercise for his team. Casper was doing a good job of denying it, but her confidence had to be rattled over the reduction of her hocus pocus, especially of the Nox hidey trick. She, and he had to admit himself and the rest of SG-1, had become a little too reliant on that little trick. 'Houdini's Ghost', even if it was only using tiny scraps of fur, was educating Casper that there were more conventional methods of hiding, and unlearning the others from the habit of relying on instant invisibility. Last but not least, and this one was probably going to be the reason Hammond would believe despite the validity of the other two, screwing with Kinsey's head was just too good an opportunity to miss. In his team's defense, Hammond couldn't really expect SG-1 to sit idle while they waited for the Quack to sign a bit of paper to say they were sane. Well, he couldn't expect Daniel, Sam, Teal'c and Annika to remain idle, the team leader had made dodging work an art form. They were SG-1! Twiddling their thumbs was not something they were good at.

Not moving from his spot of supporting the corridor wall, the colonel glanced at his watch. Carter had been in with MacKenzie for three minutes and twenty seconds. In another one minute and forty seconds, Jack would initiate her extraction. He'd be claiming Sam's expertise would be needed to fix a computer malfunction. Never one to openly lie if he could avoid it, Jack had even orchestrated a real glitch. The psychiatrist didn't need to know that it was a printer cable knocked loose in Jack's much fabled office.

He heard someone behind him and turned to see Ferretti approach.

"All's good?" The major nodded towards the temporary psych office.

"Yep. Just about to rescue Carter."

"If you need backup extraction, I've got your back."

Jack nodded, returning his friend's smirk. He remembered something he'd been meaning to talk to Ferretti about. "Hey, Lou," he called him back. "A little birdie has been twittering about Dodger setting his sights on Cassie."

"Yeah," Ferretti drew out the word. "Same birdie's been in my ear. You have a problem with it?"

"Nope. If I did I'd be talking to Dodger," the colonel assured. "But you might want to remind that young buck that Cassie has a truckload of godparents around here and a mother not afraid to use their arms training."

"Already on it, Jack."

Both men looked up at the sound of the wall phone ringing at the end of the corridor.

Jack strode over and picked up the receiver. "O'Neill."

"Colonel, I'd like to think that you're waiting there to see Doctor MacKenzie after Major Carter."

Jack's eyes flicked to the security camera that had revealed his position and resisted the urge to wave at the general. "I'd hate to disillusion that thought, sir."

"Uh huh. Well, give Doctor MacKenzie my apologies, but I need you and Major Carter in the briefing room ASAP." Hammond gave a brief rundown of what Annika had reported.

"Doggone it, sir. I guess I'll just have to reschedule."

"Try not to sound too smug about it, Colonel." He did his best to sound stern. "It's only a temporary reprieve."

"Yes, sir." Jack hung up the phone. For Ferretti's benefit he mimicked a man whose prayers had been answered.

"Good news?"

"Lou, you can stand down for now. SG-1's been officially summoned."

"Gotta love when the Big Guy upstairs gives a helping hand to the plan." Ferretti gave a playful salute to the heavens then left to have a chat with his youngest team member about his intentions towards the SGC's adopted daughter. Whistling from his lips was a little ditty that had popped into his head from the moment he'd heard that the senator was paying them a visit.

Jack loped towards the Officer's Lounge. Sam's five minutes weren't quite up just yet, but an order was an order!

A  A  A

"Have you had a chance yet to pass on your mother's message?"

Sam nodded at the psychiatrist. "Dad stopped by yesterday."

"And what was his reaction?"

Her finger absently doodled on the cushioned armrest. "He didn't say much at all. Selmak had to take over for a while. But..."

"But what?" MacKenzie prompted when Sam's silence lasted longer than a few seconds.

"I didn't realize how much guilt he was still carrying about the accident. When I told him that Mom's last words for him were that she understood about his work, it was like a huge weight had being lifted." She heaved a sigh. "I wish there was some way I could tell Mark. He's made a kind of truce with Dad but it's fragile at best. He still blames Dad and it's always lurking beneath the surface."

"You don't think his forgiveness would mean more without your 'mother's blessing' so to speak?"

"I guess it would, but it's been twenty years. If it hasn't happened by now..." Sam let the sentence hang with a shoulder shrug.

MacKenzie moved on. "In your mission report, you mentioned Annika's absorption into your counterpart's memories when the water acted as a conduit enhancing her visions."

She nodded.

"How do you feel about that?"

"About Annika's reaction? I feel horrible that she went through that. To have no control and having to simply ride it out…" She gave an involuntary shiver at the memory. "We were seriously considering having to break her fingers to sever her psychic connection to the shirt. I honestly don't know how she goes through that on a regular basis."

"I actually meant how you felt about seeing the re-enactment of what the vision was of," he gently corrected.

"Oh." Sam lapsed into silence, her brow furrowed and a kaleidoscope of emotions crossed her face.

"It must have been difficult," he encouraged.

"Yeah, it was. Seeing that..." She broke off trying to find the right words. She hadn't been expecting this angle of discussion; had figured that the psychiatrist would focus on the latter part of the mission where they'd had to endure their families dying again. "When Jack was taken prisoner by Ba'al..." As soon as the words left her mouth she realized how misleading they were. "Not in the altered timeline, I mean when he was host to Kanan. When he came home, he didn't really talk about it, yet I saw how close he'd been to breaking. Jack is more stubborn than me and stronger, and I was worried for him...and for me." She added the last like she was admitting a great sin.

"In what way?"

"I wondered, feared, if it had of been me instead of Jack, and I was subjected to that kind of torture, if I would have cracked and told Ba'al whatever he wanted to hear."

"And that's relevant to today how?"

"That timeline was like one of those social experiments that morally you would never do. It gave me insight to myself. My counterpart was abused and raped and beaten continuously...it wasn't to the same intensity of what Jack went through," she hastily added, not wanting to insinuate that she now thought she was 'stronger' than her fiancé, "but it was still...brutal...and yet she never caved in, not completely. She held on to hope." Sam gave a shrug. "It gave me faith that I would do the same because it was 'me'."

A sharp rap on the door forestalled the next question from the psychiatrist. Without waiting for the room's occupants to respond, the door opened and Jack poked his head around. "Carter, we've been called to the briefing room."

"Really?" Sam was surprised by her extraction excuse. It wasn't what they had come up with when they had concocted 'Daffy Evasion'.

"Yep. Casper's been making long distance calls and someone tapped in for a chat." Jack tried to hide his smugness at having an honest to God real reason to rescue his fiancée from the clutches of MacKenzie. The colonel gave a totally unrepentant grin at the psychiatrist. "Sorry, Doc, duty waits for no shrink."

"I quite understand, Colonel." MacKenzie didn't bat an eye. "I'll be expecting to see you down here after the briefing."

"Not making any promises," Jack gestured for Sam to hurry up. "You know how things get around here."

"I'm sure you can make the time," he replied, as the major sprang up from the couch, and accepted her lover's proffered hand like a lifeline.

"Tsk tsk, don't you know the hazards of time futzing?" Jack quipped.

"If I wasn't in a rush I'd explain it to you," Sam gave a cheeky grin at the doctor before disappearing into the hallway.

MacKenzie watched the couple through the ajar door, continuing his analysis even though his patients had left. How they acted when they weren't aware of being observed was as important as the questions he asked when in session. The pair were walking quickly but not with a sense of urgency. Their hands were no longer entwined although they were almost shoulder to shoulder. Upon their exit they had launched into quiet conversation that MacKenzie couldn't make out. He studied their posture and slightly turned faces, looking for any hidden signs of stress. He didn't find any. In fact, he had never seen them more relaxed with each other. He supposed that was mainly due to no longer having that forbidden sexual tension that had plagued them since they'd met. When the couple had moved from sight, he made a few notes and decided that since SG-1 were all currently legitimately busy, he'd head to the mess hall for some lunch. Striding towards the elevator, he found himself whistling the tune that everyone seemed to humming today and as a consequence had stuck in his head.

A  A  A

Finally having a chance to talk to Jack openly for the first time since escorting Kinsey, she voiced the suspicion that had been forming in her mind. "I think Kinsey made a detour to the lab before coming down to see Hammond when he arrived."

"Really?" The colonel's eyes narrowed in thought. "That would explain why he was late, screwing up Daniel's extraction. Any idea what he was after?"

She shook her head. "McKay mentioned someone had moved his work, but not that anything was missing. Jay...well, you've seen his workbench, anything could have been taken without notice until it was needed."

Jack considered their options, working out the chess moves in his head of his team for after the briefing. Any one of SG-1 could 'interrogate' Felger, the bumbling man had put them on a freakishly high pedestal and would fall over backwards to help them. Daniel was 'free' until the next round of Houdini's ghosts and he was quite good at coaxing information. The problem was McKay. It took forever to get beyond the man's whining to get a straight answer. Unless he was intimidated. He activated his radio. "T, when Carter takes over from you with Kinsey, duck up to the science labs to McKay and Felger." He quickly outlined what Sam had reported. He received a double click of static in acknowledgement. "Casper, your next drop in on Kinsey, any chance you can knock into him or something, try to get a reading if he's snatched anything?"

Her voice came through at a normal pitch. "We're in luck, I can do it in a few seconds. But you'll owe me, Colonel. You know it always gives me the willies."

"Your dinner tonight will be on me," he promised sincerely, hitting the button for the lift.

Sam nudged him in the ribs. "Aren't you buying tonight anyway?"

He gave a cheeky smirk and nodded.

"Just for that I'm getting the lobster."

Jack winced as he heard that dual response in stereo. One from Casper, the other from the woman by his side. "Deal."

A  A  A

Upon returning to her own universe, Casper concentrated on the senator. She re-materialized in one of the storage areas being used as a holding room for goods to be shipped to Area 51.

Teal'c had taken over the role of tour guide, while Sam was with the psychiatrist. He was currently demonstrating an off-world version of handcuffs to Kinsey. Expecting Casper's visit, even though it was ahead of schedule, he didn't acknowledge her ghostly appearance behind the senator's back, just continued on with his explanation. "When activated," he switched them on, "the shackles will render an escaping prisoner unconscious once they leave the proximity of the homing beacon."

Kinsey's eyes became calculated as he considered the possible applications for the technology. "This should have been shipped as soon as possible to be reversed engineered."

Teal'c held out the golden rings offering the senator a closer inspection, sparing a glance over the man's bowed head to Annika. At the same time O'Neill's request that he pay a visit to the science level came thorough. Surreptitiously he acknowledged the new assignment. From the barely perceptible pause from his transparent teammate knew the information and her new task had also been relayed to her through her physical self.

She read Teal'c's silent message and waited until Kinsey warily reached out to the device. He'd already been zapped once today and didn't relish being knocked unconscious as well. Just as his fingers closed over the metal, Annika made her move.

"Woohoo!"

Already half-expecting some sort of reaction from the shackles, Kinsey jumped at hearing the whoop of excitement yelled directly in his ear. The shackles went flying through the air to be caught by Teal'c's quick reflexes.

"Jesus Christ!" The blasphemy was automatic, as heart in his throat Kinsey spun around to face the psychic. "Mrs Jackson, you should have made your presence known!"

"I thought I just did," she replied innocently.

"I suppose you were looking for another cockroach?" he growled, straightening his suit.

"Nope. I was looking for Teal'c," she said triumphantly. "Didn't know you were with him."

"Control of your astral embodiment is improving." Teal'c gave a nod of congratulations.

"Yep. Isn't it great?" Annika grinned.

"Can you not practice elsewhere?" Kinsey snapped.

"I could, but this is official business." She drifted closer to the Jaffa, almost brushing against the senator. Had to stifle a smirk as Kinsey took a hasty step in the opposite direction. "We're needed in the briefing room in five. Something's come up."

"I will report presently," the Jaffa assured.

"I'll see you there." She began backing quickly out of the room, 'accidentally' flying right through Kinsey who was also heading for the door. "Jeez, Senator, would you stand still? I hate it when that happens." She gave a shudder of distaste that really wasn't an act and disappeared.

Kinsey did his best to hide his near panic at having Annika even in astral form touch him. He had no idea if her witch powers worked in her non-corporeal state, but he had too many secrets that could not be revealed. "That could be deemed as assault."

"On which planet?" Teal'c raised an eyebrow. "Annika Jackson did not physically touch you and you moved into her direct path. You should be the one to apologize."

The senator glared at the Jaffa, not acknowledging the truth of Teal'c's statement. "Come on, let's go."

"Your presence was not requested," Teal'c pointed out.

"As overseer of the money being poured into this facility I have every right to be there."

"I find it curious that you would ingratiate yourself into a situation where your input is irrelevant and uninvited."

Kinsey didn't respond, simply stalked away. Teal'c, hiding his amusement, followed.

A  A  A

"Annika, why don't you bring the rest of your team up to date?" Hammond had been the last to arrive despite being the first called. He'd thrown a resigned look at the sight Kinsey planted at the other end of the table but didn't comment.

The redhead nodded. "We've been contacted by a parallel universe via the quantum mirror. Well, actually I accidentally stumbled across them this morning when I was looking for the reality of the couple Daniel and I met last month, and they have re-found us."

"You didn't get enough of that thing lately?" Jack raised an eyebrow.

"Annika came to me with a proposal to gather intel, which I approved," Hammond interjected.

"Casey and Daniel have over a decade more experience fighting the Goa'uld..." She paused. "Technically they've had almost a century, though they don't remember it. Anyhoo, I thought we could swap stories on the Goa'uld, so if any of the snakes they've fought show up here, we'd have a heads up at least on background knowledge."

"They were the Immortals, right?" Sam asked, just to clarify that she had the correct parallel universe in mind.

Annika nodded.

"Why wasn't I informed about this?" Kinsey demanded.

"Their immortality was documented in the mission reports." Teal'c deliberately misinterpreted the question, just to irritate the senator.

"I was talking about the use of the mirror," Kinsey snapped. "Those mirrors should be destroyed, they are a threat to the security of this base."

"That decision wasn't yours to make, Senator," Hammond replied coolly.

"It was irresponsible of you to allow a single person to use such a dangerous piece of technology."

"I was careful," Annika protested.

"How I assign my personnel is my concern. I have the utmost confidence in Annika's defensive capabilities," Hammond said firmly. "And regardless, that is not the issue we are here to discuss." He turned his attention back to Annika. "Please continue."

"Well, it turns out this other universe with a different Casey from the one Daniel and I know, have had some unexpected visitors turn up through their mirror. Sha're, Kasuf and Skaara." Annika paused letting those names sink in. "There have been a few hiccups."

"Family reunion not going so well, huh?"

"Not for Daniel's new wife it isn't," Annika quipped. "But the main problem is that in that universe, Kasuf and Skaara aren't dead."

"They're suffering from entropic cascade failure," Sam concluded.

"Yep. Apparently Kasuf is in a pretty bad way. He's dying. Casey didn't mention it, but I sensed that Skaara won't be too far behind him."

"They want to come here to us?"

She nodded. "I said I'd ask, that it might be a possibility, even if it's just temporary until we could find another for them."

"That would be..." Jack looked from Daniel to Annika and back again, caught his best friend's grimace.

"Odd," both men said in unison.

"Would not Kasuf and Skaara not suffer the same fate here?" Teal'c asked. "Though the Abydonians have Ascended they still technically exist."

Daniel shook his head. "But they are a form of energy, not in a corporeal body. The Ascended planes of existence, while they literally overlap and they can choose to interact with ours, are in a different continuum."

Sam was nodding in agreement.

"The SGC is not a refugee camp," Kinsey burst in. He didn't like the way this conversation was going. It was clear the tide was leaning towards accepting these aliens. He couldn't believe that they were so willing to do so on such little information. "We cannot be expected to take in every lost soul whose misfortune it is to have screwed up their own reality."

"Bet you'd sing a different tune if they had a nice little technological doodad," Jack muttered.

"Yes, I would, Colonel, because they would be contributing to the safety of Earth."

"Just because they don't have technology doesn't mean they won't be able to contribute in other ways," Daniel spoke quietly.

"Oh, I'd expect as much from you, Doctor Jackson. You with your bleeding heart attitude," Kinsey scoffed. "Not to mention your personal relationship with the people in question."

"I do not have a personal relationship with them."

"Oh, I beg to differ. This woman is your wife..."

"No, Senator." Daniel nipped that train of thought in the bud. "Sha're died, as did my father and brother-in-laws. The only wife I have is sitting next to me. My only family is sitting around this table...well, except for Nick who is currently conversing with Quetzalcoatl. What I feel for the people requesting refuge is no different from any other off-worlder who we have the ability to help."

"Does the SGC not reside in a country that has been built on immigration?" Teal'c countered.

"Immigrants of Earth." Kinsey emphasized what he thought should be obvious. "The immigrants of our world are drain enough on this country's resources without adding aliens..."

"The Abydonian's are human, they originated on Earth," Sam butted in.

"But this lot aren't from our Earth."

"How very humanitarian of you." Annika dripped sarcasm. "Do your constituents know of your compassionate attitude?"

"We're not talking about simple refugees." Daniel let his frustration at the senator's small-mindedness and lack of empathy show. "These people will die if they remain in the reality where they are now."

"Let them find another reality where their counterparts don't exist." Kinsey waved a hand in dismissal.

"They tried that." Annika was just as passionate as her husband, and she used what information her sixth sense had gleaned from the parallel universe. "Many of the universes they went to there was no way for them to track down if any of the Abydonians survived, let alone their individual counterparts. They had to wait and see if the entropic cascade failure would start. Every time they did that it weakened them. They can't go universe hopping anymore. Their Janet believes Kasuf will only survive one more trip and it has to be soon, as in hours, not days. Ours is the only one they know for sure that will be safe."

Kinsey opened his mouth for another rebuttal, but Hammond who had been silently watching and listening as his primary team debated the issue, held up his hand, cutting him off. "I've heard enough. I'll contact the President. Present him with both sides of the issue. His decision will set a precedent should a similar matter arise in the future."

"He was willing to accept the alternate me and Kawalski," Sam pointed out.

"For the Abydonian's sake, let's hope his attitude hasn't changed since then." The general rose, and Jack and Sam automatically stood with him. "Since time is of the essence, I'll make that phone call now. Colonel, I believe you have an appointment to keep."

Jack barely contained his grimace. "Yes, sir."

Without a backwards glance, the General strode from the room.

A  A  A

"Doc, you know where Dodger's at?" Ferretti fell into step with diminutive woman.

"On my way to see him now to check how his physio's progressing." Janet smiled warmly at the major.

"How's he doing?"

"Very well. If I'm lucky I can signoff on his fitness papers in a week."

"Not exactly a model patient, huh?"

"No one on this base is a model patient," she responded dryly. "If I had a fragile ego I'd think I'd need to change my deodorant."

"Ya' smell fine to me!" Ferretti playfully sniffed the air above her hair. "Hey, do you want me to pick up some Thai on my way over tonight? I know a place that does a Massaman curry that'll make your eyes water."

"Running mascara, just what a girl wants," she grinned, then turned serious. "Major, you really don't have to keep doing this. Cassie and I appreciate your concern, but we don't need a protective detail. You guys can't want to spent your downtime babysitting."

"Who's babysitting?" The major's expression became one of utter innocence. "We come round to raid your pantry and 'cause you've got the biggest TV."

"Major-"

He raised his hand cutting her off, all joking aside. "Cassie's still having nightmares?"

"Yes, but they're getting better-"

"And what about you, Doc?"

She opened her mouth to deny it, but his gaze pinned her to the truth. Reluctantly she nodded. Silently she groused that the major had somehow mastered 'the look' she had been perfecting since working at the SGC. The one that had even the most stubborn patient giving in.

"I'll make a deal with you. You and Cassie go a week without a bad dream and we'll get out of your hair. Until then one of us will be camped out on your couch."

Janet gave another nod, accepting defeat. A little voice in her head whispered that she was grateful to have the security of their presence. The thought reminded her of something else that involved her houseguests. "Have you noticed the...atmosphere...between Cassie and Dodger the last few nights?"

"Ah, great minds!" Ferretti grinned. "That's why I'm after my man now, to have a little chat."

"Mind if I join you?"

"Nope. Truth is, I've never had to give 'the talk' to anyone before." He gave a half smirk. "Normally I'm the one on the receiving end."

"Now why doesn't that surprise me?" Her tone was droll. Many times over the years during his med checks she'd seen scratches across his back that had nothing to do with the hazards of his job. There had also been quite a few hickeys decorating his body in a few interesting places, although she had to admit there hadn't been any evidence of a tumble between the sheets for at least six months.

"I'm not a monk, Doc." Ferretti scanned the gym for his teammate. Saw him finishing up with the physio nurse.

"I was never under the illusion you were, Major." Janet started to cross the room, nodding in greeting to the men and women who had just completed a workout and were heading for the showers.

Dodger wiped his towel over his face to clear the rivulets of sweat dripping in his eyes. Peeking over the cloth he half watched as Janet and Ferretti made a beeline for him. Uh oh. A string of possibilities ran through his head. He could only come up with one that had any validity. The pair paused as his physiotherapist gave a brief rundown on his progress, then strode towards him. The captain looked from one serious face to the other and swallowed. "Ah, shit, something's really wrong with me, isn't there?"

Both Doctor and Major were startled.

"Huh? Ferretti raised an eyebrow.

"I thought my physio's going really good...movement is coming back more and more everyday." He rotated his shoulder to prove it.

"Your injury is healing nicely, Captain," Janet hastily assured.

The young man's face turned ashen as she perched on the bench beside him and turned eyes that were a little uneasy on him. "So I've got some sort of bug? Earth or alien? I feel fine! Has it got an incubation period or sumthin'?" He paused for breath. "How'd I get something? I haven't been anywhere!"

"Dodger, what are you rambling about?" Ferretti plonked down on his teammate's other side, trying to put him at ease.

"You're in perfect health." Janet kept her voice calm, thinking that this wasn't the best start. She gave his thigh what was supposed to be a reassuring pat. It didn't have quite that effect.

Looking a little freaked out by the gesture, his head tennis matched between the officers. "Are Brooklyn and Nyan okay? Or is it my parents or kid sister? My dad's got a heart condition-"

"Whoa, calm down kid," the major wondered how this had snowballed into making Dodger into a bag of jitters. "Everyone's fine as far as we know."

"What's wrong?" he demanded, warily eyeing Ferretti's hand as it reached out to give him a friendly shoulder pat.

"Why would you think something is wrong?" Janet asked attempting to reassert some calm into the situation.

"What else am I to think? My Doc and CO clear the room, flank me, patting me like I'm gonna need consoling, and ya' looking like someone's died!"

"Nobody's dead," Ferretti said firmly. "We're here about Cassie."

"What's happened? Is she okay?"

Janet stopped her eyes from rolling but Ferretti did it for her. "She's fine."

"Oh." Dodger instantly relaxed. "Then what's this about?"

"You've been spending a lot of time at the Doc's house," Ferretti began.

"Yes, sir, almost as much as you," he replied with innocent bewilderment, "for the same reasons."

The comment caused Janet and Ferretti to glance sharply over the captain's head at each other. Despite their conversation of a few minutes ago, the pair only now truly realized the major had also been as much a regular visitor to the Fraiser household as Dodger.

Ferretti frowned. What same reasons? I don't have the hots for Cassie...

Dodger pretended not to notice the exchange. "The unofficial snake watch," he clarified.

"Oh, yeah, right." The major gave a shake to clear his head. "But we've...um...noticed you've spent more time with Cassie."

"She's a doll," he shrugged. "I like hanging out with her."

"Well, we've also seen the looks you've been sharing," Janet said. This should not be so hard!

Dodger blinked. "So your funeral masks are because you think something's going on between Cass and me?"

Doctor and Major exchanged another glance. Had they really been so solemn? As one they plastered smiles on their faces.

"No, of course not-"

Dodger stiffened in indignation cutting off his team leader. "What, I'm good enough to watch your six, Major, and defend the planet, but I'm not good enough to possibly date a beautiful intelligent girl?"

"No, Dodger," Janet jumped in. "That's not what we-"

"What kind of guy do you think I am?" The captain scrambled from the bench. "She's with Dominic. I don't muscle in on another guy's girl, even if I do think she's the sweetest thing since sugar."

"Dodger..."

"I respect Cass too much, respect you too much, Doc, to involve your daughter in a love triangle." He looked from one to the other with a wounded expression. Gave his head a shake of disbelief, then spun on his heel.

"But, Captain, we just wanted to say it's okay..." Janet's voice trailed off as he stomped out muttering to himself.

The doctor and major watched, mouths agape at how a simple 'parental' chat had escalated into such a storm, totally offending the young man.

"Well, Ma," Ferretti draped an arm Janet's tiny shoulders. "That was a total fuckin' disaster."

"Yeah, Pa, we're not very good at 'the talk' are we?" She heaved a sigh. "I don't remember it being like that when I talked to Cassie when she started dating."

"Must be a girl thing," Ferretti speculated. There was a nagging at the back of his mind. Where in hell had that come from? Since when is Dodger so friggin' sensitive and defensive? His eyes caught movement at the doorway. Saw his youngest team member stick his head around with the cheekiest smirk on his lips. The captain met the major's gaze and gave him a wink. "The little shit," Ferretti muttered under his breath, squeezing the Doc a little to get her attention.

"What?"

"He was playing us!"

Janet's head shot up just in time to see the grin on the handsome captain's face and cheeky finger waggle at his superiors before he disappeared. "Just wait until that boy's back in my infirmary."

"Big honkin' needle with his name on it?" Ferretti chuckled.

"You bet."