Chapter Text
After eating, they relaxed so that Malek could have his nap. Martouf took advantage of the situation and laid back down in bed.
Since her children were still eating, having to absorb nutrition through their skin, Malika left to meet with her girlfriends. She found Pel reading in her quarters.
"Pel?"
"Yes? Liandra sleeps." Pel set the book down and crossed the room. "What is that?" She looked up as Malika held something over her head.
"Mistletoe. If you walk under it, you have to kiss someone."
"Does it count if you hold it over my head?"
"Yes."
Pel smiled as she pulled the taller woman closer.
Malika kissed her.
Pel closed her eyes briefly, then smiled as she felt a shift in control. She knew that Iasis had taken control.
"Good morning." Iasis held her close. "Mom asked about inviting you to breakfast."
"You do have to tell your parents eventually. A number of Tok'ra already know about us."
Iasis frowned.
"They will keep your privacy, but it will soon be obvious to all." She brushed Iasis' hair back. "I am quite certain that your father is going to figure us out soon."
Malika had control again.
"You are making a bigger issue out of this than there needs to be."
"It’s not just that. I like the sense of privacy. That is rare in the tunnels."
"I am used to no privacy, but we are starting to feel…awkward."
"Sorry." Malika sighed. "I think you are right…about me making this an issue. The longer I wait, the…harder it is to tell them."
Pel smiled.
"Soon, I promise." Malika kissed her as she passed on the mistletoe. "Hang this in your doorway."
"Then I would have to kiss everyone who walked into my room."
Malika laughed.
~+~+~.
Malek sat up and yawned as he frowned slightly. "I fell asleep?"
"And completely ruined breakfast," Aldwin teased with a dramatic flair.
Malek chuckled, then began eating his tart.
Aldwin poured himself more hot chocolate, and they waited until Malek was done before Sam grabbed the bowl of larvae. They went into the main hallway. Sam smiled as she saw Martouf's eye brighten with joy when he saw all the decorations.
"How early were you awake?"
"I am not entirely sure. We had a lot of help though."
Malek pulled Aldwin closer. "You are so thoughtful."
Aldwin kissed him. "Even Delek helped."
"No." Malek replied in surprise.
"I have holographic evidence."
"Oh, that, I must see." He laughed before tracing his fingers through Aldwin's hair. He kissed him softly.
"The Tau'ri will be here soon," Anise said as she approached.
"I'll take the little ones to the mess hall," Malek offered as he pulled away from his husband.
"Thank you," Sam said.
Malek took the bowl and left with Aldwin following.
The rest followed Anise to the rings, and Iasis soon caught up with them.
"Does Uncle Jack know that the place will be decorated," Iasis asked with a yawn. She had allowed Malika to mostly sleep while she decorated.
Anise smiled. "No. In fact, he thinks he was requested for a mission that has been required of him. Daniel says he has been grumpy about it."
Sam laughed.
"Uncle Daniel knows?"
"He and your Uncle Teal'c both know."
To keep the illusion, as they arrived closer to where they would be greeting them, there were no decorations. Music could not be heard. Even the scent of it all, which had spread throughout the tunnels, was neutralized.
The three men rung down.
"Daniel." Anise approached quickly and kissed him.
Daniel smiled. "I missed you."
"You saw her yesterday," Jack pointed out, then sighed. "Never mind me." He smiled a bit when he saw Sam. "Merry Christmas." He offered her a gift.
"Thank you." She accepted it.
"Iasis." He could tell who was in control. "I gave your gift to your grandfather the last time he visited."
"Thank you."
"Did you like it?"
"I was waiting for your visit to open it."
"Oh? We have time?" He had expected to go straight to the briefing room.
"Yes."
"In fact, Martouf and Amb just woke up," Sam added. "If you don't mind breakfast."
"Oh no, we-"
"That would be acceptable," Teal'c replied.
"What?" Jack was surprised. "Uh, Teal'c?"
Sam smiled as she walked off, knowing exactly what their conversation was going to be. It would most certainly start with a complaint.
"Teal'c," Jack then lowered his voice as he looked towards the departing Tok'ra. "Their food is bland, and what happened to 'The Tok'ra are low on supplies. We must not eat their food.'"
"Colonel Carter clearly wants to have a Christmas breakfast with us. You have emphasized the importance of this holiday many times, and when the four of us do not spent it together you are…cranky."
Daniel laughed.
"I am not cranky."
"You're cranky, and we won't have much time before the mission," Daniel added. He was much better at bluffing than he was when he had first joined Stargate Command…so many years ago. "Let's enjoy what we got."
Jack sighed. "Fine." He gestured before they began walking, catching up with the others. He soon frowned. "Is that music?"
"Sometimes, the Tok'ra do play music for us," Sam answered, thankful that it was currently not Christmas music.
This is one of Einar's favorites, Kela'an thought.
Jack thought this was strange, and he wondered if the music was Jacob's doing. Then he smelled the mixture of cinnamon, vanilla, and…pine?
Okay, the Tok'ra were definitely not acting normal. Only their baths smelled this good.
Then he saw garland, ribbons, and a wreath.
"You are doing Christmas!" He grinned widely.
Sam, Daniel, Iasis, and even Anise laughed. Teal'c was clearly amused as well.
"What happened to the mission?"
"This is the mission," Sam replied with a smile.
Jack grinned. "No wonder you are all acting so strange. I…" He trailed off as they arrived at the mess hall. "Wow. You went all out."
"Samantha," Aldwin called out. "We saved you all seats."
They approached. The larvae were on the table. Some still in the bowl. Some were in a bowl of water, bathing after they ate. A few had jumped out and were playing on the table.
"We made you, Martouf, and Iasis plates."
"Thank you."
Anise took Daniel's hand. "I'll show you what we have."
As they approached, Jack saw that it was a combination of traditional Tok'ra food, an attempt at a Christmas breakfast, and more that he didn't know. He immediately went for the Christmas food. Teal'c selected a variety. Daniel went for the unknown food, and they were delayed because Anise explained everything to him.
"This is a traditional meal on Gete's world. It's spicy fish, stuffed with cheese, herbs, and garlic."
"Yum," Jack replied, keeping the sarcastic tone to himself.
Knowing better, Teal'c gave him a look to not be rude.
"It is quite delicious," Anise replied, missing the true meaning. "On his world, only nobles were allowed to eat this. Now, this is traditional on Martouf's world."
"Is that bugs?" Jack asked.
"Fried larval wasps, sweetened with honey."
"I'll pass."
Daniel gathered some. As did Teal'c, who was curious.
"And now here…"
~+~+~.
Jack was glad to be sitting and eating. He saw that Sam was the only one who waited for them, though Martouf and Iasis were still eating.
He noticed that Martouf was wearing his glove. He knew frostbite had taken fingers, but to this day, he had no idea how many. He wondered if Martouf realized that wearing one glove simply called attention to his hand.
"You didn't try any new food?" Martouf asked.
"Um…" Jack looked at his plate.
"Not even the wasps." He frowned.
"You know me. I don't really…explore new food, and…"
"That was my mother's recipe."
"Alright, I'll get a wasp." Jack got up.
Daniel promptly followed.
Jack sighed, knowing what he was going to say.
"You should try more than the wasps."
"The Tok'ra made muffins. They cooked bacon…and eggs, and you want me to eat baby insects and fish cheese."
"Fish cheese?" Daniel grinned in amusement. "It's just fish and cheese, not that different than adding cheddar cheese to your tuna melt."
Jack added unknown foods to his plate and returned. He held back a sigh before grabbing a wasp larva, then ate it as quickly as possible. It had a slight nutty taste. He looked up to see Lantash frowning at him, which meant that Martouf had been offended.
"It's good. Nutty. Crunchy," Jack said to please the men.
"Creamy and sweet," Teal'c added. "Martouf's mother must have been an excellent cook."
"This one was one of Martouf's favorites." Lantash gave a slight smile. "Unfortunately, once he had to work in the mines, he couldn't help in the kitchen anymore. Many of her recipes were lost."
Jack took a bite of the fish, and Daniel was oh so wrong. This was nothing like a tuna melt. He drank some cider to force the bite down.
"How are the grandkids enjoying their first Christmas?" Jack asked to change the subject.
"You could ask them," Sam replied.
"Good?" He looked to the nearest one.
The larva squealed.
He knew "chirping" was negative, so that must have been a "Yes."
Daniel looked over them. "Alright, let's see if I can…" He began pointing. "Jumper… Happy… Red… Roshe…"
"Roshe?" Jack questioned.
"Roshe has asked to honor Rosha by taking her name," Lantash explained. That seemed to put him in a better mood.
"She only renamed herself two days ago," Daniel added. "She also still goes by Earth." He then continued naming all the symbiotes.
Jack wondered how Daniel could tell them apart. Red wasn't even red.
~+~+~.
After breakfast, Jack headed to one of the trees in the room.
"I believe Einar decorated that one," Sam said as she and Gete approached.
"He was detailed."
"Well…" She smiled. "Look at who his symbiote is."
Jack admired the Christmas tree. "Did you leave any undecorated?"
"Well, that was the original plan," Sam said, "but then Delek said it would look messy. Then he decorated them when no one was looking."
"I think he secretly enjoyed it," Jacob said as he approached.
"Dad, good morning." Sam smiled.
"Where were you?" Jack asked.
"I spent most of the night helping to chop down and haul in all the Christmas trees. Excuse me for taking a nap."
Sam smiled a bit.
Jack touched one of the Christmas ornaments.
"Don't let Delek or Per'sus catch you doing that," Gete said.
Jack moved his hand away. "Is that a symbiote…dressed like Santa Claus?"
"Yes." He grinned. "Speaking of which…" He grinned, turning to the few larvae still in the room. "I think he left us presents," he singsonged.
They all squealed in excitement.
Jack smiled and followed them to one of the larger rooms. He was immediately impressed. There were two more beautiful trees, and a pile of presents under both.
"Look what Santa Claus got us!" Gete said excitedly, as if he and Aldwin hadn't been the ones that wrapped many of the presents.
"The Tau'ri have an unusual fascination with intruders," Malek replied.
"Indeed," Teal'c agreed.
"Intruders?" Jack asked.
"A man comes in, riding a magical sleigh, enters your home uninvited, while you sleep, and gives presents if he is fed cookies and milk," Malek replied.
"Well, I suppose if you put it that way?"
"And why would he keep a list of children's behavior? Do not all children deserve gratitude? Maybe the naughty ones are so because your Santa Claus dismissed them the year before."
"Don't be ridiculous," Gete teased. "That's just how parents keep their children in line. Santa Claus is clearly a symbiote."
"A symbiote?" Daniel asked in amusement.
"A nice one who only takes willing hosts. After all, he is…long lived, has a flying vehicle, clearly has enhanced strength to carry so many presents-"
"And the way he gets into houses… It must be transport rings," Malek added.
"And isn't he supposed to have a deep voice?" Gete asked.
"What?" Jack frowned.
"You know…" His eyes glowed as Aldwin took control. "'Ho ho ho!'"
"Clearly an imitation of our voices," Malek agreed with a smirk.
"No. That was Aldwin imitating Santa Claus."
"His eyes are said to twinkle," Martouf added.
Aldwin gasped. "That’s our eye glow!"
"Do you think the Easter Bunny is a symbiote too?" Malek asked.
"That would explain why a rabbit has the intelligence and strength to deliver baskets," Aldwin replied.
Jacob raised his eyebrows. "Is the tooth fairy a symbiote too?"
"Don't be ridiculous," Malek replied.
"A symbiote wouldn't fit in a fairy," Aldwin added with a laugh.
"Oh, of course," Jack said.
Sam laughed. "Come on, the others are waiting for us."
They found places to sit. The people who didn't decorate volunteered to hand out presents. That included Daniel and Teal'c. Jack couldn't because he couldn't read the labels.
"Thank you," Garshaw said as she was handed her gift. She was wearing a fancy dress because they had company.
Near her was Per'sus, who was also dressed for the occasion. He retreated when Martouf handed him a gift.
"It's beautiful." Einar smiled. "Thank you."
Jack was surprised that he was given anything.
"Don't," Sam said when Jack was about to shake it.
Jack wondered if it was considered rude or if something breakable was inside.
After the gifts were handed out, it was time to open them. Some Tok'ra did so right away, ripping into the paper, and Aldwin laughed a bit as he saw Delek's reaction. Some opened very carefully, preserving the paper. Others delayed, not wanting to ruin something so beautiful.
Inside, everyone found small cookies.
"A gingerbread woman," Jack said with a smile.
"That is a gingerbread Tau'ri," Teal'c declared.
"What makes you say that?"
"She is wearing fatigues and boots." He pulled out another cookie. "This is a gingerbread Jaffa."
"Because he has muscles?"
"Yes," he replied, drawing out the word slightly, clearly pleased.
Daniel lifted a cookie, smiling at the shape. "A gingerbread symbiote."
"What about their hosts?" Jack asked.
Daniel then pulled out another cookie. The silhouette implied the Tok'ra uniform. Unlike the first two, the gender was ambiguous.
"Who made the cookie cutters?" Jack asked.
"There are some Tok'ra who know how to work with metal," Sam answered before eating a cookie.
Many Tok'ra left after, taking their cookies with them. The ones who stayed had personal gifts to exchange.
"Dad." Malika took a small box out of a pocket. "I hope you like it." She offered it to him.
"I'm sure it's wonderful." Martouf took the gift, then read the label. "We love you. From Malika, Iasis…" He kept reading. Each grandchild had been listed.
"You are going to have to shorthand that when you have more kids," Jack said.
Malika smiled. "Yes, but for now, it's easy to list them all."
Do you want to open it? Martouf asked.
I know what it is, Lantash replied.
You do?
They asked me first because they didn't want to offend you.
Martouf slowly opened it. Inside, he opened a little box, smiling slightly when he saw a new eyepatch. He was surprised when he lifted it. There is no string?
It bonds to your skin.
But that would irritate you.
I think I could get used to it. Love, you barely wear the prosthetic because you know that I don't like it, but I hate watching you struggle with the eyepatches.
Martouf smiled, then hugged his nervous daughters. "Thank you. This is very thoughtful. I'll go try it on."
Malika smiled.
He left, finding his quarters. He felt a symbiote approaching as he took the current eyepatch off. Martouf cleaned it, then put it away. Then he cleaned his face before putting the new one on.
"Grandpa," the larva squealed.
Martouf smiled. "Defender, how does it look?"
"Beautiful."
Martouf picked Defender up and stroked teir fins as he looked into the mirror. The eyepatch was definitely custom-made to fit so perfectly.
You were asleep, Lantash thought. I was sneaky.
Very sneaky. Martouf gave Defender a kiss on the head before walking out.
~+~+~.
Meanwhile, Jack approached Einar, who was talking to…
"Hurton, correct?"
"Yes." Hurton smiled a bit as he took Einar's hand.
"Einar," Jack greeted. "I just…wanted to thank you for having us."
Per'sus took control. "Jacob did most of the work." He pulled his hand away. "He wanted to make this Christmas special for his grandchildren."
"I didn't mean to…" Jack sighed softly. "You can hold his hand. It's a party."
"We are glad you could make it," Per'sus replied.
"Thank you." Feeling a little awkward, Jack began heading back towards the table when he noticed Delek holding a picture of several larvae. "Are you in there?"
"Yes." Delek pointed to a larva. "Me…and my batch mates." He touched lovingly over the others. "They are gone now."
"I'm sorry."
"Most of us are the last of our batch." He gestured to the larvae near Sam. "Hopefully, they will not suffer so many losses."
"Yeah," Jack agreed.
Martouf returned, holding Defender.
"Dads, you look great," Iasis said.
He hugged her.
Jack smiled when he saw a new gift on the table.
"You all have to share this one," Iasis said.
The larvae squeaked and squealed, then used their sharp jaws to rip through the ribbons and paper.
Jack saw that Einar was in control again, leaning against Hurton. "I have known you all for over twenty years, but some of you still can't relax around me."
Jacob chuckled. "Believe me, with having guests over, this is relaxed."
The gift for the larvae was revealed to be a tank of colorful fish. They squealed excitedly, then immediately began jumping towards the nearest river.
Iasis followed, then poured the fish into the water. The fish immediately swam off, and the larvae chased after them.