Summary: There's a bit more to Daniel than SG-1 thinks. Set in Season 10.
Warning: A few naughty words slipped into the fic.
Disclaimer: I make no money off of this. SG-1 does not belong to me. I'm simply having fun for no profit.
A/N: This fic is partially inspired by the Lifetime-movie "Under the Mistletoe". It's where I saw Michael Shanks on the ice for the first time (although sadly brief). And the fact that I love to skate (though I've only been once and did a admirable job of not managing to fall flat on my face)!
It had been way too long since he last tied on a set of skates, months in fact since he last got a break long enough to indulge himself. The first time (and only time) he had went out with the team to skate was Cassie's idea, to celebrate his return to Earth after being discovered by SG-1 when he had been Arrom. But now, he was here alone without any of his teammates (or a certain General for that matter) on his second day of his three day leave. He wanted the time alone, to not be distracted from his thoughts. He loved his friends certainly, but there was just something about having time alone that simply allowed him to be himself and not anyone else's pre-existing opinions of what, or who, he was or should be. He had taken off his glasses in the car and put in his contact lenses (the ones nobody thought he owned, except the pair he uses for being undercover offworld) before heading inside the rink with his black skates in tow. He paid the admission all the while looking around making sure nobody from SG-1 (or the SGC for that matter) followed him, once he was satisfied there was no one but strangers here, he went inside. Once he had his skates on, he slowly hobbled his way to the ice clinging to everything he could, just to keep balance. After all wouldn't it be terribly embarrassing to fall flat on your face, even before getting to the ice? He grinned at that silly thought as he set blade to ice and slowly gained his footing before pushing off slowly from one foot to the other until he gained speed.
He stayed around the edges, about a foot from the wall of the enclosed rink, giving plenty of space to his fellow skaters so he wouldn't collide into the ones going slower than he liked to go. He grinned at an incoming thought, Jack would never let him hear the end of it had he known he could skate before he had ascended. Of course, on top of everything else he'd also forgotten how to skate. Within a month after the first trip to the rink though, he had remembered his memories of going skating with one of his foster families. They'd discovered, like everything else, he learned very quickly and by their third trip to the local rink he'd gotten so good at it, they'd given him the nickname of Blades. Afterwards he found himself going to the rink by himself and for some reason he never bothered to tell any of his teammates about his remembered/renewed interest. No one except Janet knew especially since it was hard to hide bruises on your knees or backside from re-learning all over again (but thankfully after his third trip to the rink alone, he silently decided he had re-earned his old nickname.
What would actually get under Jack's skin in he knew was that he had actually been on his local junior hockey team, along with his foster brother David and his foster father was Coach after all. Daniel laughed outloud at the imagined expression on Jack's face if that should ever slip out. He'd actually been pretty good, and played for a couple of seasons until David's father, Todd, was killed in a car accident on his way to the rink for a practice session with the rest of the team. David and Daniel had been in the car at the time with him but mercifully both of them had been blessedly, mostly unscathed with only cuts, bruises and a concussion between the both of them. Afterwards he was taken from there and within a few days more he had a new foster family. He'd kept in contact with David and his mother all the way up to that disastrous lecture after that he'd lost contact one he went through the 'gate to Abydos. However, since the accident he had avoided playing hockey ever again. Despite all that Daniel still loved to skate.
Nothing could ever take away that feeling, or the exhilarating sting of the cold against his cheeks as he raced by a couple of girls only slightly younger than Cassie was now. Daniel took the next upcoming curve hard, narrowly missing hitting the wall by about a half an inch as a spray of ice flew from the near collision and splattered itself harmlessly onto the wall as he rounded the curve of the rink before it stretched itself out onto another great straight stretch. He could have sworn he heard a sharp squeal from one of the girls from his planned near miss, but that only broadened the grin on his face. Oh yeah it was great to be back on the ice again, showing off. Admitting to himself that he probably shouldn't have done that and if Todd had seen that he would've probably been grounded for a week after pulling that stunt (but all the while probably silently congratulating him for how he controlled his sharp turn). Now that his inner speed-demon was purring with contentment, he took the opportunity to relax for a bit as he leisurely half-loped around the ice.
As he took his laps, he watched many of the other skaters whiz past him. Among them though was one face he realized he recognized, it was also one that Daniel had hoped to never see again. He turned away quickly and hoped that maybe be able to sneak out before he was noticed, but it turned out to be in vain. "Well well well, what have we here? Blades Jackson? Is that you geek? I barely recognized you without the shaggy hair and the extra set of eyes!" Daniel froze in place for an instant and the slowly and faintly began counting in Abydonian to ten but he never made it before the voice spoke again. "What are ya deaf, Jackson?" Daniel sighed as a heavy hand landed on his shoulder, before turning around. "Ben Marley. Long time no see. So, what brings you to Colorado? Your team got a game in town or something??" Daniel almost looked like he was wincing as soon as he said his name. Ben either didn't remember or didn't bother calling Daniel by his first name, oblivious to the fact (or he did it in spite just to annoy him) that he had a life outside of hockey so long ago.
Ben only smirked as he gave Daniel a glance over, "Oh no, just visiting family, thinkin' about maybe moving down here to be closer to them. Busted up my knee years ago, while I was on my old college team. But I coach now, anyway so I'm not too far from the game." Daniel could only blink, "Move? Here? To the Springs? Oh, hell no!" was what he thought but since he was rather fond of his teeth what he said was: "Oh really? That's a pity a lot of people thought you'd go Pro." Daniel resisting the urge to add onto his brief sentence, "Especially with all the pounding, bullying and cheating you did on and off the ice you would've fit right in." Daniel looked at him with all sincerity, tilting his head studying his former nemesis earnestly. "What about you Blades? I'd thought for sure with the way you skate you'd find your way to at least some minor league team, hell maybe even a job touring the ice capades. I mean you're good Blades but you were never as good as I was." Daniel was really starting to get annoyed with the guy, and tried not to show it. Oh yeah, the green-eyed monster of jealousy was rearing its ugly head and it had Ben's curly black hair to boot!
"Uhhh, well no actually I haven't touched a stick since Coach Griffin died. Anyway a year or so later I went to college and I became an archaeologist/linguist/anthropologist and had all three doctorates by age twenty. Afterwards I spent quite a bit of time in Egypt on extensive digs. I also spent some time in Chicago as a research assistant to one the best Archaeology professors in the country. But not long after I had one of my least popular theories about the pyramids berated by my so-called colleagues in a horrendous lecture in Los Angeles, which made me an outcast to end all outcasts in my field. Almost directly after that lecture, the Air Force recruited me...to become a translator for NORAD. Afterwards I met, married and lost my wife all in the span of about four or so years. Now tell me what have YOU been doing these past few years?" Daniel hadn't meant to let all of this out, not to mention his voice had risen more sharply than he would've liked, but he couldn't help it Ben had always gotten under his skin, and not in a good way. Ben was giving him one of those looks he normally would have recognized coming from Jack or Cameron whenever they got bored or had no idea what he just said, and that look plain and simply said "Huh?" or "Did I just miss something?" or in Ben-ese he would further translate it to "Do I seriously look like I give a fuck?" Daniel had given him in return, a look that said, "I've also saved your sorry ass and Earth, along with the other members of SG-1, Teal'c knows how many times and still you want to pick a fight?" He wanted desperately to say this outloud, but instead just crossed his arms in front of him, looking more imposing now than he ever had been as a twelve-year-old.
Judging from the look that must've been on Daniel's face when he'd replied to his little jab at him Ben's grin turned malicious. Damnit now Ben knew he'd hit a sore spot. "Well well, a bit testy are we Blades or is that Dr. Blades now?" Ben snarked openly at him now. "I just thought a man of your 'talents' were best suited, to the junior league. No need to get your tights in a knot." Daniel wanted to say something, do anything to get this rocks-for-brains neanderthal to shut up, so badly so that he no longer fought to keep control of his tongue and his snake-baiting instincts kicked in. "Neezer," Daniel uttered the nickname Ben truly loathed, "I just came here today to skate and not think about anything. You know the other thing you're good at? Besides skating, hockey and bullying people around?" When he saw the astounding shade of red Ben was slowly turning, he recognized that he'd only seen that precise look on several system lords. Now judging from what he was seeing, normally he would've been on the verge of being ribboned. His only saving grace was that he knew that this was a normal human being, possibly over-saturated with steroids, but human nevertheless who just so happened to tower over him by a couple of inches.
"Just as defensive as ever I see, eh kid? Just like the way you used to play. And they say the oldest habits are the hardest to break. Wanna find out just how hard Blades?" Ben asked but Daniel just sighed and contemplated just what he should say, if anything at all as he glared back at Ben. The thought, "The only way to win is to deny it battle.", ran though his head but Oma and Shifu had never met Ben Marley and he was pretty sure that they weren't referring to him. This guy really was as dense as Jack pretended to be on a good day (though everyone knew Jack was way smarter than he pretended to be) "No I don't. Ben. I'd rather spend the rest of my day peacefully contemplating nothing heavier than how many times I can speed around this rink in ten minutes and not spending it trying to figure out for how much longer I can dodge your verbal bullets. Now please If you don't mind I'd like to get back to my skating." Daniel then turned and proceeded to skate off hoping that trouble wouldn't follow. He certainly hoped that the he didn't have to lower himself to playing Ben's game. He'd only gotten about fifteen feet or so away when he heard the scratching of Ben's own skates behind him. "Hey! We're not done talking yet geek!"
Daniel whined silently as the imposing Marley skated over to him, "Why won't he leave me be? And when did I revert back to my twelve-year-old self?" before being grabbed by the arm twisted it and spun him around and then pushed him so fiercely that he ended up butt-first on the ice. "Ow! What the hell did you do that for?" Ben only sneered as Daniel peered up at him as he rubbed his now sore arm. "That, was for turning your back on me. You still haven't learned to respect your betters have ya kid?" Daniel could only snark back with an surprising amount of venom in his voice as he slowly got back up on his feet, "Really? You think so Neezer? Then shouldn't you, by all accounts, be taking some of your own advice then? I have no real idea how exactly you scale people from best to worst, but if you're judging me as the in-between I'd certainly hate to see where you'd end up at." he glared at the bully, and it turned as cold as ice he was standing on. He watched, with some amusement and with no self-preservation at all, just how long it was taking Ben to process this remark. It took Ben several long seconds just to realize he'd been insulted. A heartbeat later poor Daniel found himself sprawled several feet across the ice from where he once stood just seconds before, and just managing to dodge a trio of bystanders who had been very close to them when Ben had punched Daniel down onto the frozen surface. Clutching his right eye, actually feeling it tear up with irritation he paid no attention to Ben Marley now as he blinked the tears from his eye away. Now being half-blinded, he gently groped his way over to the wall of the rink once he was back on his feet.
Thankfully the manager of the rink, Mr. Nathan Parker, just so happened to see the whole thing and noticed that Daniel had not done one thing to deserve what the larger, bulkier 'Ben' had dished out to him. After all, Dr. Jackson never caused any trouble whenever he came to skate. In fact he'd never seen a man who took such joy in it, a joy that was equalled only in his skill. But that larger fellow, he seem to enjoy irritating the younger man, he could tell by the snatches of conversation he'd manage to overhear they they knew each other a long time ago and Daniel had wanted nothing to do with him and now he could certainly see why not! His wife, Tabitha, went over to see to the young man and gently lead him off the ice as Nathan dealt with his aggressor effectively banning him for three months. The big guy mumbled something about not being in town for that long anyways and fled before Mr. Parker could even begin thinking of calling the police. Once the commotion was over he went to his office where he found Tabby and Dr. Jackson talking, as Daniel held a ice pack over his eye.
"No really I'm fine. I called a friend who's a Doctor coming over to pick me up on her day off. I doubt I could see well enough to risk driving myself home." Daniel sighed softly as he experimentally removed the pack. His eye was slightly bloodshot and a nice-shaped bruise was already forming around his right eye. The conversation was kept idle until Carolyn arrived, who checked out his eye to make sure the contact lens had caused no damage other than being bloodshot. Daniel had been a bit surprised to see Hank Landry had arrived with her to take' Daniel's car home for him.
Daniel had all but begged them not to mention the incident to anyone else, especially SG-1 or even Jack for that matter because he knew either way he may just be teased to death about it, which they eventually did albeit reluctantly. He didn't explain much of the story to them other than someone from his past was trying to cause trouble, and then finally did. He simply told them that he enjoyed his free time alone. Carolyn looked as iffy about it as Janet had about his bruises, but decided to let Daniel do what he pleased as long as it didn't get him killed in the process.
Two days later...
Daniel had arrived at the SGC after his leave fully rested and relaxed despite his black eye. For the most part his days off had been rather enjoyable, despite his meeting with Ben. It was a pity though he couldn't have spent more time on the ice than he had wanted. Although he was fairly certain he wouldn't be seeing him again for a while, hoping that he'd change his mind about moving to the Springs. But for now he could only enjoy the peace and quiet of his office while it lasted. But sadly it wasn't meant to be as a few minutes later SG-1 was called to the briefing room for an emergency meeting with excuse in tow on just how he got the black eye. He wore a small shy grin as he thought of the excuse, rather simple really. After all it was known almost base-wide how klutzy Daniel Jackson was whenever he had his nose in the most recent archaeological journal and walking at the same time. It wouldn't be all that unbelievable that he just happened to miss a patch of ice on the sidewalk and slipped head-first onto a little old lady's walker now would it? He could live with that, at least for now. Sure he may get teased about it but at least things like that happened to him all the time anyway. That and the truth would get him nothing but "You're kidding, right?" looks from the others and hell even they knew that there just some truths nobody could believe.
Another A/N: Neezer is short for Ebeneezer, Ben's full first name. His parents are quite the pranksters.