Major Sam Carter stifled a yawn. It would have been a large yawn. It took years of military training to allow her to subdue it to nothing more than a slight twitch in her jaw muscles. She was so very, very bored. She and her commander, Colonel Jack O’Neill, were sitting through an interminable meeting. She’d forgotten, by this point, exactly what it was about. But she had to remain alert and appear interested because that was what good little majors did. Only she wanted to go to sleep so badly her eyelids weighed at least three metric tons each and that funny little buzz you got when you’re forcing yourself to stay awake had started. She jabbed herself in the thigh with her pencil, hoping the pain would jolt her awake. Several jabs later, it hadn’t. There was only the one last-ditch exercise that she knew would keep her awake for the next forty-five minutes the meeting was scheduled to run. She had to resort to, she had to start thinking about….Sex.

She felt more awake already. Fantasy, she thought, need a good fantasy. No, stop it, she told herself. Don’t think about Jack. Oh, shit, now I’ve told myself not to think about Jack that’s all I can think about. At least I’m awake now. Okay, could think about Mel Gibson or Brad Pitt or that cuddly Daniel Baldwin. No, no, Jack. Must stop thinking about Jack and those sensitive eyes and that chest. I could lay my head on it and… No, stop it, I can’t think about my commanding officer like that. But I really like his voice, so commanding and sexy and… Stop it, Samantha, you can not spend the next half hour mentally undressing Jack and forcing him to cuddle with you and then getting naked together, under the stars, kissing, he has such sexy lips and he smells SO GOOD. Just so manly a scent, hard not to lean over and sniff his shoulder. Then caress his neck and then…

Cease! Think about something else Sam. Okay, think, I think I’m grateful I’m not a guy cause I’d have a huge boner in my pants right now and that would be really embarrassing to get up from this meeting on whatever it is and have an erection. Good train of thought, woman. I’m a woman and very glad of that fact. But Jack’s a man and we’d fit together so very, very well.

Desist. Good idea, I’ll think of all the other words I know for stop. Let’s see, there’s cease, desist, halt, terminate, uh, stop. Stop in the name of love before you break my heart. Stop. It’s raining men, hallelujah, it’s raining men. Raining Jacks, that would be something. Little naked Jacks falling from the sky. And maybe some Daniels too. Oh, no, naked Daniels, where did that come from. He’s really nice looking. There’s something about men in glasses that… Oh, no, will this meeting never end?

"And that’s all people," General Hammond announced. "Dismissed."

Everyone stood up from the table and started filing out. Jack was a step behind Sam. "Hey, Carter, you seemed to be really paying attention during that meeting. I’m sure you wouldn’t mind typing up a page or so on it and passing it on to Daniel and Teal'c. Just the parts that would concern them, of course." He smiled slightly.

"Of course, sir. It was all very interesting," Sam said quickly. "I’ll catch up with you in a minute," She ducked down the hall toward the women’s restroom.

O’Neill smiled to himself. He was positive Carter hadn’t heard a word the speaker had said for the last hour. This was one report he was looking forward to reading. It was good to be in command.

* * *

"Hey, Jack," Daniel Jackson called out, pushing his glasses up a little. "Did you say something to upset Sam? She’s acting a bit frazzled."

"Me?" O’Neill replied, his most innocent look firmly in place, "Of course not. It was just a very interesting meeting, if you get my drift." The male members of SG-1 were putting on the last of their gear before they entered the embarkation room and left for their latest mission.

"Uh, no, actually I don’t," Daniel replied.

"Nor do I, O’Neill," Teal’c added.

"The meeting was so boring I’m pretty sure that Carter resorted to the oldest trick in the book to keep herself awake." Jack looked at his two teammates. They were not showing any signs of comprehension. He often wondered how he’d ended up leading this team of very bright but oh, so dense at times people. They worked wonderfully together but would it really hurt any of them to pick up on his innuendoes and subtle jokes some times?

"You mean she was daydreaming during the meeting and you were oh so subtly teasing her about it," Daniel deduced.

"Well, yeah. I mean we all go off in our own little worlds when things get really dull during those staff meetings, right." He looked from Daniel to Teal’c, nodding his head slightly. "Right?"

"Oh, sure. I often think about various interpretations of hieroglyphics, you know, trying to decipher things in alternative ways."

"Only you, Daniel, would do something useful during a meeting," Jack turned and appealed to the Jaffa. "Please tell me you don’t do anything like that."

"I actually practice various meditative exercises whereby I can take in all the information presented at the meeting but also relax parts of my brain so that I can remain at a heightened sense of alertness," Teal’c answered very seriously.

"I can’t stand you guys, you know that," Jack decided as he determinedly shoved his hat on his head and stalked out of the locker room.

Daniel looked at Teal'c and shrugged his shoulders. Then he leaned closer to the other man, "You actually think about sex during boring meetings, don’t you?"

"Does not everyone?" Teal’c responded raising an eyebrow and flashing one of his rare smiles. It gave him great pleasure to tease Colonel O’Neill. And they had so few opportunities to do it successfully. He walked out of the room closely followed by Daniel.

The embarkation room was in the usual state of ordered chaos that always proceeded a mission. Preliminary reports had indicated that the planet they were going to, designated PCU-812, was a mild, pleasant world. There were signs of a civilization approximately five to ten kilometers from the stargate. At least that was what had been theorized from the heat signatures the MALP had sent back. It had been deemed worth a look by command and SG-1 was at the head of the list for new missions.

Jack glanced at his people, making sure that everything looked in top order before he let the chevrons be dialed for PCU-812. He believed in always being prepared.

* * *

Jack nearly bumped into Carter when she stopped suddenly. She had cocked her head and held that position for a mere second. "Sir," Sam called out softly, "I think we're about to get company,"

Jack nodded and the team fell into the pattern of watchful readiness. He'd often marveled at how much he had changed since becoming the leader of SG-1. While he was still a soldier, still at some level always expecting whomever they encountered to be hostile and dangerous, he had come to enjoy encountering new societies. Sometimes they were hostile, sometimes even downright violent and xenophobic. But much of the time they were friendly, eager to talk, share what they knew about the Goa'uld. He hoped today would be a friendly sort of day.

The sound grew louder until four horses with riders finally appeared, stopping about five meters in front of the team. The riders, all women, varied in age from late teens to mid-forties with complexions ranging from olive with reddish hair to a light, brown honey with accompanying almond eyes and black hair. Staring nervously at the visitors, they didn't approach any closer, their hands rest on cross-bows slung over intricately tooled saddles. A perimeter patrol, Jack decided mentally.

The oldest woman shot a glance at the youngest member of the group, who shook her head negatively. Relaxing slightly, the oldest member of the group slowly moved her horse forward. The other members of the group remained alert, focused to respond quickly to any threat. "I am Malan of Neran," she said slowly and carefully, "Can you understand me?"

"Yes," Daniel answered enthusiastically. The language was the English they'd encountered on so many worlds, a sign of Goa'uld contact. His mind was a whirl trying to determine if he could place either of the names the woman had spoken and determine where on Earth her people were originally from.

The woman dismounted from her horse and walked over to Carter. "And your name and people are?" Malan asked.

"I'm Major Samantha Carter and we're from Earth," Carter explained, wondering why the woman had ignored Daniel and focused on her.

"Did you come through the traveling circle?"

"Yes, we call it a Stargate."

"Stargate," Malan repeated, "Yet you are not Goa'uld."

"No," O'Neill responded, moving over to where Carter and the woman were talking. "We are not. Are there Goa'uld here?"

Malan glanced momentarily at Jack and then returned her attention to Sam. "Do you serve the Goa'uld?"

"No," Carter answered, "We do not. We oppose them, they are our enemies."

"Then you are welcome," Malan gestured to the other riders, two of which moved behind SG-1. "Rina has confirmed that you are not possessed by the Goa'uld," the woman nodded toward the youngest member of the group, "We will take you there where you may talk to the council. It is not far, it will not take long to walk there. Rina, please ride ahead and tell the council to expect visitors."

* * *

If that was the Neran's idea of a short walk, Carter decided, then no wonder all the women they'd encountered looked like a group of fitness buffs. The walk had taken over two hours over hilly country, which had ascended through a thickly forested path for the past half-hour. Along the way they'd passed two more bands of women on horseback. Malan had gently rebuffed any further conversation during their walk, stating that she preferred they talk to the council. Sam was glad for the silence, she was in prime condition but she needed to focus her energy on the climb. Why Malan had chosen to speak only to her had been a bit of a mystery at first until they'd met the other two patrols. Must be a matriarchal culture. Well, at least they won't be asking me to put on any skimpy outfits. Of course, maybe they'll ask Jack too. Stop that, Samantha, she commanded herself. You're an officer in the United States Air Force, you can't go around thinking thoughts about your commanding officer or about any of your team mates, she added to herself after the unbidden thought of scantily clad co-workers entered her brain. I definitely need to get out more, she told herself. Meet somebody, form a relationship, or maybe just get some new batteries, but something definitely needs to get done about this over active fantasy life I'm leading.

The forest ended abruptly, leaving them standing on a bluff overlooking a deep green valley. Two rivers ran along the edges meeting near the middle to form a large lake before running off as one. Near the lake stood a tall ziggurat. It was made out of a bluish-gray material that was highly polished; the sun's now fading light was reflecting gold-orange off it.

"Wow," Daniel commented as he went to the very edge of the bluff and stared at the structure. It looked Babylonian by way of Star Trek. He wondered what Goa'uld built it. A glint off the ziggurat made him lean forward to try to determine if there was writing on its walls.

"Watch it, Daniel," Sam said, grabbing his elbow and pulling him back away from the edge. She didn't relish dragging an injured Daniel all the way back to the stargate, not after that climb.

"Oh, yeah, thanks," the archaeologist said, his deep concentration barely registering the action.

Sam grinned over at her other two teammates. Daniel had something that he wanted to learn about and there would be no stopping him until he'd sated his curiosity. She shifted her gaze and noticed that Malan was looking at her curiously and then at the other members of SG-1. The woman than returned her attention to Sam and Daniel. Sam was still holding on to Daniel's elbow. Malan simply nodded at the gesture then signaled them to follow her.

* * * * * * *

The town surrounding the ziggurat was mostly comprised of stone buildings built half into the earth. One or two were taller than the rest but the general impression given was of buildings crushed by the immensity of the ziggurat. There were few people on the streets as they entered the town, a few warriors dressed as the ones the team had already seen, two running children who stared at them for a moment then ran off again quickly. Rina, the girl that Malan had sent ahead, met them as they approached the center of the town. "Kasadin said to take the men to the visitor's lodge near the market. A meal is being prepared for all of them. She would like to meet with Major Samantha Carter."

Sam glanced over toward Jack. He cocked his head at her and raised his eyebrows. She translated that into, "I trust you to do a good job, Major. You can handle this negotiation while I sit around on my butt. Don't get us killed."

Daniel looked at Sam and said directly what was on his mind, "Get us into the ziggurat, Sam. Soon."

* * * * * *

"I think I understand now," Carter answered, the set-up of this society was beginning to make more sense. She and Kasadin had been talking about many things, though she'd yet to broach the subject of SG-1 exploring the ziggurat. Better, she decided, to gain these people's trust first. They had discussed the Gou'ald briefly, getting the impression the woman would prefer to talk of such matters after the meal.

They were seated at a series of low tables, a large number of serving bowls filled with food were being passed around. It all smelled delicious, much better than MREs. She sampled a dish that looked very much like chicken paprikash as she mentally framed several polite ways of asking why there were so few men or boys around. But then decided just to ask the question straight out. The answer had equally forthcoming. There was some type of contaminant on the planet that made the number of male births much lower than female births, more than four to one, with the males dying more frequently as children. Each male was vital to the continuation of the society and they were strongly discouraged from going into dangerous occupations, though a few did choose to become warriors. They tended to more heavily concentrate in the crafts and sciences. Women had filled the other occupations, because of their sheer greater numbers they were also represented in those areas as well. "Do you have any problem due to in-breeding?" The scientist in her asked.

"We're very careful," the council leader responded, not in the least offended by the question. "We don't allow closely related individuals mate. We also encourage our young people to marry into one of the other nearby villages. Even if we occasionally have border clashes with some of the other towns, they all understand the danger of letting children of the same father marry." Kasadin inclined her head towards Carter. "From our history I know that humans usually have about the same number of males and females born."

"Actually, more males are generally born," Sam explained, "more of them die before reaching maturity than females."

"Ah, still, you must occupy a very high position in your culture."

"Well, not really, our society is very different than yours."

"Well, you must be very important," Kasadin said, slightly bewildered by Sam's denial. "You've got three."

"Three what?" Sam asked, taking another piece of the delicious chicken dish. It was for benefit of cultural exchange and harmony, she told herself. If she didn't eat she might offend these people, besides she'd walk off all the extra calories on the way back to the stargate.

"Men," the council leader pointed to the other members of SG1 who were seated at another table.

"On my world, a woman can have casual relationships with as many men as she likes," Sam explained, "of course you can't legally marry more than one at a time." Carter considered how to further explain the relationship between men and women in her culture. She looked at the other woman very seriously and added, "Actually most women really can't deal with more than one man at a time. They demand a lot of time and attention."

"That is true. As leader of the council I am entitled to four myself but find that I only mate with the one that I first acquired, the other three I lend out to women who do not yet have mates of their own."

"Don't they object?!" Carter sputtered around her large bite of chicken.

Kasadin shook her head, "No, not really. Of course I would never force them to go to anyone they did not approve of ahead of time. But in general, they seem very open to the idea."

Carter bit her lip to keep from making a sexist retort along the lines of "oh, that's a big shock" but she refrained. She had worked in a predominately male environment her entire life and knew that the stereotype of the alley-cat male was a false one. Individual temperament, rather than gender, dictated a person's sex life. She also knew there was a reason for Playboy, Penthouse, Hustler and the thousands of Internet porn sites. She decided on a safe comment in case any of her friends overheard. "Oh, that's very interesting."

"Malan said you were especially protective of one of the males."

"We look after each other," Sam explained, remembering how she had prevented Daniel's eagerness from causing him to fall over the bluff. "We're a team."

Kasadin nodded and passed Sam another dish, some type of green and red vegetables in what looked like a yogurt sauce. "I understand males in your society are treated differently than we do here. Our history has told us of the humans that served the Gou'ald and how different the men and women acted. It has also told of us of Earth and how our people were taken from many places to built the temple."

"I realize that your ways are different. However, it would be easier if we simply told everyone they were your mates. That would prevent them from being propositioned for mating."

Taking a heaping spoonful of the vegetable dish, Sam smiled and replied, "I think that would be for the best. I was wondering, "she segued into the other topic she was interested in, "who built the structure by the lake?"

* * * * * *

"Here are some clean clothes," Denoch said entering the room where the male members of SG-1 were seated. Or rather, Jack and Teal'c were seated. Daniel was examining a large tapestry covering one wall, muttering about the juxtaposition of several cultural weaving styles being involved. Denoch was mocha-skinned, blackhair liberally peppered with gray, he was dressed in an outfit that resembled a Roman-toga.

"That's okay, ours aren't dirty," O'Neal said, not wanting to change into the native garb. The standard male dress seemed to range from a toga type outfit to loose, flowing pants, in a dizzying assortment of colors, none of which fit his idea of tasteful.

"Major Samantha Carter has said that to avoid confusion it will be easier if you don't appear too different."

"Oh, Major Samantha Carter said that did she," Jack raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, she also told Kasadin that you would pose as her mates for the duration of your stay here," Denoch explained very seriously. He understood Kasadin's concerns, three unclaimed males could stir up unwanted trouble. There was enough turmoil with visitors coming through the stargate as it was.

"And Kasadin is the leader of your people?" Daniel asked, taking the clothes the man was holding out towards him.

"Yes, and my wife," Denoch explained, "Understand, this is not some arbitrary request. You have shown an interest in our culture, it will be much less upsetting for everyone if you try not to stand out."

"Of course," Daniel nodded. He unfolded the clothes, it looked very much like a Roman toga, made of a red linen type material. He was happy to note it looked long enough that his boxer shorts wouldn't show. He glanced at the piles of clothing Denoch was handing Jack and Teal'c, the clothing looked very different than his. "Is there some significance to the style of clothing?"

"Yes," the older man nodded, he himself had on a toga similar to the one he'd handed Daniel, though the colors were different. "For formal occasions we dress in the traditional clothing of our profession. I'm a scholar, so I wear this style. Your friend received warrior's garb," He inclined his head towards Teal'c who was holding a tight fitting short sleeved shirt, a kilt style knee length skirt and an overshirt decorated with a large bird of prey, its talons extended.

"Uh, and what is mine supposed to signify," Jack held up a pair of very sheer, baggy pants and a brocade vest.

"Well," Denoch said tentatively, hoping he wouldn't offend the visitor, "it was obvious your friend was a scholar from the questions he asked. The other man is clearly a warrior. We couldn't quite decide what function you fulfilled for Major Samantha Carter."

"So you dressed him as a.." Daniel prompted, trying to contain a huge grin. His blue eyes were doing a dance of suppressed amusement behind his glasses.

"Bed warmer?" Teal'c said before the other man could answer only to be glared out with great savagery by Jack. Teal'c kept his features carefully enigmatic. It would ruin his "rep" as Cassie called it to burst into a decidedly unmanly giggle.

Denoch looked uncomfortable and gave a small shrug of his shoulders, "Well, it did seem to be appropriate. I'll be back later to take you to the feast, its being prepared especially in your honor," he said hurriedly as he quickly exited the room.

Jack looked at the clothes momentarily and then at his teammates. His brown eyes were hard, daring the other two to make a comment. Rather than continue looking at him, the men quickly started to get dressed. It took several minutes but finally Daniel could no longer contain himself, he had to say something. He just had to make a comment. Slowly he edged over behind Teal'c, hoping the Jaffar wouldn't let Jack kill him.

"Uh, Jack."

"What is it, Daniel?" snapped Jack,

"You're tighty whities are showing through those pants. It makes you your butt look big."

"Jackson!"

* * * * * *

"Are you sure you wouldn't like to eat some more of the kad-oos?" Kasadin asked, pushing the bowl towards Sam. "You're much too thin."

"I really couldn't eat anything else," came the reply. "Well, maybe after I've digested a bit," Sam added eyeing the tasty dish. She wasn't sure why she was eating now with Kasadin before the feast was supposed to actually start. Maybe in this society any meeting had to be accompanied by food. It was a rule, she felt that her own planet could emulate. No matter, they'd been eating and talking for some while before the hall began to fill with people.

"Here are you men, now," Kasadin gestured toward the door.

The members of SG-1 entered along with a large number of other men and several women. They were escorted to a table several away from where Carter and Kasadin were seated. Sam waved as they entered and looked towards her. She stifled a grin at the way they were dressed. Teal'c and Daniel looked relatively natural in their outfits. Actually, she decided Daniel's legs looked damn good in the toga. But she wasn't sure what Jack was dressed as, unless it was some kind of gender bending harem girl outfit. Maybe, she decided thoughtfully, it was the "I Dream of Jeannie" look on testosterone. Whatever, it looked hilarious, Jack looked pissed off. She tried not to appear as though she hadn't noticed anything at all. However, she did note that in future her mentally excursions during meetings were going to be a lot more interesting. She momentarily considered Jack doing the dance of the seven veils, then wondered why it was getting so hot in the room.

Turning back to her host she tried to get more information about the Gou'ald and the ziggurat.

* * * * * *

Jack sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that night. Daniel had found several scholars to pump for information about the culture and appeared to be having a marvelous time. Teal'c, after consuming an incredible amount of food, had fallen into conversation with a group of female warriors. The men who had talked to him, taking his clothing as a sign of similar occupation had talked about nothing interesting at all. Actually, he wasn't sure what they were talking about because his annoyance level was too high. After mentally running through various escape plans if the night turned ugly, he had nothing to do. The evening was getting late and the wine was flowing freely, though he and his team didn't indulge except for a small glass each.

"You see that woman," one of the men sitting next to him pointed to a rather attractive woman in her early twenties. She was very fit, good looking in a rather delicate, feminine way, wearing a top that showed off her neck and shoulders.

The man's name was Kylie, Jack remembered. He'd tried earlier to engage Jack in a conversation about abdominal muscles. Jack had shown as much disinterest as possible without being impolite. Jack glanced at the young woman, tilting his head slightly trying to figure out why he was being asked to look at her. She was certainly nice looking. "Yeah, I see her."

Kylie pointed a long finger under Jack's nose. "She's beautiful and younger than your woman. Would you like to trade?"

"What!"

"Trade, just for the night, of course. Megat won't mind. She likes to meet new men," the man's words came out fast, slurred around the edges. He'd had much more to drink than Jack or any other man at the table.

"Trade who?" Jack decided that perhaps an incident could be avoided if he pretended to misunderstand. He shifted uncomfortably in his harem pants; they'd been riding up his butt crack the entire night.

"Your MajorSamanthaCarter for my Megat, just for a little while. Your woman is interesting."

"Uh, Jack," Daniel intervened. He didn't want any trouble, not that Jack was one to fly off the handle but he knew the man had been irritated the entire evening. He probably needed to let off a little steam.

O’Neill held up a hand towards Daniel, he appreciated the subtle verbal "Stop, Jack, we're guests" warning but he could handle this situation. "No, I don't think so. I don't think so at all. If you'll excuse me," Jack started to stand.

"You're afraid if she has me, she won't like you anymore," Kylie retorted, poking his finger into Jack's chest. He was a head taller than Jack, his open vest showing off a washboard stomach. A taunting smile appeared on his face as he stood up to face the SG-1 leader.

"No, that's not it at all and take your finger out of my chest," Jack said angrily, teeth grinding with each word. He grabbed the man's hand in a hard grip enjoying the flash of pain that ran over Kylie's features. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed that Daniel and Teal'c were scrambling to their feet.

"Duk'la" the man next to Kylie said gleefully. He smiled and elbowed his friend who hadn't been paying attention. The chant was picked up by the others at Jack's table, quickly spreading to the nearby ones. Everyone turned their attention to where Jack and Kylie stood facing each other. Some began banging their mugs in time with the chant. "Duk'la, duk'la."

Jack felt his heart race, blood rushed to his face. The last time he'd heard chanting like this he'd drunk an entire pint of Jack Daniel's in one breath. Of course, that was the last thing he remembered about that evening. But it was the same group pressure being exerted here. The same, "if you're a real man you'll meet the challenge". It didn't matter if it was a pint of whiskey, a dive off the high diving board or a dare to ask the prettiest girl on campus out for a date. The gauntlet had been thrown.

He'd just be a lot happier if he knew what the contest was. A whole lot happier. Jack looked at Daniel. "Hey, Daniel, a little help here. What's a duk lah?"

"Uh, I'm not sure," Daniel responded, "I think it means death match."

"I'm okay with that," Jack nodded, dropping his grip on Kylie's hand. It could have been a lot worse he reckoned. It sure beat sitting here in the ridiculous pants.

"So you accept my challenge?" Laughed Kylie.

"Of course, no one threatens me," O’Neill stood up straight. "Or my team."

"Wonderful, what kind of music do you need?"

"Music?"

* * * * * *

"What's going on?" Sam asked Kasadin when the commotion over at Jack's table started.

Kasadin glanced over, shaking her head in annoyance. "It's just one of those silly men things."

"Which one?"

"The one where they want to look good in front of their woman by making some other guy look like an idiot. The one that usually happens when they've had a little too much wine. Do you have that one in your society?"

"Oh, yeah," Carter nodded. "They're not going to punch each other out are they?"

"No, the duk'la is one of the less violent methods of gaining attention. They're going to dance."

"Dance?"

* * * * * *

"Colonel O’Neill, do you know how to dance?" Teal'c asked phlegmatically.

"Of course I do!" Jack huffed as Denoch led them away from the banquet area. Already people were pulling back chairs and tables to make room.

"Then this should prove very interesting," The Jaffa fixed O’Neill with his gaze, "I suggest you do your utmost to uphold our team's honor."

"I was kind of intending to do that, Teal'c. Thanks."

"So what kind of dance are you going to do?" Asked Daniel.

"I'm told I do a pretty mean Funky Chicken."

"Uh, Jack, I don't think that's going to cut it," Daniel responded, pointing to some other males who were doing an impromptu dance on the newly created dance floor. The steps resembled ballet with a heavy emphasis on high kicks.

Jack looked at the dancing, his heart sinking for a moment. Then a cocksure smile crossed his face. Memories of past dances replaying in his mind. "I don't think its going to be a problem. I'll let that idiot Kylie go first though," He did a small twirl, "I work best under pressure."

* * * * * *

Kylie, Jack had to admit, was a superb dancer even if he was half drunk. He ended up doing a dance very much like the flamenco. The entire audience appreciated the energetic dance and Jack's confidence dropped a notch. Still, he figured he had an ace in the hole. As the dance finished the crowd cheered happily and more drinks and some type of chilled dessert appeared. Daniel reappeared at his side. "Did you think the musicians can do the music?" Jack asked.

"I gave them the beat and a bit of a tune I remember from the True Lies movie. They seemed to get the idea. Still, I hope you know what you're doing," Daniel frowned at his friend.

"Of course I know what I'm doing, Daniel," Jack smiled and patted his friend on the shoulder.

"Okay, but if there are serious repercussions don't complain to me about it," the archaeologist harrumphed.

As Jack walked toward the dais where Sam was seated, Teal'c's puzzled gaze tested on Daniel. "Is Colonel O’Neill going to dance with Major Carter."

"Yup, sure looks that way," Daniel commented, tilting his head as if he was watching the obscure mating habits of sea crustaceans on the Discovery Channel.

"This should prove to be very interesting," the former first prime of Apophis commented. He picked up a drink and slowly took a sip. This was an event to be savored.

Jack approached the table where Sam sat. He did a very formal bow. His pants rode up even higher. "Major Carter, if I could have this dance please."

"Uh, sure," Sam said as her eyes grew big and a small flush crept up her cheeks. She stood, wishing that she had something more feminine on. Something that showed off her figure more, something that flowed, something… Stop that, she commanded herself sternly, focus on the moment. Focus on this moment and enjoy. She held her hand out to Jack, he took it gently in his and led her out to the center of the dance floor. The room had grown silent. Clearly the Neran were not accustomed to men and women dancing together. O’Neill nodded to the musicians who shakily but with rapidly growing confidence began to play the tango.

* * * * * *

Despite her best efforts to stretch the moments of the dance into infinity, too quickly they ended. Sam's only clear memory was the firmness of the hold Jack had on her, the confident look in his eyes and the last move he made. He dipped her so low she was afraid she was going to fall. Leisurely with great strength and fineness he pulled her upright. To her everlasting embarrassment the only comment she could come up with when the dance ended was, "Wow".

"Exactly," Jack smiled happily as the crowd leapt to their feet and cheered.

"You have got to show me how to do that," Kylie said, pounding Jack on the back. "All the women would be mine for the taking if you teach!"

"That was certainly an impressive display," Kasadin congratulated O’Neill. "You have clearly won the duk'la."

"Well," Jack pretended to hesitate. Mostly just to irritate Daniel who was looking way, way too amused. "I'd love to get a look inside the ziggurat."

"And so you shall," Kasadin smiled.

"Wow," Sam repeated, her eyes still glowing. She hoped everybody thought it was in response to getting inside the ziggurat.