�Not? What, just wait for him to ask why his pay cheque suddenly got bigger?�
Elizabeth shook her head. �More like a surprise.�
�A� surprise promotion ceremony?� Sam asked sceptically.
�With less emphasis on the ceremony part, because, well, it�s John and he hates that kind of thing,� Elizabeth nodded.
Sam thought about that for a minute, rolled the idea over in her head, before shrugging. �General Hammond sprung my promotion to Major on me. And General O�Neill threw me for a loop with the whole �Lieutenant Colonel� thing. It�s not like surprise promotions are unheard of. Technically we�re not supposed to know if our names are being seriously considered for promotion, let alone accelerated promotion,� Sam said thoughtfully. She shrugged again. �You could do it. Surprise John. And I agree on the downplaying of the ceremony stuff. John�s never been good at dealing with attention like that. Though he might hate you for surprising him anyway; he�s never really liked surprises.�
�Well, the more pressing issue is that General O�Neill had to pull a lot of strings to get all this happening, and one of the things he promised in return is that someone from Atlantis would hang out at Area 51 for a few days and play ATA guinea pig. And I made a vow to Carson that I wouldn�t make him go through that�he hates that he has the gene, is terrified of what happens when he goes near most of the things we�ve found in the City; especially the Chair. And� well, I doubt Rodney would be able to withstand taking control of everything, so� that leaves John,� Elizabeth said.
�Yeah, he�s gonna hate that even more than the surprise party thing,� Sam said.
Elizabeth nodded. �That I already knew.�
TBC...