Grace

Grace by Jo Wilson 

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Stargate, MGM or any of its affiliates. No disrespect is intended to anyone...SG1 just wanted to come and play with me for a little while...Mum, what do you mean I have to give them back? 

Although the title would suggest this is another take on Grace, it isn't directly. There are some other, minor spoilers but they aren't major. The fic is set in an alternate reality. This is also my first published fanfic. I've written a lot more but I’ve either not been brave enough to publish it or I haven't finished it...the latter is probably more accurate hehe. I just hope it lives up to some of the fantastic fics I've read over the last few years. Feedback is welcome and any hints and tips would be great. 

Please Note: The girl in this story is chronologically 18 years old. The alternate ALTERNATE Cam in this is 22 years old. Hope this clears up any issues : )  

Thanks Jo xxx 

SG1 were sat waiting in the briefing room for General Hammond. Two hours beforehand, they had received a radio communication from an alternate SGC. The voice belonged to a young woman. She'd sounded frightened and desperate so General Hammond had ordered the iris be opened to allow her to come through. A few moments later, the young woman rematerialised through the wormhole and collapsed onto the ramp. She'd been badly wounded and was struggling to breathe as Janet and her team rushed her to the Infirmary. However, neither she nor SG1 knew what they we're letting themselves in for... Colonel Jack O’Neill sat up straighter when General Hammond walked into the briefing room. ''At ease people...Dr Jackson, how are you feeling today?'' A few days before, SG1 had visited a planet with some particularly potent plant life. Daniel had barely stopped sneezing since the moment they'd stepped through the gate. ''Err...the antihistamines have just about kicked in now General, I shouldn't have anymore trouble'' Just as he'd finished his sentence, he sneezed loudly. Jack decided to totally ignore his friends plight and said ''General Sir,any more news on the girl who came through the gate?'' ''Not much son, she had no identification...no nothing. All we can tell is that she's been shot with an energy weapon of some type'' ''A staff weapon?'' Sam said.''That's what Dr Fraiser suspects but we can't be sure if herinjuries were caused by a Goa'uld staff weapon or an Ori staffweapon'' ''How bad are her wounds?'' Daniel asked. ''I think we've seen a lot worse. Dr Fraiser is confident that she should make a full recovery. She is going to need some physical therapy though. We think she's had an old injury...a condition actually that's been aggravated by her current injuries'' ''What kind of injury?'' Jack asked. ''Dr Fraiser believes that she has Patella Femoral Pain Syndrome.Kala suffers from the same condition'' ''So this girl is your granddaughter?'' Vala asked with a child like curiosity.General Hammond smiled softly ''When Dr Fraiser said about her knee condition, I thought that too'' ''Have we any clue to this girl's identity Sir?'' Captain Cam Mitchell asked. Expecting him to say no, SG1 were shocked when he said ''Yes;'' he cleared his throat and said ''This girl has three distinguishing features'' ''Which are?'' Jack questioned. ''Blonde hair, Brown eyes and the Ancient gene'' ''And?'' Jack asked. He was totally oblivious. ''Dr Fraiser thinks this girl is the daughter of an alternate Colonel O’Neill and Major Carter'' Hammond let that sink in for a moment. He smirked at the look on his two top officers faces. ''What the? That's not possible'' choked Jack. ''She's OUR daughter Sir?'' Sam looked very shocked. ''As I said previously, this is what Dr Fraiser has come to believe. She's running a DNA test now but in my own personal opinion...it seems highly likely that this girl is indeed your child'' This statement only served to infuriate Jack even further ''And just what in God's name has led you to this conclusion?'' ''I heard her say something to Dr Fraiser just before she sedated her'' ''Which was?'' Jack enquired testily. ''Damn you Napoleon...get away from me with those damn needles'' Daniel and Vala laughed at this particular snippet of information whilst Cam smirked broadly. The look on Jack and Sam's faces quickly stopped them. ''General, if she's our daughter then that means their timeline is different...how old is she?'' ''Dr Fraiser thinks she's about 17 or 18...maybe older'' ''Why is this important Major?'' Jack asked. ''Like in our alternate timeline where we went to get the ZPM, then our other alternate selves went back in time to sort out what the original us screwed up which meant we didn't have to do it maybe there is a difference in her timeline'' ''The fact she exists is a bit of a giveaway'' Jack said dryly. ''No, Sam's onto something;'' Daniel said quickly ''Her existence means that something’s different. Not just the fact that you and Sam were together in some shape or form in her reality but there could well be giant differences in our timelines which could well be to our advantage'' An airmen then came in ''General Hammond Sir. The girl's awake'' The group quickly stood and left. When they arrived at their destination, they heard the girl talking quietly to Janet. 'It was horrible. Everyone was dead...dying. That was the worst. The one's who were dying made so much noise...it made me ill' 'Ill how?' 'I have the ability to hear people's thoughts...see people's dreams. There were so many dying I couldn't handle it. The dead weren't an issue. Oma handled them for me but the rest...' 'What happened?' 'The Ori attacked again. Adria's been trying to have me killed for months...ever since she knew I had the same abilities as her' 'Abilities?' 'Anything she can do, I can do. Unlike Adria though, I can control my abilities. She could too but she doesn't want to' 'When were you born?' 'Friday the 13th of October 2006. Creepy huh especially considering I was altered by the Asgard in the same way Adria was by the Ori' 'You were altered by the Asgard as a baby?' 'I was created by the Asgard...turns out I'm the next stage in evolution...' 'Who were your parents?' 'General Jack O’Neill and Colonel Samantha Carter. The Asgard told my father when his clone was created that he was only part of the missing link they were looking for...turns out my mother was the bit they were missing' 'So?' 'Loki kidnapped my mum and dad. When they came back, they couldn't remember a damn thing. Two months later, she found out she was pregnant. You, in my reality, put two and two together and went to Hammond. Hammond went berserk as he instantly assumed they'd broken the frat regs of their own accord and although he didn't report them at first, he reported them when his granddaughter Kala let it slip at Cadets and he got Woolsey and three JAG officers baying for his blood. Naturally, no one believed your theory because they just thought you were covering for them and it wasn't till Thor showed up and explained what had happened that they were cleared' 'Were they court martialled?' 'Almost. Thor showed up the morning the court martial was meant to start. If they had been court martialled, your career and theirs would have been over if the prosecution had gotten away with the bull they were going to use against you' 'What kind of bull?' 'One intriguing theory they came up with was that you and my mum were in some illicit relationship and that my mum had gotten pregnant in an attempt to cover it up so to speak. That theory is full of holes anyway. They also tried using the fact my mum was very close to Cassie to back up the previously mentioned theory' 'They were going to say we were in some kind of lesbian relationship?' 'Yep. Pathetic isn't it. I mean, they seriously think someone would be dumb enough to cover up a forbidden lesbian relationship by getting pregnant with their CO's baby...come on' 'Talk about a Catch 22' 'That's what I said. I remember reading the case files. Hilarious' 'Was that the only theory they had?' 'No. There was an even better one. They were going to try and bully my mum into saying that my dad had attacked her. Told her it'd save her career' 'And I bet your mum told them to...' 'Shove it up their ass. She was six months pregnant with me at the time so her hormones were all over the place. According to my Daniel, she'd be hysterical one minute, giggling the next or threatening to remove certain parts of my Dad's anatomy without anaesthetic...apparently my mum is very amusing pregnant' 'I can't say I'd know. By the way, I haven't asked you your name...' 'Grace Catherine Carter O’Neill. Mum wanted Grace. Dad wantedCatherine and they couldn't agree on whose surname to give me' 'What were your parents like?' 'For parents, I couldn't complain. I couldn't go to school as I pose too much of a security risk so various members of the SGC taught me. Because of my abilities I'm able to absorb information quickly...but despite this I still forget things' 'Like what exactly?' 'When I have to clean my room is a big one. I'm not very tidy I'm afraid. Dad was convinced I was running a bacteria farm in his Homer Simpson mug at one point. I also have a tendency to...erm...' 'Be economical with the truth?' 'Yeah...that normally comes into play when Cam and Vala want to take me out drinking all night' 'Cam and Vala take you out drinking?' 'Yep. Cam and I were buddies and Vala deemed me her baby sister' 'Baby sister?' 'Vala wanted a baby sister when she was a kid. Vala was an only child so I'm, or at least, I was the closest thing she had' 'Was I involved with anyone in your reality?' 'You and Daniel got married on my 'first' birthday. Cassie and me were bridesmaids. You forced me to wear pink...I wasn't happy' 'Me and Daniel got MARRIED?' 'Yep. Dad was best man. Mum was maid of honour' 'Wow...did your parents marry?' 'Kinda. They had a blessing done by the Nox just after I was born. The Nox came to bless me and they blessed mum and dad's union as parents and as a couple' 'I hope you don't mind but I've asked General Hammond and SG1 to come to the Infirmary and see you...are you okay with that?' 'Yeah sure. More the merrier I always say'. General Hammond led his flagship team into the Infirmary wherethe girl was sat up in bed. She looked battered and bruised but she had an infectious smile.''Hi;'' said Vala cheerfully, bouncing onto the end of the bed ''Do I really take you out drinking all night where you’re from?'' ''Yep. I can't say I remember much about our nights out...it's even worse when Cam comes with us'' she smirked.''I wouldn't take an underage girl out drinking. I could lose my job'' ''In my reality, you no longer work for the Air Force. You were badly injured in the first Ori attack saving my life. You were dismissed under medical grounds'' ''How badly was I injured?'' ''Real bad. They were trying to kill me but you got in the way. You took a direct hit to the stomach which left you with massive internal injuries. They then smashed your head in, causing huge levels of inter cranial pressure and several bleeds on the brain. I decided to play dead until they left then I nearly died trying to save your life'' ''You have healing abilities too?'' asked Janet. ''Yes. It takes a while for it to work if I'm injured though'' Jack and Sam had both stayed silent. They were overwhelmed by what had happened...what they were seeing. Neither one of them could believe that this beautiful, clever, funny young woman was their little girl. Grace then said ''Hey Mum Two and Dad Two. I'm Grace'' ''Hi Grace'' Jack smiled at the smaller blonde. ''Hey'' Sam said quietly. ''How are you feeling Grace?'' Hammond asked. ''Okay. I know what your gonna ask by the way Dad'' Jack was shocked at how easily the girl had taken to calling him 'Dad'. 'Well, why shouldn't she? She's your little girl' he thought. ''What was I thinking then?'' ''Well your first question seems to be since I have healing powers how come I still have my knee problem and your second question is how come I find it so easy to call you Dad. Answer to the first question is my self-healing powers only cope with major trauma and first aid injuries such as sprained ankles and wrists. I didn't realise I even HAD a problem with my knee for several months after the initial incident. Answer to the second question is regardless of what reality I'm in your still my daddy just like Sam is still my mummy'' ''Do you have any preferences for what you like to be called?'' Sam asked. ''Grace...Gracie...Gracie pie...Princess...Evil Little Monster...you know, all the usual stuff. You used to call me Gracie'' ''You seem to be a Gracie'' Sam smiled. ''That's what Dad always said...I'm guessing you and dad aren't together?'' ''Don't you know that already?'' Jack said dryly. ''I can choose when I want to read someone’s mind. I don't do it all the time coz' I get poorly'' she said, biting the top of her thumb like a small child who'd been scolded. ''Well Grace;'' General Hammond began ''Can you tell us exactly what happened in your reality? We heard some of your conversation with Dr Fraiser but we need to know everything'' ''Fair one. Three days ago, an Ori battleship was seen entering our solar system so Prometheus went in to intercept them...problem was they had FOUR fleets cloaked in various locations around the one battleship we knew about. Needless to say, Prometheus was destroyed taking all 200 odd crew with it. Shortly after that I started getting headaches then the voices started...the crew of the Prometheus were all trying to communicate through me. That's when Oma turned up and told me to block out their voices...said I had one great big honking problem to deal with and that I didn't need a bunch of flambéed Air Force personnel on my back so to speak'' ''Oma actually said that?'' Daniel said, eyebrow raised. ''Well, not exactly but that was the jist of it...will you just please let me finish Daniel?'' she replied in a tone they were more accustomed to hearing from Jack. ''Continue'' smiled Hammond. ''Right. As I was saying, I was about to ask Oma what the heck she was on about when we receive a message from the supremeleader of the Ori fleet herself. She said that if they handed me over that she'd leave Earth alone. By then I'd established a link with her and I knew for sure that she was bullshitting and told them 'I'd go but she's lying so I won't'. She got all pissed off and sulky and sent the first wave of attack ships. We'd put the nukes into ready mode and everything but it was too late by then. They took out the small towns first...it was genius really'' ''How'd you figure that?'' Cam asked. ''Think about it. Small towns have very limited emergency services which in turn means the larger towns will send some of their facilities in to help which leaves them vulnerable to attack. As disturbing as it is, you can't help but think of the strategic advantage they got by doing it like that;'' as much as it bothered them, they could see her point of view ''Anyway, Adria then decided that if she was going to go all the way with her plan, she sent in ALL her troops...over five hundred thousand dead in four hours. Then they hit the mountain, our guys tried their best but most of them didn't know what they were dealing with. You guys wanted me to leave as soon as they breached the blast doors on the surface but I stayed. I wanted to fight alongside everyone else but I got told in no uncertain terms by my mum and dad that I wasn't going anywhere except through the gate to safety. I asked if I could at least try and help our Janet in the Infirmary. They agreed but sent an airmen with me to ensure I didn't go walkabouts...first chance I got I knocked him unconscious, put his body in a storage closet and went to the closest armoury. I figured even though I could use my abilities against them there was no way in hell I was going to go in unarmed. I might be blonde but I'm not stupid'' ''Then what happened?'' ''I figured I'd try and get to the top levels, take some pressure off the poor barstards there and also so that the guys on the lower levels wouldn't have so many troops to contend with. I'd just got to level 16 when this arm grabs me and slams me up against a wall. Next thing I know, Cam's breathing down my neck and he was really mad. He had his hands round my throat and said 'What the fuck do you think your playing at?'. I mean, I was petrified. I'd never seen him like it and I actually thought I was going to black out at one point because he pressing my windpipe so hard I started seeing black spots. I tried getting him off me but he'd put his knee in my back and he told me if I didn't tell him right there what I was doing, he'd snap my spine no matter how much he lo...cared about me. I told him I was trying to help but he wouldn't listen. I was sobbing by this point and he covered my mouth with one hand whilst he said 'I'm not watching you die. Get your sorry ass back to the debriefing room now'. He then let me go and walked away...I don't know if he's dead or what. All I knew was that by the time I got near level 28, Adria's troops were there and they were looking for me.I hid for about quarter of an hour but doing that meant I was paying attention to the voices of those dead and dying around me. I lost it. Totally gave my position away because I started screaming. They took me to the briefing room where they'd already killed Hammond, Janet was dying, Daniel was dead...and they told me I had to choose who died next. My mum or my dad'' SG1 were shocked by what they'd heard, but Jack seemed to be the only one who'd picked up on her little slip up about Cam. ''Did you choose?'' asked Vala quietly. ''Yes. Dad was already badly injured. He wasn't making any noise or anything. Classic signs of critical injury so I told them to kill my own father. Figured I might be able to bargain for my mum's life...I asked them if they'd at least have the decency to speak to my mum alone for a moment...one of the guards was Vala's ex. He said they'd leave us for 2 minutes and stand by the steps. I killed them both...I created a psychic link with them and made their brains explode. I grabbed Mum, told her we were leaving. She just nodded. We both knew that she wasn't going to leave the mountain. I got the gate open, sent you my message. That's when I went to grab Mum again. Found her slumped over the control panel and a load of Ori troops on my ass. I didn't think. I just ran. I only remember being hit once because I blanked out the rest. Knew I had to concentrate on getting out alive...Ironic really. I never used to listen to Cam'' she then sighed sadly. ''That's a lot to cope with Grace...it sounds like a lot of peoplecared about you'' Jack stated gently. ''I was fortunate to have what I had. In some ways I feel sorry for Adria because she didn't have the support of a loving environment like I did...I felt even sorrier for Vala though. She hated the thought that she'd given birth to a monster as she put it...Cam thought it was why Vala doted on me so much'' ''You and Cam were close I take it...'' Jack pushed.They all saw how flushed she got ''Erm...yeah. A bit...my Cam wasyounger than yours...he was only 22'' ''You were a lot closer than you should have been weren't you?'' ''No closer than you and my mum before you got together;'' she snapped defensively ''We never did anything against the rules. We knew how we felt and we knew that's as far as it could go okay?'' At this point Janet stepped in ''I think that's enough for one day. My patient needs rest'' ''But...!'' Jack argued back.''No buts Colonel. Grace needs rest. You can talk to her in the morning IF she feels up to it'' Being a mother to Cassie had made her more aware of how teenagers worked...even if they were genetically enhanced super kids and she knew that Jack had hit a sore spot by mentioning the girl's version of Cam. However, even she didn't see the girl crying herself to sleep whilst she looked at a photograph of her and her Cam... The next morning, Janet went to see how her patient was doing. She went to check her vitals when she saw the photograph lying on the pillow beside Grace's head. She gently picked the photo up and looked at it. Grace was wearing a beautiful blue dress that complimented her pale skin whilst a much younger looking Cam stood behind her, one arm around her waist, wearing a blue suit, light blue shirt and a dark blue tie that was tied loosely. She turned it over and read the inscription which was written in Cam's unmistakable scrawl 'To the most beautiful woman I know. You looked incredible that night and I will NEVER forget what happened after. You were amazing...you are amazing and I just want to tell you that whatever happens I'm always here for you. I can't wait for us to start our life together with our baby. It won't be easy honey but we'll cope. All my love always Cam x'. Janet was in shock; she hadn't expected this at all. She wasn't even sure if the baby had survived at all. None of the tests she'd ran had shown anything out of the ordinary either which only served to worry her further. She'd been sat in stunned silence for quite some time when Grace awoke.''Hey. Morning'' Grace smiled.''Morning honey...look I know this a bit abrupt but is there any chance that you could be pregnant? Your not in trouble, I just really need to know so that I can check you over again'' Janet rushed. Grace's smile faltered and she looked at the photo Janet held in her hands. ''I found out two weeks after that photo was taken. The night Cam hints at in his note is the night I conceived. Normal contraceptives don't work on me because of my advanced physiology and we got caught up in the heat of the moment. Foolish I know but we both knew what we were doing and Cam told me he'd wait forever if he had to. I don't know but I had a gut feeling that we may not have had much time left together. It wasn't anything to do with my abilities either...I just knew'' ''Was Cam happy about the baby?'' ''He was ecstatic. He even said to me after we...ya know that night that he wanted kids and that he'd be over the moon if we'd managed it on the first go so to speak. It was almost like he knew...I think that's why he got so worked up about what I did during the attack but in turn I knew that our baby would be okay regardless of what I did'' ''He tried to strangle you...'' ''Okay. I did get quite frightened when he did that but I'm sure I felt the baby kicking me when he did that as if to say 'Hey Mummy. I'm okay. I love you.' kind of thing. Pathetic I know but I also know that all Cam wanted was to save me and the baby even if it meant dying himself and for that I can't help but fall in love with him all over again. Knowing he loved me...us enough to do that was a terrifying yet incredible feeling...that probably makes no sense whatsoever but I know in my heart that my baby is okay and it's because of the love and trust Cam and I shared'' ''Did anyone else know?'' ''No but I think my dad suspected something because he started asking if I was okay all the time or if I needed anything. If I dozed off on the couch he'd cover me up with the afghan or if I looked 'peaky' he'd make me a cup of tea with three sugars'' ''Bad for your teeth young lady'' Janet warned jokingly. ''Thing was, as soon as I knew I was pregnant he started bringing me tea in the morning instead of my normal black coffee with four sugars. It was a little ritual he had, bringing me coffee. Sometimes he'd bring me chocolate biscuits too or he'd bring his coffee, a couple of dohnuts and the paper and we'd fight over who was doing the crossword. We left the sudoku to mum though because despite my enhanced brain sudoku just plain confuses me and dad doesn't even know where to start...well, he didn't know where to start at least'' Janet smiled softly and stood ''I'd like to run some tests on you and the baby later but for now, just get some more rest'' ''Okay. Night night Napoleon'' Janet watched as the girl buried her head under the covers and she couldn't help but think how Sam did the same thing... That's when Janet's mind began to work over time. How was she going to tell Sam and Jack that their 'daughter' was pregnant. How was she going to tell Hammond. Even worse, how was she going to tell Cam. Stressed, Janet tucked the blankets around the girl's still frame a little tighter totally unaware that Jack O’Neill had heard every word... TBC.