War Is Child's Play

Author's Note: It's all to play for in the middle of a war. Oneshot; set post-series.
Pairing: Sam/Jack.
Rating: General.
First Published: November 2013.

Status: COMPLETE.

Jack grimaced as his back slammed into the large tree trunk he had decided to seek refuge behind.

Crouching down, he rested a hand on the ground and tried to catch his breath.

"I'm getting too old for this," he mumbled.

He took a few more deep breaths and tried to decide what his next move should be. Shifting his weight, he carefully glanced around the tree and scanned the immediate area to his left.

Trees, trees and more trees.

Oh, and a good twelve inches of snow as well.

"Just peachy," he whispered.

He turned to rest against the tree, before leaning over to look at the other side.

It was then, when he saw Carter and he cursed silently. She was too far away for him to reach in just a few steps, and to shout over would just alert the opposition to his hiding place. Jack knew she wouldn't come to him either, so he closed his eyes in resignation.

He had no choice.

He had to risk it and go to her instead.

Pulling his beanie hat lower onto his head, he listened closely.

Things were quiet. Too quiet.

Realistically, he knew he should wait for some back up, but the tiny voice in his head reminded him that he couldn't afford to freeze his ass off for much longer.

A minute passed, then two, and Jack still couldn't hear a sound.

Biting back a sigh, he glanced around and saw Carter was still in the same spot.

"Screw it," he muttered, standing and making a run towards her.

He'd only managed to make it ten foot from his hiding place before he was hit square on the chest. With a grunt, he fell to the ground, just as an excited high-pitched squeal reached his ears.

***

He could feel someone standing over him and cracking an eye open, he was met with a pair of bright blue eyes sparkling with mirth.

"Gotcha daddy!"

Jack's lips twitched into the faintest of smiles. He groaned dramatically as he pulled himself into a sitting position. Looking down at his chest, he lifted a glove-covered hand and wiped away the remnants of the snowball that Grace had thrown with precise accuracy.

Meeting his daughter's eye, he shook his head in mock resignation. "You got me, kiddo."

Slowly, his grin widened as he reached out and started tickling Grace, her giggles echoing around the large Christmas tree farm.

"Ah, daddy! Nooo… that's cheating!" she said between her laughter. "Kree! Kree, daddy!"

"Ssh, Gracie! Remember?" Jack warned gently, momentarily pausing with the tickling. "We're not supposed to say that word where there's… people," he trailed off with a grimace.

He really should have listened to his wife and not taught Grace certain top-secret words.

"Sorry daddy."

"That's okay, munchkin. Just… try not to do it again."

She nodded in response and Jack nodded. "Good. Now that's settled…"

With that he resumed his tickling. "Ahh! Mommy, help!" Grace called, waving her little arms in the air.

"Ah, ah! Calling for back up is also cheating," her father joked.

He turned his head and looked over at his wife, just to see if she was approaching, but he grinned when he noticed she was standing at a distance, watching them with a smile.

"But you're bigger! No fair!"

"It's not fair," Jack corrected gently, as he eased off on his attack. "Your mom has her hands full anyway."

He glanced back towards Sam and watched as she carefully shifted the weight of their baby son, Jake, on her hip. Pausing momentarily, Jack was reminded once again, just how fortunate he was.

The sound of Grace struggling to escape his grasp caught his attention, and he quickly decided he didn't want Sam siding with his daughter if she did decide to join them.

"Truce?" he asked.

"Truce," Grace giggled breathlessly. "Truce!"

"Atta girl! Now, help an old man up," he added, stretching out a hand.

The little girl narrowed her eyes and Jack marveled at how she channeled her mother at that moment in time.

Slowly, Grace reached out and placed her tiny mittened-hand in her fathers, and in one smooth movement, he was on his feet – with Grace now flung over his shoulder in a fireman's lift.

"Daddy!"

Chuckling, Jack swung around and came face-to-face with his wife.

"Oh! Carter! Hey…"

"Hey, yourself," she answered, an eyebrow raised in amusement.

Her gaze briefly slid to Jack's right shoulder where Grace was lying, and he jostled her lightly.

"Mommy! Tell daddy to put me down. Please," she added as an afterthought.

Sam tilted her head. "Jack?"

"Sam?"

"Are you having fun?"

"You betcha!" he grinned, causing Sam to smirk.

"Mommy!"

"What's with…" his wife trailed off as she gestured to the little girl.

A nonchalant shrug was her answer, followed by an overly dramatic: "She hit me with a snowball!"

"I did, mommy!" Grace cut in, although her voice was slightly muffled. "Daddy lost the battle!" she added with a mischievous grin.

"Yeah, daddy lost the battle," Jack grumbled, subconsciously wiping some snow off his jeans. "Out-witted by a five-year-old, for cryin' out loud."

Holding back a snort, Sam shook her head. "Speaking of which…" she let the rest of the sentence go unspoken, waiting patiently as Jack feigned annoyance.

Moments later, Grace's feet were on the ground, her face ever-so-slightly flushed. She pushed some curls away from her face and her eyes fell on her brother who was staring wide-eyed at her. Her face lit up and Sam and Jack shared a tender smile as she started talking to him quietly.

Moving closer, Jack dropped a kiss to Sam's lips, then pressed a kiss on Jake's chubby cheek.

"Hey sport," he whispered, smiling when he received babbling in response. "You know… She's got a mean aim with that right arm," he added moments later, nodding towards Grace who was jumping around in the snow.

"She takes after her mom," Sam replied with a cheeky grin.

"Don't remind me. I can still feel the bruises from our very first sparring session," Jack quipped, rubbing his hand gingerly across his chest.

With a smile, his wife turned to look at him. "We still need to choose a tree."

"The one I tried to hide behind was good," Jack offered.

"Whatever you say," Sam laughed, knowing it was sometimes easier if she didn't question her husband's logic.

"Excellent! I'll say to John on our way out and get it delivered to the cabin tomorrow."

"I'm looking forward to spending the holidays at the cabin this year," she said, snuggling into his arms.

"Me too."

They fell into a comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's company. It was a couple of minutes before Jack spoke.

"I can't feel my butt," he muttered.

Sam giggled. "You'll soon dry."

"Thanks for the sympathy."

"I told you not to accept her challenge of a snowball fight."

"Yeah, well, you know me," he drawled. "I'm a sucker when it comes to a challenge – especially when it's from the Carter women."

"Hmm," Sam answered knowingly.

"Speaking of challenges," Jack continued as he pulled Sam closer. "I never did accept your invitation of an arm wrestle."

"No. No you didn't," she answered thoughtfully.

"Maybe I should put it on my Christmas list."

Sam met his eye before placing a loving kiss on his lips. Just as Jack was starting to respond, she grinned and pulled back slightly.

"That," she teased, "Could be a very good idea, General O'Neill."