By Karen T
© June 2007
Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me.
Spoilers: Set some time in S8.
Notes: Written for samcarter_gen challenge #3: gravity. Thanks to Michelle for supplying me with the summary line and poking at the fic for me.
Sam's noticed that many within the SGC like to use signs to dissuade people from entering their offices. Dr. Raymond, for example, has 'Experiment in progress -- Do NOT enter' taped to his closed lab door more often than not. But considering the progress, or lack thereof, of his projects, Sam's left to assume the sign is simply there to act as a deterrent to visitors.
Back when Teal'c had a symbiote, he would simply tape a 'Kelno'reem' sign to the door of his quarters and no one would think twice of knocking. She still suspects he never kelno'reem-ed half as much as his sign led people to believe. (And she wonders if he sometimes misses his symbiote for the built-in 'leave me alone' excuse it provided him.)
She's even noticed that General O'Neill has taken to posting signs on his closed office door. The one he seems to use most often says 'PAPERWORK' in big, black letters. People have learned to steer clear of his office when that sign is up.
But Sam doesn't believe in using signs. Her door is always open -- both figuratively and literally. And when she is running an experiment, she keeps an eye on her doorway for incoming visitors so she can yell out any necessary warnings. Yes, this has caused a few close calls, but no one's been worse for the wear. (Siler's broken nose did eventually heal, thank you very much.) It's important to Sam that she remains accessible.
And this is why she finds General O'Neill's latest memo particularly grievous.
"Sir!" she says, marching into his office without waiting for him to acknowledge her presence. He lifts an eyebrow at her abrupt entrance but doesn't say anything, so she presses on by waving around the paper in her hand. "Is this absolutely necessary?"
General O'Neill doesn't miss a beat. "Yes."
"It doesn't seem a little heavy-handed to you?"
"No."
"Sir, this is completely--"
"I could've been killed, Carter!" he proclaims.
Now it's Sam's turn to lift an eyebrow. "Killed," she parrots in a bemused deadpan.
"Yes, killed. You could have killed a United States general."
It takes everything within her not to smirk as she asks, "Isn't that a slight exaggeration, sir?"
"No, Carter, I really don't think it is," he insists, and that again forces her to swallow a smirk.
"But you know I don't like to use signs."
"Yes, I do, but trust me, Carter, no one's gonna hold a sign or two against you."
"But," she continues arguing, wrinkling her nose in distaste, "I honestly don't think--"
Holding up his hand, General O'Neill brings their 'discussion' to an end by saying, "One sign, Carter. That's all I want. Just the one sign whenever you play around with that anti-gravity ... doohickey."
At the mention of her latest 'toy' and the general's unfortunate run-in with it yesterday morning, Sam's unable to hold back that smirk any longer. "You really submitted formal paperwork just to get me to put up a sign the next time I work on that device?"
"Yes!" he yelps, his voice jumping up an octave. "My life flashed before my eyes when my feet were swept out from under me!"
She barely hears his "It's not funny, Carter!" over her laughter.
Oh, this is worth having to use a sign, she decides. Just wait until she tells Daniel.
-the end-
Full prompt: "We can lick gravity, but sometimes the paperwork is overwhelming." --Wernher Von Braun
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