Selfishly Unselfish

Disclaimer: I do not own Stargate SG1 or any of its characters or other property. I write only to entertain not never make profit from this work or any of my other works.

Pairings: Daniel/team friendship, Vala/Daniel friendship

Warnings: Major character death(Daniel and Vala) but don't worry they don't stay dead.

AN: AU version of Powers that Be (S9, Ep 4) where Daniel gets sick rather than Cameron.

Italics = happening in Daniel/Vala dream state

Daniel started feeling sick hours before they noticed. He managed to hide his fever and dizziness well. When he fainted, they were shocked but Vala wasn't. Vala had felt the same, through that link the bracelets had created. This fatal virus would kill them both. She deserved it really...but she really didn't want to die like this. Maybe in a fire fight or in an explosion but not like this. Her own ego seemed to ease, as if the inevitable promises to be good was to come forth. Still she was not that kind of person. She knew it. Bad to the core, corrupted. She was nothing more than a thief and a liar.

She broke out of her thought to find they had laid the pair in the temple. She almost cried in guilt, overcome in that moment. She deserved to die but did he? He was good and pure, he had done nothing more than be frustrated at her. The worst had he has accused her of is being untrustworthy, of being a thief. But wasn't that true? How many other men (or any other) had really had been that kind to her? No he didn't deserve to die. Not for her sake.

She cursed the stupid bond. How could she have been so foolish? She didn't think past her own nose! Now it had led to this...a good man dying with her own sorry self!

She felt weaker now. Death would come soon. She was feeling better than he looked though. His body lay unmoving with the exception of his own weak breaths. The mighty warrior of the tauri and the scholar who belonged in a ruin somewhere far safer than here...

She had a very unselfish thought. Did he deserve to die alone? Without his team to comfort his passing? They could not come in time. Not now. She would do it. She decided without a shadow of a doubt that she would be there at his end. Together they would die but she would ease his passing into heaven, hoping to glimpse him from hell.

She smiled, feeling lighter than she had for years. She had no doubt that this would fail to earn her a place in heaven. It was no longer in her power any more anyway. The strong part of her joked that she would rather be partying with the devil. She might miss him...maybe a bit...maybe a lot!

Her own passing was coming soon. She could feel deaths breath at her neck. With the last of her strength she wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his chest. His slowing heartbeats were like a countdown to the inevitable. As her eyes slid shut and strength left her, she felt Daniel hand grip her arm. She didn't need him to speak to know that he was feeling thankful.

Cameron Mitchels didn't have words. He knew without checking that Daniel was dead. With him, Vala too. He choked back a sob, forcing himself forward. His actions only comfirmed it. The pair were entwined, Vala with her arm around Daniel and Daniel holding her arm in reply with Vala's head on his chest. They had chosen to greet death together. It was very...unselfish.

He heard the sound of the Stargate activating. It was time to report in...he gathered his strength to inform SGC of the news. It was hard but he managed to tell them. He ignored the tear that betrayed his professional tone and no one pointed it out to him. He could hear Sam in the background. Her stunned face would haunt him. She was crying but stubbornly ignoring the tears. Her eyes showed just how upset she was.

He returned to the village, praying for a miracle. Was it selfish that he was praying for Daniel to be saved over praying for the helpless villagers? They had been merely targeted by this "man of faith". SG1 knew the risks and accepted them.

Maybe it was but Cameron had never considered himself a nun!

He heard Teal'c calling him. "The prior has returned!".

Cameron got up, cleared his tears and purposefully grabbed his gun.

The healing energy covered the patients and the dead. Soon the sickly were walking and the dead covered in greatful family's hugging them with tears still in their eyes. So Cameron and Teal'c ran to their team mates expecting the same. The pair lay still. Though they were breathing again. The doctor assured them there was no reason they should not wake...

It had been a quick operation to move the pair to the SGC. Doctors could not see why they should not wake. Had this anything to do with their bond? Cameron had asked of course but no one could answer it. They advised to give Daniel and Vala time...but could offer no other advice.

Daniel woke up laying on the sands of a very familiar planet. He looked around to see Vala sitting next to him looking confused.

"So, is this hell or purgatory?" she asked jokingly.

Daniel shrugged, getting up to explore further. The realisation that this was indeed his old home before SG1 shocked him more than he let on. The loss of the planet was still painful...

"So where are we?" he heard Vala ask again.

"Abydos" he said, letting the once familiar word fall where it may. His tone echoed pain yet also a naïve hope he still had.

"How did we get here if we are not dead?" she asked curiously.

"We are not really here" he said firmly.

She sighed dramatically. "Daniel" she whined.

Finally he shook off his mood and turned to her. "I know we cannot be here because 'here' was destroyed by Anubis. I don't think we are dead. There is a chance that we are just sleeping and this is sort of like a dream." he explained.

"But we died! I know you felt it too!" she explained loudly.

"Yeah and do you know how many times I have 'died'?" he said irritatedly.

"Your not making sense again" she reminded him annoyingly.

"Three times... I think?..." he replied thinking.

"Well how do we wake up genius?" she asked moodily.

"Maybe we really need to want to wake up?" he suggested.

It had been a week and still no change. Their bodies were fine it was just that they would not wake. Sam was at Daniel's side every day she could. It was only a day later that Jack joined her, offering comforts.

Then something happened.

Vala's eyes opened first. She quickly turned to Daniel. "Your not getting out of this!" she said stubbornly, urging him awake. Daniel's eyes fluttered open, looking relieved. "Wouldn't dream of it, queen!" she shot back sarcastically.

The pair smiled and briefly held hands, squeezing affectionately.

Daniel turned to a shocked Sam who had obviously been crying and Jack who looked tired. They didn't need words.

AN: R and R.