Warnings: Child neglect and abuse not graphically depicted. I do not believe my stories can create deep emotional responses, but I have been told in the past that a hanky warning would have been nice. So, here it is just in case…hanky warning.

Beta: No beta, no nada.

Spoilers: Meridian

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of SG1. I just take them out to play once in a while.

Author's notes: After season 7's "Lifeboat" I saw a potential for a "little Danny" fic with a "big" twist.

---

Part One-

Waking up in a hospital bed was oddly not as disturbing as not being able to see clearly about the room he was in. Daniel Jackson blinked several times and squinted to try and make out the face of the figure standing a few feet from the bed. The flesh colored mass with the salt and pepper colored top, which he assumed was the head, turned toward him. "Hello."

The tone of the voice was singsong and pleasant. It had been a long time since anyone had talked to him that way and it made Daniel instantly at ease.

"Hello." Daniel said back at the source of the voice.

Jack O'Neill moved closer to the bed looking down at the prone form of his team mate and best friend. He pondered this man who had scared the living daylights out of him and the rest of the team when he passed out cold in the temple on P3X-458.

Jack turned toward the nurse sitting at the table in the corner. "Could you get Dr. Fraiser, please?"

"Yes, Colonel." The nurse nodded moving quickly out of the room.

"So," Jack turned his attention back to Daniel. "What happened?"

Daniel was not sure why, but he did not feel he needed to be defensive or cautious about what he said to this man. It was true; in the recent past, that he had been chastised and even physically punished for things he had said. But this man seemed to be genuinely concerned.

"I don't know." Daniel replied, shrugging his shoulders. "Did I get hurt again?"

"Well," Jack began. "I think that's what I'm asking you."

"Good to see you awake, Dr. Jackson." Doctor Janet Fraiser came in and began to shine a penlight in her patient's eyes.

Daniel frowned and instantly tensed when he heard the doctor call him Dr. Jackson. "Why did you call me by my daddy's name?"

Janet pulled back, dropping her hands to her sides. She curiously eyed Dr. Jackson and then looked questioningly at Colonel O'Neill, who could only raise his eyebrows in equal confusion.

"Daniel," Fraiser began as she looked at Jackson with a warm smile. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yes." Daniel answered. "You're Dr. Fraiser."

"That's right. Do you know who this is?" The doctor asked, pointing a thumb at O'Neill.

Daniel glanced at Jack shyly and then shook his head.

"How do you know who I am, then?" Janet queried.

"He asked the nurse to get Dr. Fraiser." Daniel answered. "It wasn't that hard to figure out you were you."

The giggle that followed that statement made the hairs on the back of Jack's neck bristle. Something was not right and he was beginning to feel creepy.

"How do you feel?" Janet asked with cautious concern.

"Um," Daniel rubbed his forehead. "I sort of have a little headache. But a couple of baby aspirin will take care of it. Honest."

Janet turned to glance back at the colonel who appeared to be just as stunned as she was. "How old are you, Daniel?" Janet asked.

"Ten last month." Daniel answered. "But I didn't get a party or a cake. No presents either, 'cause they said I didn't deserve them."

Jack shook his head when Janet looked to him for some help. This was up Carter's alley, he thought. Hell, it was up Daniel's too. Well, the Daniel that went to college and had all those degrees, anyway.

Daniel suddenly remembered he was in a hospital and that meant he was probably hurt in some way. He just did not feel any pain or aches. He lifted up the covers and peeked underneath.

"Did I fall again?" Daniel's voice was small and frightened.

"Fall again?" Janet countered.

"Well, yeah." Daniel played with the sheet, twisting it up between his fingers. "Like last time I was in the hospital. Am I going back to the Scotts'?"

"No, Daniel." Janet patted his shoulder reassuringly. "You're not going back to the Scotts', ever."

Jack's heart melted at the smile that covered Daniel's face. He had the feeling the archaeologist was going to start bawling if Janet had said yes. But Doc Fraiser had answered quickly and, damned if he could figure out why, all too quickly. Jack felt as though he had just flipped channels and gotten into the middle of a made-for-TV-movie. He crooked his head off to the side and Janet followed him.

Daniel watched Dr. Fraiser and the nice man as they talked. He could not hear what they were saying, but he knew they were talking about him. He was just glad he did not have to go back to the Scotts' house. He never liked it there and Mr. Scott hated him, he knew. Maybe that was who this man was. It must be, he thought.

"Are you sure," Fraiser whispered. "Daniel didn't hit his head?"

"I'm not really sure of anything, Doc." Jack's voice was stressed. "We let him go with those little monkish guys into the temple to 'exchange the knowledge of self'. They were going to read walls, I thought."

"And then you said about an hour later the monks came out carrying Daniel." Janet prodded.

"Yeah," Jack's shoulders shook at the memory. "Like Gulliver and the Lilliputians. They said they thought the knowledge was too much for him and he keeled over. We headed for the gate."

"I think you better tell General Hammond, Sam and Teal'c what's happened." Janet sighed, thinking deeply. "I'll prepare for some more tests on Daniel."

"Doc," Jack began then held his thought. "Who are the Scotts'?"

"Colonel," Janet curled her bottom lip under. "I think that can wait. Trust me on this, you don't want to know."

"If I didn't want to know, Doc," Jack protested. "I wouldn't have…" It was the narrowing of the eyes that made Colonel Jack O'Neill, former Special Ops, cease to insist his position. Janet Fraiser was in control here.

A little flutter of anticipation in his tummy made Daniel squirm under the sheets. But he knew better than to be rude and interrupt, so Daniel waited until the two adults came back to his bedside. Once they had, he sat up to get a better look at the man.

"I know who you are." Daniel told Jack.

"You do?" Jack asked hopefully.

"Uh-huh." Daniel nodded. "You're my new foster father."

"I'm Jack O'Neill." Jack answered, rather uncomfortably.

"Colonel." Daniel corrected.

"Yes, that's right." Jack agreed.

"Well," Janet leaned down toward the patient. "I have to run some extra tests, Daniel."

"And I better get to the others." Jack spoke up as he started to move off.

"You're not staying with me?" Daniel called out.

"Do you want him to?" The doctor smiled warmly.

Daniel nodded and looked away. Janet smiled as Jack came back to the bedside. It was nice to see some things remained the same. The adult Daniel always was a good patient, but he seemed more at ease when Jack was near.

"I'll go talk to them and then get the tests ready." Janet patted Jack's shoulder and then added. "If all the tests come back that there are no physical abnormalities, then he doesn't have to stay here."

"Great." But there was hardly any real excitement in Jack's voice.

Daniel watched Fraiser leave and then turned his head to regard the colonel. "Where's your wife?"

Jack cleared his throat and shifted on his feet, pivoting around. He grabbed a chair and wheeled it up to the side of the bed.

"I'm divorced, Daniel."

"Why does everyone call me Daniel?" He sighed in annoyance. "It sounds like everyone's mad at me all the time."

"Okay, then." Jack relented. "I don't have a wife, Danny."

"Oh," Danny scrunched up his nose. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, well so was I." Jack began to straighten the bed sheet.

"They never placed me with a single person before." Danny mused. "They've all been couples."

"All?" Jack's mind was rewinding at full speed. He remembered that Daniel had been orphaned around eight years of age. That would mean that in just two years he had already been in multiple foster homes. That was not only disturbing, but sad. "How many foster homes have you been in?"

"Um," Danny looked up at the ceiling and held up his hand. He started counting out on his fingers and said, "First there were the Bradys. They were just like the television show. Well, not exactly. They had four boys and then me. There were too many kids. The other guys had been with them for years and they were all into sports and stuff. I didn't fit in."

"How long did you stay?"

"Mmm, six months." Then Danny looked at the ceiling again. "Then there were the Connors. I liked them a lot." He looked down at his hands and began to play with his fingers. "I thought I was going to stay there forever."

"What happened?" Jack lowered his head to see if he could get Danny's attention. "Did they send you back, too?"

"Oh, they wanted me!" Danny's head shot up and he stared at Jack. "Well, at first anyway. I mean Mr. Connors was a professor of World History at a university. And Mrs. Connors was a first grade school teacher. I was their first foster kid. She used to let me go to school with her when I had a no school day and I'd help her out in class. And one time Mr. Connors even took me to the university! That was way cool!"

Danny fell silent and began to frown. He dropped his gaze and began to fiddle with his fingers again.

"That sounds like it was fun, huh?" Jack was torn between prying into a part of his best friend's life that had been all but kept from him and wanting to know more. "So, how long were you with them?"

"Eleven months," Danny shifted and then pushed the covers off. "Almost a whole year. But she got pregnant. I was hoping they'd want to keep me after the baby was born and I really think they would've. But she got real sick and the doctor told her she had to be in bed or hospitalized. That's when Mr. Connors told me I had to go back to the group home."

"Bummer," was all Jack could say. It truly was a downer that the kid had been shuffled around because adults had their fill or could not seem to embrace that he was different. Hell, the colonel himself had grown to adjust to life with Daniel. It had not been easy by any means, but he did accomplish that. He did so because Daniel was worth it.

"Here we are." Dr. Fraiser came in followed by General George Hammond, Major Samantha Carter and Teal'c.

Danny snatched up the sheets and pulled them up over himself. There was a lady with them and he did not want her to see him in his hospital gown. Dr. Fraiser was a lady too, but she was a doctor lady. That was different.

"Daniel."

"Danny." Jack interrupted Janet.

"Oh," Janet smiled at Danny. "Okay. Danny, this is General Hammond, Major Carter and Teal'c."

Danny looked from one new person to the other as they were introduced. When he tried to focus on the man named Teal'c his eyes widened slightly. The big man had a golden symbol embedded in his forehead. Body ornaments were told to him in tales from people that he had known when he lived in Egypt with his parents. But they were never described in this way. The man's name, Teal'c, did sound like a name from a past civilization, though.

Jack noticed Danny's fascination with Teal'c and his newly regressed friend trying his damnedest to see the other man. Realizing how thoughtless they had been, Jack grabbed Danny's glasses from the jacket that hung on the rack behind him.

Danny reflectively jerked his head back as a hand was thrust in front of his face. He looked up to see it was the colonel's holding a pair of glasses. Relieved, he accepted them and once they were on his face he was better able to see everyone.

"How do you do?" Danny stammered.

"Just fine." Hammond smiled. "And Dr. Fraiser tells us she has to conduct some tests and then you might be able to leave with Colonel O'Neill. Would you like that?"

"Yes, sir, general, sir." Danny nodded. "But am I in trouble?"

"No, son." Hammond assured him. "I know you might think that with us being military, but no. You have done nothing wrong and you are not going to be harmed."

Dr. Daniel Jackson's case file had been available, for the most part, to Colonel O'Neill. However, there were areas that only Hammond and Dr. Fraiser had been privy to. One such area had to do with the few incidents during the time Daniel had stayed in the home of Robert and Karen Scott. The general was sure that Fraiser was on the same wavelength in trying to assure Daniel; Danny that he was safe.

Danny stared back at the older man and saw a kindness in his eyes that he easily accepted. He smiled and nodded that he understood.

"Well," Janet turned to the newly arrived three. "We need to get these tests done and then we can talk some more, General."

"Very well, doctor." Hammond placed his hands on Teal'c and Carter's shoulders. "Let us leave the doctor to her work."

"Good-bye, Danny." The one named Samantha Carter said.

"Good-bye, Major." Danny smiled back. "You have pretty eyes."

Sam's aforementioned pretty eyes widened in embarrassment as the others, save for Teal'c, clearly were amused.

"Well, thank you." Sam pinched Danny's toes beneath the sheets. "You're quite a little charmer, aren't you?"

Danny giggled and moved his foot aside. "That's what my mommy always says. Said…" His voice drifted off and his face became sullen.

"We'll talk later." Hammond directed to O'Neill as he ushered Carter and Teal'c out of the room.

"Now, are you ready?" The doctor looked hopefully at Danny.

"I guess so." Danny answered, but his attention was on the man he felt most protected by.

"Piece of cake, Danny-boy." Jack waved his hands at him. "I'll be right there the whole time."

Danny smiled and looked back at the doctor. "Then I'm sure I'm ready, doctor."

End Part One