Status: Completed 1/23/2009

Word Count: 4,645

Author's Notes: I know it may seem a little odd that Jack is still not completely potty trained, but for the most part, he and his actions/words are inspired by my youngest nephew. That includes the tag thing too. It's really pretty funny, and cute, to watch. He even looks for the tags in his cloths if he doesn't have a blanket or a stuffed toy handy. The little guy also loves to be sung the "bum bum" song at nap and bedtime. This takes place two days after "A Day at the Zoo". Thanks to Cheryl for betaing this part, and for the title (again!).

"Teal'c, no, I can't. I have a lot of work to do today. My lab is no place for a child, especially a three year-old Colonel O'Neill!" Sam protested, he may be small and have no memory of who he'd been, but she'd heard about, and seen some of the stuff he'd tried to pull. She didn't even want the adult O'Neill in her lab most of the time. Teal'c had also told her about their trip to the Zoo. There was no way she was watching the colonel, not even for a few hours.

Looking at her watch, she added, "It's only oh-seven-thrity. Who's going to watch him until he wakes up? I can't stay in your quarters, I have work to do."

"O'Neill has been awake since oh-five-fifteen," Teal'c replied flatly. "You are the only one who can do this, Captain Carter. Daniel Jackson and I must accompany SG-11 on their mission in thirty minutes time. Sergeant Siler is on vacation for the next two weeks as of twenty-two hundred last night. Doctor Fraiser is watching him now, but SG-9 returned with injuries this morning and she cannot watch him for long. You are the only other person on this base, besides General Hammond, that he will go to voluntarily. There is no one else."

If she didn't know better, Sam would have sworn that was a pleading note she'd heard in her Jaffa friend's voice. Sighing, she relented, "Fine. Just give me a few minutes to put away any sharp items and combustibles."

"Thank you," Teal'c said, bowing slightly as he turned to leave.

Working quickly, Sam managed to get most of the most dangerous things put up beyond the colonel's reach by the time Teal'c returned. She couldn't believe how incredibly cute the pint-sized colonel was. His dirty blond hair was cut short, his brown eyes, usually bright with laughter, glistened with unshed tears. She wondered if he was simply upset that Teal'c was leaving him and feared he wouldn't return, or if it was something else.

Sam noticed that he was wearing the same outfit he'd worn the first day they'd returned, four days ago. Luckily, one of the members of SG-4, Sergeant Scott Wake, had a four year-old boy about Jack's height. Living within minutes of the base, he'd graciously offered to bring in a few changes of clothes and a winter coat for him.

Sam watched silently as Teal'c kneeled beside the colonel and placed his hands gently on the boy's shoulders. "I will return as soon as I can. You will remain with Captain Carter until I return. Please," he added with the slightest of smiles, "try to refrain from damaging anything while I am away."

The boy nodded, but said nothing.

Teal'c stood and reached into one of the larger pockets of his BDU pants, pulling out one of the small plastic animals he'd purchased at the zoo the day before. The colonel accepted it, clutching it tightly in his hand. Sam smiled as he then wrapped his arms tightly around Teal'c's legs.

"I yove you," he whispered.

In an equally low voice, Teal'c replied, "and I you, O'Neill," as he patted the child on his back. "I must go."

Sam was surprised to see the sadness in Teal'c's eyes and chided herself for it. He had a son of his own after all, it was not so far-fetched an idea to believe he would bond with the colonel so quickly, especially since the two of them had been friends before the incident.

The colonel took a step back and watched quietly as Teal'c left the room. It saddened her to see such grief on his young face. Especially on the face of her commanding officer and friend.

"Jack," she said softly as she stood beside him. "Come over here. I have some crayons and paints for you to make pictures with." She held out her hand to him and, after a slight pause, he took it. Sam guided him to her lab table. She'd cleared half of it off and set up the art supplies she'd brought from her home. It wasn't much really, just a few things she'd kept on hand for the rare times she received a visit from her brother and his family, but she hoped it would be enough to keep the colonel occupied until Teal'c returned. Silently, she prayed nothing would happen to delay his return.

The boy climbed onto the chair, but made no attempt to touch any of the supplies in front of him. Looking glum, he simply stared at his feet which where dangling in the air.

Not sure what to say, Sam chose to remain quiet. She went back to the experiment she'd been working on when Teal'c had announced that he'd needed her to baby-sit. Several minutes later, she glanced at the colonel and was surprised to see that he had yet to touch anything.

She walked the few short feet to where he sat and pulled a stool up next to him. "You're awfully quiet Jack. What's wrong?"

"Nuffing," the colonel mumbled, still staring at his feet.

"Something is wrong, you look like you're about to cry." At the indignant look on the child O'Neill's face, she quickly added, "It's okay for boys to cry. Did you know that? Even for big boys."

He looked at her skeptically and for a brief moment, she was sure he would remain silent. Finally, he whispered, "I miss my Mamma."

*Oh, boy.*

Before she could say anything, the colonel spoke again in the same soft whisper, "I want my Mamma." A little louder, he added, "When can I see my Mamma?"

"I don't know exactly, soon though." She hoped that would pacify him, though she really doubted it.

Jack said nothing, simply sticking his thumb in his mouth, looking so much smaller than he actually was.

Although she considered him a friend and had for some time now, it still seemed weird to be calling her commanding officer by his first name. Then again, it was weird to see him three feet tall and sucking his thumb.

Sam knew she shouldn't pry, but she couldn't stop herself from asking, "Jack?" the boy looked at her and she continued, "you keep asking for your Mama, but you haven't asked for your Daddy since we talked to Doctor Janet. Why?"

There was a sadness in the child's eyes that made her instantly regret asking. She had a sinking feeling she was not going to like his answer.

"Daddy gone." Tears started too form in his bright brown eyes. Sam watched silently as he rubbed them away fiercely and waited for him to finish. "Daddy goed to heaben. His pane got shoted down and he died." Sam's heart broke as the mini-colonel sniffed and rubbed his eyes again. "I miss my Daddy." That said, the damn broke and for the first time, she saw the colonel cry. He threw himself at her, nearly knocking her off her stool, and wrapped his tiny arms around her neck. Squeezing her tightly, he sobbed into her neck.

Having no clue what to do or say, Sam simply wrapped her arms around his small frame and rocked back and forth slightly as she rubbed his back. "Shhhh," she whispered into his ear. "It's okay, honey. Everything is going to be okay." After several minutes, the crying eased to an occasional sniffle. Eventually, the child looked up at her, wiping his runny nose on his shirtsleeve.

She smiled at him, and he gave her a small smile in return. Pulling several tissues from a box she kept handy for when Daniel was around, she handed them to the colonel and said, "Blow."

The boy accepted the tissues and, after several blows, handed them back to Sam. Offering him a grimaced smile she tossed the soggy remains in the trashcan.

"I've got an idea," she said. "Why don't you draw a nice picture for Teal'c and Daniel?"

Nodding enthusiastically, the colonel slid off her lap and back onto his own stool. "Okay!"

She watched for a few minutes as he grabbed a piece of paper and a blue crayon then began to scribble. Satisfied that he was sufficiently occupied for the time being, she returned to her work.

Several minutes later, she jerked her head up as the colonel, quiet loudly, stated, "I gotta go potty!"

Sam turned to see the colonel standing on the floor beside her with his hands between his legs, knees squeezed tightly together, as he bounced slightly.

*Damn. Didn't think about that.* Sam held out her hand for Jack to grab. She led him down the hall to the bathroom. "Do you . . . uh need any help?"

The look on the colonel's face nearly made her giggle.

"I not a baby," he declared, "I big boy. Don't need help!" As if to prove his point, he released her hand, pushed the door open and entered the men's room on his own.

Just as Sam was beginning to worry about how long the kid had been in the restroom, the colonel came out. Sam shook her head and smiled. Apparently, he'd managed to boost himself up to the sink to wash his hands and had drenched the front of his shirt in the process. "Better?" she asked. Sam laughed at his enthusiastic headshake "yes". Taking his still damp hand into her own, they walked back to Sam's lap.

Sam placed the tiny colonel back on his stool and took a step back as he opened all the paint jars. Grabbing a fresh sheet of paper, he plied it liberally with blue paint. Satisfied he was occupied, she returned to her work.

It struck Sam suddenly, that the world's smallest colonel was entirely too quiet. Looking up, she dropped the pen and pad she had in her hands. "Jack! What are you doing?"

"Paining," the colonel replied calmly.

"I can see that, but why are you painting your shirt? I gave you paper to paint on," Sam exclaimed saying a silent prayer of thanks that the paint was water based and would wash out.

Jack threw her a look that reminded her very much of the adult colonel when he was not pleased about something. "It's pink. Pink is for girls! I a boy!"

Choking back a laugh and trying hard not to smile, she said, "That's no reason to paint it, Jack. You should have said something if you didn't like it. I could have put the Elmo one on you."

The look on the colonel's face clearly showed how much he disliked that idea. "Don't yike Elmo. He stupid. 'Sides, Dan'el made me wear it yesterday." Pulling a face that made Sam sputter in attempt to cover a laugh, the pint-sized colonel added, "He yikes Elmo."

*Which explains why he suddenly is angry with Daniel and didn't want to sit by him during the movie last night.* After his initial refusal to go anywhere near either herself or Daniel, Jack had warmed up to them quickly once they'd returned to the base. While it was obvious that he still had no memory of who they were and what they meant to him, he seemed to pick up on the connection between himself and his team. *I'll have to keep it in mind about Daniel liking Elmo. Could come in handy later. Blackmail!*

While she couldn't see what he had against the Elmo shirt, personally she'd thought it was cute, even she had to admit it was just wrong to make a boy's shirt in pink. "I'll tell you what. If you can be a big boy for me and sit here quietly, without touching anything other than the art stuff, I'll take you to Wal-Mart and you can pick out some clothes you like. Okay?"

The colonel seemed to consider her question carefully, finally he replied, "Okay."

An hour later, Sam had finished the project she'd been working on. Looking up, she saw the colonel was hunched over a piece of paper, coloring frantically. When he noticed her looking at him, he smiled widely.

"I make dis for you," he said proudly, holding up his picture for Sam to see.

Faking enthusiasm, she said, "This is beautiful, Jack. Thank you." Making a show of it, she taped the scribbled picture on the wall beside her.

The boy beamed at her. "You done know? We go shoppin'?"

"Yup, all done." All trips off base with Jack had already been cleared as long as at least one member of SG-1 was with him, and in the case of Teal'c, at least two armed Marines in plain clothes. She took off her lab coat and draped it on the back of a chair.

"Help me clean this mess up then we'll go to Teal'c's room and get your coat." Fifteen minutes later the mess was clean and the pair where on their way to the surface.

Sam was happy to see that the parking lot was not crowded as she pulled into the closet spot. Removing the colonel from the car seat, also borrowed from the sergeant, she carried him into the store. Remembering seeing other wild children running around on previous trips and knowing the colonel like she did, the first thing Sam did was get a shopping cart to put the colonel in.

"I walk," he protested.

There was no way in hell she was letting him walk. "No way, kiddo, you ride in the cart or we go back to the base and you don't get new cloths.

Relenting, the colonel nodded, "Okay."

She picked him up and put him into the kiddie seat in the front. Before buckling the seatbelt, she tickled him. Delighting in the unrestrained laughter of her miniaturized CO, she tickled him again after buckling the belt. As an adult, he very, very rarely ever laughed like that, carefree without a worry in the world.

Moving quickly, Sam guided the cart to the infant/toddler section in the back of the store. Noticing the front table with the $3.50 sign, she pushed the cart over to it. "Geranimals! Mark's kids love this brand."

"Dat one," the colonel said excitedly pointing to a shirt on the table. She reached over to pick up a shirt with a racecar on it, but stopped when Jack yelled, "No. Not dat one," he pointed again. "Dat one!"

Sam noticed the long sleeve blue shirt with a jet on it and picked it up. Bouncing around in the cart, the colonel squealed, "Yeah, dat one!"

Sam checked the size. "Perfect." Dropping it in the cart, she reached out and picked up another shirt a few stacks down. "How about this one?" she asked, holding up a long sleeve green shirt with a dinosaur on it.

"Ummmm, maybe yes. I yike it." He pointed to a pale yellow one right next to it and said, "I like dat one too."

This time he pointed to a short sleeved greenish colored shirt with elephants and the word "Safari" on it. It was pretty cute. Tossing it in the cart with the others, Sam let him pick out a few more. After that, she picked out half-a-dozen pairs of jeans and two pairs of khaki's. Noticing the pajamas a few racks over, she figured she'd better get a couple pairs of those as well and let him to pick out three sets. The colonel appeared to consider each choice carefully as she held them up one by one. She laughed at the look on his face when she held up a pair of Elmo pajamas. Finally, he settled on one that had Winnie the Pooh and Tigger playing hockey, one of a little boy playing baseball that said "Slugger" and a sleeper with puppies on it.

Sam let him pick out warm a coat, then tossed in two six packs of socks. Having heard many stories about kids "disappearing" socks, she figured it was better safe than sorry. By the time they'd finished in the cloths department, the kid had enough cloths last seven or eight days without wearing the same thing twice. It was probably over kill, after all he would be returning to normal - or a least he should be - in about a week and a half, but she didn't care. They were just too darn cute and besides, they could always be donated to charity when the colonel was back to normal.

Deciding they should probably return the borrowed car seat with the cloths, she went over to the infant furniture and picked out a booster seat. Then she went over to the diapers and tossed two packs of pull-ups nighttime into the cart. Going to the next isle, she added two packs of sippy cups as well. She'd only had time to eat with Teal'c and the colonel twice since their return, but both times the boy had needed to be changed after the meal, having spilled more of his drink down the front of himself then he'd actually gotten into his mouth.

"Can I get toy, pease?" the colonel, who'd been silent for the past ten minutes, asked giving her what Sam considered to be a damn good "puppy dog" look. *If he pulled that look off half as well as an adult as he is as a kid, it's no wonder Sara fell for him. What woman wouldn't?* She certainly couldn't. Besides, she rationalized, other than a few die cast planes the colonel had in his office and the art stuff, the kid didn't have anything to play with. Maybe some toys would help keep him occupied.

"Sure, kiddo, let's go over to the toy section."

"Yeah!"

Two hours and one full shopping cart later, Sam was finally in line to check out. Glancing at her watch and noticing that it was nearly thirteen hundred hours, she pulled out the colonel's daily schedule that Teal'c had given her earlier. Halfway down the orderly list was written, NOON - Lunch. In parenthesis was written (at all costs, avoid lima beans. Do not allow O'Neill to eat any sweets until after naptime. O'Neill will only eat Jell-O if it is blue or red). She glanced down to the next line which read: Between 1245 and 1300 - nap. Again in parenthesis, it read (DO NOT ALLOW O'NEILL TO SKIP HIS NAP). It surprised her to see that sentence in all capital letters. She'd have to ask Teal'c about that. It surprised her even more that the colonel had yet to complain that he was hungry.

As if on cue, the colonel looked at her and said, "I hungry. I want eat."

Smiling, Sam pointed straight ahead and said, "I have to pay for this stuff then we'll go to McDonalds."

"Yeah!" The mini-colonel exclaimed, clapping.

The cashier rang the order quickly and, once she'd paid what was owed, Sam wheeled the cart over to the McDonalds.

"Up, up," the colonel demanded.

"How do you ask?"

The colonel stared her blankly for a moment then amended, "Up, pease."

Obliging, Sam lifted him out of the cart.

"Want down, pease," he requested.

"No way, squirt," Sam replied. "Not until we get our food and sit down. What do you want to eat?"

Without hesitation, the boy answered, "Chickens and French flies." He paused then asked, "I have soda?"

Ruffling his hair, she said, "Sure."

"Want spite."

Sam stared at him blankly for a moment then laughed, "Oh, you mean Sprite."

"Dat what I said," the colonel replied seriously.

Realizing it would be impossible to carry the boy, a tray of food and push the cart all at once, she placed the boy back into the shopping cart. To forestall any argument, she told him, "You can get out again when we get to a table."

Sam pushed the cart up to the cashier, placing the cart parallel to the counter. She told the woman what they wanted and paid. As they waited for their food, the woman asked, "How old is he?"

"Three," Sam replied.

"He's so cute!" She waved at the colonel and said, "Hi little fella, you're a cutie pie. You shopping with Mommy today?"

*Damn!* Acting quickly and hoping the colonel wouldn't make a scene, Sam answered, "He's not my son. He's a friend's child, I'm just watching him for a while, while he's out of the country." *Not exactly a lie. Teal'c may not be his Dad, but he's his caretaker right now and he is out of the country. Way out.*

"Oh, sorry," the woman said, "He just really looks like you." Then, noticing the difference in their eye color, added, "Well, except for those beautiful brown eyes."

Sam smiled. "Thanks."

She glanced at the colonel and was pleased, and relieved, to see that he'd taken the whole thing in stride. *What a little flirt!* Not only was he not upset by the mention of the word "mommy", but he was leaning over the cart and giving the woman a big, bright smile.

At that moment, their food was placed on their tray. Sam picked it up, thanked the woman again, and pushed the cart over to an empty table. The pair finished their meal quickly and, grasping the toy car that came with his meal tightly, the colonel allowed Sam to put him back in the cart.

A short ride later, they arrived back at the base. Sam was surprised to see Sergeant Wake getting out of his car a few spots over. "Scott," she called out.

"Captain Carter, how's everything going?" he asked.

"Good," she replied. "I thought SG-4 was off-world."

"We were supposed to leave at ten hundred this morning, but the M.A.L.P showed a severe thunder storm moving in fast, so General Hammond put on stand down until oh-eight-hundred Friday. Seems storms on that planet take a little while to work themselves out. So, how's Colonel O'Neil doing?"

"He's fine. I went to Wal-Mart and picked up a few things for him so you can have your stuff back. Would you mind giving me a hand bringing it all down to Teal'c's room?"

"No, not at all," the sergeant replied as he approached Sam's car.

Sam leaned into the backseat and unbuckled the colonel's seatbelt then pulled the half asleep child into her arms. Using her keyless remote, she opened her trunk.

"Hey, little man."

"Hi," the colonel mumbled around his thumb, which had made it's way to his mouth yet again.

Making her way to the trunk, she grabbed a few bags. The sergeant took the rest and grabbed his car seat out of the back seat. Together, they made their way down to Teal'c's quarters and placed everything on his bed.

"Thanks, Scott," Sam said as the sergeant placed the last bag on the bed.

"No problem. If you need anything else, just let me know."

Sam nodded and, grabbing the car seat, the sergeant took his car seat and left.

Placing the sleepy child on the small cot that had been set up for him, she whispered, "Nap time, buddy." That seemed to wake the boy up some.

"I not seepy," the little colonel fired back. "No need nap."

She considered arguing with the boy then changed her mind. Arguing with the colonel as an adult had never worked. She doubted he was any different as a child, even the first time around. Deciding on a more direct approach, she said, "Tough. You're taking a nap."

The look in the colonel's eyes made Sam wonder if he was going to give her a fight. She really hoped not. Having had no previous experience, she had absolutely no idea how to handle a three year-old while he was throwing a temper tantrum. After a minute, the boy simply sat on the bed, staring at her expectantly.

"Story," the boy demanded when Sam made no immediate attempt to move. Then seemingly considering something, added, "Pease."

Almost as an afterthought, Sam had grabbed a few books while the colonel debated over which toys he really wanted. Now, she was glad she had. Grabbing the bag with the books, Sam pulled them out and spread them on the bed next to the colonel. "Which one do you want me to read?"

The colonel looked at them, picking them up one by one and turning them over in his hands. Finally, after several minutes of debating, he settled on "Green Eggs and Ham" and held the book out to her.

Sam sat on the bed beside the colonel and said, "Lay down." He did as he was told and she watched, fascinated, as he turned the small fleece blanket around and around searching for something. "What are you doing?"

"Tag," was the boy's one word reply. At her questioning look he added, "Need tag."

Surprised, she helped him look for it. Turning the blanket, Sam found the corner with the tag and handed it to the boy. He smiled then fingered the tag with his left hand as he shoved his right thumb into his mouth. Shaking her head, Sam opened the book and began to read. By the time she finished the book, his tiny eyelids were drooping, but the stubborn colonel was still fighting his sleep.

"Sing bum bums," he said around his thumb.

Sam looked at him blankly. *What the hell is a bum bum?* She thought about it for a moment. After a moment, she realized what he might be talking about. "You mean "The Little Drummer Boy?"

At the boy's small nod, Sam sighed. Singing wasn't really one of her strong points. She wasn't horrible, no alley cat screeching or anything, but she wasn't that good at it either.

Removing his thumb, he sleepily said, "Mamma sings bum bums." Then replaced his thumb in his mouth.

Knowing she couldn't possibly refuse him after that, Sam began to softly sing the song. Before she finished the second verse, the child was sound a sleep. She stood quietly and watched the little colonel sleep. She saw in his small features, a peacefulness she had never seen in him as an adult. His thumb was still in his mouth, which was open slightly. He started sucking on it a few times, his little mouth working furiously, and then stopped again.

Wishing she could watch him sleep longer, but knowing she still had work to do, Sam quickly stored her purchases, placing the stuffed dog he insisted he had to have next to the softly snoring child then made herself comfortable on Teal'c's bed. She opened up her laptop and began to work. As she did, she couldn't help but wonder if, were the colonel's condition permanent, if Teal'c wouldn't make a bid for keeping Jack himself and raise the child as his own. It was an interesting thought.

As she worked, she thought back to what the McDonalds cashier had said. Before today, she'd given little thought to becoming a mother. She was quite satisfied with being an Auntie. After spending the morning with the down-sized colonel and what the woman had said, it made her wonder if maybe, someday, she might like to have a child of her own. Would she make a good Mom?

Sam knew that she still had several hours to go before Teal'c and Daniel returned, but now she wasn't counting the minutes as she had been earlier. The pintsized colonel wasn't as bad as she'd heard. In fact, he was really rather cute and funny. She looked forward to spending more time with the colonel when he woke. Maybe she could teach him a few things later. Maybe, just maybe, some of it might actually stick when he reverted back to his old self again.

Maybe.

THE END