Author's Note: after snow here in the north east UK (Feb03), and trying not to slip on the ice and get hurt, which got me thinking about jack and skating and wanting to make him hurt instead and then this plot bunny went evil . Thanks to Tigger as always for the support and to the Jackfic/medical list for details and to Ruralstar for betaing and making sense of it all. I'll shut up now. Feedback please. Mostly written during Feb 2003 and finished 11 June 2004 .
Ice lessons
Colonel Jack O'Neill wondered if this was really such a good idea, as he drove to the ice rink- especially after what he'd just been through. But as he glanced over at Cassie's delighted smile, he realized that he'd made her day and there was no way he was going to back out now. He was determined to make the most out of the impromptu afternoon off for both of them.
Besides they'd all missed Cassie's birthday whilst being in the clutches of Hathor for several weeks. He couldn't suppress the involuntary shudder and then realized that the truck had veered off to one side as he found his hand automatically rubbing at the scar at the back of his neck where the snake had gone in. He swallowed hard, cleared his throat and put his hand back on the wheel.
“Jack?” she glanced over at him, wondering again about the small red disc shaped scar on his right temple.
“It's ok, Cassie.”
*I'm not cold, I'm not cold* he told himself furiously. * The sun is shining, it is hot, it was hot- really hot*
At last they arrived. Cassie got out immediately; then Jack got out and looked around the parking lot, and wiped the sweat off his forehead.
“Are you alright Jack?”
“Yeah fine Cassie.”
“Why couldn't Janet come pick me up?”
“She had an emergency, I left her a message. Besides I'd much rather be with you than at work” he smiled at her as he locked the truck.
“Are you supposed to be at work Jack? You mean you didn't have the afternoon off?” she asked concern creasing her face
“Not exactly. I mean I've been away for weeks- they let me out today. I missed your birthday. So are you looking forward to your surprise?” he asked
“Well, I have an idea, cause we're at the skating rink!”
“Ah, so that's where we are! I knew you were a smart kid!” and he ruffled her hair as they moved off towards the entrance his other arm round her shoulders.
They didn't notice the group of three high school students watching them closely. They were parked two cars over from Jack and had heard their conversation.
Jack and Cassie made their way into the foyer of the rink. He paid the entrance fee and the skate rental. Cassie waited patiently while he persuaded the attendant to find a pair of hockey skates for him. No way was he wearing the other sort. They made their way to the side of the rink weaving their way through food stands and put on the skates, leaving their own shoes in lockers rink side.
“Can we go on now, Jack? Please?”
“Let me check you've done up those skates properly first.”
Cassie couldn't wait to get on the ice. Although she hadn't done a lot of skating, she * was* getting better. Jack was a patient teacher, but he was also a lot of fun too. She loved the feel of the crisp air rushing through her hair as he whirled her about the ice. She also liked to watch him skating on his own- it wasn't often anyone saw him really relax and enjoy himself.
“Ok you're good to go.”
She started towards the gate onto the rink
“Ah ah ah” he warned her waving his hand in front of her face
“Just give me a few minutes. I want to warm up a bit before you get on here and drag me all over the place.”
He eased himself onto the ice, checking the skates were gliding smoothly. He moved round the edge of the rink, sure and graceful, gradually picking up speed until he was happy his muscles were warmed up. These weren't his own hockey skates and he had to be sure he was used to them. Nevertheless he managed to halt in a fine spray of ice next to Cassie. He opened the gate and held out his hands for her to hold onto as she stepped onto the ice.
“Ok kiddo?”
“Of course.”
“You know the routine. We'll go round- get you warmed up and used to the feel of everything. Then see how you do.”
At this time of the afternoon mid week there weren't many people in the rink, the students were now on the ice as well as one or two families.
“This really was a surprise thing wasn't it?” asked Cassie as she slowly made her way round the side of the rink. Her hand firmly in his hand as he skated backwards gently pulling her along.
“What do you mean?” he asked
“You usually bring your own skates if you can, which means you didn't know we were going to do this, or have time to go home first.” she explained
“I said it was a surprise! And Janet really does have an emergency. I left a message for her to come by later if she can make it. We'll see about dinner as well.”
“So…” she prompted
“What?”
“So what were you supposed to be doing at work but had to leave to get me?”
“Oh that! I was in the neighborhood and I needed some fresh air”
“Hmm”
*Does she know she sounds just like the Doc when she does that?* he wondered.
“I hate paperwork. I'm not getting all my memos- did you know that?” he said with a mock serious face.
“Anyway I thought if I left this one report til later I'd feel like actually doing it- some other time - when I can get my head round it. Just...just not at the moment.” he tried to explain, wincing at the phrase he'd just used. Precisely the reason he couldn't write out what had happened to him, no- all of them at the fake SGC. He shivered. * Why am I trying to justify myself to a 13 year old anyway?*
Cassie was staring at him “I thought you'd be hot by now. You can let go Jack, I want do this on my own.”
He let go and swiveled round so that he was skating along side her. She was doing great. Not exactly neat but slow and sure.
“This is * so* cool!” she laughed
“It is, isn't it.” he agreed smiling at her joy at something so simple.
“Thanks Jack.”
“Don't mention it. I'm kidding!” he laughed as he saw her startled expression.
He slowed down and let Cassie go on at her own pace. Gaining in confidence she managed to skate in circles around him before darting off to carefully weave her way round the other people on the rink.
Jack watched her proudly. He was happy for her- he truly was- it was just that at times like this being with Cassie was a double edged painful sword. A part of him wanted her to be Charlie skating round the rink, playing hockey together, dad stuff. He took a deep breath to compose himself and bent down to check his skates again.
He looked up sharply as he heard a commotion. Cassie was down!
*Shit, I should have been watching! I should have stayed with her!* The Doc was going to have his hide for this if she was hurt. Big needles in the butt would only be the beginning…
Quickly he skated over to where she lay sprawled on the ice and knelt down, his crappy knees were just going to have to live with this. One of the students was down too.
“Cassie! God are you hurt? Talk to me!” his hand reached out to cradle the side of her face.
“Quit worrying Jack. I'm ok honestly. I didn't look and bumped into someone else.”
“Don't be hard on her, it was my fault. I turned round and there she was I couldn't avoid her.” said the young man.
“Let me help you up.” he offered reaching over to Cassie.
“No, it's ok I've got it, thanks.” replied Jack as he hauled Cassie upright again and dusted her off.
“At least I didn't land on my face. It coulda been worse.” she grinned up at him
“Yeah, worse, right.”
Jack had forgotten how easily kids shrugged things off. She didn't seem bothered at all. It was him that had forgotten to breathe. Some kids just bounced right back. * and some don't * the nasty part of his brain said.
“Ah- how about a break, then we can have another go. Up to you- whatever you want.” he suggested
“I'd like to stay on a while longer; we haven't been on that long. Besides I need to get back on the horse, right?” she decided firmly.
“Who made you so smart? Can't be hanging around with me that's for sure!”
She giggled at him and they moved off together.
After another twenty minutes or so Cassie had had enough. Jack was glad for a break too. They skated over to the side where their lockers were and carefully clumped their way to one of the food stands. They bought milkshakes, compared milk moustaches and had a competition to see who could make the most noise with the straw. Serious business over, Jack excused himself for a few minutes.
Cassie sat with her booted feet on the opposite chair toying with the straw in the glass. Suddenly a voice from the side rail made her turn around. It was the guy who she'd bumped into and his two friends.
“Hi there, my name's Rob and these are Willard and Denny.” he said as the others nodded at her.
“Hello, I'm Cassie.” she replied cautiously.
“He left you all alone?”
“Men's room I guess.”
“So what's with the old guy?”
“Jack?” she never thought of him as old- he was just Jack.
“Yeah, if that's his name.”
“He's a friend. Like an honorary dad.” she couldn't understand what the problem was.
“Is that right?”
“Yes ,what's it to you?”
“You come here a lot with him?”
“Not as often as he'd like. He's away a lot. I haven't seen him for ages.” She didn't understand the look that passed between Rob and the others.
“My teacher got sick at school today and we were sent home early. He snuck out of work to bring me here. Jack said mom couldn't make it * again *.” She continued. It was true she did get tired of her mom's commitment to the base.
“That happens a lot, being on your own?”
“It's ok. I go to friends or…”
“Jack.”
“Yes, how did you guess? There's also Sam, Daniel and…Murray. They…”
“Cassie?” Jack stood behind her; she turned round as his hand rested on her shoulder.
“Everything all right here? Hi, how are you doing? The name's Jack O'Neill.” he introduced himself.
“Cassie, what have I said about talking to people?”
“It's ok I didn't say anything…” Cassie rushed to explain. There was that look again between the trio.
“Sir, we were just checking she was ok. We'll go now. Nice to meetcha Cassie. Take care now.” and they skated off.
Jack stared at them thoughtfully he'd caught the end of the conversation and even he could sense undercurrents. The youngsters seemed to be asking odd questions, why they'd be interested in his whereabouts he didn't have a clue. He didn't know them at all.
He put it out of his mind as they both went back onto the ice, which was the reason they'd come here after all- to blow the cobwebs away and catch up with each other.
The rest of the afternoon passed very quickly with Cassie building up experience on the ice and changing direction and speed. She managed not to get too dizzy when Jack using his height advantage was able to get her to twirl round on the spot like the figure skaters did. After they'd tried playing ‘catch me if you can' she got tired, he tucked her under his arm and gently skated round with him doing most of the work.
“Come on shortstuff, time to pack in for the day.”
“Ok Jack” she'd had a great afternoon so she didn't protest. She was looking forward to her mom turning up and having dinner out. Maybe Sam and the others would come too. Perhaps she'd find out where they'd all been for the last umpteen weeks that had her mom so worried.
“Well that was a lot of fun.” she said with a smile
“Maybe you'd like to try fishing sometime. You've never made it to the cabin have you?”
“There aren't any fish in that lake!”
“Hey, just who have you been talking to?!”Jack protested.
“That's for me to know and you to find out!” she laughed at him.
Cassie sped to the side and made it through the gate first and took off her boots in a flurry, still in her socks she scooted off-sneakers dangling from her hand.
“Back in a minute Jack. I gotta go somewhere!”
“Don't let me stop you! I'll clean up here, meet me out front in ten minutes.”
By the time Jack got to the side of the rink Cassie was nowhere in sight but her boots lay abandoned on the floor.
A voice behind him said “Hey, you dropped something.”
“What?” Jack said as he turned round to be met by a vicious punch in the face. His nose crunched and blood began to drip wetly down his face, even as his feet slipped from under him. Jack fell backwards at an angle his head clipping the side wall. One arm flailed for balance and smacked into the ice.
Pain blossomed in the left side of his head, behind his eyes; his left wrist shot agonizing pain up his arm. He could vaguely see faces peering down at him then it all went black.
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He was *s o* cold, it was freezing.
No * he* was freezing and his head hurt. Hathor! Shit! Snake time! Hadn't he done this already? Talk about déjà vu. That thought snapped his eyes open. *Ow* Bright lights way up in the ceiling, lots and lots of lights.
Smooth cold was seeping through his clothes. Not the Infirmary, not Hathor, then where? Oh yes the ice rink. Cassie!
He put out a hand to sit up- and then wished he hadn't as pain shrieked up his left wrist, up his arm and connected with the dots in front of his eyes.
Crap - that * really* hurt.
His moan and movement signaled to someone that he was awake
“Don't move.”
* What a good idea* his body agreed, but his stupid mouth said otherwise.
“I'm ok just give me a minute.”
“The cops are on their way.”
“Oh God- Cassie!”
“It's okay she's safe, she won't come to any harm now.”
“What? You see who did this?”
“Yes. Me.”
“I don't understand.” he figured it was one of the students, but why?
“It's for your own good. We know who you are, * what* you are. Did you think you'd never get caught? We've been patrolling the schools.”
“Huh.”
“Oh come on. The papers have been full of it for months. 6ft male greying hair, charmer, probably has a cabin or hideaway. Opportunist. Bastard how could you!” this last was punctuated by a swift boot to the ribs.
All he could do was curl up on the ice, trying to figure out what the heck was going on. He was so afraid for Cassie. That was when he realised that when he'd blacked out they'd removed his skates; no wonder he was so cold.
He started to move his legs to get up, but hands grabbed him turned him onto his front, holding his legs down.
“Let me go, dammit.” he ground out.
“No way mister, the cops are coming for you.”
His face was scrunched into the ice, as more hands moved his arms behind his back to stop him from moving. Fighting the pain in his nose and face, not to mention the agony from his wrist- he wasn't going anywhere soon.
Outside a siren wailed and stopped. Doors slammed and several pairs of feet headed towards the rink as he watched blood from his nose pool and freeze on the ice. Not long now he hoped and this could all be cleared up. Radios squawked as the police officers got to the side of the rink.
“Ok which one of you called it in?”
“Me- officer. Rob Ackerly. We made a citizens arrest.”
“Were you not told to wait for the proper authorities, son?”
“He was going to get away with the girl!”
“Everybody just calm down, one at a time.”
“He's got a black truck!”
“Right, we'll check that out as well, now where is he?”
“Down here.” and the officer leant over.
“Jeeze, he's a mess. He put up a fight against you?”
“Um, no that was me. I'm on the boxing team at school.”
“Great just great. I see. Where's the girl now?”
“She's out front with what looks like her mom or a friend who's just arrived- we heard him say he'd be out in 10 minutes so we acted fast, they'll be coming back any minute.”
“Spencer, get Rob here to point out the girl then you're all coming in to make statements and sort this out at the station house- separate cars. We need statements from everybody at the rink this afternoon.” he ordered the second officer.
“Sir? Stay where you are. Those kids are going to let you up, but I'm going to have to handcuff you and search you.”
“I haven't done anything, officer.” Jack stated as he was hauled onto his protesting knees before standing upright. Stiffly he shuffled the two steps off the ice and onto the rubber matting.
“Where's your shoes and wallet sir?”
“Just here.” Jack nodded towards the still open locker where Cassie had left it. The officer put his shoes on the floor for him. Slowly Jack did his shoes up, his wrist complaining about the twisting motion.
“Turn around sir.” he did so and hissed as the cuffs pulled and then snapped tightly round his wrists.
“What?”
“Think I've busted my wrist.”
“Says you, the kid popped one on your nose that's all I can see.” said the officer as he was pulled towards the wall and searched. He fished out his wallet and truck keys
“Colonel O'Neill?” the officer queried reading from his ID card
“Yes that's me. ” why did the guy sound so surprised? Half the town must work in the Mountain.
“Are you going to charge the kid- Rob was it? for assault, because he started it?”
“Well at the moment sir, you are helping us with our enquiries.”
“What enquiries?”
“You were seen acting suspiciously; you match the description of an individual who has been attacking young girls in the county for the past few months. The perpetrator owns a black truck. The kids thought you were going to abduct the girl. We just need to check a few things out.”
“What?! No way! You've made a huge mistake here pal.”
“We'll see back at the station sir. A detective from serious crimes will want to interview you.”
“Hang on, let me call Gen…” he started
“You can make your call later.” the officer interrupted as he led Jack out through the lobby and to the squad car.
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