Summary: A virtual story telling device casts Nathan and Jack into Casablanca, except the story is not what they are expecting even if it does follow the script.. Jack/Nathan

Warnings: Cursing, kissing, innuendo. The usual suspects.

As Time Goes By

Chapter 1

It's Still The Same Old Story

Jack sat on the love seat in Allison's living room trying to pay attention to the instructions she was giving; instructions she was repeating for the fifth time and had written down in two separate notebooks. He nodded when he was addressed but couldn't help remembering the first time he and Abby left Zoe with her grandparents for the weekend and how horrible they had been. It was only natural, it would get better, and he would be hypocritical to complain about it. Unfortunately he could also do nothing about his co-babysitter for the weekend, one recently un-deceased Nathan Stark.

Two weeks ago, Nathan 'bane of my existence' Stark had been brought back from the dead, or rematerialized from vapors, or wherever the hell he had been. He wasn't upset that the guy was back among the living, just a little bitter that he was trying to resume living the life that he had left; the life with Allison that Jack thought he was finally making some headway on. He couldn't begrudge the guy for wanting to spend time with his daughter or trying to pick up where he left off with his fiance. He could however feel like that kiss back in 1947 was fading in memory as Stark held his baby girl and was the perfect picture of fatherhood for Allison. Jack sighed. It's not like he was faking anything, he genuinely did want to be a good father and seemed to really adore Jenna...but Jack was struggling none-the-less.

"Jack are you listening?"

Jack glanced up at Allison as she held up a device in her hand and Nathan mumbled something along the lines of 'does it ever really matter?'. Yeah, Stark was back alright. "Yes. Jenna's toy. The device."

Allison put the headset on the table and then pushed the manual for it towards Jack. "I know you enjoy reading to her, but she is at the age where an interactive stories will help develop her creativity and problem solving skills."

"Virtual fairy tales," Jack said as he read the instructions emblazoned with GD logos and the word 'prototype' on the cover. "Because how could that not go disastrously wrong and traumatize your kid?"

Nathan held Jenna and watched Ally give Jack her 'you adorable dumb man' look. It irked him that he was having to be supervised with his own child this weekend, but he had to admit he could use the help. Kevin wasn't this small when they got married and this was unknown territory. He said nothing, not wanting to start an argument while Ally was still unsure about leaving the kids with her not-so-dead maybe-fiance for the weekend. He was on thin ice and not sure where he stood, he was perfectly sure where he stood with Carter though. That was oddly comforting.

"Jack, it's the latest technology in child development." Allison bent down and took the paper away from him. It was meant for her eyes and she doubted Jack really wanted to read the science behind it all. She was leaving it for Nathan in case he found issues or wanted to 'tinker' with it.

"Does nobody remember me being trapped in a virtual reality therapy session and almost dying?"

"Fondly." Nathan said and flashed him a smile. Yeah, they picked up right where they left off. If only he could say that about everything else in his life.

Allison shot him a glare then returned to reassuring Jack. "It's been tested and I have been using it with Jenna. It's a simulation, no different than Kevin's virtual reality video games. It doesn't have neural networks, it does nothing to connect to the brain or body, all it does is provide visuals and an interactive experience for children and their parents."

"Seems like if it was that great you'd be marketing this to a...less PG rated crowd." Jack said and eyed the 'device' and shivered when he had flashbacks of his last experience. Of all his prior experiences with dream devices, therapy things, melanoma mind-probes and the like, he couldn't help it. Hell, he still woke up sweating in the middle of the night because he had some vivid dream of Eugenia and he was pretty convinced Dr. Thatcher was getting lucky up in the old folks home and he was the unwilling third party voyeur.

"Then sit on the couch and watch some baseball while Jenna and I have some quality time together." Nathan offered and then turned on the TV to ESPN.

Jack shot him a glance, careful to not give Allison reason to think this situation was not going to work. It wasn't, but she didn't need to see what happened when she left. He'd suffered through enough weekends ruined by Nathan Stark to know he could deal with it. Allison was having a hard enough time leaving her baby for the first time and Jack knew the charade was necessary. "So how does it work?"

"This is going to take a while." Nathan chirped.

"You can select any story, from fairy tales or myths up to a movie released next week." Allison said after giving Nathan a strong warning glance. She showed Jack the headset. "It completely immerses you in the plot and you're able to act out the roles in the story."

"But how?" Jack asked. There had to be something that it fed off of, some brain waves or soul sucking function that signified it was truly a 'made in Eureka' contraption.

"Let's immerse Carter in an educational program." Nathan offered and looked at his daughter who was fixated on petting his beard. "Jenna? Do you want to let the Sheriff learn his ABC's with Euripides the Elaphrosaurus while you and I go on an adventure? Huh?"

Jack glared at him. Euripides the dinosaur was Eureka's version of Sesame street. This town science-spoiled another childhood fixation of his, dinosaurs were supposed to be cool and bad-ass but in Eureka they did calculus and spelled out 16 letter words in crayon. Worse than that Stark was trying to spike his current fixation, which was Allison, by taking advantage of this virtual reality thing to make himself a hero in Jenna's eyes and with it, her Mom. "Does Euripides have an episode on manners and ethics? You obviously missed that episode growing up."

"Listen, if you two can't..."

"Ally, we're fine." Nathan interrupted. "Go enjoy your conference. We can get along, for Jenna. We're going to spend the weekend in masterpiece theater anyway, just like you instructed. The system is programmed to not allow me to cast Jack as the villain and for us to cooperate and work through the story, giving Jenna an enriching learning experiences with the adults in her life."

"That's how all these things are marketed." Jack said as he looked at the device with a feeling of dread. "Everything is always a promising prototype until it promises to kill us."

"See, excellent balance of lessons to be learned about the excitement of scientific breakthroughs and the fear the ignorant have of progress." Nathan said it in a happy voice that sent Jenna into a fit of giggles.

Jack bit his lip and refused to be baited into replying, Allison was hesitating to leave and engaging with Stark would ensure she didn't leave. "We'll be fine, Allison, even if neither of us has a PhD in early childhood development or pediatric nutrition."

It was Nathan's turn to shoot a glare and narrow his eyes. "Yet."

"Yeah, cause that goes hand in hand with your degree in 'Nuclear Fission Water Heater Repair'." Jack said and stood up. He put on a reassuring face. "Go, Allison. Kevin isn't going to tolerate us arguing around his baby sister and will call you if something happens."

"Alright." She said and went over to kiss her baby goodbye one last time.

Jack held his breath as Allison bent down and kissed Jenna, mere inches from Nathan's smiling face. He ran his hand through his hair and felt the grip on what could have been slowly slip away as Nathan did his best to provide the perfect picture of what she could have if she just chose him again. And why wouldn't she? He was amazing and Jack knew he was just ordinary.

"Diapers changed, bottles cleaned." Jack said and checked items off the list Allison left them. "She wants us to use the movie headset thing as a bedtime story."

"If it bothers you Carter, I understand." Nathan said as he leaned against the counter and gave him a neutral smile.

"It does bother me, which is exactly why I'm not leaving." Jack said and walked back into the living room to check on Jenna who was throwing things around in her playpen like a normal child. "She gets these temper tantrums from you. You know that right?"

"Perhaps." Nathan said and watched his child look up to Jack who had been there since her birth, the male role model in her life. He wasn't going to be honest about how hard this was for him, trying to make up time with his own daughter while Father of the Year was always hovering in his peripherals. He took a deep breath and hoped one day this would all come as naturally to him as it did to Jack. He went over to pull the headsets off the charger, eager to get this part over with, and hand one to Jack. "You do have to admit I'm being well behaved right now, though."

"Because you don't want to change diapers."

"You're the self-proclaimed expert."

"In dealing with Stark shit, yeah." Jack said and grabbed the headset and thought about just bowing out so if something did go wrong then he could be here to fix it. "Is this thing really safe? I mean really safe?"

"The batteries only last three hours." Nathan explained. "Its a fail-safe, if that is any comfort to you."

"How does this work if it's not connecting to your brain or something?" Jack asked. "Beverly didn't make this, right?"

"Beverly didn't make anything, she just adapted GD projects to her own needs." Nathan bent down to pick up Jenna who was cranky until she saw the headset. "Someone really likes this thing, huh?"

"I guess she does." Jack had to admit as the baby reached out for the device and screeched when her Dad tried to take it away. "Story addiction. It's going to be like some kind of drug..."

"Carter, not everything in this town is trying to kill you." Nathan sat down on the couch and put the headset on his kid and watched her quiet down immediately. That seemed concerning until she started trying to turn it on. "Most of what we create at GD is actually for the betterment of mankind and this is one of them."

"It seems like an escape mechanism."

"Can be." The scientist admitted. "It can also be a coping mechanism. It can be a learning experience. It can be therapy. It can be whatever the user needs it for. Is that really so bad?"

"Do you remember all the ways stuff like this has gone horribly wrong?" Jack asked as Nathan shrugged and put the device on anyway.

"Have it your way Carter, I'm not arguing with you over this." Nathan sighed. "I just want to do what I need to do in order to connect with my daughter and that includes following Ally's instructions to a 'T'."

Jack growled and put the damned thing on and braced himself for the worst. "Fine, prove me wrong."

"Maybe I'll prove that GD can do something right for a change."

"Sounds like a great story. Fiction, that is." Jack said dryly as he leaned back in the chair and got comfortable. Jenna began to make noise, irritated at having to wait for her entertainment. A welcome screen appeared in front of his eyes, telling him that Stark had pushed the button and they were on their way to some virtual land. God help them all.

Nathan found himself standing alone in an office, his view was in black and white like a classic film. He looked around and recognized the telltale marks of Moroccan architecture: mud brick construction and swooping arches complemented by ornate woodwork and colorful woven textiles. He looked down and saw he was wearing a white tuxedo, then went to a mirror to see if it was really him or if he was simply controlling the actor playing the role.

He looked into a mirror, happy to see his own face instead of Bogart's. He adjusted his bow-tie and then focused on the mirror itself, it's frame so beautifully carved from Thuya burl that he couldn't help but reach out and touch it. He could feel the intricate designs on his fingertips as well as the fine oil finish that made the frame so soft to the touch. Satisfied the immersion experience was as promised he looked at himself in the mirror and ran through the entire plot of Casablanca in his head.

It was an odd choice for bedtime story, but he had learned long ago to not question Ally's parenting decisions or he would find himself sleeping on the couch. The risks were far greater now as he was precarious perched on the edge of being allowed to continue where he left off or forced to accept that a year of time had given his fiance perspective and life without him had been easy to accept.

Heavy thoughts, as always. They quickly gave way to the feeling of panic over being alone here in this movie simulation. It felt too much like drifting in limbo, questioning if he was even real, for his tastes. So he opted to taste this sample of virtual aged Scotch from 1912. He took the bottle to his desk, 30 year old aged Scotch sounded enticing.

He sat down and poured himself a drink, the sound of music began to filter in from outside of the office and he was glad to have something else in the room with him even if it was just a soundtrack. Clearly the simulation gave the user a delayed start in order to allow them to adapt to the surroundings, a feature he probably should have paid more attention to when he glanced through the manual. He looked up as he heard footsteps and was relieved to see Carter arrive.

"I can't believe I'm the corrupt cop!" Jack said as he marched into Nathan's office and threw the dumb conductor hat he had been wearing at him. "I'm Louie!? The manual said this thing was supposed to cast people appropriately!"

Nathan put his feet up on his desk, finally able to relax now that someone was here with him. He looked at the paperwork on the desk, some accounting ledgers and determined the bar was called 'Cafe Diem' instead of 'Rick's Cafe Americana' in this story. The virtual word did really adapt to Eureka, which made him want to wander the streets of Casablanca and check it out. In due time. He grinned at Carter well aware how good he looked in this role as Rick Blaine. "I didn't write the particular program or the movie."

"When was the last time you watched Casablanca?" Jack said and leaned on his desk with a grin. "'Cause you don't get the girl."

"The passionate, intelligent resistance leader trying to save the world? Handsome, noble, outspoken..." Nathan asked and reached for his glass of Scotch. "Hmmm...wonder who fits that bill. Do you really think I am going to be cast to just run a bar?"

"Well if this story is..."

"The story is flexible, otherwise we would just watch a movie." Nathan said and enjoyed the Scotch immensely. "They made some upgrades to the system to include environmental interactions. Taste, touch, smell. This is vintage Scotch. Try this..."

"NO!" Jack screamed.

"No drinking on the job?" Nathan asked. "Embrace your dark side, Captain Carter the corrupt head of the police department. You're supposed to be here for some illegal gambling and what ever other pleasures you want."

"Allison is going to be pissed when she finds out you brought your baby to a bar!" Jack said and looked around. "How is this even a kid's movie?"

"It was what Ally set up." Nathan shrugged. "Maybe we're not Disney material."

"Where is Jenna?"

"Probably with her Mom." Nathan said. "Who should be making her on screen appearance soon."

"I hate you." Jack finally said and grabbed his dumb hat off the desk. There was no way he could be cast as Captain Louis Renault, not without some interference from the outside. Corrupt cop was one thing, a Nazi puppet was another. He wanted to punch the smug grin off Stark's face, but then he heard something and turned to listen. A song, a song that would define Casablanca.

"As time goes by." Nathan said and smacked his lips as he savored the Scotch and the irony of that song. Now he had a reference for being stuck in space-time and watching time go by, the simulation seemed a little too heavy on the symbolism. He'd think about that later. He stood, glass in hand, and walked over to Carter, slinging his arm around his shoulder. "Come enjoy the show. It's my turn to see what Ally looks for in vintage 1940's garb."

"I hate you." Jack repeated. Of course there was symbolism in the song, the guy was stuck in time for a year. You didn't need a PhD to dissect that. This movie was all about him, everything always about Nathan Stark.

"Suit yourself." Nathan said and walked out of his office and was not surprised when Carter stalked after him. They entered the Cafe, a piano under spotlights in the center of it. It was set up a lot like Cafe Diem, except on a larger scale.

"Really?" Jack stammered. "You cast Henry as Sam? Typecast the one black guy?"

"Henry can play the piano and has an incredible voice." Nathan handed him the glass of Scotch and smiled. "How well do you know your supposed best friend?"

Jack gave him a glance and wondered if there was more to that statement. Nathan and Henry used to be close. "Hard to find time for recitals when we're trying to save the town."

"I didn't cast this." Nathan repeated. "The system takes in a lot of factors and adapts it accordingly."

"So you didn't have a hand in writing this? Even though there is clearly some artificial intelligence at play here?"

Nathan ground his teeth. Jack wasn't going to let it go, he was like a bloodhound on a scent and unless he got what he was looking for he would keep searching. That was going to cause issues with the environment here, and the plot, so he answered honestly. "Yes, it's my work, but I didn't work on it. The DoD seized all my research from my lab and home when I was declared dead. They turned it over to the artificial intelligence division at Global, who in turn treated it like open source information and built upon it. This program, your Deputy, all built upon my work."

"Oh." Jack replied, not realizing there was so much involved in personal effects where the scientist was concerned. He could hear the bitterness, even if there was a little bit of pride in what had been accomplished because of him. That...was a lot to unpack.

"I didn't write this, I didn't rework the code, I didn't want to see this yet. Time went by while I was frozen in a moment from a year ago. I have a lot to catch up on, even my own work, but right now I'm more concerned with my daughter." Nathan said and left it at that. "So, if you don't mind I have a beautiful woman waiting on me over by the piano."

He nodded and Nathan left, leaving him to mull over the choice in the story they were in and for whom this story was chosen for. Nathan had been back only two weeks and clearly Allison had more concerns than just his parenting experience. He was distracted by Nathan practically gliding across the floor to go instigate the 'scene' where Rick meets Ilsa again. He looked the part, Nathan always looked good in a tux. Jack could do nothing but watch, watch as Nathan fit into every role in every story as Allison Blake's hero. He opted to enjoy the drink in his hand, knowing he was going to get dragged out of here soon to go do police work. Always and forever in that role.