Spoilers/Timeline: AU. Heroes (s07e17-18) fixit.
A/N: Not beta’d; all mistakes are my own.
TELL ME ABOUT HER
“Thanks for coming, General Hammond.”
“Not a problem, Mr. President. What can I do for you?
“I want to know more about this doctor you submitted for this award,” the President said, holding up some paperwork. “What makes her so special?”
“She’s a force of nature,” General George Hammond replied. “And regardless of her rank, you don’t want to cross her,” he said with a jovial smirk.
“Oh? Are you saying she’s vindictive?”
“No, not at all. But she has this…” the general paused for a beat as he searched for the right words. “Dr. Fraiser has this way about her. She knows how to get results, and inspires loyalty, even from members of the other services. For example, let me tell you about a day I walked into the infirmary. SG-1 had unexpectedly run into a large force of Jaffa off-world. They were a few hours late reporting in, so I’d had Sgt. Harriman dial up their location. We’d no sooner dialed in and Colonel O’Neill urgently requested backup, saying they were cut off from the gate and couldn’t exfil without help. I assured him we’d send backup as soon as possible. Then I ordered two of my Marine units, SG-3 and SG-5, to gear up and head out.
“They were able to assist SG-1 with their exfil, but at a cost. Nearly every Marine was injured. Gunnery Sgt. Joseph Becker was the worst off. He was half-dead when they came back through gate and was bleeding out on the floor of the gate room. Dr. Fraiser started working on him right there on the floor, doing her best to clamp off the source of the bleeding. He cried out in pain and indicated to her that he knew he was dying.”
Hammond paused to take a deep breath, emotion starting to color his voice when he continued. “She grabbed the collar of his uniform, leaned down until they were almost nose to nose, and barked at him, ‘You made it back and you are not allowed to die! Do you hear me, Marine? I’m ordering you to live!’ He took a couple of breaths then gave her a nod and said, ‘Yes, ma’am.’ She finished what she was doing and got him on a gurney and on the way to an O.R.. I found out later from our chief surgeon that Gunnery Sgt. Becker should not have survived his injuries, but he did. In fact, he recovered remarkably quickly.
“Two days later, when I entered the infirmary, I came upon a scene that I’ll never forget. Colonel O’Neill—”
“He’s the commander of SG-1, right?”
“Yes, sir. Each of the members of SG-1 had also suffered injuries during that mission.”
“Sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt. Go on.”
“It’s quite all right, Mr. President. Anyway, I walked in to see Colonel O’Neill standing next to his bed, attempting to argue with Dr Fraiser.”
“Attempting?”
Hammond smirked. “I say attempting, because he wasn’t very successful. For one, he was wavering quite a bit due to being medicated; secondly, Dr Fraiser was backed up by five of the injured marines, including Gunnery Sgt. Becker. Before she could even respond to Colonel O’Neill, two of the marines physically put the colonel back in bed, as the gunnery sergeant informed him that he was not allowed to disrespect Dr. Fraiser, ever.”
The President chuckled. “She sounds… unique.”
“That she is. There’s a quote by William Shakespeare that perfectly describes Dr. Fraiser: And though she be but little, she is fierce.”
“And this is the officer you want me to promote and put forth to congress for the Medal of Honor?”
“Yes. She was killed in the field tending to the wounded, in the midst of a battle. If not for her bravery men and women would have been lost.”
“She’s dead?” the President asked, stunned.
“By the grace and actions of the aliens known as the Nox, Dr. Fraiser was restored to us. So, even though she was indeed killed in action, she was brought back to life. Something for which every single person at the SGC, myself included, is greatly thankful for.”
The President nodded. “I can see that, General. And you’ve convinced me. Rest assured, Dr. Fraiser will get her promotion and I’ll see that her nomination for the Medal of Honor is approved as quickly as possible.”
“Thank you, Mr. President.”
“Hopefully, I’ll get to come to the SGC, and present the medal myself, instead of having to send somebody else.”
“You would be most welcome, sir.”
The President’s Chief of Staff entered the Oval Office. “I’m sorry, Mr. President, but the Ambassador is here.”
“Right.” The President turned back to the general. “If there’s nothing else…”
“We’ve covered everything, sir. I’ll get out of your hair. Thank you for your time, Mr. President.”
“Thank you, General, and safe travel back to Colorado.”
General George Hammond shook the hand the President held out, then smartly exited the Oval Office.
FIN