Fic: Four's Company (Valentines #6)
Title: Four's Company
Author: Pepper
Rating: G
Season: One
Related SG-1 Episode(s): None
Featured Character(s): Sam, Jack, Daniel, and Teal’c
Pairing(s): Sam/Jack
Summary: A date or not a date, that is the question.
A/N: The Series That Wouldn't Die. I can't seem to stop writing this, now.
Series: Intruder Alert / Sweet, Cute, Tacky / Days Of Wine And Roses / Unprofessional / Etiquette / Four's Company / The Wrong Man / The Kirk Syndrome / White. Silk. Underwear. / Slow Evolution / Settling In / Necking
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It occurred to Jack on the drive over that this was the first time they'd all met up outside of work. Oh, they spent a lot of time together at work, of course - increasingly including coffee and lunch times - and he'd lived with Daniel for six long, long weeks, but they'd never all deliberately gotten together until now. Teal'c had only recently been given permission to leave the base, and they'd never gotten around to celebrating it, what with mission rotas and such. Daniel had gone with Teal'c for an initial trip out and about, but that had been about it for the big guy.
O'Malley's was decorated for Valentine's, but not too over-the-top - the ribbons and balloons were kept to a tasteful minimum, Jack was pleased to see. If the steaks were as good as promised, he might have to make this a regular haunt. He glanced at Sam. This was the closest thing to a romantic evening he'd had in years. Damn, he really had to get out more. He sat back and observed his team. They should do this more often, he decided. They weren't a bad bunch - more enjoyable to spend time around than he'd have thought. Yes, he concluded, watching Sam tip her head back and laugh at something Daniel had said, they should definitely do this again.
He suddenly realized the turn of his thoughts, and braced himself for the feelings of guilt. Surprisingly, they weren't as bad as usual. Yes, he was having a good time, and, yes, Charlie was dead - remembering it was still like a knife to the gut, and that would never change. He hadn't forgiven himself and never would, but forgetting was somehow more allowable with his team around him. And he didn't plan to dwell this evening. He leaned forward and picked up his glass.
"Boys and girl," Jack interrupted whatever Daniel had been saying without compunction. "There's a very good reason behind this little outing tonight." Daniel, as subtle as ever, looked at Sam. Jack continued quickly, "I'd like to congratulate T on obtaining his freedom from the Mountain. Would you raise your glasses?" Sam and Daniel grabbed their drinks, as Teal'c looked surprised. "To Teal'c's freedom," he said.
"Teal'c's freedom," chorused Daniel and Sam. Teal'c now looked moved - it was very similar to his 'surprised' expression, but they were learning to read the subtle differences.
"Thank you," he said, putting his closed fist to his chest and bowing his head.
When they got to dessert, Teal'c looked around at the red and pink decorations, and then turned to Daniel. "Explain this Valentine's Day to me," he requested.
Jack rolled his eyes, and Daniel smiled. "It's a tradition which began in the Middle Ages - that's around the twelfth to fifteenth centuries," he explained. "Now perpetuated by card manufacturers, lingerie shops, and florists, of course. It's more properly known as Saint Valentine's Day, named for an early Christian martyr."
"Thanks, Teal'c," groaned Jack. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sam grinning at his exaggerated grimace. That distracted him long enough for Daniel to continue his explanation.
"There are various explanations as to why Saint Valentine is associated with love and romance, but the main two are that he either arranged secret weddings for Roman soldiers, or that he was in love with his jailer's daughter, and, before he was martyred, he gave her a note signed 'from your Valentine'. Those stories sprang up hundreds of years after his martyrdom, though, and are probably just made up. No one really knows why that day was chosen, but it's been around so long, now, that the reasons behind it don't really matter any more - it's deeply embedded in our culture, like a - a force of habit."
"Sergeant Siler told me that the gifting of chocolates, flowers and cardboard is part of the mating ritual," said Teal'c, interested.
"That's cards, T," said the colonel. "And it's not a - a mating ritual, necessarily. It can be just a - a-"
"-Nice gesture," Jack and Sam spoke simultaneously. They looked at one another, and their eyes locked.
"Whatever you say, guys," said Daniel, looking from one to the other, amused.
Teal'c scrutinized the Air Force half of SG-1. Then he turned to Daniel. "Tell me more about Tau'ri mating customs," he requested. "Are they usually as ambiguous as this exchange of Valentine's gifts?"
Daniel met his eyes, saw the teasing glint, and decided that his teammates deserved it. "Well, a good starting point is the giving of gifts," he said. "Chocolates, flowers," he looked at Captain Carter, who blushed vividly, dropped her gaze from her CO, and developed a sudden interest in the last few crumbs of her cake, "and other tokens of esteem. The next stage is generally to ask for a date. That's when the pair go out someplace like a movie, or a museum-"
"Yeah, you'd take a girl to museum on a first date," muttered Jack disparagingly, absent-mindedly peeling the label from his bottle of beer as he watched Sam avoiding his gaze.
Daniel gave a quelling look to the colonel, who ignored him. "Or a restaurant," he said, pointedly. "In more archaic civilizations, this might have involved the use of a chaperone, to make sure there was no funny business. In western culture nowadays, this is usually considered unnecessary."
"I see," said Teal'c. And indeed, he was beginning to see. He looked around them at the restaurant. "And what is the next phase?"
"Well, that's the first date. If it goes well, the second date is usually something more fun. First dates are to create a good impression - show off a bit. The second date is a chance for the couple to enjoy themselves a bit more; to see what each other is like under more relaxed circumstances. Something silly, perhaps, like the zoo, or rollerblading, or-"
"You guys ever been to the crazy golf place in the Springs?" interrupted Jack, uber-casually. Three pairs of eyes turned to stare at him, and he dropped his eyes to his peeled beer bottle. "I hear it's good."
Teal'c exchanged a look with Daniel. "Are you inviting us on a second team-bonding outing, O'Neill?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow in amusement. Jack shrugged.
"I guess. You wanna go?"
Daniel and Teal'c turned as one to look at Sam. She frowned at them both. "What?"
Daniel tipped his head. "Are you sure about this, Jack?"
"Sure about what? It's just a day out," huffed Jack, unconvincingly. "You coming or what? Because I've got kind of a full calendar, and-"
"I'll go," agreed Daniel, hurriedly. Curiosity would be his downfall some day: he had to see where this was going. "Teal'c?"
"I would like to see more of these Tau'ri customs," stated Teal'c.
"I'll take that as a yes," said Jack. He looked at Sam. "Carter? You in?" His tone was brusque, professional even. His eyes... his eyes were anything but. Sam took one look in those eyes, and all her good intentions evaporated, like mist burned away by the sun.
She shrugged nonchalantly, looking at Daniel, Teal'c, the waiter, the bar, the ceiling fan... anywhere but at the Colonel. "Sure, I guess. Sounds like it could be fun."
Jack's grin was sudden and bright. "Sweet!"
There was a pause, as Daniel and Teal'c looked at the other two, Jack looked at Sam, and Sam looked at the table. Sam cleared her throat at last, summoned up her courage, lifted her head and looked around challengingly. Her gaze settled on Daniel. "You seem to be the expert, Daniel. So what happens on the third date?"
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TBC