Colonel Jack O'Neill waited his turn then climbed into the back of the large Hummer with the rest of his Special Ops team members. It was late, very late, and the night air was cold enough to slice through the many layers of clothing that the soldiers were wearing and * still* chill them to the bone. Vapors misted in the air as words were spoken. Tips of ears stung, noses were red and eyes were watery as the tired team readied themselves for the long, uncomfortable drive home.

Finally inside the truck, Jack carefully eased himself onto the hard wooden bench, wrapping his heavy woolen coat around his legs and tucking it into his lap. He sat on the end nearest the rear opening as he was going to be one of the first off once they reached town again. Like his fellow teammates, he was cold, tired, hungry but added to that list was an aching body and a heavy heart.

Sometime in the icy night he had realised he wasn't as young as he used to be and that he was definitely too old for this shit'. He watched, with a certain disinterest, as Captain Hoffman slammed the back shut before disappearing around to take up the wheel to drive them home again. The old truck lurched forward then rumbled down the road while Jack sighed quietly to himself. He was pleased to be going home finally and he looked forward to returning to his regular' position as leader of the team designated SG-1.

It had been one hell of a month, which all started one day when General Hammond entered his office unannounced!..

"Colonel O'Neill."

Jack leapt to his feet and saluted the general before giving him a confused frown. "What are you doing in my office, sir?"

Hammond had given him a wry grin, knowing full well that Colonel O'Neill knew he never went to other people's offices. He summoned for them if he ever wanted to speak with them.

A smile twinkled in the general's blue eyes. It wasn't often he managed to baffle the colonel like this. "I was just coming back from lunch and I figured it was on my way to stop in and tell you some good news."

Jack eyed his CO cautiously. "Good news, Sir?"

"You've been reassigned."

"What!" Jack felt his heart leap into his throat and plummet down through his stomach at the same time. He felt a wave of hot prickles run up his spine and if it weren't for Hammond's congenial smile, he might have *really* started to worry.

A slow smile crept across Hammond's face like he thought Jack was going to be pleased when he found out *who* wanted him. "Special Ops need you again, and I've agreed that you can go for the assignment."

"Special Ops?" It had been such a long time since Jack worked for the covert group, what on earth could they need him for now?

"You leave at 0600 tomorrow. Don't bother to pack.."

Jack nodded. He already knew that rule!

"Good. In the meantime, I'm sure you'll have no hesitation in recommending Captain Carter to lead SG-1, will you?"

"No, Sir.." Jack stammered a little, still surprised by the turn of events. Hammond gave a sharp nod then turned towards the door.

"Oh, and Sir?" Jack waited for his CO to turn to look at him again. "How long will I be gone?"

Hammond sucked in a deep breath through his nose then blew it out through his mouth. "That, I can't tell you Colonel," he said with a shrug. Jack blinked, trying to gather the news to him. He summoned up his strength to ask the question weighing heavily on his mind.

"Have.. have I done something *wrong*, sir?"

The general's blue eyes squinted. "Of course not. Special Ops need another good man on the team and you were asked for by name by General Harman.."

"Harman?" Jack repeated softly then nodded. "He's a good man.."

Hammond smiled kindly at his bewildered friend. "That he is, colonel!"

Jack took a moment then he nodded only slightly, indicating that he was now okay with the reassignment. Hammond turned back to the door, grasping the handle in his fist.

"Oh, and Colonel O'Neill, remember that you're still representing the SGC on this assignment," he lifted his brow slightly.

Jack nodded and saluted before Hammond left the office, then he slumped down to his seat, trying to work out what on earth he'd done to get himself reassigned. Thank god he didn't have anyone to worry about on the home front. Imagine trying to explain that he had to go away at such short notice and he didn't know when he was going to come home, or if he was going to come home!. Yep, thank god he had no one on the home front!

~~

When he'd told the others on his team the news it was met with mixed reactions. Sam, of course, was excited about the opportunity to lead the team once more. It was such a rare thing for her to get a command and she relished the chance when it came, especially when it was going to be for more than one mission. She saw it as an opportunity to really prove her worth, and trying hard to hide her beaming smile, she wished Jack well on his new assignment before heading back to her office. Teal'c bowed his head a fraction, told Jack that he would miss him and wished him a successful mission. He then gave Jack the traditional Jaffa arm grasp, and nodded sharply. Jack returned the greeting then watched his good friend walk away. He turned and saw Daniel standing by the window, looking out at the Stargate..

"Hey Danny! Aren't you going to wish me luck?"

Daniel moved only his eyes to track Jack's movements to his side, then he looked out at the gate-room once more.

"You okay?"

The younger man shrugged. "How long are you going for?"

"At the moment it's undisclosed. Could be a week, a month.."

"A year?!" there was a hint of emotion edging into the voice.

Jack ran his tongue over his bottom lip slowly. "Perhaps."

Daniel continued to stare at the activity of team returning through the gate in the room below them. Jack blinked quickly then followed his friend's gaze out to the room. A very heavy sigh from Daniel had Jack looking back at him again.

"Sorry," there was genuine embarrassment and sincerity in Daniel's voice. Jack cocked his head a little. For crying out loud, Daniel seemed to be the only one that was going to miss him, why on earth should he feel he needed to apoligise for letting him know that he was a valued friend?

"For..?"

Daniel took a while to answer him, looking like he was having a inner war with his thoughts and emotions if the flare of red on his cheeks and throat were anything to go by. Then he gave a sorrowful shrug.

"I don't know.." he said faintly then slowly turned and fixed his blue eyes onto Jack. No words passed between them but Jack felt like Daniel was still talking to him, he just couldn't work out exactly what the eyes were trying to tell him. Daniel's lips parted slightly and Jack hoped he had an explanation for the twilight feeling he was experiencing at that moment, but Hammond and a weary SG-4 entered the room before he was able to say another word.

Daniel's gaze flicked over to the entering group then back at Jack, his eyes, again, betrayed a need to say more, but he pursed his lips, clenched his jaw and left the room without another word to his friend. Jack took a moment to gather himself, calming his inner trembles with a deep cleansing breath but his brow was still furrowed because of the confusion over the look in Daniel's eyes burnt at his mind. The loud chatter of the returning team pulled him from his reverie and he hesitated a moment before swirling around and heading out behind his friend. He never saw Daniel again before he left.

.o0o.

The truck hit another pothole, shaking all the occupants inside and causing Jack to wince with pain. He had severely bruised ribs from a heavy fall the day before and this rough ride home was not helping. He sighed with relief as he saw the lights of the town come up over the horizon. He was nearly home.

*Home*. Or was it he was nearer to Daniel? The first two weeks of the mission went by in a blur, Jack spent most of his time trying not to be killed, but as the danger passed part way through the third week and the team waited their return to home ground, that was when Jack's mind started to wander back to his life .. his career.. his friends... Back to Daniel. And the blue eyes that seemed like they wanted to tell Jack so much more, but Daniel's damn restraint held him back.

Leaning forward, resting his elbows onto his knees, Jack scrubbed both hands over his face roughly, sighing heavily. He felt a tap on his right shoulder and looked back at Pilson, a fellow Ops team member.

"You okay, O'Neill?"

Jack nodded then gave a half hearted smile. "Yeah, I'm just peachy.."

Pilson grinned. He was used to Jack's ways now and so his only reaction was to look across the truck and meet the eyes of other team members who also smiled.

The truck rolled up outside Jack's house, he waved goodbye to the remaining men inside and leapt out, patting the rear of the truck so that the driver knew to drive on. He watched the large truck rumble down the street before he headed over the road, fishing into his pocket for his keys.

As he approached his front door he slowed down a little. Through the glass window beside the door he could see the fire burning in his living room. He opened the door and went inside cautiously.

"Hello?" he called, waiting for a response that didn't come. He went into the living room, instantly knowing that some one was there as there was an empty cup on the coffee table and there was no way the fire had been burning a week without setting the whole house ablaze.

"Hello?" Jack called out again a little louder this time then spun around when he saw lights flash on the far wall of the dining room indicating someone pulling up his driveway. He went over to the window, remaining in the shadows as he watched the shadowy figure step up and unlock the door. Switching on the light, Daniel jumped when he saw Jack standing beside him.

"Holy..!" he stammered as he and Jack both tried to settle their rapid heart beats.

"What the hell are you doing here, Jack?" the anthropologist demanded. The colonel raised his brow as he titled his head incredulously.

"It's, err.. my house Daniel.." he held his hand out indicating to the rooms and the younger man blushed slightly.

"Well, yeah, I *know* that.." he mumbled as he moved towards the kitchen dropping the bags of groceries onto the counter inside. Jack switched on the overhead light and watched as Daniel unpacked the bags.

The colonel watched his friend move around the room with a certainty that indicated either he lived there, or had spent a great deal of time there that month. "Did.. err.. did you move in while I was gone, or something?"

Daniel stopped his movements and looked at Jack from under his fringe. "Hammond told me you were on your way home tonight.."

Jack's head tilted back a little as he kept a watchful gaze on his friend. That still didn't explain what was happening.

Wetting his lips quickly, which Daniel always did when he felt nervous, he continued, "I.. I thought you would be hungry when you got home, and so I wanted to do.. something for you.. that's all.." After putting some cheese in the fridge, he closed the door and shot Jack a quick look. "You're early," he made it sound like he was telling him off.

Blinking as he raised his brows even higher, Jack broke into a soft bemused laugh as he shrugged his shoulders. Daniel nodded then shrugged, like he understood that it wasn't Jack's fault, then he went back to the bag and fished out one of the bottles of wine. Jack grabbed the bottle and looked at the label, then he turned his surprised gaze onto his friend. This was not cheap wine! He released it and Daniel set it aside before grabbing a box of crackers from the bag. Jack raised his brow once more.

"Well, I am hungry.." he mentioned quietly, watching as Daniel moved around his kitchen, grabbing two wine glasses from the cupboard and bringing them over to the bottle on the counter. Then the younger man turned and looked over at the drawers, trying to work out which one would house the bottle opener. Jack smiled to himself, //at least Daniel doesn't know where *everything* is in my house//, and he stepped over, pulled the third drawer open, removed the corkscrew and headed back to the bottle.

Daniel stepped up beside him, taking the moment to eye the side of Jack's face as the officer busied himself with extracting the cork from the wine with just the right amount of 'plop'. The two men shared a smile then Daniel lifted the long stemmed goblets up while Jack poured out the white wine. They chinked their glasses together and the soft ting of the crystal rang as they took their first sips. It was perfect wine. Light and fruity and just right for...

"Danny, what *is * for dinner?"

"Oh, " Daniel nodded and put his glass down as he rubbed the back of one finger over his lips then pointed to the fridge.

"Chicken.." he pulled the marinated meat from the refrigerator and set about cooking it.

Jack offered to help but Daniel dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

"Set the table," he nodded his head in the direction of the dining room before adjusting his glasses to read the recipe more clearly.

Jack eyed his busy friend a moment then gave a little shrug as he headed out to do as he was told. He decided that Daniel's efforts should be matched with the table setting, so he pulled out the best blue cloth he had and his silverware that he seemed to score in the divorce settlement - for some unexplained reason. He looked at the setting and felt something was missing. Nibbling his bottom lip lightly he headed up to this bedroom and pulled the candle from his bedside drawers, placing it in the center of the table between the two settings. Daniel came out of the kitchen, glanced down at the elegant setting then the two men exchanged a quick smile before he headed off down the hall to the bathroom. Jack went back into the kitchen, feeling rather pleased with himself now, and he kept an eye on the dinner. It smelt wonderful and Jack stirred the rice, making sure it didn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Daniel soon returned and took the wooden spoon from his friend.

"You go and relax.." he said quietly jabbing the spoon in the direction of the living room. "I taped that game the other day for you..."

Jack raised his brow. He'd been bemoaning all week about the fact that he was going to miss the game of the century to everyone on the Special Ops team that would listen to him. He'd promised himself he was going to check on the Internet when he got home to see who had won, but now, thanks to his good friend Daniel, he didn't need to do that. He could sit back and watch the game as if it were live action.

He gave a soft cough before saying, "That was thoughtful.."

Daniel gave a wistful smile. "Well, knowing how addicted you are to the damn things.." he gave a light laugh and Jack bowed his head to hide his ever increasing smile.

"Thanks.. Danny.." he mumbled.

"Not a problem. Wouldn't care to wager a small bet on who wins, would you?"

Jack lifted his face and saw the cheeky smile. "Errr... no!"

Daniel gave another light chuckle before returning to concentrate on the recipe once more. "The tape's in the machine, ready for you.."

Jack frowned then turned to leave, but hesitated.

"I'd rather stay here actually," he muttered and Daniel looked up at him, surprise registering in his wide blue eyes.

"Okay," he sounded happy about that. "So tell me, how did your mission go?"

Jack got himself comfortable on the counter next to the stove while he told Daniel all that he could tell him about the mission while polishing off his glass of fine white wine. Daniel enjoyed listening to Jack talking and he almost regretted having to stop him as he prepared to serve the dinner.

Jack carried the plates to the table as Daniel filled the crystal glasses with the wine again then he sat down, draping his napkin in his lap. The younger man looked up and frowned slightly as Jack stared at the candle in puzzlement.

"What's wrong?"

"Should I light it?"

Daniel gave a small shrug. "Why not?"

So the officer headed into the kitchen and soon returned with the lit candle, placing it just to the side of them so that he could see his dinner companion clearly. The aroma of soft vanilla wafted over the rich spicy smell of the chicken and the two friends ate their meal.
  

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