"I see you managed to get Ellison and Sandburg topside."

"Daniel Jackson suggested it might be useful for Blair Sandburg to gain more familiarity with a machine gun," Teal'c clarified.

Jack turned to the range, where Jim raised the reloaded gun at the target, Blair still in position behind his back. He turned back to Teal'c.

"I don't see Sandburg practicing."

"He did, in fact practice for about an hour," Teal'c stated.

Jack stared as Jim fired another volley. "What *is* he doing?" he finally asked.

"He is endeavoring to hit all the red targets while not hitting any of the blue ones."

Jack looked again at the arrangement of the targets. "That's impossible," he said flatly.

Teal'c's raised eyebrow said that was so completely obvious it did not require stating.

"How long has he been doing this?" Jack asked.

"An hour and a half," Teal'c replied.

"What? And you let him?"

"He has been improving. He is now hitting about ninety percent of the red targets while hitting only about half of the blue ones."

Jack studied the targets again with renewed interest. "Wow, that's quite an accomplishment," he granted. "Still, they've been at this for two and a half hours, right?"

"Two hours," Teal'c corrected. "Jim Ellison spent the first half hour helping Blair Sandburg acclimatize to the machine gun, then he and Blair Sandburg spent the next half hour shooting side by side. Then Blair Sandburg decided he had done enough shooting for the day, at which point Jim Ellison requested his assistance in focusing himself. His scores have improved remarkably with Blair Sandburg's assistance."

"Okay," Jack said, cocking his head as he absorbed this information. "Still, enough is enough. I'm going to go put a stop to this. You, however." Jack slapped a hand onto Teal'c's shoulder. "I've got another job for you."

Teal'c inclined his head, indicating Jack should continue.

"See, it's Carter," Jack explained, guiding Teal'c a few paces away from the firing range for a little more privacy. "I just had a chat with her therapist, and turns out most of her exercises can be done without the therapist here, if she had a training partner who's willing to learn what to do."

"I see," said Teal'c. "And this would allow Samantha Carter to perform her exercises at a time convenient to herself, rather than to the therapist." Noticing Jack's slight frown at his use of Sam's given name, he explained, "She asked that I no longer refer to her as 'colonel,' as she is no longer a member of the Tau'ri military."

"What's with everyone not wanting people to use their rank?" Jack grumbled. "Maybe I should just order the entire base to call me 'Jack'?"

"That would be ill advised, O'Neill," Teal'c admonished. "You would forget you are the General unless people called you that."

"Ah! There *is* that," Jack grimaced.

Teal'c's eyes twinkled at Jack in fond amusement. "I shall endeavor to be of assistance to Samantha Carter," he said, turning back to the subject at hand. "I take it the therapist is still here?"

"Yes, and waiting for you," Jack confirmed.

"Very well. I shall then leave Jim Ellison in your hands." Teal'c inclined his head in parting, and walked away with the self-satisfied air of one who has just passed an onerous task to someone else.

Jack pouted as he watched Teal'c leave, then with a deep breath, he squared his shoulders and headed back towards the firing range.

"Ellison!" he shouted as he came within conversational range of the man.

Jim paused firing and looked up. Jack gestured for Jim to approach. Jim reluctantly straightened up and turned around, but refused to budge from his spot. Letting the show of insubordination slide, Jack took the last few steps forward to stand directly in front of Jim.

"What the heck are you doing?" he asked.

"You know very well what I'm doing," growled Jim. "I heard you talking to Teal'c."

"Oh, *really*," Jack snapped back. "Then you'd understand why I'm asking, once more, what the *heck* are you doing?"

Jim blinked in incomprehension.

Jack sighed. "Mr. Sandburg." He turned to Blair. "Do *you*, at least, know what I'm getting at?"

Blair shifted uneasily, not meeting Jack's eyes.

"Oy!" Jack slapped his forehead and looked up to the heavens. "That's it! You two stay cooped up inside the mountain for... how long has it been? And then you finally come topside, and instead of relaxing and enjoying the sunshine, you do *this*!" He flung a hand at the bullet-riddled targets. "Surely, between the two of you, at least one should know that *this*" -- he stabbed a finger at the machine gun Jim was still holding -- "isn't designed to do *that*!" He swung the finger to point furiously at the targets.

Jack glared at the two men, who both continued their sullen insubordination, Blair stubbornly refusing to meet Jack's eyes while Jim stared defiantly back.

"Okay." Jack signaled the firing range attendant to come over. "Hand over that weapon, and gather up any gear you have," he ordered. "We are going fishing!"

"Fishing?" Jim repeated in surprise. "Where?"

"Hey, it's a big mountain," Jack grinned, and started walking away without waiting for the other men to follow his orders.

Jim and Blair looked at each other doubtfully, then Jim handed over his gun, and they slowly followed Jack. By the time they caught up with Jack near the topside access shed, Jack was walking back towards them with a cooler in hand.

"I got beer," Jack explained when he noticed their questioning look.

"I don't see any poles," Jim remarked as he fell in step beside Jack.

"I've got string in my pocket, we make our own," Jack announced.

"Um, General?" Blair asked, as he half-jogged to keep up with the taller men's longer strides. "Aren't you on duty?"

"Well." Jack paused, tilting his head as if considering the issue for the first time. "Rank hath its privileges!"

Jim and Blair exchanged startled, amused glances, then hurriedly scrambled after their leader.

"General!" Blair shouted, "You don't happen to have apples in that cooler, do you?"

"Why, of course I do," Jack yelled back. "Got a nice, tall fence for you to paint white, too!"