No man left behind

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

Warnings: minor abandonment issues

AN: Mentions Jack and Sam specifically but Tealc is there in the background.

START

Daniel felt terrible. He was sure he was sick. Some cold that had been spread through the base...not even the base escaped such a basic occurrence.

He should call in sick...He coughed harshly, the cough sounding an ugly wet sound. Oh Gods he was tired! Maybe in an hour...he settled into the lounge, the sound of a morning talk show in the back ground. He couldn't hear what the hosts were saying but he didn't have the energy to care.

When he woke next he could hear sounds around his apartment. Fuzzy sounding foot steps and clinking of china onto a counter top (coffee cups and the smell of coffee?)...What was happening? Who was in his apartment? Though if they were brewing coffee, surely they were not robbers or murderers. He vaguely thought of his side arm but he was too exhausted to even think of using it (if he could even remember where it was). He could barely focus so shooting was out of the question anyway.

He heard what sounded like a concerned female but his groggy mind would not provide an answer of who. Just that she was no danger. She was familiar and kind sounding. That was enough for his fuzzy mind. She seemed to be speaking to him, looking concerned when he turned away from her touch in favour of getting some sleep.

Some more fuzzy voices spoke and he once again fell asleep.

It felt like forever but when he woke again, he felt slightly better. He felt less hot. Less fuzzy. He felt a cold glass being pressed into his hand. The female spoke again, an order by the sound of it... Drink? Maybe. It made sense. He drowned the glass of water quickly, allowing another to take the glass from him and help him more upright.

His headache was fierce and he felt fuzzy. Not as much as before though. He recognised his lounge and a blanket he kept close by. That gave him some comfort. He could hear them speaking again. Sounding worried. He could focus better now. What were they saying? "Daniel"? They were calling his name?

This time he recognised the voice. "Sam?" he asked.

She looked relieved. "Welcome back to the living" she joked shakily.

"Sam, why are you here?" Daniel managed to get out before wincing from his headache. It hurt to think.

She looked worried again. "Your sick. Badly too by the looks of it. You don't remember?" she asked concerned.

"I remember being sleepy." he replied.

"Thats the fever. Stay with me just a few moments. I'll give you some medicine. You should feel better soon enough." she assured. She turned to Jack, muttering a few words before walking away. Jack joined him, looking worried. "Stay with me Danny. Not long now and you can sleep. Just stay awake." he said gently. He found Daniel listening intently to his words, even if he didn't seem to comprehend them. So he kept talking until Sam returned.

He struggled to stay awake but managed to swallow the pill pushed into his palm with another cold glass of water. He easily fell asleep again.

It was three hours later that he woke again. His headache had faded and he felt more focussed. He found Jack beside him this time. "Your looking better. You scared us." Jack said softly.

"Sick?" he asked.

Jack nodded. "You had a high fever and were out of it when we found you. Didn't you hear us calling you?" he said worriedly.

"Fuzzy" was his only response.

Sam joined them "Feverish he means. A fever as high as his, its no wonder he wasn't responding to us" she explained.

He smiled greatfully at her. He was too tired to respond so he settled back into his blankets.

"Daniel, can you stay awake for a few more minutes? I need to check your fever." she asked worriedly.

He found it easier to stay awake now. Sam looked pleased with that. She helped him to sit up and took his temperature. "Much better. You were at far too hot when we found you. Almost normal range now. Rest." she ordered.

He easily settled back into his blankets and was fast asleep. When he woke again, it must have been quite late. His team was camped out on the floor by his lounge. Jack and Teal'c looked to be asleep, settled against the lounges edge. Sam was nursing a cup of coffee, leaning on the counter with a book in hand. "Sam, what are you still doing here?" he asked surprised.

"Your awake!" she exclaimed before realising what she had said. "I mean of course your awake, feel any better?" she asked.

"Yeah, much better." he replied, still amazed his team was still present. "You guys can go home now if you like" he offered.

Sam frowned. "Why would we do that?" she asked confused.

"Why wouldn't you?" he countered. He winced. Headache. It hurt to think...

Sam seemed confused, then looked like understood. "I suppose your not used to it. We're your friends. Its what friends do!" she explained. "Hang on. I'll get you some more medicine. You should be back to normal soon." she comforted.

After taking the medicine, he fell asleep again.

When he woke again, the fog seemed to lift from his mind. The headache had faded to bearable. He did feel gross though. His clothes were covered in sweat, as was his blanket. He still felt weak and tired bit a day of taking it easy would remedy that.

This time Jack was awake to greet him. Jacks casual grin looked strained. Still he looked relieved. "Feeling better I see. Good. Next time you are sick, why don't you just tell us?" he said affectionately.

Daniel found that statement make sense, strangely enough. Maybe he could...