The Games People Play
By: Lionchilde
CATEGORY: Alternate Universe, Angst, General, Humor, Romance
SEASON/SPOILERS: Season 10 up to “Company of Theives”.
WARNINGS: None
AUTHOR’S NOTES: This story is canon to the end of 10x09, Company of Thieves, goes AU by the end.
AUTHOR’S WEBSITE:
http://so-out-of-ideas.livejournal.com/
PART 1: Hidden
There were tears in her eyes, and he knew he put them there.
He hadn't expected it, couldn't quite believe it, but he'd seen it before she
turned away. He hated himself for it, but she didn't cry, and he didn't offer
the apology that, truthfully, he knew she deserved..
He followed the rest of the team silently to the infirmary, where the usual
post-mission chatter was hollow to his ears. Mitchell ribbed him about his
short-lived stint in the captain's chair, but he couldn't bring himself to say
anything about the CO's unplanned impersonation of Lutan.
Afterward, he escaped back to his office, breathing a sigh of relief when, for
once, she didn't follow. Then he grabbed the first book he could lay his hand
on--it doesn't mater what it is, he thought--and tried to bury himself in
it. A few minutes later, he dropped it, jumping slightly in his seat as Sam
came barreling through the door. Daniel didn't bother picking it up again. He
hadn't understood a word of it anyway.
"What were you doing?" she demanded.
"Um…reading…?"
"No, Daniel. What were you doing on
the ship? You know, you really hurt her," Sam said. "And you're
acting like a scared little boy."
He didn't have to ask what she meant, but he wondered vaguely why she was
taking Vala's part. Her own emotions were still
running high over Emmerson. Maybe that's what had
sparked the newfound empathy. He knew he should have been glad. Vala needed real friendship more than anything else--and
right now, he thought, Sam could use a friend as well. His hackles were up,
though.
"What about all the stuff she's
done--" he broke off. Sam was right. He knew it, and he knew he should
quit hiding in here and find Vala. Part of him wanted
to, but another, bigger part, was still reeling inside. Reeling from the memory
of his revelation to Vala about Sha're.
Reeling from Vala's recent
disappearance and his own panic. The need
to find her--find her alive--still made his mouth go dry and his palms sweaty
when he thought of it. It was terrifying, in its own way. As terrifying as the
realization that his wife had been taken--kidnapped and violated, made host to Ammaunet.
"Vala's part of the team. You owe her an apology,
Daniel," Sam expectantly.
Daniel bit his lip, but said nothing. Everything she'd said was true--Vala had spent years learning to depend on no one and
nothing but herself. She was finally starting to understand what it meant to be
part of a team. Now thanks to him, even the members of that team weren't safe.
Sam stood waiting another minute, her arms folded across her chest. He let his
eyes flick down to the book he'd dropped and tried to speak again. No sound
came out. Swallowing hard, he looked up at her, but Sam only shook her head and
stalked back out the door.
* * * *
She was wiping the tears away when she heard Sam come in. She jumped off the
bench and made a show of straightening her pigtails in the locker room mirror. Vala didn't cry in public, and she certainly didn't cry
around other women. She wondered again what had gotten into her. She wondered
how and why Daniel Jackson has the power to bring tears to her eyes--wondered
why she wasn't over it already.
"Hey," Sam said quietly. Vala heard the
Tau'ri woman slip onto the bench behind her and slowly turned to face her.
"Are you okay?" Sam asked, and Vala
resisted the urge to bite her lip as she realized that the Lt. Colonel's sharp
eyes must have caught some lingering trace of tears on her cheeks.
She nodded automatically, but Sam raised an eyebrow, and Vala
inexplicably felt her eyes beginning to burn again. She forced her gaze away as
Sam rose from the bench, but when she felt a hand close on her shoulder, the
last of her defenses finally crumbled.
"I’m sorry--" she started to say. Her voice cracked on the words, and
Sam shook her head dismissively. She pulled Vala into
a hug, which the dark haired woman resisted for a moment; then she gave a
hesitant squeeze in return. As they drew apart again, Vala
sniffed vehemently, "Men suck!"
"Yes they do," Sam smiled. "Where'd you learn that
expression?"
"Television," Vala responded, walking over
to slam her locker door in frustration.
"If it helps any, I just gave him a nasty chewing out," Sam offered.
"Oh?" Vala's ears perked up.
"Yeah, see what he was doing was essentially pulling on your
pigtails."
"I wasn't wearing pigtails," Vala said with
a blank expression. "I had my hair up in that bun thingy."
"No, it's an Earth expression. It means to tease someone mercilessly
because you are afraid of showing your feelings for them. Grade school boys are
famous for doing it to the girls they like. In return, girls punch the
boys."
Vala scrunched up her nose. "I think I see what
you mean. You Tau'ri have some very odd expressions. You know…what bothers me
is that lately he really has seemed to treat me differently. And everyone said
was quite worried after the kidnapping. Now suddenly it's as if nothing's
changed from when I first came here. Granted, I was a bit of thorn in his side then,
but I've changed a lot. I thought he'd realized that…he did seem to…"
She trailed off, slumping back against the lockers. Her eyes hopefully sought
Sam's, and she felt her throat tighten as she found confirmation in the other
woman's gaze. Her vision blurred, and she let out a long breath, trying to
force back the unwelcome emotion.
"You have changed a lot," Sam nodded, coming over to slide her arm
back around Vala's shoulders. I didn't know you back
then, but from what I was told and read in reports, you're very different from
how you were last year. A lot has happened to you. And I think Daniel's-- just
scared of losing you. He's lost a lot of people he cared about. He even lost
himself for a while. He's not really sure how to cope when he's in love with
someone."
"In love?" Vala's eyes widened. "You
really think he's in love with me?"
"Hey," Sam grinned. "Pulling pigtails, remember?"
PART 2: What to Do When Pulling Pigtails Backfires
Daniel really didn't expect her to open the door. She had every
reason not to. If she did open it, he wouldn't be surprised if she only stood
there long enough to punch him in the face. Pacing in front of Vala's door, he admitted he wouldn't blame her. As the door
moved back, he drew in a breath, bracing himself for the familiar crunch of her
knuckles against his nose. She stood there, though, eyes wide with surprise,
and only moved awkwardly aside, gesturing for him to come in.
He swallowed reflexively, feeling suddenly cold. All the determination he'd
worked up on the trek from his office to her quarters suddenly deserted him,
and he stood bewildered, unsure of anything but the racing of his pulse. Vala's forehead creased into a frown, and she uncomfortably
cleared her throat.
"Did you want to come in?" she asked.
He half nodded, barreling into the room before he could talk himself out of it.
Coming to a halt with his hands against the back of the secondhand loveseat
that Sam had given her, he dug his fingers into the soft fabric and struggled
in vain to even form a sentence. He could feel her eyes on his back, heard the
door slide softly shut, and then heard her footsteps approach.
Whirling around, Daniel took a step toward her, and Vala
froze. Their eyes met for a long moment, but finally he forced his gaze away.
Drawing a quick breath, he said finally, "Vala,
I--I wanna apologize. For how I
treated you--on the ship. And--and before that, the things I said to you
in the briefing room--about your past. I--don't know where that was coming
from."
"There's no need, Daniel," she said, and his head jerked back up in
time to see her give a stiff shrug.
"Yes, there is," he said hurriedly, determined to finish what he'd
come here to say. "You're a member of the team. And that means we back
each other up, not--not pick fights and tear each other down."
"Oh," she said, forcing her tone to remain casual, though he clearly
read the disappointment she was trying not to show.
"And--" he began, but felt his breath catch and the sudden damp chill
of perspiration on his palms and the back of his neck. He clenched his fists
without thinking, then quickly released them and took another breath.
Her brow furrowed again, this time with a mix of concern and trepidation.
Daniel took another step and saw her tense. He wondered for half a second if
she was going to back away, but instead she took a cautious step in his
direction.
"And?" she prompted, arching an eyebrow.
"Vala, I'm in love you," he said, forcing
the words out before his brain could get in the way again. "I've--I've been
in love with you--I don't know how long---but then you were gone--and then you
came back, and you were married to Tomin and I--"
"Daniel, I know," she cut him off.
"What do you mean, you know?!" he cried. "How
do you know?!"
"A girl knows when someone's in love with her," she shrugged.
"And, honestly, you don't hide your feelings very well."
"Wha--you--you mean you've known all this time,
and--and you let me just keep--" he broke off, slapping his arms against
his sides in frustration.
"Well, Daniel, what was I supposed
to do?" she shot back.
He opened his mouth to reply, but shook his head and shut it again. "Kiss
me," he heard himself say finally, then gulped at the realization that the
words had actually come out of his mouth.
"Daniel, if I had kissed you, you would have been furious," Vala said sharply.
"Huh? No!" he exclaimed. "I mean--kiss me now."
Vala's mouth dropped open in surprise, and she stared
for a moment. "Oh," she said slowly, stepping forward to close the
remaining distance between them. Her hands slid over his taut shoulders, and he
lowered his head to meet her lips.
She tasted of candy-apple lip gloss now, but her lips were as warm and full as
he remembered. One arm wound around her, pulling her tighter against his chest,
while the other reached up to cup the back of her head. He felt heat and cold
race along his nerves, felt her heart pounding and her breath coming every bit
as fast as his. Then there was only her mouth, slick and firm against his--
"You're an ass, you know that don't you?" Vala
declared, ripping her mouth away.
"What…?" Daniel asked thickly.
Vala pushed him back against the loveseat and turned
away, stalking to the other side of it, where she flung herself down and
crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "You know, what you were doing
was, essentially, pulling my pigtails."
Daniel opened his mouth to reply and paused, frowning. "What? Wait. Where
did you pick up that metaphor?"
"Sam taught it to me," Vala replied coolly.
"While assuring me that you didn't mean any harm; you were just being a
typical male. In love."
"Oh," Daniel bit his lip.
"So. You treat me as if I have no feelings at
all. Then you come in here and think you can just apologize, tell me you love
me and that makes it all right?"
"No," Daniel shook his head, hurrying around to the other side of the
loveseat. "Vala, that's--that's not what I meant
to do."
"Well, what then?" she demanded.
"I--" he began, then broke off, raking his
fingers through his hair. "I dunno. I don't know
what I'm doing! You--you just make me so crazy!"
Before she could say anything, he had flopped down on the cushion beside her.
He felt his cheeks redden, and stared sullenly at the wall, keeping his eyes
firmly away from her. Then he heard a soft but unmistakable snort of laughter.
An answering chuckle started to form, and he bit the inside of his cheek to
resist it. Finally, though, he turned to look at her, the corners of his mouth
turning up in a wry grin.
"This is pretty ridiculous, isn't it?" he asked.
"Mmm-hmm," she agreed, edging closer and
coiling an arm around him.
Daniel frowned and started to speak again, his tone shifting to become serious.
"It's just that--when you disappeared--everything shut down. I guess I--" he broke off, wetting his lips with his tongue.
Warm tears began to well in his eyes, but he let them come. "I lost Sha're. I don't know if I can do that again. Forgive
me?" he finished, his voice cracking on the phrase.
Vala nodded, leaning forward to brush his damp cheek
with her lips. "I won't disappear, Daniel," she promised.
PART 3: Devil’s Due
"How do I look?" Vala's
voice sounded from the doorway.
Daniel jerked his head up from the notes he was scribbling and turned toward the
office door. She stood with her arms out to either side and spun around to
display the new winter coat, hat, scarf, and mittens that Sam had taken her
shopping for. He fought his smile for a second, then
remembered that he didn't have to anymore, and grinned as she held up her foot
to show off the boots.
"It's great," he told her.
Vala bounded inside with a grin of her own and slid
onto his lap. Her arms coiled around his neck, and Daniel closed his eyes as
their lips met. "Did you miss me?" she asked teasingly.
He responded with a noncommittal noise and gave a shrug, glancing back at his
half-written notes. Vala scowled, raising a hand to
snatch the notebook away, but he quickly caught it and guided her palm to his
lips. "Yes," he nodded.
"Good. Now, darling. There are two brand new,
gorgeous feet of pristine snow on the ground outside, and you are going to come out and play with me," Vala announced.
"What?" Daniel's eyes widened.
Vala gave him a determined glare. "Daniel, you
have been working since yesterday. You promised that when I got back from
shopping, we could go and do something fun."
"Yeah, but I didn't say anything about playing in the snow, Vala!" he protested. "We--we can go watch a movie
in your quarters or something--"
"I'm tired of watching movies in
my quarters," Vala said, hopping off his lap in
annoyance.
"Okay…" Daniel blinked in surprise.
"The only time I'm ever not shut
in down here is when we're offworld. And then there's
always the disturbing tendency for our lives to be in jeopardy. Just once I'd
like to do something a little less hazardous to my health."
"You just went out shopping with Sam," he pointed out.
"With you?" she rolled her eyes, planting her hands on her hips.
"All right," Daniel scrubbed his face with his hand. "What
if--what if we go to a movie
tonight?"
"Uh-uh," Vala shook her head, walking over
to the closet. She reached inside to pull out his coat and then turned, holding
it open. "Come on, put this on. "
Daniel hung his head. After a long sigh, he trooped over to the closet and took
the coat. "Okay. But absolutely no snowball fights. Do you understand
me?"
* * * *
They drove to a nearby park, where Vala contented
herself with building a snowman for the first hour. When the body and head were
complete, she plucked Daniel's glasses off his face and fixed them on the
snowman.
"Hey!" he protested.
"You can have them back later, darling," she promised smoothly. Then,
she took a step back and frowned, examining the results critically. Daniel
shook his head, squinting for a better look at it, and tried to restrain a
laugh.
"Something's missing," she decided.
"What?" frowned Daniel.
"I don't…" Vala started, then
spun suddenly toward him.
Daniel took a wary step back. "What now?"
She grinned impishly and reached out, snatching his scarf before he could raise
his hand to stop her. He sighed heavily as she wrapped it around the snowman's
neck, but finally decided that it wouldn't do any good to suggest that they use
her scarf anyway.
"Stop being so stuffy, darling. We're supposed to
be having fun." she told him.
"Whaddaya mean, stuffy?" he demanded.
"I mean stuffy, Daniel Jackson," she replied, bending to scoop up a
double handful of snow and pack it into a circle between her hands.
His eyes bulged. "Vala--we had a deal--"
"Did we?" she asked as she stepped closer.
She pulled her arm back threateningly and grinned.
"No snowball fights!" Daniel cried, diving out of the way. He landed
face first in the powdery white snow, but grabbed a double handful and rolled
quickly to his feet again. His shot went wide, and Vala
shrieked with pretended outrage. She scooped up more ammunition, but by the
time she was ready to throw, Daniel had hurled a second snowball. It smacked
her square in the face, and she stood there stunned for a moment, then raced toward him.
He took off running, but she leapt at his back, bowling him over into the snow
again. They wrestled around in it until both were soaked to the skin and numb.
Then Vala scrambled to her feet and the real pelting
began. Daniel found it only slightly less intense than their fight aboard the
Prometheus, but with the entire park to encompass this conflict, by the time
they were through chasing and ducking, climbing the jungle gym, and crawling
though the snow, he was ready to drop. Vala gave him
the perfect opportunity to do so, ending the battle by swinging down out of a
tree and landing on top of him.
He tumbled backward and lay there for a moment, then slowly raised his hands to
brush her hair back from her face. Her cheeks were bright red with cold, and
damp from the snow. She grinned down at him, blue eyes shining playful
excitement. She'd lost her mittens by then, and one finger came up to trace
along his lips.
"Are we done?" she asked teasingly.
"You're still a fruitcake," Daniel replied with a breathless laugh.
She responded by lowering her head to meet his lips, and this time he didn't
pull away. His arms tightened reflexively around her, and for a while, he was
aware of nothing but the heat of her body and the fullness of her mouth on his.
Then the wind picked up, and he felt her shiver. Reluctantly breaking the kiss,
he smiled again.
"How 'bout we pick this up at my apartment?" he suggested.
"Only if you promise we can pick up right
where we left off," Vala winked.
"Deal," Daniel agreed.
As they climbed out of the snow, he realized that the sky had taken on the deep
red of sunset, and his eyes widened. "I didn't realize it was so
late," he murmured as he slid an arm around Vala
and drew her against him.
"Time flies when you're having a good time?" she asked.
"Fun," Daniel corrected lightly as they walked.
"What?" she frowned.
"Time flies when you're having fun,"
he said.
"Isn't that what I said?" Vala asked.
He closed his eyes, giving his head a fond shake, and didn't reply. When they
reached the snowman, he paused to retrieve his scarf and glasses. The scarf was
stiff in places and soaked in others, completely beyond being able to offer him
protection from the cold. He stuffed it absently into a pocket and focused on
cleaning the snow from his glasses. Vala wandered on
ahead of him, but he was too preoccupied to notice where she was going until he
reached the park entrance and looked up to realize that she had veered off and
was watching a group of children who were gathered around one of the few
remaining patches of unbroken snow.
Daniel smiled slightly and turned to join her, reaching the group just as the
kids began to drop backwards into the powder. Vala
frowned curiously, and he resisted the urge to grin at her puzzlement. Then the
kids began to scissor their arms and legs, and she turned to him with wide
eyes.
"What are they doing?" she whispered.
"Watch," Daniel said mysteriously,
A few of the group who'd remained standing helped the angel-makers up and Vala's face transformed with delight. Then, slowly, that
innocence turned markedly devilish, and she grabbed Daniel's arm.
"Hey! What--no--!"
"Our turn!" she declared gleefully.
PART 4: Expectations
Author’s Note: Literary works mentioned are: The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot; A Man’s Requirements and Bianca Among the Nightingales by Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
Daniel paused in the doorway, his eyes widening with
surprise. He rested the side of his head on the doorframe, wet hair still
dripping from the shower. A smile twitched over his lips, and hoped that she
wouldn't see him. Vala sat cross-legged on his living
room floor, one hand raised to absently pat her hair down with a towel, but the
motion was entirely automatic. Her attention was riveted on the beat-up
paperback in her other hand, but he couldn't make out the title in the
firelight. She bit her lip in thought as she turned the page, and the towel
finally slid out of her grasp. She still didn't notice, and Daniel couldn't
quite stifle a laugh.
She jumped, then let out a breath at the sight of him.
Glancing back at the book, she dog-eared her page, then closed it and held out
a hand. "Darling, come get warm. You'll end up with one of those cold
things that Mitchell had last week."
"You don't get a cold by being cold," he said fondly, but he pushed
himself away from the door and walked inside, taking the hand she offered.
"You don't?" she frowned.
"It's a virus," he explained as he sank down across from her,
brushing a finger lightly against her cheek.
"Oh. Well, why is it called a cold, then?" she wanted to know.
"Well, because that's what people used to think. No one really knew about
things like germs that caused disease," he explained.
"Are you sure it wasn't just a convenient excuse for people to cuddle by a
fire?" Vala smiled, tilting her head in
invitation.
"I doubt it," Daniel laughed, leaning forward to brush her cheek with
his lips. Her hand slid up against the back of his head, and he closed his
eyes. He traced his mouth over the contour of her cheek and down her jaw, then
left a trail of long, languorous kisses along her neck, then paused and finally
drew back.
"What's wrong?" Vala whispered.
Daniel smiled and shook his head, reaching for her hands. Her brow creased in
confusion, but she allowed him to take them, and he gently pulled her into his
lap. She went without resistance, snuggling deep into his arms. Her cheek
settled firmly against his heart, and Daniel gave a contented sigh, resting his
lips in her hair. Neither spoke for a while, simply enjoying the closeness of
one another's bodies and the warmth of the fire.
"What were you reading?" he asked after a few minutes.
"Hmm?" Vala tilted
her head back to give him a surprised look.
"When I came in," he said. "What book is that?"
"Oh. Sam loaned it to me. It's called The
Mill on the Floss," she replied.
Daniel's eyes widened. "Eliot?" he asked.
"Mmm," Vala
nodded enthusiastically. "It's about a girl named Maggie Tulliver. Have you read it?"
"Uh…yeah…" Daniel said slowly.
"You don't like it," her face fell.
"No, I do. It--it's just, I--" he broke off, clearing his throat.
"What?" she raised an eyebrow.
"It's just…not exactly the kind of book I'd expect you to like," he
said.
"Why not?" Vala
frowned.
"Well," Daniel shrugged. "The--the classics are pretty heavy
reading…"
"Oh. Too smart for me, is that it?" she demanded.
"No!" he shook his head.
"Really? Then what would you expect me to be
reading?"
Daniel opened his mouth to reply and then bit his lip, quickly deciding that it
would be a very bad idea to point out that last week Vala
had been reading a trashy romance that someone had left in the commissary. His
gaze flicked nervously off toward one of the nearby shelves, though he had no
real hope of finding an answer there.
"Here!" he exclaimed, suddenly seizing on an idea. He gently shifted
her off his lap and scrambled up, hurrying to grab an old leatherbound
volume. The shelves were tightly packed, and a few others spilled out as well.
He quickly stuffed them back in and turned to face Vala,
who was watching with her arms folded across her chest.
He smiled a little nervously and stepped back toward her, opening the book and
flipping pages as he went. "Elizabeth Barrett Browning," he said by
way of introduction.
"Love me Sweet, with all thou art,
Feeling, thinking, seeing;
Love me in the lightest part,
Love me in full being.
Love me with thine open youth
In its frank surrender;
With the vowing of thy mouth,
With its silence tender…"
Slowly, Vala let her arms fall, and he smiled again.
Kneeling on the floor in front of her, he handed her the book and cupped her
face in his hands.
"Love me with thine
azure eyes,
Made for earnest grantings;
Taking colour from the skies,
Can Heaven's truth be wanting?
"You're trying to ply me with poetry and make me forget that I'm annoyed
with you," she smiled, bringing a finger to his lips.
"Is it working?" Daniel asked.
Vala laughed softly and let her finger slide away.
She held his gaze for a long moment and then nodded, replacing the finger with
her lips. Without breaking the kiss, Daniel gently guided her down until they
were both stretched out on their sides.
"Tell me the rest of it," she murmured, finally sliding her mouth
away.
"Hmm?" he asked bemusedly.
"The poem, Daniel," she chuckled, resting a hand on his cheek.
"Oh! Oh, right," he nodded. "Um…"
"You don't remember anymore, do you?" she laughed.
"Sure I do," he nodded. "Uh--gimme a second."
After a few false starts, he did manage to remember and recite the rest of A Man's Requirements. Vala rewarded him with another kiss, and then shifted and
stretched her arm to pull the book over from where she'd laid it. She handed it
to him with a winning grin, but he shook his head.
"You read me one now," he said.
"But I don't know them," she objected.
"It's okay, just…read through the beginnings. Find one you like and read
it to me," he replied.
"All right," Vala bit her lip nervously.
She sat up to give herself more of the firelight to see by and began scanning
the pages. Daniel pushed himself up as well and repositioned himself behind
her. He wound his arms around her, pulling her snugly against his chest, and
settled his chin on her shoulder. She turned her head to look at him, leaving a
light kiss on his lips before returning her attention to the book and
beginning,
"The cypress stood up like a church
That night we felt our love would hold…
PART 5: Just Lucky
The first sound he heard was a sneeze. Daniel groaned and
rolled over in bed, reaching automatically for Vala.
He found only tangled covers and his eyes sprang open. He looked around the
still-dark bedroom in confusion until a second sneeze came and his
sleep-muddled brain registered that she had only gone into the bathroom.
"You okay?" he called.
She didn't reply, but he heard the bathroom door open, and her footsteps
trudged back down the hall. He sat up, stretching an arm to snap on the lamp
beside the bed, and waited. She appeared in the doorway flush-faced and with
dark, pronounced circles under her eyes. Her usual morning bounce had
evaporated, and she plodded across the room to drop down beside him.
"Are we allowed to call out sick?" she asked, burying her face in her
hands.
"What's the matter?" Daniel asked, boosting himself up to slip his
arms around her.
"I told you that we'd catch cold," she replied with a cough.
"Must've been those kids," Daniel chuckled. "A couple of them
were sniffling."
"Well, you played with them too. And we spent the night together. Why
aren't you sneezing and coughing?" she wanted to know.
"Just lucky, I guess," he shrugged, hiding a grin as he kissed her
neck.
PART 6: Evasive Action
He didn't know Sam was behind him until her hand brushed his
shoulder. He jumped, his elbow striking the coffee cup on the table beside him.
They both moved to catch it, but the cup tottered onto its side, spilling the
brown liquid all over the notebook he'd been scribbling in.
Daniel shoved his chair back to avoid a coffee bath while Sam dove for the
napkins. She sopped up the mess and they both carried napkins and notes over to
the nearest trash can. She dumped the napkins into it while he tried in vain to
salvage the last hour's work.
Vala's cold had postponed the day's offworld mission, since SG-1 had been scheduled to
rendezvous with some of her old smuggling contacts. SG-3 and SG-12 had both
brought back artifacts that appeared Mayan in origin, though they'd been
visiting two separate worlds this week. Daniel had been itching to start a
comparative analysis of their finds, and had decided to take the unexpected
opportunity and get started. He'd been occupied with it for most of the
morning, but fresh coffee had seemed like an appropriate reason for a break.
He'd told himself that at least he could bring his notes with him.
"Sorry," Sam murmured apologetically.
"Oh…s'okay," Daniel shrugged.
"So," she smirked. "Since when do you read Elizabeth Barrett Browning?"
Daniel pursed his lips, raising his eyebrows as if in surprise at the question.
"I read lots of things," he said vaguely.
"We borrow books from each other all the time. I've never seen that one in
your collection," she pointed out.
"Oh. Well--you must have missed it," he smiled, heading quickly back
toward the table.
"Right," Sam snickered, moving to sit on the other side.
"Sam, I'm a scholar. I keep lots of books around for research
purposes," he said.
"You've done research on 19th century British poets?" Sam raised a
disbelieving eyebrow.
"I…think understanding the literature of any period is important to having
an accurate view of the culture it comes from," he coughed.
"Sure, Daniel," she looked down at the table to hide a grin.
"What?" he demanded.
"Nothing. That was really smooth, by the way.
Reading her love poetry to get yourself out of
trouble," Sam said mischievously.
"Good thing I just happened to
have Elizabeth Barrett Browning handy," he shrugged again.
"I'll say. So, where'd you get it?" she persisted.
"Get what?" he asked, feigning confusion.
"The poetry book, Daniel," Sam rolled her eyes.
"Oh. I dunno," he said absently, turning
his attention back to his notebook.
"Daniel, I've been your friend for ten years. In all that time you've
never not known where you got any
book you own," Sam said, reaching to snatch the pencil from his hand.
He let out an exaggerated sigh and looked up again. "Well, if you must know, I got it--"
"UNSCHEDULED OFFWORLD ACTIVATION!"
PART 7: When She Lets Her Hair Down
The coughing fit started before she even reached the door.
Waiting in the hallway, Daniel winced and wondered if Robitussin might have
been a better choice than the Tupperware container of chicken soup he was
holding. Vala's hacking finally tapered off, and she
opened the door.
Her hair was tousled and she was dressed in some bright blue frog pajamas that
he recognized as Sam's. The color was a stark contrast to the vivid red of her
nose, but he firmly resisted the smile that tugged at his lips.
"Nice PJs," he offered.
"Sam said they'd be more comfortable than anything I had," she
explained as she moved aside to let him in.
He nodded and bent to kiss her, but she quickly turned her face away. "Bad
idea, darling," she said.
"Right," he sighed, making his way into her quarters. "Well…I
brought you some chicken soup."
Vala sighed, gesturing toward the table, where
several similar containers were already stacked. "You're the third person
to bring me chicken soup, Daniel. Would you care to explain the
significance?"
"It's…um…an old wives' tale," Daniel began as he carried the soup
over to the table. "Or a folk remedy, I guess. Or…maybe
more of a tradition. I think essentially it's the idea that it's warm and
comforting."
"Like the pajamas?" Vala frowned.
"Oh--hold on--"
Daniel turned in time to see her rush toward the loveseat, where she grabbed a
handful of tissues from the box on the cushion where she'd been sitting. She
sneezed violently several times, then let out a groan and flopped down amid the
pile of blankets and pillows.
"Oh, this is just awful," she moaned. "I'm sure Carolyn's wrong.
It's much more serious than a cold. I'm all stuffed up, I ache from head to
toe, my throat feels like sandpaper, and every time I cough or sneeze it makes
my head pound."
"Sounds like a cold to me," Daniel smiled as he walked over to her.
He nudged the blankets carefully out of the way and lowered himself onto the
cushion, then slid his arm around her. Drawing her gently against his chest, he
pressed his lips into her hair and ran a hand over the tense muscles of her
back.
"Thank you for that observation, darling," Vala
said testily. She rolled her eyes and shoved him away with a whine.
"Daniel, I'm sick! Will you get off of me!"
Daniel frowned, his mouth popping open. "Well, I was just trying to make
you feel better!" he huffed.
"I'd feel better if I didn't have someone smothering me while I don't feel
well," she grumbled.
Daniel rolled his eyes but said nothing, reaching for the remote control. He
supposed that at least it was a positive sign that she would let herself be
grouchy and childish with him. Flipping absently through the channels, he hoped
that if he appeared to have his attention focused elsewhere, she would be less
apt to pick a fight. Before he could settle on something to watch, though, she
edged closer and started snuggling into his side.
Letting out a long sigh, he slid his arm around her again. He almost expected
to be pushed away, but her arm wound around him, and she rested her head
against his shoulder. Another spasm of coughing shook her, and he turned with a
worried frown.
"Did Carolyn give you anything for that?" he asked.
"Mmm, but it just tastes so awful," she
replied, pouting. "Why does medicine always taste terrible?"
"I don't know," he admitted.
"My throat's so tight and raw, Daniel," she complained.
"Might help if you stop talking for a while," he pointed out.
"Oh, very funny," she rolled her eyes.
"I'm serious," he protested.
"I'm sure you are," Vala sighed.
"Look, the more you talk, the more you irritate your throat…"
"What I really need is a popsicle," she interrupted.
"A popsicle?" he repeated,
running a hand over his face in exasperation.
"To make my throat stop hurting!" she nodded, then
turned a pleading look on him.
"You've got all this soup," he reminded her.
"But it's hot. I can't eat anything hot, Daniel, it hurts when I
swallow!" she insisted.
Daniel raised his eyes to the ceiling and sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll go
down to the commissary and get you a popsicle,"
he said, getting up again.
"Thank you, darling," she coughed as he left.
The sound of it melted his irritation, and he nodded, hurrying out. Maybe a popsicle would be
good for her; if not it would at least keep her from talking for a while, he
thought as he went. That idea, however, went out the window as soon as he
returned and presented her with the frozen treat she'd asked for.
Vala's brow puckered. "I wanted a red one,"
she told him.
"All they had was grape," he said apologetically. "It'll still
help your throat."
"But I don't like those. It's
Mitchell who likes the grape ones. I like cherry," she reminded him,
pouting.
Daniel closed his eyes. "Vala, I love you, but I
am not going out to the store to get you a cherry popsicle."
"Why not?" she demanded.
"Because!" he snapped.
Vala opened her mouth to retort, but twisted her head
instead, diving for another handful of Kleenex. The sneeze seemed to trigger
more coughing, which ended in her flopping sideways on the couch. "Never
mind," she wheezed. "Of course you love me, darling."
Daniel hung his head. "I'll be back as soon as I can."
* * * *
She didn't answer when he knocked the second time, so Daniel carefully eased
the door open and slid inside. He heard the snoring before he saw her and
stifled a laugh. Quietly setting the brown paper bag on the table, he unpacked
the tissues and cough drops, fished out the book of crossword puzzles he'd
picked up at the check-out counter, and then stowed the soup and popsicles in
her mini-fridge.
When she hadn't woken up by the time he finished, he made his way back to her
and stood watching for a minute. She had fallen asleep in the same position
she'd been in when he left. Her slippered feet were
still on the floor, and her upper body was draped across the cushions with the
top of her head crammed uncomfortably up against the arm of the loveseat.
A fond smile spread across Daniel's lips, and he shook his head, bending to
pick her up. She stirred in his arms, giving him a sleepily confused look. He
freed a hand to brush her cheek and gave her forehead a reassuring kiss.
"You're gonna get a stiff neck," he mumured, but she had already settled her head on his chest
and drifted back to sleep.
Grinning to himself, Daniel carried her to the bed and pulled back the covers.
Her brow creased fretfully as he set her down, but she only coughed a few times
and didn't wake. He froze, holding himself completely still until she seemed to
relax again, then carefully pulled the blankets back up around her. Before he
left, he brought one of the Kleenex boxes and set it on the bed where she'd
find it if she woke and needed it.
"'Night, Vala," he whispered finally,
pressing his lips to her forehead.
PART 8: I Am Not Lucy
"You are so Lucy!" Daniel laughed as he and Vala left the lunch line in the orange-and-black decorated
commissary.
"I am not! I'm nothing like her!" huffed Vala, folding her arms across her chest. Her cold had
finally gone away, but she'd still been sick enough the night before to be able
to wheedle him into watching It's the Great
Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Peanuts had become a regular fixture in Vala's life since she'd discovered the Sunday comics, and
she'd been thrilled to discover that the strip had been adapted for television.
"C'mon. Holding the football and pulling it away? Tell me you
wouldn't!" he challenged.
"I wouldn't," she insisted as they paused in front of the freezers to
pick the desserts Daniel had paid for with the rest of their meals. "Ooh,
look, darling. Red ones!"
Daniel smiled and shook his head, gesturing for her to take the popsicles out.
She grinned mischievously and grabbed them, then bounced over to the table
where the rest of SG-1 was having lunch. Once there, she doled out popsicles to
each of them and then stood beside an empty chair, giving Daniel an expectant
look.
Cameron gave a small snort of amusement and Sam hid a smirk behind her hand.
Teal'c commendably showed no reaction, but as Daniel set the lunch trays down
and moved to pull out Vala's chair, he had the
distinct feeling that the
"Thank you, Daniel," Vala smiled, giving
his cheek a peck before sliding into her seat. Then, turning to
"Oookay," he replied, looking warily from
her to Daniel and back.
"I don't know,
"Indeed," agreed Teal'c.
Vala ignored them, smoothly explaining, "Daniel
keeps saying that I am Lucy. I told him that's ridiculous, but he
insists."
"What?" Vala's mouth dropped open. She
quickly recovered, though, and stabbed a finger at him, replying, "Fine,
then. If I'm Lucy, then you are
Snoopy!"
"Snoopy!"
"Hey," laughed Sam. "Does that make Teal'c Woodstock?"
The
PART 9: Meant to Be
"Okay," Daniel laughed when they were back in her
quarters later. "If you're not Lucy, who are you then?"
Vala spun to face him, folding her arms over her
chest. She opened her mouth, then paused, and snapped it shut with a clack. His
smile widened.
"I know. Peppermint Patty," he taunted.
"What?!" Vala
gasped. "Daniel, her fashion sense is horrid. Those
open-toed sandals? Not to mention the fact that she's so stupid she
doesn't even realize that Snoopy is a beagle! How about the Little Red-haired
girl? I wouldn't blame Charlie Brown for being infatuated with me."
"Nope, doesn't work. Your hair's not red. Besides, nobody ever sees the
Little Red-haired Girl," Daniel pointed out.
"So?" Vala raised an eyebrow.
"You wanna be a character who never even gets a
line in the strip?" he asked.
"All right, you have a point," she admitted. "But I'm still not
going along with this Lucy business."
"Violet?" Daniel asked.
"Violet's an imbecile!" Vala
scoffed. "She's goes to school and Saturdays and can't figure out why no
one else is there. I may be a lot of things, Daniel, but I'm far from
stupid."
"Sally?"
"Charlie Brown's sickeningly cute, blonde
little sister?" Vala rolled her eyes.
"Okay, then who's left? What's her name--Marcie?" he asked.
"The geek with glasses!" Vala
exclaimed, her mouth dropping open in shock.
Daniel narrowed his eyes, giving her a hard look. After a moment's pause, she
bit her lip, turning a bright smile on him. "Um.
Not, of course, that there's anything wrong with geeks. Or
glasses. But you have to admit--Sam is much more suited to being Marcie than
I am."
"Uh-huh," Daniel folded his arms, eyeing her with a distinctly
unimpressed expression. "So that brings us back to Lucy."
Vala sighed and let her arms drop, walking over to
place a hand on his arm. "Okay. But if I have to be Lucy, will you at least
be my Schroeder?"
He smiled a little and slid his arms around her waist. "Y'know, I've always kinda thought
that if Charlie Brown ever stopped chasing after the Little Red-haired girl,
he'd see that Lucy's been waiting the whole time."
"Charlie Brown and Lucy?" Vala's eyes widened as her arms slid around his neck. "But what about Schroeder?"
"Schroeder's a challenge," Daniel shrugged.
Vala bit her lip thoughtfully. "Oh, I see. So,
if she ever got his attention, she wouldn't want it anymore."
"Same thing with Charlie Brown and the Little Red-haired Girl,"
Daniel nodded.
"I don't know, darling. If Lucy likes Charlie Brown, why doesn't she let
him kick the football?" Vala pointed out.
"Well, she can't let him know that she likes him," Daniel replied.
"Ohhh," Vala
nodded in understanding. "Sort of like pulling on
pigtails?"
"Sort of," Daniel agreed with a chuckle. She leaned forward to
kiss him, but he suddenly frowned and pulled back. "Wait a minute. Where'd
you pick up the word geek
anyway?"
"Uh--Mitchell," Vala replied, her gaze
flicking uncomfortably away.
"Do I want to know who you were talking about?" Daniel inquired.
"Not really…"
PART 10: A New Look
Vala wiggled her hips and turned
to either side, examining the cut of the shimmering gold dress again. She
wrinkled her nose distastefully and sighed, stepping away from the mirrored
wall of the store. "Daniel, as much I like the idea of you in the Mark
Anthony costume, I'm just not feeling
Cleopatra."
Behind her, Daniel's eyebrows shot up. "You mean you made me drive an hour
and a half for these costumes and now you don't like them?"
"Sorry, darling," Vala shrugged, bouncing
back off to the dressing rooms. "Let me change and we'll look for
something else."
Daniel sighed, running a hand over his face. She happily disappeared into the
back of the shop, and he shook his head, turning to peruse the costume racks
behind him. As soon as she'd heard about the costume contest at the annual SGC
Halloween party, Vala had been determined to win the prize
for Best Couple. He'd known better than to try to dissuade her and let himself
be dragged along on her hunt for the perfect outfits.
The Charlie Brown and Lucy costumes were hidden so well between Darth Vader and
Big Bird that he almost missed them. The familiar brown zig-zag
pattern on the bright yellow fabric caught his eye, though, and he pushed his
way through. Grinning, he carefully took them off the rack and headed for the
dressing rooms.
* * * *
Mitchell made his entrance about a half an hour into the party. Vala was busy dancing with Bluebeard the Pirate and almost
didn't see him. Suddenly though, she glanced over the pirate's shoulder and let
out a squeal of delight.
"SNOOPY!" she shrieked happily.
The pirate spun around to see what she was looking at and lifted his eye-patch
to reveal General Landry. His jaw dropped at the sight of Mitchell, then he shook his head at Vala,
who was racing off the dance floor to throw her arms around Daniel's neck.
"What's that for?" Daniel laughed.
"You got him to dress as Snoopy!" she cried.
Still in the doorway,
"Oh. Right," Vala said apologetically. She
started toward him, but
* * * *
"So you're happy with second place?" Daniel asked with a tired smile.
Vala finished arranging the trophy and turned,
nodding. "I really did want to win," she admitted.
"It's hard to beat Snoopy and
"The looks on their faces were priceless," she grinned as she slid
onto the loveseat beside him.
He nodded agreement and pulled her head onto his chest. Resting his chin on her
hair, he remarked, "You know, they're gonna
fight over who gets to keep the trophy all year."
PART 11: Boot Scoot
Teal'c's eyebrow rose at the loud,
unmistakable blare of Mitchell's boom box coming from the commissary. He
clasped his hands behind his back and continued up the hall, pausing when he
reached the doorway. The portable stereo was on the table in front of the CO,
predictably playing a country music CD, but this wasn't one that Teal'c
recognized. The rhythm was catchy, but the
…Yeah, heel, toe, dosie doe come on, baby, let's go boot scootin
Cadillac black jack, baby meet me outback we're gonna
boogie
Oh get down, turn around go to town boot scootin'
boogie…
"ColonelMitchell," Teal'c inquired blandly.
"What is a boot scoot?"
Teal'c raised a questioning eyebrow.
* * * *
Daniel's jaw dropped as he and Vala reached the
commissary door. Inside, Mitchell, Teal'c, several off duty airmen, and Dr. Lam
were doing what he thought was a country line-dance to the music of a boom box
that someone had brought onto the base.
"Oh, the Boot Scoot!" Vala squealed.
"You know how to do that?!?" Daniel exclaimed.
"Well, no, I've never done it. I've only seen it on television. Come on,
darling!" she urged, grabbing his arm.
"Vala, I don't know how," he protested.
"Neither do I, Daniel. Mitchell will show us.
Come on!" she insisted, hopping
off to join the line.
* * * *
"Are you people all crazy?" General Landry
bellowed over the racket. The rapidly growing line of dancers broke off,
looking nervously from
"Mitchell, was this your idea?" Landry demanded.
"Yessir,"
Landry gestured toward the boom box. "Your
stereo?"
"Yessir," came the
response.
"And what is it doing here?"
Landry asked, bushy eyebrows shooting up.
"Well, sir, uh…my Discman was broken…"
Landry sighed heavily. Turning to Woolsey, he shook his head. "Mr.
Woolsey, I'm sorry. I don't know what's going on around here."
"Looks like the Boot Scoot to me, General," Woolsey smiled, crossing
the room to turn the CD on again.
* * * *
"Maybe it's some kind of alien contaminant," Sam speculated, turning
a wide eyed expression on Jack.
"Nah," he grinned. "Just a typical day at the
SGC. I miss this place, Carter."
"Ho, all right, hold up!"
"Where can we go to find more room?" Vala
frowned. "All the labs are full of equipment. Offices and personal quarters
are smaller than this room. Not to mention the fact that they all have
furniture that it would take half the day to move. And anyway, some of it's
nailed to the floor.
"How do you know that…?" Daniel asked, taking her arm with a glare.
"Um…"
"I know where we can go," Landry grinned, forestalling the couple's
argument.
* * * *
Beside her, John grinned widely and started down the ramp.
Then he paused, turning back to her with a frown. “
PART 12: Thin Ice
Vala was perched on Sam's desk,
leaning on her elbow as the two women perused what had to be more ski resort brochures. Daniel froze in the doorway,
turned and walked out again, but Vala caught sight of
him and sprang to the floor. She chased him out into the hall, making a grab
for his arm.
He unconsciously started to pull his arm away, but caught himself as she
declared, "Oh, no you don't!"
"What?" he sighed, turning to face her.
"Daniel, now General Landry's given us a whole week off for Thanksgiving.
Sam and I want to go skiing, and you boys are coming along," she declared.
"Vala, I don't like skiing," he shook his
head. "You spend more time standing in line than you actually do on the
slopes, and it's cold. All I want to
do next week is stay home and relax."
"Come on, darling, all you ever want to do is stay home with your nose in
a book!" Vala sighed in disgust.
"Yeah, well, that's--that's who I am. That's what I like," Daniel
replied testily, though his own anger startled him.
"Well, what about what I want?" she planted her hands on her hips.
"Vala, we always do what you want!" he
snapped.
"What?" she huffed angrily.
"Since we've been dating, all you do is drag me around doing whatever you
want," he said.
"Do you mean that?" Vala's eyes widened.
Daniel's mouth opened and closed, and he ran a hand through his hair, taking a
moment to think. "Yeah, you know what, I think I do," he replied in
surprise.
Vala narrowed her eyes. "Well. If that's how you
feel, fine. Sam and I will go by ourselves. I hope you enjoy your holiday
alone, Daniel."
PART 13: A Conspiracy of Friends
Vala stomped back into Sam's
office and gave the desk a swift kick. Her friend looked up from the brochures
with a start. "Ooooooh, he makes me so angry!" Vala
declared, balling her hands into fists in frustration.
"What happened?" Sam asked.
"He doesn't want to go," Vala replied.
"We already knew that," frowned Sam.
"No, I mean, he really doesn't
want to go. He says that I spend all our time together dragging him around to
do what I want. I told him if he
feels that way, then fine. We'll just go by ourselves," Vala related with a determined nod.
"Are you sure that's what you want?" Sam asked, her forehead
crinkling in disbelief.
Vala paused, then nodded
again. "Maybe it's a good idea that we spend some time apart. We're always together--offworld,
here in the mountain, even during our downtime now. A week apart will do us
both good."
Sam bit her lip thoughtfully. "The trip won't be much fun without the
guys.
"Of course it will," insisted Vala,
casually leaning her hip against the desk. "We don't need them to have
fun, do we?"
"No," Sam shook her head in agreement. "But I really think you
should talk to Daniel, Vala. Don't use the trip as an
escape for a relationship problem."
"Oh, I'll talk to him. After he apologizes," Vala
said flatly.
* * * *
Daniel stormed into the locker room and brushed past
"Uh oh,"
"What has ValaMalDoran done?" Teal'c asked.
"They're still looking pamphlets for that ski trip," he said with a
shake of his head.
"Personally, I don't think a week at a ski lodge is such a bad idea,"
"I don't like skiing. And--and I guess I'm tired of spending all my
downtime doing what she wants. Look
at everything we've done in the last month." Daniel sighed.
"You raised no objections at the time," Teal'c reminded him.
"Well, I did this time. I told her I didn't want to go, and she--she says,
'All you ever want to do is stay home with your nose in a book!' Well, if all
she wants me to be is--is--is some toy to play with then--then--"
"
"Whaddaya mean nothing?" demanded Daniel.
"She don't mean it that way. She's just used to makin' her own rules,"
"Yeah, well, maybe I'm tired of making exceptions for her," Daniel
replied, shaking his head in disgust.
Daniel's eyes bulged. "What?
Who--who said anything about leaving her?"
"I told you I smelled a wedding,"
"Indeed," the
"Aw, c'mon!" Daniel shoved his hands through
his hair. "Will you guys just cut it out!"
* * * *
They were coolly civil all week. Even offworld,
Daniel and Vala treated each other with professional
politeness and kept their distance. The girls picked a resort and made
reservations.
Friday morning,
"That is, in fact, our reason for coming," Teal'c replied.
"Oh yeah?" Sam asked.
"ColonelMitchell has a plan which he believes
will convince both DanielJackson and ValaMalDoran to apologize," he explained.
* * * *
She was sitting in the dim commissary alone. Most of the base personnel had
left already and the room was almost empty. Her chin was propped on her fist
and, and she was flipping a page in her book as he walked in. She jerked her
head up at the sound of his approach and forced a smile.
"Can--can I sit down?" Daniel asked hopefully.
Vala nodded.
"Thanks for seeing me," he said as he slid into the chair opposite
her.
"Sam said you wanted to apologize…" Vala
trailed off, biting her lip.
His mouth popped open. "She what?"
"I've been thinking, darling, and maybe I--what?" she frowned.
"Mitchell said you wanted to
apologize!" Daniel exclaimed.
"He what?" Vala
stared in disbelief. Quickly shoving back her chair, she snatched the book off
the table and jumped to her feet. "Well, I'm not apologizing until you
apologize!"
"Come on, Vala, this is exactly what I'm talking
about," Daniel scrambled up as well. "Everything's gotta be your
way!"
"What is that supposed to mean?" she demanded hotly.
"What difference does it make who apologizes first?" he sighed.
"Why should I apologize when you're the one who's wrong?" she
retorted.
Daniel opened his mouth and shut it again, shaking his head. "You know,
forget it. Just forget the whole thing," he said, turning to leave.
"Fine," she snapped, spinning in the opposite direction.
Daniel took two strides and halted, his hands balling into fists at his sides. "Vala."
"What?" she froze as well.
"I'm sorry," he said softly as he turned around again.
Vala whirled around again with a huff. "You're sorry?"
"Yes!" Daniel grit his teeth, stomping
toward her.
"Well," she smiled. "I'm sorry, too."
Daniel's eyes widened in surprise. "Wh--you are?"
"Mmm-hmm," she nodded.
"Well then, why did you--?" he broke off in confusion.
"Because you always look so cute when you're flustered,
darling. I simply couldn't resist," she replied.
Daniel raised his eyes to the ceiling and sighed, but Vala
laid a hand on his cheek, and her tone became serious. "Daniel, do you
really feel as if you have no say in what we do?" she frowned.
"Sometimes," he admitted with a nod. "But I shouldn't have
talked to you the way I did."
"I didn't mean to make you feel that way," she shook her head.
"I know. Vala, I enjoy spending time with
you--and--and maybe there are times when I need someone to remind me that there
are other things besides work and my books. But sometimes--sometimes I just
really do want to stay home," he said.
"I understand, darling. I'll tell Sam the trip's off," Vala decided.
Daniel gave a grateful smile. "You don't have to."
She shook her head. "It's all right. I really didn't want to go if you
weren't."
"Vala, I'll go with you," he told her.
"Are you sure?" she asked hopefully.
"Mmm-hmm," Daniel nodded, then dipped his head to brush her lips with his.
Vala's arms curled around his neck as he drew away,
and she pulled him back, returning the kiss ardently. Then, she murmured,
"Thank you, darling. And I promise, the next time we have some downtime,
we'll do whatever you like."
"Thank you," Daniel smiled.
"Even if I'm bored out of my mind…"
PART 14: Lost and Found
The cabins adjacent to the main lodge were all occupied, and
switching rooms would have resulted in Sam having to room with
They were more than an hour late leaving town on Friday night, since Daniel had
to go back home and pack, but the rest of SG-1 took the delay in stride. While
the archaeologist rooted around in three different closets searching for
various pieces of luggage and winter clothes, the team lounged in his living
room.
"Aw, come on, Daniel!" Sam complained, reaching behind her to pull a
pillow off of the couch and fling it at his disappearing back.
"Just because you know
everything doesn't mean the don't want to play,
darling," Vala called after him.
The only response was the loud clatter of falling objects, followed by an even
bigger thud. Vala sprang off the arm of the couch and
ran into the bedroom, followed only seconds later by the rest of the team. They
found Daniel on the floor outside the closet, half buried under a pile of
books, clothes, and suitcases. Hanging over his shoulder was a pair of long
underwear.
"Hey,
PART 15: Dance with Me
Jack was waiting to meet them at the lodge, but he didn't
see them when they arrived. Several other guests were gathered on couches
drinking hot chocolate or leaning casually against the wall. Everyone's gaze
was focused on a small group in front of the fireplace, which seemed to be led
by an obese white haired tourist and his teenaged granddaughters. A boom box
sat on the floor in front of them, issuing what, to everyone but Vala, was
a horribly familiar Latin dance beat.
"Is it just me or does that guy look exactly like Nerus?"
"What are they doing?" Vala wanted to know.
"It's…called the Macarena," Daniel explained, running a hand over his
face.
"It looks like…"
"No," Daniel said flatly.
"So knew that was comin',"
"Indeed," smirked Teal'c, who was loaded down with the team's bags.
He walked calmly off after Sam, and Daniel let out a sigh.
"What?" Vala asked, looking from one
teammate to the next with wide eyes.
Shaking his head, Daniel took her elbow, guiding her over to the couch where
Jack was watching the performance. The general looked up as they approached, his
face breaking into a wide grin.
"Daniel!"
"Jack…?" came the response.
"Changed his mind for him, huh, Vala?" Jack
asked, half standing to offer her his hand.
"Not this time, General," she smiled.
"Enough with the General stuff. It's Jack,"
he told her.
"Jack," she nodded.
Daniel smiled a little and lowered himself onto the couch. Vala
immediately appropriated his lap, and Jack shook his head. The two men fell to
small talk about their respective trips to the resort, and Vala's
attention drifted off to the giggling girls and their grandfather.
Everyone else joined them soon after, and Teal'c finally set down the luggage
while Sam and Cameron handed out room keys. He was about to pick the stuff up
again when the music came to a halt and two of the dancers pled exhaustion and
retired to an empty loveseat.
"Anyone else want to dance with us?" one of the girls asked, looking
around hopefully.
"We will!" Vala grinned, grabbing Daniel's
hand and hopping off his lap. He tensed, and she released his fingers,
remembering a moment too late what had caused their recent argument. Biting her
lip, she awkwardly amended. "I will."
Teal'c hesitated for a moment, but as she stepped away from the couch alone, he
shucked off his coat. "I will accompany you, ValaMalDoran,"
he said.
Vala half turned in surprise, then smiled brightly.
Teal'c inclined his head and gestured for her to lead the way. She scampered
off to shake hands with the family of tourists, while Teal'c placidly followed
with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Hi, I'm Vala," she said. "This
is…"
"
"Larry," replied the grandfather. "These are my granddaughters,
Jennifer and Jessica."
"Nice to meet you," Vala nodded.
"Have you guys done the Macarena before?" Jennifer asked.
"We have not," Teal'c admitted.
"But we learn fast," Vala winked.
The team slid out of coats and hats and watched in open-mouthed astonishment as
Teal'c and Vala began to follow the Nerus-lookalike through the steps of the Macarena. Teal'c
caught on suspiciously fast for someone who'd never done the dance before, and Vala took to it with predictable ease. By the third time
through the steps, both of them looked as if they had been doing the Macarena
for years.
"Come on, all of you," Vala laughed after a
few minutes. "Are you going to let us have all the fun?"
"I believe they are afraid that they cannot successfully perform the
steps," Teal'c told her with a conspiratorial look.
"Whoa!"
"Let's see," challenged Vala.
"All right then, you got it," he nodded sharply, walking up to join
them.
"Sam, you too," Vala encouraged.
The other woman started to shake her head, then bit her lip thoughtfully and
finally got up. "Okay, one time."
"Sam, you gotta be kidding me," Daniel
gaped.
"Hey, where's your team spirit?" she asked him with a teasing grin.
"I think I left it in the car…"
Sam shook her head, turning speculatively toward Jack. His laughter suddenly
broke off and he stared at her open-mouthed for several seconds. She folded her
arms, but he shook his head vehemently.
"I don't think so, Carter. There is no
way you're getting me up there," he insisted.
"We don't need them anyway," Vala spoke up,
grabbing her friend's arm with a wink.
"Wha…?" Jack turned questioningly to
Daniel.
The archaeologist raised his eyes to the ceiling and sighed. "Here we
go."
"What?" repeated Jack.
In response, Daniel gestured toward Vala, who was
walking Sam slowly through the motions of the dance while Teal'c demonstrated
for Cameron. Both women quickly broke out laughing, and
"Right,"
"Are you certain that you have not performed the Macarena before, ColonelMitchell?" Teal'c asked.
"No! I mean yes!"
It took several more run-throughs before Sam could keep the beat without
messing up a step, but once she could, Vala glanced
toward Daniel and Jack again and grabbed her hands. Sam frowned questioningly, then gasped with shock as Vala
started to gyrate her hips.
"Yep, didn't see that coming either," Daniel muttered sardonically.
"Go ahead," Vala whispered encouragingly.
Sam shook her head, glancing nervously toward the couch, but Vala reached quickly to turn her face back. She bit her
lip, but Vala finally coaxed her into a few
halfhearted hip motions, and Jack's jaw dropped.
Curious, he stepped toward the women, lifting an eyebrow as he caught Vala's eye. She grinned and pivoted to stand in front of
him. Sam stood back with obvious relief, and both she and Cameron trying
valiantly not to crack up as Vala guided the
Now don't you worry
about my boyfriend
The boy whose name is Vitorino
I don't want him, couldn't stand him
Then, Teal'c began to catch on. Daniel's smile flickered and became a frown.
He was no good, so I…
Daniel's mouth popped open, and Jack clasped a
restraining hand on his arm.
"That's exactly what they want," the general reminded him.
Now, come on. What was
I supposed to do?
He was out of town, and his two friends were sooo
fine--
"That's it!" Daniel exclaimed, shoving himself off the couch. The
dancers halted and
"No, darling. You don't get to do that until you
can do this," she winked, beginning the Macarena again.
Daniel scowled, and Sam grinned as he awkwardly began to mimic Vala's movements. She walked back to the couch and leaned
casually against the arm, giving Jack a long look.
"So. You're not really gonna
let the new guy show you up, are you, sir?"
PART 16: Plans Within Plans
True to Daniel's prediction, they spent the entire morning
standing in line. Vala didn't mind the cold since her
Macarena-dancing tourist friends happened to be directly behind them. Teal'c found
Cameron's snowboard intriguing and raised a perplexed eyebrow.
"I do not understand the concept of snowboarding, ColonelMitchell,"
he said. "Skis I comprehend. There are two. But how does one employ one of
these boards?"
"It's like surfing on the snow, T," Jack spoke up behind them.
"Surfing?" Vala
asked.
Daniel covered his face with his hand. "Thanks, Jack."
"Welcome," the general grinned.
"I'll show ya when we get there, Teal'c,"
"Wait," Vala frowned. "Is someone
going to explain this surfing?"
* * * *
By the time they reached the lift, the trip to
He even hoped that he might be able to avoid making a fool of himself on the
slopes when everyone became more interested in watching Teal'c's
first snowboarding lesson than actually skiing. Finally, though, Teal'c
surrendered the board to Cameron, who impressed even the
* * * *
They found him flat on his back under the tree. Jack had come across the first
ski somewhere back on the trail. The second one could now be seen dangling from
a low-hanging branch, and he hurriedly went to get it before it could fall on
Daniel's unconscious body. Vala fumbled to remove her
own skis and knelt beside him while
"Daniel?" she asked tentatively, reaching to slide a hand under his
head.
"Vala, don't move him," Sam warned,
kneeling quickly beside her friends. "We don't know if there's been any
spinal damage."
"Oh--" Vala quickly pulled her hand away
and bit her lip, then tried again hopefully. "Daniel? Oh, darling, I'm
sorry. This is my fault. We should've stayed home the way you wanted…"
"Yes it is," Daniel cracked open an eye. "And I hope you've
learned your lesson."
Vala let out a shriek of outrage, and Daniel
scrambled to his feet. Sam raised her eyes to the sky as the couple began to
race through the snow. Vala grabbed a ski pole and
took a swipe as Daniel ducked behind Teal'c. He stood implacably while they ran
in circles around him, remarking only, "Perhaps it is I who should have
remained at home."
PART 17: Reality Bites
"Why do you Tau'ri have trees along your ski trails anyway?" Vala
asked later that afternoon. She'd finally caught Daniel, and her anger over the
feigned unconsciousness ploy had been appeased by the pleasure of sitting atop
his back and rubbing his face repeatedly in the snow while he sputtered for
help. Sam had eventually convinced her to let him go, and the group went back
to the Lodge to grab hot drinks and warm up by the fire.
"What do you mean?" Sam frowned.
"Well, hasn't it occurred to anyone that trees can be dangerous?" Vala pointed out. "Daniel could have been hurt."
"The trees help give the place atmosphere. Make it more
friendly," shrugged Jack.
"Yeah…friendly," Daniel muttered. He'd actually landed in the tree
that the team had discovered him underneath, although how exactly that had
happened was still unclear to him. One minute he'd been sailing down a
mountain, then he lost a ski and turned his head to
see where it went. He'd tried to slow down while balancing on one ski, and everything after that was a blur of motion and cold
wetness until he found himself in the branches. He'd fallen out while trying to
remove the second ski, only moments before they found him.
Vala smirked and ran a hand teasingly through his
still damp hair, and the room exploded with laughter. Daniel scowled, but
before he could do more than open his mouth, Jack's cell phone began playing
The Simpsons' theme song. He pulled it from his
pocket and glanced at the number with a loud sigh. He stood up and slipped out
into the hall, returning a few minutes later wearing an irritated expression.
"That was the President," he said as he stomped over to snatch his
coat from the chair where he'd left it.
"You'll be back for Thanksgiving, won't you, sir?" Sam asked, not
quite managing to keep the disappointment out of her tone.
"Do my best, Carter," he shrugged, pulling the coat on and heading
for the door.
PART 18: Dreams and Schemes
Daniel and Vala paused outside the
door to his hotel room, and he leaned his back against it. He pulled her along
with him, holding her loosely with his arms around her waist. Her hands slid up
the sides of his face into his hair, and she grinned. He frowned at the
expression and regarded her with a worried look that wasn't quite feigned.
"So. The next time we come here? We definitely
need one of those cabins," she told him mischievously.
"Why?" he asked, pushing his bottom lip outward in thought.
"As if you don't know, Daniel," she shook her head.
"We could always borrow Jack's cabin," he suggested.
"Now there's an idea," Vala agreed as she
tilted her mouth up to meet his.
He kissed her for a long moment, then pulled back and rested his lips against
her forehead. "Maybe we could go for a drive or something," he said
with a soft, rueful sigh at the presence of their teammates inside the room.
"I'd love to, darling, but I really should go and check on Sam. She hasn't
seemed herself since Jack left," Vala replied.
Daniel sighed again, but nodded agreement. "Okay. I love you."
"I love you too," Vala smiled before she
broke away.
He watched her go, wondering at how easily they'd fallen into this pleasantly
comfortable couplehood. They fought intensely--probably
always would--and he didn't think that any relationship with Vala would ever be lacking in passion. No matter how
furious he could be with her, how well or how often she could push his buttons,
Daniel had never questioned his feelings--or hers. Despite how they'd met and
everything that had happened to them before the Ori
Beachhead, loving her came as naturally and without reservation for him as it
ever had with Sha're. He asked himself, not for the
first time, how that had happened, but could arrive at no answer.
Finally, he pushed himself off of the door and went inside. Mitchell and Teal'c
were playing poker and didn't hear him come in. From the size of the two piles
of chips on the table, it seemed as though Teal'c was winning, but that didn't
dampen Mitchell's cheerful mood.
"So, this whole
"Indeed," agreed Teal'c.
"Oh, are you two getting married?" Daniel smirked. Both of them
swiveled around to face him, and the
"I was talkin' 'bout you and Vala!"
Mitchell declared.
Daniel's smirk widened. "Well, listen. If I ever do take Vala on a honeymoon, it'll be about as far away from you
two as I can get. No offense, Teal'c."
* * * *
Vala found Sam staring out the window in their room.
She walked up and laid a hand lightly on the other woman's arm. "Are you
okay?"
Sam nodded, forcing a smile. "Yeah, fine."
Vala tilted her head, giving her friend a knowing
look. "You didn't buy that response when I tried it on you. You don't look
very happy for someone who's on her first real vacation in years."
Sam smiled a little and dipped her head to rest on Vala's
shoulder. "I guess I was just hoping that we'd all get to spend
Thanksgiving here."
"Is that it?" Vala asked quietly. Sam had
never talked much about her relationship with SG-1's former leader, but she had
heard plenty of rumors around the SGC.
"No, I guess not. Not totally anyway," admitted Sam, moving away to
sit on the edge of one of the beds.
Vala turned, frowning in concern. "Do you…want
to talk about it?"
"There's nothing to talk about. Nothing's ever happened," Sam
shrugged.
"But you love him," Vala said, walking
slowly toward the bed.
Sam nodded silently.
Vala slid down onto the comforter beside her and took
her hand. "Does he love you?"
"Yeah," Sam bit her lip, forcing back the tears that suddenly blurred
her vision.
"I'm guessing that there's something a bit more serious in the way than
someone pulling on pigtails," Vala ventured.
"There are regulations about military officers being involved," Sam
explained.
Vala nodded. Her brow creased in thought, and she
said carefully, "Daniel told me that Jack was retired before the mission
to
"Things are different now," Sam shook her head. "The Goa'uld and
the Ori weren't around back then."
"There must be some way," Vala said.
Sam gave a fond laugh. "Thanks, Vala, but I
think one of us would have to be dying
before General O'Neill retires again."
"Well, darling," Vala smiled reassuringly.
"Let's hope we can find a better idea than that."
PART 19: The Rules and the Rulebreaker
A sudden storm kept them in the lodge for the next two days.
Vala spent that time alternatively plotting a way to
help Sam and huffing in annoyance at the weather channel, anxious to get back
to the slopes. None of her ideas in regard to the reluctant couple seemed
feasible, and on the second night, she found herself restless. Sam had fallen
asleep, and after an hour of tossing and turning, Vala
made her way downstairs. Daniel found her leaning against a window in the dark.
His eyes widened in surprise and he crossed the lobby to rest a hand on her
elbow. She jumped, whirling around, and then sighed. Her eyes slid closed at
the sight of him.
"Couldn't you sleep?" he asked softly.
She shook her head, then glanced questioningly at the
book in his hand. "You either?"
"Guess I just wanted a little peace and quiet," he shrugged.
"Are Mitchell and Teal'c still at it?" she asked in surprise.
"Mitchell's calling it 'the poker grudge match of the century',"
replied Daniel, raising his eyes to the ceiling.
Vala chuckled and turned back to the window. Daniel
gazed over her shoulder at the gleaming snow and wound his arms around her
waist. Pulling her back against his chest, he rested his chin on her shoulder.
"You're not going to say you want to go play in it, are you?" he
asked half seriously.
"No," she allowed. "But I do love looking at it when it's like
this. All clean and pretty when no one's awake to go outside and ruin it with
footprints. It almost makes up for the fact that there's so little green in the
winter."
"Sometimes I like winter better," Daniel admitted.
"Do you?" she tilted her head up to give him a curious look.
"Well, I wish it wasn't so cold. But at least I sneeze less," he
replied.
"I think your allergies are adorable, darling," she teased.
"Thanks," he rolled his eyes.
Vala grinned and pecked his cheek. Both fell silent
for a while, and he started to give a contented sigh, but she frowned.
"Daniel, do you think Jack will be here for Thanksgiving?"
"I doubt it," he shook his head.
"Well, what's going on?" she wanted to know. "I'd think that if
there was some national crisis we would have heard on the news by now."
"I'm not sure. All he said when I talked to him on the phone tonight
was…something about 'I go on vacation and the whole damn Pentagon falls
apart,'" he told her.
Vala sighed. She didn't speak for a moment, then
abruptly made up her mind and began, "I've been thinking."
"Okay…" Daniel ventured, not entirely sure he wanted to know any
more.
"We need to do something about Jack and Sam," she informed him.
"We--what?" he spluttered.
"Come on, darling. Ten years is entirely too long for--"
"Vala," Daniel cut her off.
She broke free of his embrace and spun to face him again, folding her arms
across her chest. "Are you honestly telling me that you think it's right?"
"No, I don't," Daniel shook his head.
"Well then, let's do
something!" she exclaimed.
"There's nothing that we can do.
And--and besides, it's--it's none of our business," he insisted.
"Why not?" she demanded. "Sam helped
us, didn't she?"
"Yes, but that--that was different," Daniel shook his head.
"How?" she fired back.
Daniel closed his eyes, drawing in a long breath. "Because
Sam and Jack have both made their choice. You and I were--were--fighting
what we felt--or I was, I guess. I needed someone to make me realize that there
was a choice that had to be made. Vala, look. I know you care about Sam, and I appreciate that you
want to help her. But the best thing you can do for her is to stay out of her
relationship with Jack. Okay?"
"But it's not fair, Daniel!" she shook her head, feeling her eyes
begin to burn with tears.
"No, it isn't," he agreed, bringing his hands up to rest on her
shoulders. He drew her gently into his arms and planted a soft kiss on her
brow. "It's not fair at all."
PART 20: A Little White Lie
"Well, I don’t' believe it!"
"Me neither," Sam smirked, her gaze flicking significantly to Daniel,
who smiled as if to say that he had no idea what she meant. They had finally
gotten back to the slopes that morning, but it would have been better if they'd
remained stuck in the lodge. By
Daniel turned to glance at the door and frowned. "Y'know,
Vala's taking way too long getting those
sandwiches."
"You want me to go find her?"
"No, I'll go," Daniel shook his head. He walked out into the hall and
disappeared in the direction of the cafeteria.
"Y'know, guys, I am kinda
tired," Sam confessed as he left.
Teal'c inclined his head respectfully. "Perhaps we should accompany DanielJackson to the cafeteria and then return to the
lodge."
"Hey, at least this'll give us time to finish the grudge match,"
agreed
"You still haven't given
up?" Sam asked incredulously.
"I ain't givin' up
'till I beat him,"
"This is going to be a long grudge match," Sam sighed.
"Indeed," the
* * * *
"General O'Neill?" his secretary's voice came over the intercom.
Jack turned, stabbing the button in annoyance. "Yeah, Nancie,
what's up?"
"Vala Mal Doran's on the phone, sir. She says
it's important," came the reply.
"Okay, put her through," he said. A moment later, the phone rang and
he snatched the handset. "O'Neill."
"Jack, it's--its Vala," she began
tearfully. He raised a hand to his brow and fought a sigh, wondering what it
was that she and Daniel were arguing about now and how exactly he'd been dragged into it. Then he felt
himself go cold as she continued, "There's been an accident."
"Carter?" he asked hoarsely.
"She fell skiing, Jack. The doctor isn't sure she'll make it…" Vala sniffled, trailing off.
"Where is she?" he forced out as he pushed back his chair and grabbed
his uniform jacket.
"The hospital here in town," Vala said. "Room 207. We're all here."
"Okay. I'm on the way," he said, letting the phone drop from his
hand. He rushed out of his office, sliding into the jacket as he moved.
"General?" Nancie looked up from her desk
in surprise.
"Cancel all my appointments," he told her without looking back.
"What? General, the only appointment you have is with the Presi…"
Slam!
"…dent," she finished as the door banged shut behind him.
* * * *
The team found Vala coming back from the phones.
Daniel halted, crossing his arms over his chest, but she hurried over to them,
ignoring his suspicious glare. "You're supposed to be in the cafeteria
getting lunch," he reminded her.
"I know, darling, I just thought someone should call Jack," she
smiled, giving him a light kiss on the cheek. "Come on, I'm hungry."
She slid between him and
"Um…?" he called.
She glanced innocently over her shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"Why exactly did someone have to call Jack?" he wanted to know.
"Oh. Well, I thought he might want to send flowers or something," she
grinned.
* * * *
Jack halted in the doorway of the hospital room. Having expected to find all of
SG-1 gathered around the bed, he frowned at the sight of Carter alone. He took
a tentative step in, slowly registering the lack of life support equipment. If
she'd been taken off of life support already, there couldn't be much time.
Swallowing hard, he stepped inside and pressed his eyes closed.
Where the hell is everyone? he thought irrationally. She'd
be here for them!
She didn't move as he approached, and he found himself forcing back tears as he
knelt by the bed. "Damn it, Carter," he muttered, raising his hand to
brush back the hair from her forehead.
She stirred at the touch, and her eyes popped open, going wide with surprise. "Sir?"
"Carter!" Jack exclaimed.
"Sir, what are you--" Sam began.
Jack's arms slid around her before she could finish the question, and he pulled
her into an ardent kiss. She gave a sharp gasp, but her
moved instinctively around his neck. Jack forced his mouth away, frowning down
at her. "You okay?"
"Um…" Sam blinked. "Are you?"
"I am now," he nodded firmly. Then he took a breath and started to
speak again, unsure what he planned to say until the words came out.
"Carter, marry me."
"Marry you?" she swallowed. "Isn't this a little sudden,
sir?"
Jack's eyebrows rose. "Ten years is sudden?"
PART 21: Intentions
"How could you--why would you--what were you--"
Daniel sputtered as he paced the floor of her hotel room, almost incoherent
with anger and disbelief. His hands rose and fell with each abortive
exclamation, and finally he froze, spinning to face her.
"I was trying to help!" Vala shouted back,
her chin rising in defiance.
"I told you to stay out of it!" he cried, slapping his arms against
his sides.
Vala's eyes narrowed. "You told me?" she repeated.
"Don't change the subject," Daniel shook his head. "This--this
isn't about us right now. What did you think you were doing?"
"Sam is the first real friend I've had in a very long time. She said that
one of them would have to be dying in order for Jack to come around, so I made
him think she was. I wanted to see her happy, Daniel. That's all. What's wrong
with that?" she challenged.
"What's wrong with it?" he
repeated. "Vala, you--you can't just manipulate
people to get what you want! You scared Jack to death. You owe them both an
apology!"
"Oh, really," she scowled darkly, stomping toward the door. She
pulled it open and turned to glare at him again. "Well, if I do, Daniel,
it's not up to you to tell me.
Goodnight."
"What?" his mouth popped open