Soaking and Thinking
By
Denise

Disclaimer Stargate Sg-1 and its characters are the property of Stargate (II) Productions, Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Productions. This story is for entertainment purposes only and no money exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property of the author. This story may not be posted elsewhere without the consent of the author.

Sam locked the door behind her and leaned against it, blowing her bangs out of her eyes. Finally. She thought the colonel would never get done. As near as she could determine, he'd hogged the showers for the better part of an hour. Of course, he'd never admit it.

She didn't mind sharing the lockers, especially since the guys usually were exceedingly considerate, most of the time. Then there were those days when she wanted nothing more than to have her own private bathroom. Maybe if she saved the world a few more times she could talk the general out of…nah. Shaking her head she crossed the room, unbuttoning her fatigue shirt as she went, frowning at the sight of the pile of filthy clothes in front of the colonel's locker. "Your mama don't work here, sir," she muttered, sliding the heavy shirt off. She laid it on the bench and sat down, bending over to take off her boots. Why couldn't they ever wear tennis shoes? Yeah, they were impractical for tramping through the mud but…it would be so much nicer here on base than the heavy clunky boots she had to wear.

She tossed them in the bottom of her large open locker, making a mental note to take them home and give them a polish. She slid off her socks, laying them atop her shirt. She stood up and unbuttoned her pants, gratefully sliding them down her legs. God, they were dirty. Then again, clothes tend to get that way when you wear them for nine days straight. "My tax dollars at work," she muttered, tossing them aside. They'd either come clean enough to be worn again, or she could save them for the next time she worked on her bike.

Pulling off her T-shirt, she wrinkled her nose at the smell of gunpowder. It had permeated all of their clothing. That was one thing about beaming to where the gate was that still stuck in her mind, the almost overwhelming odor of gunpowder. The air had been blue with it, a thick smoke that added to the air of unreality.

She pulled her dog tags from around her neck, hanging them on a hook. They clanked against the locker wall and the clicking sounds made her skin crawl. That's exactly what those bugs had sounded like. Thousands and thousands of little feet clacking away in the walls. The little mechanical whines and groans as they systematically ate the ship from around them, in some places just inches away from the deadly vacuum of space.

Fighting a sudden shiver, she quickly slid off her bra and panties, wrapping her towel around her middle and tucking it in as a makeshift sarong. There were no replicators here, no bugs that weren't easily squashable. The walls weren't crawling with single-minded automatons bent on taking over the planet. Shaking her head, she reached for her shampoo and shower gel, cursing under her breath as her hands came up empty. It was in her lab. She's bought more on her way here…ten days ago, and never gotten the chance to bring it down. Taking a quick glance at her state of undress she shrugged. She was not going out dressed like this, and there was no way in hell she'd put those clothes back on.

Grinning evilly, she turned and walked to the colonel's locker. She'd just borrow some of his. He'd never know the difference. She grabbed the bottle of shampoo and shower gel than frowned. Lifting her arm she peeked at her armpit and made a face. Uggh. Now that was gross.

She reached for his shaving kit, then changed her mind. The last time she'd borrowed his razor she'd almost needed stitches. Clutching the two bottles in one arm she made her way to Daniel's locker. His razor however, was one of those fancy expensive kinds with the aloe strips.

Carrying her booty, she padded into the shower room. The air was still steamy from the colonel's extended shower. However, a shower wasn't quite what she had in mind. Setting the bottles down, she turned on the tap to the large stainless steel tub, smiling as water began to swirl in. The best thing about the SGC was right here, one of the few bases she'd served on that had a bathtub. Yes, technically it was a therapeutic whirlpool meant for easing stressed and strained muscles…but as far as she was concerned, it was the penultimate bathtub.

As the water filled, she picked up the shampoo and crossed to the showers, figuring she might as well make use of the time. Hanging her towel on a hook, she turned the shower on, quickly adjusting the temperature as hot as she could stand. She moved under the spray, turning her face up and closing her eyes. She brought her hands up and smoothed her hair back as the water streamed down her body. She stood there for a second, soaking up the warmth, then sluiced the water off her face and reaching for the bottle of shampoo.

She squirted a generous quantity into her palm and massaged it into her hair. She worked it up to a lather then stood under the spray, rinsing the bubbles out. She grabbed the shampoo, squeezing another glob into her hand and worked it through her hair, this time taking her time. She dug her fingernails in, lightly scratching her scalp. She groaned in pleasure as she maneuvered her fingers through the clingy strands. She'd dreamed of washing her hair, even more than taking a bath. Casting a glance at the tub and seeing that it was more than half full, she hurriedly rinsed her hair, grinning as it squeaked.

She turned off the shower and snagged a scrubby that was hanging on the wall. That's what she couldn't find in Daniel's locker. She set the scrubby down by the side of the tub and turned off the tap. She climbed the steps and slowly sank into the hot water, unable to suppress a moan of pleasure. She slowly stretched out, savoring the sensations of the water swirling around her body. She closed her eyes and lay back, feeling the warmth sink into her muscles. God, it felt good to relax. Not that the last nine days had been incredibly stressful or anything, but it was nice to be back around all the great modern conveniences she was used to. Like electricity, food that they didn't have to kill, salt and pepper to make that food more palatable, toilet paper, chocolate, toothpaste, refrigerators…and hot running water.

Realizing that she wouldn't be able to stay in the tub forever, she sat up, reaching for the scrubby and gel. Squeezing an ample portion onto the ball of blue netting she worked it into a rich lather, breathing deep to sample the scent. It smelled like salt and fresh air. And a nice change from the vanilla scent Daniel usually preferred. She brought one leg out of the water and used the scrubby to methodically cleanse it. Squinting, she set down the scrubby and ran her fingers over her legs. Shuddering, she reached for Daniel's razor and efficiently shaved her leg, making a face at the hair-studded foam that she knocked into the water.

She exchanged the razor for the scrubby and lathered up her other leg. Shaving it as well, she turned the razor to her armpits. Thank God she hadn't been wearing a tank top or she could have given Teal'c a run for his money.

She swished the razor in the water to clean the blades and swapped it for the scrubby again. She scrubbed her arms, chest and face, twisting around a bit to get her back. Satisfied that she was at least presentably clean, she splashed off the lather and rinsed out the scrubby, sticking it to the outside of the tub. She reached back and flipped on the switch that activated the jets, transforming her bathtub into a nice government issue hot tub.

She closed her eyes and leaned back, tuning out all but the sounds of the water. She could feel the jets of water massaging her legs, the pressure making them float towards the surface. She sighed, taking the warm moist air deep into her lungs. Her bath salts, that's what was missing. The scented salts she put into the bathtub each night when she was at home. She'd found only one place to get them, the yearly Renaissance Festival. She'd stumbled across the stall a few years ago when she'd first returned to Colorado Springs. She'd gotten so hooked on them that she attended the festival each year, mainly to stock up on as many pounds of the stuff that she could carry. She didn't have only one scent, but a variety. Something for each mood.

The Celtic Mystery scent was the one she used when she needed a pick up, the fresh aroma serving to awaken her senses. The Heather kind was what she used at 0200 when insomnia struck and she needed to relax. And the Rose, that's what she used on those days when she wanted to be reminded that she wasn't one of the guys.

Her teammates were good; she had to admit that. They all knew how to skate that fine line between respecting her privacy without excluding her from things, maybe it was because they'd all been married. They accepted that there were times when she just couldn't compete with them, especially in the strength area, but they didn't resent the fact, they just came up with ways to accommodate their differences. It didn't matter that she couldn't bench press as much as Teal'c, as long as she could fix the DHD when needed.

She felt comfortable with these guys; more comfortable than she had with anyone else she'd served with. The colonel may hide behind sarcastic one liners, but she knew that the respect she felt for him was mutual. The same was true of Teal'c. She owed him a debt she didn't think she could ever repay. After Jolinar, he'd been one of the first of her friends to talk about what had happened and offer to help her understand it all.

She'd felt so isolated then, not just reeling from what had happened but aware that it had effected the others as well. For a short period of time, she'd become everything the colonel hated. For a while she'd been afraid that his hatred of the goa'uld had extended to her. And for Daniel…she was a living reminder of what Shau'ri was going through. Teal'c was the only one who'd heard of the Tok'ra, and the only one to encourage her to explore those memories instead of burying them. For better or worse, that exploration had led them to the Tok'ra and saved her dad's life.

Once they'd gotten over the tenseness, she and Daniel had talked, truly, honestly talked. He had been almost desperate for knowledge of what it'd been like to be blended. He'd accepted her for what she was without judging her for what she'd become.

Janet was one of the best friends she'd ever had, their relationship with Cassie giving them a unique common ground. When the doctor had first adopted the little girl, she'd been afraid the relationship would be tense. It was hard enough becoming a mother to a teenage girl overnight, without the added stress of a secondary mother figure in the picture. Sam had been prepared to keep her distance…but hadn't needed to. Janet welcomed the help and even encouraged the friendship between her and Cassie to grow.

General Hammond was one of the best base commanders she'd ever served under. No matter how harrowing the mission, the second she heard 'welcome home SG-1' in that drawl of his, she knew she was home.

People teased her about spending so much time at the mountain. She had a nice house, why didn't she go there and spend some time. Maybe find herself a guy. What they didn't realize was that when she was at the mountain, she WAS home. True, it was a little tighter on the home security front than normal but…it was home to her.

She was doing things that other astrophysicists only dream of. They could sit at their computers and work on simulated models; she got to go play on alien planets. It did sorta suck not to be able to tell anyone what she knew, like when Hailey thought the wormhole went both ways, but considering the trade off was to be one of the first people from Earth to set foot on a planet that existed only in theory, it was worth it.

Not only did she have the best toys, but she got to hang around with three fantastic older brothers, a woman that was like the sister she'd never had and a leader who might look gruff but she knew to be a marshmallow inside. The base wasn't just work, it was home. Oddly enough, she felt safe here. It really didn't have anything to do with the squadron of Marines at the front gate but more to do with who else was here with her. She trusted these guys implicitly. She knew they'd give their lives to keep her safe, just like she would for them.

A knock on the door startled her and she jerked upright in the tub, splashing water over the edge. "Major Carter, are you in there?" She heard Sargent Siler call.

Shaking her head to clear the cobwebs she realized that she'd nearly dozed off in the tub. "Sargent, is something wrong?" She called, turning off the jets of water.

"Major Davis called, they retrieved some replicator tiles from the crash site and he's sending them over. He thought you'd like to have a look at them," she heard, his voice muffled through the locked door.

They'd gotten some replicator pieces? Wow. Her mind began to race. If they could figure out how the individual pieces worked and attained cohesion, then maybe they could find a way to disrupt that cohesion. And since the tiles were harmless when they were separated from the rest…maybe they could figure out how to destroy them once and for all.

"Yeah, definitely. I'll be right out, Sargent," she yelled, reaching down to pull the plug on the tub. She grabbed her towel and quickly dried off as she hurried back to the locker room. Pulling a clean set of underwear out of the locker she slid them on, followed by her fatigues. Grimacing as her wet hair dampened her collar she reached for the towel. Realizing that hers was too wet to adequately dry her hair, she crossed to Daniel's locker and borrowed his. It was just water after all, nice clean water off nice clean hair.

She tossed the towel aside, running a comb through her hair. "My mama don't work her either," she muttered, frowning at the piles of dirty clothes. She should straighten things up a bit.

"Major, he's here," Siler called, knocking on the locker room door.

Eager to study the replicators, and having no idea how long she'd be able to keep them before Area 51 demanded they be sent there, she hurriedly tossed Daniel's towel into the bottom of his locker and left the room. She'd just take a break and clean up in a little while.

~Fin~

Feedback: sky_diver119@yahoo.com