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Mitchell turned the conversation over in his mind as he made his way back to SGC. He had been in the locker room, unseen by the three guys who had come in.

"Peterson, you’re full of shit!"

"I’m telling you Baker, she’s a dyke!"

Metersky joined in. "I find that hard to believe. She’s gorgeous. A nice heart-shaped ass, tiny waist, and her mouth would be perfect for a blow job!"

Peterson wasn’t going to be put off. "Look, I don’t care how fuckable she is. Have you seen her out with any guys?"

Baker and Metersky shrugged, then shook their heads.

"She hangs out with chicks all the time, she’s turned down all invites by guys to go out. She’s a lesbian, no doubt."

"Just because we haven’t seen her go out on a date with anyone doesn’t mean she’s a lesbian. You’ve seen how hard she’s been working with Doctor Jackson." Baker argued.

Mitchell had been lacing up his boots, but froze when he heard what Baker had said.

"A looker like that, I don’t care how busy, would be getting it steady from some guy if she wasn’t a dyke. I’m still trying to figure out how in the hell she managed to get assigned to SG-7. That’s a bunch of bullshit."

Baker wasn’t going to let that slide. "The only bullshit in that is you Peterson. Jackson gave her the stamp of approval, and there’s no way in hell Mitchell would’ve taken her on unless she was capable enough to be part of the team."

Mitchell heard the closing of locker doors, and the men’s voices faded as they left. He had headed out himself not too long after. With that comment about SG-7, there was no doubt they had been talking about Jessie. Looking at the situation objectively, he had to admit Peterson had made some points, at least as far as the lack of male companionship.

He had been driving down Colorado Ave, and slowed for a stoplight. Glancing to his right, he noticed three cars parked together in an otherwise empty parking lot. The fact that they were a Volvo S60, a Lexus IS and a Jeep Renegade had him turning left into an adjacent parking lot. He maneuvered around until his car was partially blocked by another parked vehicle, then he killed the engine. Looking closely, he could see the place was called "The Desert Rose". He could also see the "Closed" sign hanging in the window. Those vehicles definitely belonged to Sam, Jessie and Casey. Pulling out his cell phone, he hooked up to the Internet and did a search for The Desert Rose, and quickly found it was a dance studio specializing in Middle Eastern and tribal dance. Just as he flipped his phone closed, the door across the street opened, and out came the three women, smiling and laughing. He found himself watching Jessie closely, trying to see if there was any indication of what Peterson said was true. They hugged briefly, then one by one pulled out of the parking lot. Sitting there a minute, he made a decision. Starting the car up, he pulled out into traffic.

Daniel was working late, trying to finish up translating Ancient from a tablet they had just brought back in. Glancing at his watch, he knew that Casey would be by to pick him up in about thirty minutes. As he copied down the last line from the tablet, the door opened. Looking up, he saw Mitchell come in and close the door.

"Hey Jackson".

"Mitchell." Daniel looked at him strangely. "I thought you had already left for the evening."

"Yeah, well, I had…" Mitchell pulled a chair over to where Daniel was sitting. "Listen, I got a question for you, but it’s just between us, okay?"

"Okay," Daniel said, drawing the word out and looking at Mitchell a bit warily.

"It’s about Jessie. Not that you would know, but maybe since you’ve worked with her a lot…" Mitchell hesitated.

"Yes?"

"Do you think there’s any chance that she might be, well…"

"Well…what?"

Mitchell rubbed a hand over his face. "Do you think there’s a chance that she might be a lesbian?"

Daniel kept a perfectly straight face as he regarded Mitchell. "Is there a reason you think she might be?"

"No. Well, maybe." He let out an exasperated sigh. "I just overheard someone talking and the possibility was mentioned."

Daniel set his pen down. "While sexual orientation usually doesn’t come up in our conversations, I would have to say my opinion is no."

"That was my first impression, too. But someone pointed out the fact that apparently she hasn’t been seen out with any guys, and she’s always hanging around women."

Daniel took his notes and slid them into his notebook. "You interested in her?" he asked, glancing at Mitchell, who became engrossed in the floor, one thumb rubbing in a nervous rhythm across the other.

"Maybe," came the reply. Looking up he found Daniel grinning at him. "Look, I like her. She’s smart, and cute. I had thought about asking her out, but things have been kind of busy. Then with what I heard this evening…" Mitchell shrugged.

Picking up his notebook, Daniel placed it in the drawer. "I can ask Casey. She would know one way or the other."

Mitchell stood to go. "You don’t have to do that." Daniel looked at him expectantly. "Well, if it happens to be brought up, yeah, I’d appreciate it. Thanks Daniel."

"Bye," Daniel called out as Mitchell hurried out the door. He was still grinning. Daniel couldn’t ever remember seeing Mitchell flustered over a woman. He thought Casey would get a chuckle out of Mitchell’s predicament. Putting the last of his things away, he turned off the light and headed out, planning to meet up with his wife topside.

The next day turned out a little different than anyone planned. SG-1 had deployed early that morning in response to an emergency message from Jacob Carter and the Tok’ra, with General O’Neill accompanying them, so General Hammond was standing in until he returned. SG-7 was called in for an urgent briefing. After going over the translations from the tablet, there was a vague reference to a planet called Nanda, hinting at the possibility of a weapon and/or power source, depending on how one viewed the interpretation. Using the gate address provided, a MALP had been sent through. The planet atmospherically was like Earth, and in the distance one could see evidence of habitation.

"There’s not much to go on here, General," Mitchell commented as he read the summary of the translation and looked through the information transmitted by the MALP.

General Hammond nodded. "I know that Colonel, but considering the tablet was written in Ancient, the reference to a power source could be a ZPM, or similar technology. That alone makes this mission imperative."

Jessie was looking at the pictures of the structures in the distance. "I can’t tell from these any indication of a particular culture. Going by the buildings, though, they do appear to be advanced in that respect. Definitely not mud huts."

"Just run this as a standard meet and greet. There were indications of low-level naquadah readings on initial analysis. Once you’re there you’ll be able to conduct more extensive scans of the area."

Leaving the briefing room, SG-7 got their gear ready. Assembling in the gate room, they waited for the gate to engage.

Hammond spoke into the intercom. "Colonel Mitchell, you have a go. Godspeed."

Lately, all of SG-7’s missions had gone smoothly, and Jessie had yet to be in a situation where something went wrong. Unfortunately, this streak of luck was about to run out.

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