Home Alone

Author: Hathor
Feedback: ladyraistlin@hotmail.com
Pairing: Jack/Daniel
Rating: PG
Status: WIP
Category: Angst
Warning:
Spoilers:
Challenge Response
Date Uploaded: 2002-07-20 23:50:07
Archive: Alpha Gate, Area52, Spacemonkey's Gate
Special Notes:

Disclaimer: Sadly these characters are not mine, they belong to TPTB. But I'm keeping my Daniel clone cause a girl's gotta get her fix somehow ! :)

Author's Notes: Unbeta'd.

Summary: Linguist in Leather, Colonel in Crisis. Daniel worries about Jack while he is off world.




~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Home Alone ~*~*~*~*~*~*~




Daniel kicked the door shut with his foot, keeping out the shrieking cold wind that was nipping ferociously at his heels. Juggling an armful of brown paper bags packed with groceries he made his way into the kitchen. Three missions, one straight after another, had meant that Jack's cupboards were pretty bare and the once fresh food that had survived by skulking in the back of the fridge had been dumped unceremoniously in the trash.

"Damn it was cold out there!" he thought, as he began unpacking the bags. He hoped the snow would hold off tonight otherwise the chance of seeing Jack would be slim, especially at this time of night.

Daniel kicked off his boots and tucked his gloves into the pockets of the jacket that he was currently wearing. To be precise, Jack's leather jacket. Daniel liked it - it was warm and it smelled of Jack. The thought made him smile slightly. That and there was something profound about wearing your partner's clothes. The anthropologist in him supplied the rest: the possessiveness it advertised, the public declaration of being taken and by whom. Yet the people in Wal-mart had never given him a second glance, apart from the young blonde girl at the deli counter, nor had they understood the sublime delight he took in going out in public in Jack's jacket. Daniel smiled again. When he was away from the mountain it was almost as if he was leading a semi-normal life. Rousing himself from his musings he methodically began stacking the beer and other consumables into the fridge.

Jack had been offworld both yesterday and today on a routine visit to see SG-6. He was scheduled to return within the hour, and after a quick debrief with General Hammond, he would be heading home. Home to Daniel, a good meal and a warm bed. That was the plan anyway. An ominous peal of thunder in the background made the archaeologist frown and then silently threaten the elements that he was in no mood to be separated from his lover tonight.

Daniel had taken the downtime of the past couple of days to catch up on some of his journals and field notes. He did not rest well when Jack was offworld. Sleepless nights filled with disaster scenarios would run through his head as his active brain missed the reassuring presence of Jack. The imagination and quick-silver mind that had opened the Stargate also had the ability to breed vicious nightmares. He remembered the living hell that he had been through when Jack had been stuck on Edora.

Daniel had pleaded with the Tollens and the Tok'ra to get a ship to the meteor bombarded planet as soon as they could. He had been sick with worry, the nights had been filled with images of Jack being crushed by flaming boulders from the skies. Tumultuous vivid images, interlaced with thoughts of Jack being buried alive, all alone in the darkness, with sounds of Jack trying to claw his way free. It was not knowing Jack's fate, of not being there for his best friend, that had made Daniel's sleeping mind a place for his worse fears. At least doing something, talking to their allies, had made him feel as though he was helping in some small way with the crisis, but still the dreams came. Unlike Jack. Daniel had known at the time that the frustration of not being able to *do* anything to facilitate getting himself home must have been like a mortal blow to the Colonel. Jack had said later that utter helplessness was not an enemy he could fight.

They had not been together then, but the incident had made Daniel look closely at his surprisingly strong feelings for Jack. However when Jack's relationship with Laira during his time on Edora had come to light it had made Daniel hesitate and it would take the events aboard the submarine, BlackBird, to bring them together.

After carefully folding the paper bags and placing them in a drawer, Daniel pulled a beer out of the fridge. It was still slightly warm to the touch but it was liquid and would remove the sudden dry lump that had appeared in Daniel's throat. Padding into the front room, he flopped his six foot frame onto the couch. Glancing at the clock on the wall he pursed his lips. Jack should be home soon, in the next hour or so. Removing his glasses, Daniel closed his eyes and tried not to worry too much. It was just a routine mission after all.

What could go wrong ?



~ The End ~