DISCLAIMER: Yeah, the SG-1 guys are all property of MGM, World 
Gekko Corp and Double Secret productions. This is all in fun, no 
infringement on copyrights or trademarks was intended. All other 
characters, ideas, etc., herein are copyrighted to the author.
TITLE:  TILT AND BALANCE
AUTHOR: Rowan Darkstar
EMAIL: rowan_d1@yahoo.com
RATING: All Ages
CATEGORIES: Angst, hints of Sam/Jack
ARCHIVE: Yes, just let me know.

Written for the GateShip Wednesday Shorts "Foresaken" Challenge.  
366 words.  Not exact, I know....oh, well...:)


"Tilt and Balance"
by 
Rowan Darkstar (rowan_d1@yahoo.com)
Copyright (c) 2005


It's good.  It's all good, and he doesn't want to think about the 
reasons maybe it isn't or shouldn't be.  The sun is warm on this 
planet.  There's bird song and a textured breeze, and Carter is 
catching the quirks in his smile and saying things like, "So I 
can take a look at the technology."

Too long every smile has ended with a swirling wisp of sadness 
and the phantoms of things unforgiven.

She's grinning and he's grinning, and there's a telescope and 
something like flirting.

They are SG-1 (the new SG-1, at least), and it is good.

The mission goes to hell in a hand basket.  She's tied up and 
gagged and too far away for him to touch.  They get to her fast, 
cut her free, but she says she's, "a little groggy."  He's fluent 
in Carter, and even as the words meet his ears, his brain 
translates to, "My legs wouldn't hold me with the replicators on 
my tail."

He has to stay alert, stay on the mission.  A team member's in 
jeopardy, and he's the only one still on the trail.  Teal'c's got 
Carter and she couldn't be in better hands.

But it's a little too hard to keep his ear tuned and an eye on 
his six.

There's an added tenderness in Teal'c's guard.  Jack's felt it 
for a while.  And Carter, Carter has adored Teal'c forever, but 
she's a little softer in his presence now.  A little...grateful.  
Something deepened between his friends this year.  He knows 
they're just friends, but that's it, that's what she needed.

Jack knows Teal'c caught the rope.

The one Jack let go of to keep himself from going down for the 
count.

In the field, Jack O'Neill never leaves a man behind.  He 
sacrifices himself in the blink of an eye.

In the field.

In life, he's learned to survive.  Maybe too well.  There's a 
reason he came out of retirement.  He's always been better in the 
field.

Eyes front, ears open.  P-90 ready.  Get to the gate, help Jonas, 
bring his team home safe.

Hope Carter smiles at him on the down ramp.

It's all he can do.

It's all he can do.

*****

rowan_d1@yahoo.com