I think Methos would want to have an *understanding*, as it were, with the goa'uld before he got anywhere near his beloved son. I bet Ay and the scribe had a very interesting and wary relationship for some years before the proposal was ever made.

Ay hadn't thought he'd ever have to deal with a system lord again after the StarGate was buried. And he'd stayed well away from the Horseman during their reign of terror. He just hadn't expected someone like Methos to pop up as a court scribe in his own court. But, well, it worked out for the best in the end.