Title: Someone Watching Over You
Author: M.
Feedback: Sure!
Rating: PG
Pairing: Jack/Danielle
Characters: Jack O'Neill, Danielle Jackson,
Keywords: Alternate Universe, genderbender, AU,
Spoilers: None. Futurefic
Series: another Danielle story
Disclaimers: Stargate? Not mine. Danielle? Well...sort of.
Summary: When Shifu puts Danielle in a dream state...Jack is left to watch. And wait.
Author's Note: We will actually see Danielle's dream but...Jack wanted to do this first...
this is the latest story in the Danielle series in which Daniel Jackson is, and always was, female. It is an ALTERNATE UNIVERSE.
Just a reminder. ;-p
"Someone Watching Over You"
by: M.
-------------
"Colonel?"
Janet Frasier's gentle voice roused Jack from the light doze he'd fallen into and he opened his eyes to find the petite doctor standing over him with a cup of coffee in her hand. She held it out to him with a sympathetic smile and then moved to check the vital statistics of her patient.
"Thanks." He murmured, sipping the steaming liquid slowly. "Any change?"
"None." Straightening up, the doctor shook her head. "Medically, there's no sign of anything wrong with her. She's asleep. That's it. She responds to stimuli, heat, cold and such but..."
"She just won't wake up." Jack finished for her, nodding. "Always did take three cups of coffee to get her going."
"Shifu still refuses to give you a straight answer?"
It was the colonel's turn to shake his head. "All the kid'll say is he's 'teaching' Danielle." He smiled wryly. "First time in her life she's ever been a slow learner."
Janet laughed a little. "If she hears that..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm in for it.' He grinned a little. "It wouldn't be the first time Danielle let me have it."
******
Five Years Previous...
"So, how close is Dr. Langford to activation?" Flipping through the file he'd been given, Jack O'Neill didn't look up as General West responded.
"To be honest, Colonel, we aren't sure." The general shuffled through a number of files, looking for a specific report. "Katherine recently recruited some archaeologist that she's got high hopes for...Ah, yes. Here she is. Dr. Danielle Jackson. Something of an archaeological whiz kid from what I hear. Has expertise in several ancient languages and cultures, has a plethora of doctorates and research papers to back it up."
Taking the dossier from his new CO, O'Neill opened it to the first page, reading the summary on the doctor. "Until lately it seems."
"From what I hear, she proposed some theory about the Egyptian culture that went over like a wet blanket and got herself shunned by the archaeological community." West looked faintly amused. "Irony if it? This theory of hers? We've got the proof sitting downstairs."
"All nice and classified." Jack couldn't help but appreciate the irony. "Does she know?"
"As far as I've heard? No. Dr. Jackson is only aware of the cover stone. She has no idea what it is she's really working on."
"Good." Jack closed the file, meeting West's gaze. "I expect it will stay that way."
~~~~
Dr. Danielle Jackson turned out to be a far cry from the stereotypical archaeologist type he'd been expecting. About as far as anyone could expect. She did radiate geek. Right from her tortoise-shell glasses and dishevelled mop of brown curls, to the worn keds that she wore on her feet. But... he'd met a few geeks in his days and something about the young woman said that she was definitely not the average geek.
He watched from the doorway, amused, as she quickly blew through the partial translation that had been done on the cover stone. Took her all of ten seconds to completely turn it on its ear and present a new, complete translation to the watching group of scholars. Said group was watching, dumbfounded, as she worked and, somewhere inside himself, Jack felt the urge to grin. They looked like Jackson had run them over with the truck....all but Langford. Katherine Langford was observing the whole scene with the very same grin he was fighting back plastered firmly across her face.
He listened as the team began to respond to the newcomer's inquiries with growing enthusiasm, realization setting in that she stood a good chance of helping them. The theories being bandied about interested him but just as soon as one ventured just a little too close to mentioning the Stargate, he intervened.
To his surprise, Dr. Jackson turned to regard him with a look of aggravation rather than the intimidation he'd been expecting. The majority of scientists that had dealt with him as of late had always been made quite uncomfortable just by his presence but not the woman before him. She looked like she'd rather smack him and go back to work than meekly get out of his way.
He hadn't known it then...but it was a look he'd get to know very, very well.
********
Present day...
Rubbing a hand over his face, Jack ignored the stubble he felt and leaned over to rest his elbows on the bed, watching the sleeping woman's face. "Hey, sleeping beauty, feel like going for another cup of coffee? This place is starting to get a little old. I have to stare at these walls five more minutes, I'm gonna explode. C'mon, whaddya say? I'm buying."
Danielle didn't respond and he sighed, resting his chin on his forearms. "Oh for cryin' out loud, Danny, snap out of it. You're killing me here. The Tok'ra are going nuts, Hammond's gettin' twitchy and none of us know what to do with the kid. This is *not* the time for you to be taking a power nap." He snorted. "Not that you ever listen to me."
A soft sigh escaped the sleeping woman and he grinned. "Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm the one who's supposed to listen to you...but when have I ever done that?"
*******
Five years previous...
"Hey, Colonel!" Spying his CO standing near the dialling device, Kawalsky grinned and ambled toward his old friend. "Jackson's lookin' for you." The unrepentant grin on his face widened. "She looks pretty steamed. What'd you do this time?"
O'Neill turned with a confused frown. "Me?"
"Yeah, you. C'mon, Jack, share with the class. What'd you do?"
"Nothing." The other man protested. "I haven't seen her today. She's been in the ruins with Kasuf's son all day. Looking for a way home. Why?"
"Well, you did sometin' cause she's furious. On her way here now I figure." Kawalsky stopped, tilted his head and surveyed his friend speculatively. "Are you *sure* you didn't do anything?"
"I'm sure!" O'Neill countered, aggravated.
At the sound of boot heels striking stone, Kawalsky turned to see Danielle Jackson striding toward them. "Yeah? Well tell her that. Cause, somethin' tells me, she's not going to believe you." Thus said, he turned. "I think I'm gonna go see if Feretti needs help with the equipment."
"Traitor." Jack muttered with a glare at his rapidly retreating friend. Seeing Dr. Jackson drawing closer, he pasted a polite expression on his face and met the furious woman's gaze. "Something I can help you with, Doctor?"
"Providing a good excuse would be a start." She responded curtly. "Tell me, Colonel O'Neill, had any good conversations with Kasuf lately?"
Despite knowing full well who she was talking about, he looked deliberately vague. "Kasuf? The elder guy?"
His obtuseness earned a peeved look from the brunette. "Yes, Colonel, the elder guy. Talked to him lately? Have a nice chat?"
"Wouldn't really call it that. He gestured, said something, I gestured, said something and so forth. Didn't last all that long."
She snorted lightly. "Apparently, it lasted enough for you to marry me off to Kasuf's eldest son."
"Excuse me?!" He gaped at her. "What did you just say?"
Blithely ignoring the look of astonishment on his face, Danielle continued, wandering over to idly contemplate the gate's dialling device. "Apparently, Atim and I were officially married in that little party they threw us the other night." Rounding on him, she glared. "Do you have *any* idea what kind of position you've put me in? Any idea? Do you realize just what kind of mess this creates?"
So she really could get angry. Impressive sight."I would expect it's a very complicated and messy mess."
"Oh, you have no idea, Colonel!" She raked a hand through her hair, pulling it free of the ponytail it had been in. "Once I figure out a way to get back to Earth, I'll figure out a way out of this but, *please*, don't *ever* do that again. Next thing you know, you're going to have yourself set up as the next human sacrifice."
"Thought this culture didn't do that sort of thing." He responded blandly.
"For you? For you they'd probably make an exception. I know I'm about ready to." Spinning about, she left him standing before the Stargate, looking for all the world like the scientists back at the mountain. It seemed Danielle Jackson had a habit of making people feel like they'd been hit by a very fast truck.
From the shadows by the doorway, he heard Kawalsky laugh softly before emerging into the light. "Feisty little thing, huh Colonel?"
Looking over at him, Jack frowned. "Shut up, Kawalsky."
******
Present Day...
"I'd say that one turned out all right at least." Jack observed, resting his chin on his palm. "For a while anyway..."
Danielle still showed no sign of response, no indication that she'd heard him, but Jack hadn't expected one. Settling back on his chair, he reached for his new cup of coffee, staring into it as he gathered his thoughts. "I"m sorry, Danny...about Atim. I wish things were different. I wish we'd gotten to Chulak in time. If we had....Atim, Sha're....Skaara. None of them would be hosts and none of this would have happened. You wouldn't be here like this..." He swallowed a mouthful of coffee, grimacing at the taste. "I'm sorry about everything."
When he looked at her again, it was only too easy to picture how she'd looked when they'd returned to Abydos. How happy she'd been. She hadn't had the weight on her shoulders then that she did now. She'd looked younger. Not as tired. Not as worn down. Almost innocent.
Remembering that Danielle, it wasn't hard to blame himself. She wasn't military. She hadn't signed up to have her family taken away from her. To have to face her husband's body, possessed by an alien, trying to kill her on a regular basis. To see her best friend become host to that alien's mate or her brother-in-law to his son...
No one should have had to face the horrors Danielle had and keep going. No one. But, some how, the fact that she had been forced to. Was continuing to face those horrors...that made it worse.
If they'd only known then...
********
Four years previous...
"O'Neill!" A broad smile on his face, Atim moved forward to clasp arms with the older man. "Welcome back my friend."
"Good to see you again, Atim." The Colonel greeted.
Behind him, Kawalsky glanced over to see Captain Carter staring at the tall, handsome Abydonian with an open mouth. He couldn't resist grinning and nudging her in the side. "Forget it, Captain. He's taken. That's the Doc's husband."
Carter directed an annoyed look at him but his unrepentant grin only widened.
Silently resolving to kill them both, Jack focused his attention on the man before him. "I see you've been brushing up on your English."
Atim nodded, still smiling. "Danielle has been teaching us many things."
"Bet she has. Speaking of Danielle...she around?"
"She has been visiting nearby ruins but she returned this morning." Turning, Atim said something to Skaara in Abydonian, sending the young man darting through the crowds. "Skaara is most excited to see you again." He confided, his attention returning to the waiting Colonel. "He has not stopped speaking of you since you left."
"Missed him too. "Jack agreed quietly.
"It is very good to see you again, O'Neill." Atim continued. "It will do Danielle much good to see you all."
"How's the Doc been?" Feretti asked, looking about the gate room. "She ok?"
"She has been well but...sometimes I believe she misses your world very much."
"Atim?" Danielle's voice reached them through the crowd and a second later she made her way through the assembled group. "Did we hear from... Jack!" She smiled in delight at the sight of her old friend. "Hi!"
Dressed in the garb of an Abydonian woman and wearing her long hair loose, Danielle was radiant. The bright smile on her face only served to enhance that as she hugged Jack then rejoined her husband. None of her former teammates missed the look of utter adoration on Atim's face as he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her temple, murmuring something.
She looked up, her own expression contented, answering in Abydonian before speaking to her old friends. "You guys look great."
"Not half as good as you do, Doc." Feretti responded with a broad smile. "Abydos agrees with you."
"Thanks Feretti." Danielle's cheeks tinged red with embarrassment and she ducked her head slightly.
"Danielle." Kawalsky stepped forward, handing her a small packet of tissues. "Heard you might want some of those."
She laughed, reaching out to take the packet. "Kawalsky....Thanks, you're a mind reader." Slipping the packet into her cloak, she surveyed them speculatively. "You guys look good. Earth treating you okay?" Something in Jack's expression caught her eye and she nodded. "I thought it was only a matter of time before you had to tell the truth. Tell me, are they as mad as I think they would be..."
"Worse." He was about to say more but an enthusiastic voice cut through their conversation.
"Oh my god, this is incredible!" Having found the dialling device, Captain Carter had completely forgotten the ongoing reunion and was now examining it with unbridled glee. "This is how they control it?! It's so small! It took us fifteen years and three supercomputers to MacGyver a connection like this!"
As if just remembering her presence, Jack rolled his eyes and nodded in her direction. "Danielle Jackson this is Cap – "
"Doctor Samantha Carter." Cutting off the Colonel's introduction, the blonde turned to face them, smiling as she reached out to shake Danielle's hand. "It's great to finally meet you."
"Thought you wanted to be called Captain, *Doctor*?" O'Neill interjected dryly.
"Knock it off, Jack." Danielle kidded affectionately, mock-glaring at him before smiling at the other scientist. "It's nice to meet you Doctor Carter." Thus said, she looked back at the Colonel. "So...they're mad. But...what's going on Jack? Why now? What are you doing here?"
"Something came through the Gate on Earth. Men. They shot up the place, grabbed an officer and left." Jack's words were a shock but it was Kawalsky's addition that had the biggest impact.
Stepping forward, he met her gaze solemnly before saying, "Danielle... his eyes? They glowed like Ra's."
********
Present Day...
"There has been no change?"
Stirred from his reverie, Jack looked up at the Jaffa standing at his shoulder. "None. It seems our dear Doctor Jackson is determined to take the longest catnap in history."
"Perhaps she is attempting to challenge the legendary record of Rip Van Winkle?" Teal'c asked in as serious a voice as he'd ever used.
"We've been a bad influence on you, haven't we?" Jack observed, covering a yawn.
"You require sleep, O'Neill." Teal'c noted, taking in the colonel's haggard features.
"Naw, sleeping beauty there's getting enough for the both of us." The other man nodded at Danielle. "Besides. I can't sleep. Tried it already."
"You are worried."
"About Danielle?" Jack smiled wryly. "Can't help it. When it comes to Danielle, it seems a perpetual state for me. I've been doing it practically since the day I met her. Only got worse after I brought her back from Abydos."
********
Four years earlier...
Shrugging into his jacket, Jack headed for the elevator, intent on home and a beer. He was on his way to that goal, passing a guard station, when he glanced into a corridor to see Danielle sitting against the wall on the concrete floor. She was hugging her knees to her chest, staring dully at the multi-colored guidelines on the floor.
Gravitating toward her, he approached casually, not wanting to startle her. "Hey."
Other than a slight motion of her head, she gave no sign of acknowledgement, not even looking up.
With a shrug, he sat down beside her, leaning his head back against the cold wall and stretching his legs out before him. "Y'know, there are more comfortable places than the floor to sit. We've got these things now...they call 'em chairs."
"They don't know what to do with me." Danielle mumbled, finally looking at him, her eyes dull and lifeless. "Frankly...I don't know what to do with myself." She sighed and rested her forehead against one knee, sighing. "What am I supposed to do now, Jack?"
He paused then stood up, holding out a hand. "Come with me."
She lifted her head, eyeing the waiting hand for a long moment before placing her own in it and allowing Jack to pull her to her feet.
She was uncommonly quiet on the drive to his house. At first, he'd thought she'd given into exhaustion and fallen asleep but, when he looked over, Danielle's eyes were open and she was staring at the road with the same expression on her face she'd had from the moment she'd run into the gate room on Abydos and realized Atim was gone.
The look of the lost...
Inside his house, curiosity roused Danielle from her stupor and, while he grabbed a couple of beers out of the refrigerator, she wandered his living room with interest. A sneezing fit brought out the pack of tissues Kawalsky had given her and she looked apologetic as Jack came to stand before her, holding out a beer. "Sorry...Gate travel plays hell with my allergies."
He smiled wryly. "I remember." Sitting down, he opened his own beer and took a long swallow. "Better?"
"No." She dropped down next to him, opening the bottle he'd given her. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do next." Rubbing her forehead, she idly contemplated the bottle in her hand. "I'm so tired..." She drank a few sips then laughed a little. "Must be gate lag or something."
"Day did get shorter." Jack pointed out. "That's gotta play hell with the internal clock."
Swallowing another mouthful of beer, Danielle giggled. "Oh you have *no* idea. The first month or so I was there, I had to take naps in the afternoon to avoid falling asleep during the evening meal."
"Don't wanna go face up in the lizard surprise." He agreed dryly. "That's always so very embarrassing."
She hit him lightly on the shoulder. "Jack, don't be an ass." Bringing the bottle to her lips for another swallow, she smiled fondly in remembrance. "You should have seen them...after you were gone and things settled down. When they realized Ra was dead and the planet was theirs for the taking..."
He grinned ever-so-slightly. "Had yourselves a little party didja?"
"Oh, big party. Big, big party." Danielle laughed, relaxing. "They treated me like I was some sort of goddess. It was..."
"Humiliating?" Jack supplied with a knowing look.
"Entirely. They made such a fuss over me...Like I could do no wrong. Everyone...except Atim...and Sha're. Atim found himself married to a woman who had absolutely no clue how to perform the most basic of tasks. Things he took for granted. I remember...I tried to grind yufetta flour... god, it was such a disaster. Do you have any idea how hard it is to grind your own flour?"
"Nah...been trying to kick the whole flour thing."
She smiled fondly at him. "After that...and a few other spectacular failures which will remain unspoken...Sha're took it upon herself to teach me everything. Lucky for me, she was a patient teacher and Atim an understanding husband. I can't imagine how hard it would have been if he hadn't..." Her voice was thick as she looked away, battling back her emotions. "My god, Jack...how am I going to do this? How the hell am I going to do this?"
"Leave that to me." He murmured, resting a hand on the back of her neck. "We're going to get him back, Danielle. Him, Sha're...Skaara. We're going to get them back." Reflexively, he stroked her skin with his thumb. "Trust me, Danny. We are."
Tears slipping down her cheeks, she allowed him to pull her into a reassuring hug. "I wish I could..."
*******
Present day...
"DanielleJackson is a most strong-willed woman." Teal'c murmured, his eyes on the unconscious woman's face.
"Which is a nice way of saying she's bullheaded, right?"
"Indeed." The Jaffa rumbled, amused. "She is also very resilient."
"Which is your way of tellin me to quit worrying, she'll be fine?" Jack leaned back in his chair.
His friend nodded once. "Indeed."
"Yeah, well, keep saying it. You might convince me of it some day."
*******
Four years previous...
"Behold your queen!"
"Oh my god..." Danielle whispered in horror, staring at her husband and her friend. Hosts to the same alien race that had birthed Ra.
"Atim..." Beside her, Jack was staring in shock as well, unable to believe his eyes, his facial expression a mirror of hers.
Eyes transfixed on the spectacle before them, neither he, nor Captain Carter noticed Danielle moving until it was too late.
"Danielle no!" Jack hissed, trying to reach for her as she left the able, edging toward her husband. "Get back here!"
Wraith-like, she easily avoided his grasping fingers and kept moving. "Atim...husband? Are you...can you hear me?" Holding up her hands, she carefully approached the couple, nearing them. "Sha're? Atim? Please..."
Watching her, Jack held his breath. This was not going to end well. There was no way it would end well but he didn't want to see...he didn't want to face what he knew was coming next. If these two were anything like Ra...
He watched, everything seeming to happen in slow motion, as the alien controlling Atim raised his hand, revealing a ribbon device on his palm. It discharged and Danielle was thrown into the air. Helpless, Jack was frozen as her body arced through the air and connected with the stone wall behind them.
The sound of her body hitting the floor broke the strange spell that seemed to imprison him and he launched himself toward her as Carter hopped to her feet, levelling her weapon at the aliens. Before she could fire, Sha're - or, more accurately, the alien within her - shielded her lord from the potential danger.
Before Jack could reach his friend, the Jaffa surrounded them. Some levelled staff weapons while another grabbed him by the arms, preventing his forward motion. He struggled against them, seeing another take Carter's weapon from her, but the alien's grip was too strong.
What surprised him was the fact that just as quickly as the Jaffa had grabbed him, he released him. Giving him a shove toward Danielle, the Jaffa said simply, "Bring the woman."
Keeping a close watch on his enigmatic captor, Jack bent to lift the unconscious Danielle into his arms. She was as still as death and he couldn't help remembering the last time he had seen her in such a state.
The day she'd taken a blast from a staff weapon. A blast meant for him.
Adjusting his grip on her limp form, he sent a warning glare at the Jaffa as they were herded from the room. None of the snake-headed bastards were getting anywhere near her. They'd already destroyed her life...they weren't going to get a chance to end it.
********
Present day...
"I remember the day I first saw DanielleJackson." Teal'c began quietly, his features troubled. "I had seen such moments play out many times during the years of my service to Apophis...loved ones realizing the host was lost to them but..."
"That was different?" Jack finished for him, watching a nurse check Danielle's vitals for what seemed like the hundredth time.
"Indeed. There was an awareness, an understanding, on her face that I had not seen before. Though she did not quite understand the mechanics of absorption, she knew Apophis was not a god. She was aware of his true nature." Teal'c looked down at his friend. "That awareness intrigued me. I began to wonder...."
"And here I thought it was my impeccable taste in timepieces that caught your attention." Jack gave him a sly look. "Shoulda known it was the pretty earth girl."
"I am sorry to disappoint, O'Neill, but as you have observed on many occasions. DanielleJackson is quite attractive to the men of other worlds, she has drawn the eye of many has she not?" The Jaffa returned smoothly, his eyes hinting at his amusement.
"Oh yeah, we have definitely been a bad influence on you, Teal'c." Looking ever so slightly amused, the colonel turned back to the woman on the bed. "Danielle pay you to say that?"
"Indeed she did not. However, I have been advised that humans consider humor to have great restorative powers. It would seem the time to use them, would it not?"
"Yeah...it would definitely be the time." Jack nodded. "But...if that doesn't work...I'm gonna find the biggest, loudest foghorn I can find...if that doesn't wake her up...nothing will."
"She will wake, O'Neill." Teal'c vowed. "If only because you wish her to. I have observed the trust DanielleJackson places in you to be quite powerful. If you wish something of her...she will give it. If only because it is you that asks. You need only give her the time to do so..."
"Time..." Jack sighed. "I hate that thing."
*********
Four years previous...
The first indication of Danielle's waking was a faint sigh and a slight shift of her head. The second was her eyes sliding open to meet Jack's gaze which was staring down at her.
"Hey..." He greeted quietly. "Welcome back."
"Ow..." She groaned plaintively, reaching up to bring a hand to her forehead.
"Your little flying lesson left you with more than a few bruises." He pointed out unnecessarily. "You're gonna be feeling it tomorrow."
"Assuming we're even *alive* tomorrow." She muttered dryly as he helped her sit up.
"Yeah, well, don't make any more damn stupid moves like that little stunt in there and we will be." Jack groused. "What in the hell were you thinking, Danielle?"
"I was thinking about my husband and my best friend!" She returned in kind. "They are the reason I'm here!"
"Part of the reason." He corrected. "We did, however, manage to find the other part while you were out."
"Danielle!" Pushing his way through the other prisoners, Skaara smiled broadly at her, dropping to his knees to hug her fiercely.
"Skaara." She returned the hug as fiercely as he gave it, holding him as if she'd never let go. Pulling back suddenly, she cupped his face in her hands, meeting his eyes. "Are you hurt? Did they – "
"I am fine, Danielle." He reassured, sobering.
Danielle tried to stand only to sway unsteadily before pressing a hand to her forehead. "Ohhh..."
"Easy Danny." Jack coaxed, guiding her back down. "Stay here. C'mon, Skaara, let's try and find a way out."
Not needing to be asked twice, the boy hopped to his feet and they turned to go only to find the Jaffa from earlier standing before him. He grabbed O'Neill's arm in a vice-grip, holding it up to reveal his watch. "What is this?"
Pulling against the grip, Jack glared at him. "It's a watch!"
The helmet that had hidden the Jaffa's face retracted and he met the other man's gaze. "This is not Goa'uld technology. Where are you from?"
"Earth." Jack answered, calming. "Chicago specifically – "
"Your words mean nothing." The Jaffa interrupted curtly. "Where are you *from*?"
"Um....excuse me." Danielle, still kneeling on the floor, leaned forward, tracing the point of origin symbol for Earth. "This...this is where we're from."
The Jaffa stared down at the symbol for a long moment then, using his staff weapon, wiped it from the dirt. Without ceremony, he released Jack, his helmet reforming to hide his face then left them.
"Okayyyyyyy..." Danielle looked up at Jack, her eyes curious. "Wonder what that's about?"
"Beats me." He shrugged. "Stay here. C'mon Skaara...Let's try and find that way out."
Danielle watched them move off through the crowd, still puzzling over the Jaffa's reaction to the symbol. Something wasn't right but...she wasn't sure what.
"So, Ra's not dead after all." Captain Carter murmured beside her.
"No." She shook her head. "No he's dead, Captain. He's definitely dead."
"Then who was that..." The other woman tried to find a diplomatic way of saying it but Danielle cut her off.
"Who is it that's taken my husband as host?" She smiled bitterly. "Apophis. It's Apophis." Comprehension creeping into her eyes, she turned to watch the terrified prisoners. "My god...It's Apophis."
"Who's Apophis?" Captain Carter asked, breaking Danielle out of whatever anthropological tangent her mind had been racing off in.
"He, uh, he was the serpent god. Ra's rival. Ra ruled the day...Apophis, the night. This is right out of the Book of the Dead. These people are living it..." She stood, turning in a slow circle. "This is incredible."
"Or something." Jack murmured, rejoining them as a horn blared.
They watched silently as the Jaffa stormed into the room, forming an impenetrable line. Behind them, dressed in the same finery as earlier, Apophis and his mate strode into the room, surrounded by the other Goa'uld.
The leader, the same one that had spoken to them earlier, strode to the top of the steps, yelling out instructions.
"What's he saying?" Jack asked, glancing from Danielle to Skaara, who both seemed to understand.
Though both understood, to his surprise, it was Skaara that answered. Without taking his eyes off his brother and his friend, Skaara murmured, "They are going to choose."
"Choose what?" Carter asked, keeping a mindful eye on the archaeologist beside her. Remembering Colonel O'Neill's warning not to let her pull any stunts like the one earlier.
"They're going to choose who will become the children of the gods."
Skaara had barely spoken before Danielle was adding. "Hosts. They're going to choose hosts."
Atim and Sha're, Apophis and his Queen, safe behind the protective line of Jaffa, watched the proceedings with an arrogant amusement. An air of boredom surrounding them. It was a proceeding that Apophis had clearly presided over before and he was bored by it.
Danielle took a step forward, but before she could get any further, Jack's hands closed about her upper arms and pulled her back against him. She struggled but he held fast.
"Jack..."
"Don't even think about it." Her friend warned quietly in her ear. "That is not your husband. Atim is *not* in control anymore. Think he proved that earlier. You can't get to him now, Danielle."
"I have to try." She hissed back, her eyes fixed on Atim's face, the arrogant expression on it so alien to his features. "Please...help me."
"No." He insisted. "Now is *not* the time, Danielle. Think about it. What would Atim want you to do?"
"You know full well what he would say." She murmured in defeat.
"He'd tell you to listen to me so do it!" He ordered fiercely, giving her a little shake. "Please...Danielle...just trust me."
She slumped back against him, defeated. "All right."
"Good girl." He reassured as the Jaffa ordered the prisoners to their knees.
Defiant, the humans resisted until the Jaffa physically forced them down. Angry, Danielle ignored the action and kept her gaze fixed firmly on her husband's face. Nothing else mattered at that moment, nothing else registered on her.
Jack kept one eye on his friend as they watched the process of selection. Goa'uld wandering through the prisoners, choosing ones they thought suitable. Danielle seemed fixed on her husband but he could see the desperation building in her eyes and he was on the verge of warning her against doing something stupid when she lunged forward and grabbed one of the aliens by the robe.
"Dammit Danielle!" He yelled as she was grabbed by the Jaffa and held up before them.
"Beautiful..." The Goa'uld observed analytically. "And passionate..."
"Tell me," She begged. "How much would I remember if you chose me?"
"Danielle...What are you doing?" Jack tried to reach her but the Jaffa forced him back.
"Something of the host must survive." Danielle pleaded, searching the alien's gaze for an answer.
A motion caught Jack's attention and he looked at the Jaffa closest to him. The one that had spoken to them before. He watched the alien give a slight shake of his head, the faintest hint of pity in his eyes as he watched the human woman plead with the Goa'uld. The action surprised him but Jack said nothing. He suspected that bringing attention to the other man's sympathies was the last thing he wanted to do. But...still...it was something.
The Goa'uld, seeing the defeat and grief in Danielle's gaze, let his eyes wander her form for another moment before speaking, "We choose..." His eyes fell on the angry features of Skaara behind her and pointed at him. "This one."
Danielle was dropped to her knees as the Jaffa surged forward to grab the young man.
"O'Neill! O'Neill!" Skaara struggled violently against his attackers but the Jaffa held firm, dragging him away. "Danielle! O'Neill!"
Both his friends reacted, trying to reach him. Danielle was easily thrown back into the arms of Captain Carter and Jack was met with the butt end of a staff weapon connecting with his face. He gave a shout of pain, stumbling backward, as Skaara was dragged from the room and from their sight.
Apophis' next words cut off any plans of pursuit as he dispassionately announced, "Kill the rest."
***********
Present Day...
"I am sorry, O'Neill." Teal'c murmured quietly. "If I could change what happened that day..."
"You didn't have any more control over the situation than Danielle or I did." Jack reminded. "Besides...more than made up for it since then."
"There is no way to atone, O'Neill." The former First Prime disagreed. "Not for what was done to DanielleJackson's family...to Skaara, Sha're...Atim."
"She doesn't blame you, Teal'c. Maybe at first she might have but...you're her friend. She cares about you. About what happens to you. I'm pretty sure she's made that abundantly clear."
"Indeed she has...however, I cannot forgive myself for the things that were done to her...and you."
"You don't need to." His friend said simply with a shrug. "It isn't you that did it. It's Apophis. Seems to me, we've made him pay through the nose for it too. Trust me, Teal'c. We got Skaara back...Sha're...she's better off."
"And what of her husband?" Teal'c prompted, his gaze resting on Danielle. "Is he still not host to Apophis?"
Jack's gaze darkened and he met the other man's gaze, holding it. "He is." There was a foreboding pause then he added. "For now. But I promised Danielle that he'd be free and, one way or the other...I'm gonna keep that promise."
*******
Four years previous...
"Coffee..."
Danielle looked up at the steaming mug being held before her and she smiled wearily at him. "Thanks." Taking it, she watched Jack perch himself on the other chair.
"Hammond tells me they're already shipping in the books and stuff you requested. Everything you had in storage." Jack looked around the bare room. "You'll have an archaeologist's dream office in no time."
"So I hear." She agreed with a nod. "They're even bringing in a few things I asked for and thought I wouldn't get."
"Before long, you'll be holed up in here puzzling over some mystery of the Gate while the General and I try to figure out how to handle whatever you come up with..." He took a cautious swallow his own, quite hot, coffee. "Just like old times."
"Except this time I get to *know* what I'm working on." She kidded dryly. "So, where's the Jaffa?"
"Teal'c? In holding. They're still trying to figure out what to do with him."
"Did you..."
"Put in a request to have him join the team? Yeah." Jack nodded. "Just dropped it off this morning, all official and the like."
"Think they'll go for it?" She asked tentatively, watching his reaction.
"Could go either way. We're gonna have to do something with him." Seeing the look in her eye, he leaned forward with a concerned frown. "Danny, are you going to have a problem with him on the team? If you are, tell me now. I don't want this cropping up when we're in the middle of a firefight with the Goa'uld."
"I can handle it." She assured quietly. "It will take some time, Jack. I can't say it won't...but I'll handle it." She shrugged. "I mean, it's not like he had a choice. From what I gather, he's as much of a slave in this as those people were."
"But..."
"But he's still the one that picked Atim and Sha're. If it wasn't for that..."
"Someone else would have done it." Jack finished for her. "If there was ever a no-win situation, it was that."
Danielle put the mug on the nearest surface and pulled her glasses off, cleaning the lenses. "I know it's not his fault, Jack. Intellectually, I *know* that but..." She closed her eyes against the pain. "It's going to take me a while, okay? I keep picturing Atim..."
"C'mere." Jack murmured, reaching out to pull her into a hug. She buried her face against his neck, her body shaking slightly with the force of her sobs. He held her close, one hand reflexively stroking her hair, the other just holding her. "We are going to find him, Danielle. Him, Sha're...Skaara. We are going to find them and take them back. One way...or the other."
"Promise?" She asked, spoken in a mumble against his skin.
"I promise."
********
Present Day....
Sitting on Jack's roof, Danielle cuddled down into his jacket and looked up at the stars. "I wonder..."
"What?" He asked, sitting down beside her, pushing a mug of hot chocolate into her hands.
"Which one of those Shifu is on." She sipped the hot liquid, wincing as it burnt her tongue slightly. "He's been through so much for someone his age." A wry laugh escaped her. "But then again...he's...quite advanced for someone who's supposed to be still in diapers."
"They grow up so fast."
"Smartass." She accused, resting her head against his shoulder. "You don't have to sit up with me you know. I may not need any sleep...but you do. Teal'c told me that if you weren't watching everything with Shifu...you were sitting with me. You have to be exhausted Jack."
"Nah. I'm good." He assured. "Gone without sleep longer than that. Believe me. Besides...after seeing you quiet for so long...I miss the babble."
She smacked his leg lightly. "Goof."
"You scared the hell out of me, Danielle. Seeing you like that..." Jack admitted without warning. "Don't ever do that again."
She smiled, resting a hand on his. "Okay, I won't."
"Good." He leaned his head back against the railing. "I'm holding you to that."
"Jack?"
"Yeah Danny?"
"Thank you."
"Anytime..."
They sat there, silently staring at the stars until Danielle felt Jack's breathing even out and his head loll to rest against hers. Smiling in the darkness, she carefully pulled the jacket from about her and used it to cover as much of them both as it could before cuddling closer to him and softly murmuring, "Night, Jack....Sweet dreams."
Finis
Author: M.
Feedback: Sure!
Rating: PG
Pairing: Jack/Danielle
Characters: Jack O'Neill, Danielle Jackson,
Keywords: Alternate Universe, genderbender, AU,
Spoilers: None. Futurefic
Series: another Danielle story
Disclaimers: Stargate? Not mine. Danielle? Well...sort of.
Summary: When Shifu puts Danielle in a dream state...Jack is left to watch. And wait.
Author's Note: We will actually see Danielle's dream but...Jack wanted to do this first...
this is the latest story in the Danielle series in which Daniel Jackson is, and always was, female. It is an ALTERNATE UNIVERSE.
Just a reminder. ;-p
"Someone Watching Over You"
by: M.
-------------
"Colonel?"
Janet Frasier's gentle voice roused Jack from the light doze he'd fallen into and he opened his eyes to find the petite doctor standing over him with a cup of coffee in her hand. She held it out to him with a sympathetic smile and then moved to check the vital statistics of her patient.
"Thanks." He murmured, sipping the steaming liquid slowly. "Any change?"
"None." Straightening up, the doctor shook her head. "Medically, there's no sign of anything wrong with her. She's asleep. That's it. She responds to stimuli, heat, cold and such but..."
"She just won't wake up." Jack finished for her, nodding. "Always did take three cups of coffee to get her going."
"Shifu still refuses to give you a straight answer?"
It was the colonel's turn to shake his head. "All the kid'll say is he's 'teaching' Danielle." He smiled wryly. "First time in her life she's ever been a slow learner."
Janet laughed a little. "If she hears that..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm in for it.' He grinned a little. "It wouldn't be the first time Danielle let me have it."
******
Five Years Previous...
"So, how close is Dr. Langford to activation?" Flipping through the file he'd been given, Jack O'Neill didn't look up as General West responded.
"To be honest, Colonel, we aren't sure." The general shuffled through a number of files, looking for a specific report. "Katherine recently recruited some archaeologist that she's got high hopes for...Ah, yes. Here she is. Dr. Danielle Jackson. Something of an archaeological whiz kid from what I hear. Has expertise in several ancient languages and cultures, has a plethora of doctorates and research papers to back it up."
Taking the dossier from his new CO, O'Neill opened it to the first page, reading the summary on the doctor. "Until lately it seems."
"From what I hear, she proposed some theory about the Egyptian culture that went over like a wet blanket and got herself shunned by the archaeological community." West looked faintly amused. "Irony if it? This theory of hers? We've got the proof sitting downstairs."
"All nice and classified." Jack couldn't help but appreciate the irony. "Does she know?"
"As far as I've heard? No. Dr. Jackson is only aware of the cover stone. She has no idea what it is she's really working on."
"Good." Jack closed the file, meeting West's gaze. "I expect it will stay that way."
~~~~
Dr. Danielle Jackson turned out to be a far cry from the stereotypical archaeologist type he'd been expecting. About as far as anyone could expect. She did radiate geek. Right from her tortoise-shell glasses and dishevelled mop of brown curls, to the worn keds that she wore on her feet. But... he'd met a few geeks in his days and something about the young woman said that she was definitely not the average geek.
He watched from the doorway, amused, as she quickly blew through the partial translation that had been done on the cover stone. Took her all of ten seconds to completely turn it on its ear and present a new, complete translation to the watching group of scholars. Said group was watching, dumbfounded, as she worked and, somewhere inside himself, Jack felt the urge to grin. They looked like Jackson had run them over with the truck....all but Langford. Katherine Langford was observing the whole scene with the very same grin he was fighting back plastered firmly across her face.
He listened as the team began to respond to the newcomer's inquiries with growing enthusiasm, realization setting in that she stood a good chance of helping them. The theories being bandied about interested him but just as soon as one ventured just a little too close to mentioning the Stargate, he intervened.
To his surprise, Dr. Jackson turned to regard him with a look of aggravation rather than the intimidation he'd been expecting. The majority of scientists that had dealt with him as of late had always been made quite uncomfortable just by his presence but not the woman before him. She looked like she'd rather smack him and go back to work than meekly get out of his way.
He hadn't known it then...but it was a look he'd get to know very, very well.
********
Present day...
Rubbing a hand over his face, Jack ignored the stubble he felt and leaned over to rest his elbows on the bed, watching the sleeping woman's face. "Hey, sleeping beauty, feel like going for another cup of coffee? This place is starting to get a little old. I have to stare at these walls five more minutes, I'm gonna explode. C'mon, whaddya say? I'm buying."
Danielle didn't respond and he sighed, resting his chin on his forearms. "Oh for cryin' out loud, Danny, snap out of it. You're killing me here. The Tok'ra are going nuts, Hammond's gettin' twitchy and none of us know what to do with the kid. This is *not* the time for you to be taking a power nap." He snorted. "Not that you ever listen to me."
A soft sigh escaped the sleeping woman and he grinned. "Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm the one who's supposed to listen to you...but when have I ever done that?"
*******
Five years previous...
"Hey, Colonel!" Spying his CO standing near the dialling device, Kawalsky grinned and ambled toward his old friend. "Jackson's lookin' for you." The unrepentant grin on his face widened. "She looks pretty steamed. What'd you do this time?"
O'Neill turned with a confused frown. "Me?"
"Yeah, you. C'mon, Jack, share with the class. What'd you do?"
"Nothing." The other man protested. "I haven't seen her today. She's been in the ruins with Kasuf's son all day. Looking for a way home. Why?"
"Well, you did sometin' cause she's furious. On her way here now I figure." Kawalsky stopped, tilted his head and surveyed his friend speculatively. "Are you *sure* you didn't do anything?"
"I'm sure!" O'Neill countered, aggravated.
At the sound of boot heels striking stone, Kawalsky turned to see Danielle Jackson striding toward them. "Yeah? Well tell her that. Cause, somethin' tells me, she's not going to believe you." Thus said, he turned. "I think I'm gonna go see if Feretti needs help with the equipment."
"Traitor." Jack muttered with a glare at his rapidly retreating friend. Seeing Dr. Jackson drawing closer, he pasted a polite expression on his face and met the furious woman's gaze. "Something I can help you with, Doctor?"
"Providing a good excuse would be a start." She responded curtly. "Tell me, Colonel O'Neill, had any good conversations with Kasuf lately?"
Despite knowing full well who she was talking about, he looked deliberately vague. "Kasuf? The elder guy?"
His obtuseness earned a peeved look from the brunette. "Yes, Colonel, the elder guy. Talked to him lately? Have a nice chat?"
"Wouldn't really call it that. He gestured, said something, I gestured, said something and so forth. Didn't last all that long."
She snorted lightly. "Apparently, it lasted enough for you to marry me off to Kasuf's eldest son."
"Excuse me?!" He gaped at her. "What did you just say?"
Blithely ignoring the look of astonishment on his face, Danielle continued, wandering over to idly contemplate the gate's dialling device. "Apparently, Atim and I were officially married in that little party they threw us the other night." Rounding on him, she glared. "Do you have *any* idea what kind of position you've put me in? Any idea? Do you realize just what kind of mess this creates?"
So she really could get angry. Impressive sight."I would expect it's a very complicated and messy mess."
"Oh, you have no idea, Colonel!" She raked a hand through her hair, pulling it free of the ponytail it had been in. "Once I figure out a way to get back to Earth, I'll figure out a way out of this but, *please*, don't *ever* do that again. Next thing you know, you're going to have yourself set up as the next human sacrifice."
"Thought this culture didn't do that sort of thing." He responded blandly.
"For you? For you they'd probably make an exception. I know I'm about ready to." Spinning about, she left him standing before the Stargate, looking for all the world like the scientists back at the mountain. It seemed Danielle Jackson had a habit of making people feel like they'd been hit by a very fast truck.
From the shadows by the doorway, he heard Kawalsky laugh softly before emerging into the light. "Feisty little thing, huh Colonel?"
Looking over at him, Jack frowned. "Shut up, Kawalsky."
******
Present Day...
"I'd say that one turned out all right at least." Jack observed, resting his chin on his palm. "For a while anyway..."
Danielle still showed no sign of response, no indication that she'd heard him, but Jack hadn't expected one. Settling back on his chair, he reached for his new cup of coffee, staring into it as he gathered his thoughts. "I"m sorry, Danny...about Atim. I wish things were different. I wish we'd gotten to Chulak in time. If we had....Atim, Sha're....Skaara. None of them would be hosts and none of this would have happened. You wouldn't be here like this..." He swallowed a mouthful of coffee, grimacing at the taste. "I'm sorry about everything."
When he looked at her again, it was only too easy to picture how she'd looked when they'd returned to Abydos. How happy she'd been. She hadn't had the weight on her shoulders then that she did now. She'd looked younger. Not as tired. Not as worn down. Almost innocent.
Remembering that Danielle, it wasn't hard to blame himself. She wasn't military. She hadn't signed up to have her family taken away from her. To have to face her husband's body, possessed by an alien, trying to kill her on a regular basis. To see her best friend become host to that alien's mate or her brother-in-law to his son...
No one should have had to face the horrors Danielle had and keep going. No one. But, some how, the fact that she had been forced to. Was continuing to face those horrors...that made it worse.
If they'd only known then...
********
Four years previous...
"O'Neill!" A broad smile on his face, Atim moved forward to clasp arms with the older man. "Welcome back my friend."
"Good to see you again, Atim." The Colonel greeted.
Behind him, Kawalsky glanced over to see Captain Carter staring at the tall, handsome Abydonian with an open mouth. He couldn't resist grinning and nudging her in the side. "Forget it, Captain. He's taken. That's the Doc's husband."
Carter directed an annoyed look at him but his unrepentant grin only widened.
Silently resolving to kill them both, Jack focused his attention on the man before him. "I see you've been brushing up on your English."
Atim nodded, still smiling. "Danielle has been teaching us many things."
"Bet she has. Speaking of Danielle...she around?"
"She has been visiting nearby ruins but she returned this morning." Turning, Atim said something to Skaara in Abydonian, sending the young man darting through the crowds. "Skaara is most excited to see you again." He confided, his attention returning to the waiting Colonel. "He has not stopped speaking of you since you left."
"Missed him too. "Jack agreed quietly.
"It is very good to see you again, O'Neill." Atim continued. "It will do Danielle much good to see you all."
"How's the Doc been?" Feretti asked, looking about the gate room. "She ok?"
"She has been well but...sometimes I believe she misses your world very much."
"Atim?" Danielle's voice reached them through the crowd and a second later she made her way through the assembled group. "Did we hear from... Jack!" She smiled in delight at the sight of her old friend. "Hi!"
Dressed in the garb of an Abydonian woman and wearing her long hair loose, Danielle was radiant. The bright smile on her face only served to enhance that as she hugged Jack then rejoined her husband. None of her former teammates missed the look of utter adoration on Atim's face as he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her temple, murmuring something.
She looked up, her own expression contented, answering in Abydonian before speaking to her old friends. "You guys look great."
"Not half as good as you do, Doc." Feretti responded with a broad smile. "Abydos agrees with you."
"Thanks Feretti." Danielle's cheeks tinged red with embarrassment and she ducked her head slightly.
"Danielle." Kawalsky stepped forward, handing her a small packet of tissues. "Heard you might want some of those."
She laughed, reaching out to take the packet. "Kawalsky....Thanks, you're a mind reader." Slipping the packet into her cloak, she surveyed them speculatively. "You guys look good. Earth treating you okay?" Something in Jack's expression caught her eye and she nodded. "I thought it was only a matter of time before you had to tell the truth. Tell me, are they as mad as I think they would be..."
"Worse." He was about to say more but an enthusiastic voice cut through their conversation.
"Oh my god, this is incredible!" Having found the dialling device, Captain Carter had completely forgotten the ongoing reunion and was now examining it with unbridled glee. "This is how they control it?! It's so small! It took us fifteen years and three supercomputers to MacGyver a connection like this!"
As if just remembering her presence, Jack rolled his eyes and nodded in her direction. "Danielle Jackson this is Cap – "
"Doctor Samantha Carter." Cutting off the Colonel's introduction, the blonde turned to face them, smiling as she reached out to shake Danielle's hand. "It's great to finally meet you."
"Thought you wanted to be called Captain, *Doctor*?" O'Neill interjected dryly.
"Knock it off, Jack." Danielle kidded affectionately, mock-glaring at him before smiling at the other scientist. "It's nice to meet you Doctor Carter." Thus said, she looked back at the Colonel. "So...they're mad. But...what's going on Jack? Why now? What are you doing here?"
"Something came through the Gate on Earth. Men. They shot up the place, grabbed an officer and left." Jack's words were a shock but it was Kawalsky's addition that had the biggest impact.
Stepping forward, he met her gaze solemnly before saying, "Danielle... his eyes? They glowed like Ra's."
********
Present Day...
"There has been no change?"
Stirred from his reverie, Jack looked up at the Jaffa standing at his shoulder. "None. It seems our dear Doctor Jackson is determined to take the longest catnap in history."
"Perhaps she is attempting to challenge the legendary record of Rip Van Winkle?" Teal'c asked in as serious a voice as he'd ever used.
"We've been a bad influence on you, haven't we?" Jack observed, covering a yawn.
"You require sleep, O'Neill." Teal'c noted, taking in the colonel's haggard features.
"Naw, sleeping beauty there's getting enough for the both of us." The other man nodded at Danielle. "Besides. I can't sleep. Tried it already."
"You are worried."
"About Danielle?" Jack smiled wryly. "Can't help it. When it comes to Danielle, it seems a perpetual state for me. I've been doing it practically since the day I met her. Only got worse after I brought her back from Abydos."
********
Four years earlier...
Shrugging into his jacket, Jack headed for the elevator, intent on home and a beer. He was on his way to that goal, passing a guard station, when he glanced into a corridor to see Danielle sitting against the wall on the concrete floor. She was hugging her knees to her chest, staring dully at the multi-colored guidelines on the floor.
Gravitating toward her, he approached casually, not wanting to startle her. "Hey."
Other than a slight motion of her head, she gave no sign of acknowledgement, not even looking up.
With a shrug, he sat down beside her, leaning his head back against the cold wall and stretching his legs out before him. "Y'know, there are more comfortable places than the floor to sit. We've got these things now...they call 'em chairs."
"They don't know what to do with me." Danielle mumbled, finally looking at him, her eyes dull and lifeless. "Frankly...I don't know what to do with myself." She sighed and rested her forehead against one knee, sighing. "What am I supposed to do now, Jack?"
He paused then stood up, holding out a hand. "Come with me."
She lifted her head, eyeing the waiting hand for a long moment before placing her own in it and allowing Jack to pull her to her feet.
She was uncommonly quiet on the drive to his house. At first, he'd thought she'd given into exhaustion and fallen asleep but, when he looked over, Danielle's eyes were open and she was staring at the road with the same expression on her face she'd had from the moment she'd run into the gate room on Abydos and realized Atim was gone.
The look of the lost...
Inside his house, curiosity roused Danielle from her stupor and, while he grabbed a couple of beers out of the refrigerator, she wandered his living room with interest. A sneezing fit brought out the pack of tissues Kawalsky had given her and she looked apologetic as Jack came to stand before her, holding out a beer. "Sorry...Gate travel plays hell with my allergies."
He smiled wryly. "I remember." Sitting down, he opened his own beer and took a long swallow. "Better?"
"No." She dropped down next to him, opening the bottle he'd given her. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do next." Rubbing her forehead, she idly contemplated the bottle in her hand. "I'm so tired..." She drank a few sips then laughed a little. "Must be gate lag or something."
"Day did get shorter." Jack pointed out. "That's gotta play hell with the internal clock."
Swallowing another mouthful of beer, Danielle giggled. "Oh you have *no* idea. The first month or so I was there, I had to take naps in the afternoon to avoid falling asleep during the evening meal."
"Don't wanna go face up in the lizard surprise." He agreed dryly. "That's always so very embarrassing."
She hit him lightly on the shoulder. "Jack, don't be an ass." Bringing the bottle to her lips for another swallow, she smiled fondly in remembrance. "You should have seen them...after you were gone and things settled down. When they realized Ra was dead and the planet was theirs for the taking..."
He grinned ever-so-slightly. "Had yourselves a little party didja?"
"Oh, big party. Big, big party." Danielle laughed, relaxing. "They treated me like I was some sort of goddess. It was..."
"Humiliating?" Jack supplied with a knowing look.
"Entirely. They made such a fuss over me...Like I could do no wrong. Everyone...except Atim...and Sha're. Atim found himself married to a woman who had absolutely no clue how to perform the most basic of tasks. Things he took for granted. I remember...I tried to grind yufetta flour... god, it was such a disaster. Do you have any idea how hard it is to grind your own flour?"
"Nah...been trying to kick the whole flour thing."
She smiled fondly at him. "After that...and a few other spectacular failures which will remain unspoken...Sha're took it upon herself to teach me everything. Lucky for me, she was a patient teacher and Atim an understanding husband. I can't imagine how hard it would have been if he hadn't..." Her voice was thick as she looked away, battling back her emotions. "My god, Jack...how am I going to do this? How the hell am I going to do this?"
"Leave that to me." He murmured, resting a hand on the back of her neck. "We're going to get him back, Danielle. Him, Sha're...Skaara. We're going to get them back." Reflexively, he stroked her skin with his thumb. "Trust me, Danny. We are."
Tears slipping down her cheeks, she allowed him to pull her into a reassuring hug. "I wish I could..."
*******
Present day...
"DanielleJackson is a most strong-willed woman." Teal'c murmured, his eyes on the unconscious woman's face.
"Which is a nice way of saying she's bullheaded, right?"
"Indeed." The Jaffa rumbled, amused. "She is also very resilient."
"Which is your way of tellin me to quit worrying, she'll be fine?" Jack leaned back in his chair.
His friend nodded once. "Indeed."
"Yeah, well, keep saying it. You might convince me of it some day."
*******
Four years previous...
"Behold your queen!"
"Oh my god..." Danielle whispered in horror, staring at her husband and her friend. Hosts to the same alien race that had birthed Ra.
"Atim..." Beside her, Jack was staring in shock as well, unable to believe his eyes, his facial expression a mirror of hers.
Eyes transfixed on the spectacle before them, neither he, nor Captain Carter noticed Danielle moving until it was too late.
"Danielle no!" Jack hissed, trying to reach for her as she left the able, edging toward her husband. "Get back here!"
Wraith-like, she easily avoided his grasping fingers and kept moving. "Atim...husband? Are you...can you hear me?" Holding up her hands, she carefully approached the couple, nearing them. "Sha're? Atim? Please..."
Watching her, Jack held his breath. This was not going to end well. There was no way it would end well but he didn't want to see...he didn't want to face what he knew was coming next. If these two were anything like Ra...
He watched, everything seeming to happen in slow motion, as the alien controlling Atim raised his hand, revealing a ribbon device on his palm. It discharged and Danielle was thrown into the air. Helpless, Jack was frozen as her body arced through the air and connected with the stone wall behind them.
The sound of her body hitting the floor broke the strange spell that seemed to imprison him and he launched himself toward her as Carter hopped to her feet, levelling her weapon at the aliens. Before she could fire, Sha're - or, more accurately, the alien within her - shielded her lord from the potential danger.
Before Jack could reach his friend, the Jaffa surrounded them. Some levelled staff weapons while another grabbed him by the arms, preventing his forward motion. He struggled against them, seeing another take Carter's weapon from her, but the alien's grip was too strong.
What surprised him was the fact that just as quickly as the Jaffa had grabbed him, he released him. Giving him a shove toward Danielle, the Jaffa said simply, "Bring the woman."
Keeping a close watch on his enigmatic captor, Jack bent to lift the unconscious Danielle into his arms. She was as still as death and he couldn't help remembering the last time he had seen her in such a state.
The day she'd taken a blast from a staff weapon. A blast meant for him.
Adjusting his grip on her limp form, he sent a warning glare at the Jaffa as they were herded from the room. None of the snake-headed bastards were getting anywhere near her. They'd already destroyed her life...they weren't going to get a chance to end it.
********
Present day...
"I remember the day I first saw DanielleJackson." Teal'c began quietly, his features troubled. "I had seen such moments play out many times during the years of my service to Apophis...loved ones realizing the host was lost to them but..."
"That was different?" Jack finished for him, watching a nurse check Danielle's vitals for what seemed like the hundredth time.
"Indeed. There was an awareness, an understanding, on her face that I had not seen before. Though she did not quite understand the mechanics of absorption, she knew Apophis was not a god. She was aware of his true nature." Teal'c looked down at his friend. "That awareness intrigued me. I began to wonder...."
"And here I thought it was my impeccable taste in timepieces that caught your attention." Jack gave him a sly look. "Shoulda known it was the pretty earth girl."
"I am sorry to disappoint, O'Neill, but as you have observed on many occasions. DanielleJackson is quite attractive to the men of other worlds, she has drawn the eye of many has she not?" The Jaffa returned smoothly, his eyes hinting at his amusement.
"Oh yeah, we have definitely been a bad influence on you, Teal'c." Looking ever so slightly amused, the colonel turned back to the woman on the bed. "Danielle pay you to say that?"
"Indeed she did not. However, I have been advised that humans consider humor to have great restorative powers. It would seem the time to use them, would it not?"
"Yeah...it would definitely be the time." Jack nodded. "But...if that doesn't work...I'm gonna find the biggest, loudest foghorn I can find...if that doesn't wake her up...nothing will."
"She will wake, O'Neill." Teal'c vowed. "If only because you wish her to. I have observed the trust DanielleJackson places in you to be quite powerful. If you wish something of her...she will give it. If only because it is you that asks. You need only give her the time to do so..."
"Time..." Jack sighed. "I hate that thing."
*********
Four years previous...
The first indication of Danielle's waking was a faint sigh and a slight shift of her head. The second was her eyes sliding open to meet Jack's gaze which was staring down at her.
"Hey..." He greeted quietly. "Welcome back."
"Ow..." She groaned plaintively, reaching up to bring a hand to her forehead.
"Your little flying lesson left you with more than a few bruises." He pointed out unnecessarily. "You're gonna be feeling it tomorrow."
"Assuming we're even *alive* tomorrow." She muttered dryly as he helped her sit up.
"Yeah, well, don't make any more damn stupid moves like that little stunt in there and we will be." Jack groused. "What in the hell were you thinking, Danielle?"
"I was thinking about my husband and my best friend!" She returned in kind. "They are the reason I'm here!"
"Part of the reason." He corrected. "We did, however, manage to find the other part while you were out."
"Danielle!" Pushing his way through the other prisoners, Skaara smiled broadly at her, dropping to his knees to hug her fiercely.
"Skaara." She returned the hug as fiercely as he gave it, holding him as if she'd never let go. Pulling back suddenly, she cupped his face in her hands, meeting his eyes. "Are you hurt? Did they – "
"I am fine, Danielle." He reassured, sobering.
Danielle tried to stand only to sway unsteadily before pressing a hand to her forehead. "Ohhh..."
"Easy Danny." Jack coaxed, guiding her back down. "Stay here. C'mon, Skaara, let's try and find a way out."
Not needing to be asked twice, the boy hopped to his feet and they turned to go only to find the Jaffa from earlier standing before him. He grabbed O'Neill's arm in a vice-grip, holding it up to reveal his watch. "What is this?"
Pulling against the grip, Jack glared at him. "It's a watch!"
The helmet that had hidden the Jaffa's face retracted and he met the other man's gaze. "This is not Goa'uld technology. Where are you from?"
"Earth." Jack answered, calming. "Chicago specifically – "
"Your words mean nothing." The Jaffa interrupted curtly. "Where are you *from*?"
"Um....excuse me." Danielle, still kneeling on the floor, leaned forward, tracing the point of origin symbol for Earth. "This...this is where we're from."
The Jaffa stared down at the symbol for a long moment then, using his staff weapon, wiped it from the dirt. Without ceremony, he released Jack, his helmet reforming to hide his face then left them.
"Okayyyyyyy..." Danielle looked up at Jack, her eyes curious. "Wonder what that's about?"
"Beats me." He shrugged. "Stay here. C'mon Skaara...Let's try and find that way out."
Danielle watched them move off through the crowd, still puzzling over the Jaffa's reaction to the symbol. Something wasn't right but...she wasn't sure what.
"So, Ra's not dead after all." Captain Carter murmured beside her.
"No." She shook her head. "No he's dead, Captain. He's definitely dead."
"Then who was that..." The other woman tried to find a diplomatic way of saying it but Danielle cut her off.
"Who is it that's taken my husband as host?" She smiled bitterly. "Apophis. It's Apophis." Comprehension creeping into her eyes, she turned to watch the terrified prisoners. "My god...It's Apophis."
"Who's Apophis?" Captain Carter asked, breaking Danielle out of whatever anthropological tangent her mind had been racing off in.
"He, uh, he was the serpent god. Ra's rival. Ra ruled the day...Apophis, the night. This is right out of the Book of the Dead. These people are living it..." She stood, turning in a slow circle. "This is incredible."
"Or something." Jack murmured, rejoining them as a horn blared.
They watched silently as the Jaffa stormed into the room, forming an impenetrable line. Behind them, dressed in the same finery as earlier, Apophis and his mate strode into the room, surrounded by the other Goa'uld.
The leader, the same one that had spoken to them earlier, strode to the top of the steps, yelling out instructions.
"What's he saying?" Jack asked, glancing from Danielle to Skaara, who both seemed to understand.
Though both understood, to his surprise, it was Skaara that answered. Without taking his eyes off his brother and his friend, Skaara murmured, "They are going to choose."
"Choose what?" Carter asked, keeping a mindful eye on the archaeologist beside her. Remembering Colonel O'Neill's warning not to let her pull any stunts like the one earlier.
"They're going to choose who will become the children of the gods."
Skaara had barely spoken before Danielle was adding. "Hosts. They're going to choose hosts."
Atim and Sha're, Apophis and his Queen, safe behind the protective line of Jaffa, watched the proceedings with an arrogant amusement. An air of boredom surrounding them. It was a proceeding that Apophis had clearly presided over before and he was bored by it.
Danielle took a step forward, but before she could get any further, Jack's hands closed about her upper arms and pulled her back against him. She struggled but he held fast.
"Jack..."
"Don't even think about it." Her friend warned quietly in her ear. "That is not your husband. Atim is *not* in control anymore. Think he proved that earlier. You can't get to him now, Danielle."
"I have to try." She hissed back, her eyes fixed on Atim's face, the arrogant expression on it so alien to his features. "Please...help me."
"No." He insisted. "Now is *not* the time, Danielle. Think about it. What would Atim want you to do?"
"You know full well what he would say." She murmured in defeat.
"He'd tell you to listen to me so do it!" He ordered fiercely, giving her a little shake. "Please...Danielle...just trust me."
She slumped back against him, defeated. "All right."
"Good girl." He reassured as the Jaffa ordered the prisoners to their knees.
Defiant, the humans resisted until the Jaffa physically forced them down. Angry, Danielle ignored the action and kept her gaze fixed firmly on her husband's face. Nothing else mattered at that moment, nothing else registered on her.
Jack kept one eye on his friend as they watched the process of selection. Goa'uld wandering through the prisoners, choosing ones they thought suitable. Danielle seemed fixed on her husband but he could see the desperation building in her eyes and he was on the verge of warning her against doing something stupid when she lunged forward and grabbed one of the aliens by the robe.
"Dammit Danielle!" He yelled as she was grabbed by the Jaffa and held up before them.
"Beautiful..." The Goa'uld observed analytically. "And passionate..."
"Tell me," She begged. "How much would I remember if you chose me?"
"Danielle...What are you doing?" Jack tried to reach her but the Jaffa forced him back.
"Something of the host must survive." Danielle pleaded, searching the alien's gaze for an answer.
A motion caught Jack's attention and he looked at the Jaffa closest to him. The one that had spoken to them before. He watched the alien give a slight shake of his head, the faintest hint of pity in his eyes as he watched the human woman plead with the Goa'uld. The action surprised him but Jack said nothing. He suspected that bringing attention to the other man's sympathies was the last thing he wanted to do. But...still...it was something.
The Goa'uld, seeing the defeat and grief in Danielle's gaze, let his eyes wander her form for another moment before speaking, "We choose..." His eyes fell on the angry features of Skaara behind her and pointed at him. "This one."
Danielle was dropped to her knees as the Jaffa surged forward to grab the young man.
"O'Neill! O'Neill!" Skaara struggled violently against his attackers but the Jaffa held firm, dragging him away. "Danielle! O'Neill!"
Both his friends reacted, trying to reach him. Danielle was easily thrown back into the arms of Captain Carter and Jack was met with the butt end of a staff weapon connecting with his face. He gave a shout of pain, stumbling backward, as Skaara was dragged from the room and from their sight.
Apophis' next words cut off any plans of pursuit as he dispassionately announced, "Kill the rest."
***********
Present Day...
"I am sorry, O'Neill." Teal'c murmured quietly. "If I could change what happened that day..."
"You didn't have any more control over the situation than Danielle or I did." Jack reminded. "Besides...more than made up for it since then."
"There is no way to atone, O'Neill." The former First Prime disagreed. "Not for what was done to DanielleJackson's family...to Skaara, Sha're...Atim."
"She doesn't blame you, Teal'c. Maybe at first she might have but...you're her friend. She cares about you. About what happens to you. I'm pretty sure she's made that abundantly clear."
"Indeed she has...however, I cannot forgive myself for the things that were done to her...and you."
"You don't need to." His friend said simply with a shrug. "It isn't you that did it. It's Apophis. Seems to me, we've made him pay through the nose for it too. Trust me, Teal'c. We got Skaara back...Sha're...she's better off."
"And what of her husband?" Teal'c prompted, his gaze resting on Danielle. "Is he still not host to Apophis?"
Jack's gaze darkened and he met the other man's gaze, holding it. "He is." There was a foreboding pause then he added. "For now. But I promised Danielle that he'd be free and, one way or the other...I'm gonna keep that promise."
*******
Four years previous...
"Coffee..."
Danielle looked up at the steaming mug being held before her and she smiled wearily at him. "Thanks." Taking it, she watched Jack perch himself on the other chair.
"Hammond tells me they're already shipping in the books and stuff you requested. Everything you had in storage." Jack looked around the bare room. "You'll have an archaeologist's dream office in no time."
"So I hear." She agreed with a nod. "They're even bringing in a few things I asked for and thought I wouldn't get."
"Before long, you'll be holed up in here puzzling over some mystery of the Gate while the General and I try to figure out how to handle whatever you come up with..." He took a cautious swallow his own, quite hot, coffee. "Just like old times."
"Except this time I get to *know* what I'm working on." She kidded dryly. "So, where's the Jaffa?"
"Teal'c? In holding. They're still trying to figure out what to do with him."
"Did you..."
"Put in a request to have him join the team? Yeah." Jack nodded. "Just dropped it off this morning, all official and the like."
"Think they'll go for it?" She asked tentatively, watching his reaction.
"Could go either way. We're gonna have to do something with him." Seeing the look in her eye, he leaned forward with a concerned frown. "Danny, are you going to have a problem with him on the team? If you are, tell me now. I don't want this cropping up when we're in the middle of a firefight with the Goa'uld."
"I can handle it." She assured quietly. "It will take some time, Jack. I can't say it won't...but I'll handle it." She shrugged. "I mean, it's not like he had a choice. From what I gather, he's as much of a slave in this as those people were."
"But..."
"But he's still the one that picked Atim and Sha're. If it wasn't for that..."
"Someone else would have done it." Jack finished for her. "If there was ever a no-win situation, it was that."
Danielle put the mug on the nearest surface and pulled her glasses off, cleaning the lenses. "I know it's not his fault, Jack. Intellectually, I *know* that but..." She closed her eyes against the pain. "It's going to take me a while, okay? I keep picturing Atim..."
"C'mere." Jack murmured, reaching out to pull her into a hug. She buried her face against his neck, her body shaking slightly with the force of her sobs. He held her close, one hand reflexively stroking her hair, the other just holding her. "We are going to find him, Danielle. Him, Sha're...Skaara. We are going to find them and take them back. One way...or the other."
"Promise?" She asked, spoken in a mumble against his skin.
"I promise."
********
Present Day....
Sitting on Jack's roof, Danielle cuddled down into his jacket and looked up at the stars. "I wonder..."
"What?" He asked, sitting down beside her, pushing a mug of hot chocolate into her hands.
"Which one of those Shifu is on." She sipped the hot liquid, wincing as it burnt her tongue slightly. "He's been through so much for someone his age." A wry laugh escaped her. "But then again...he's...quite advanced for someone who's supposed to be still in diapers."
"They grow up so fast."
"Smartass." She accused, resting her head against his shoulder. "You don't have to sit up with me you know. I may not need any sleep...but you do. Teal'c told me that if you weren't watching everything with Shifu...you were sitting with me. You have to be exhausted Jack."
"Nah. I'm good." He assured. "Gone without sleep longer than that. Believe me. Besides...after seeing you quiet for so long...I miss the babble."
She smacked his leg lightly. "Goof."
"You scared the hell out of me, Danielle. Seeing you like that..." Jack admitted without warning. "Don't ever do that again."
She smiled, resting a hand on his. "Okay, I won't."
"Good." He leaned his head back against the railing. "I'm holding you to that."
"Jack?"
"Yeah Danny?"
"Thank you."
"Anytime..."
They sat there, silently staring at the stars until Danielle felt Jack's breathing even out and his head loll to rest against hers. Smiling in the darkness, she carefully pulled the jacket from about her and used it to cover as much of them both as it could before cuddling closer to him and softly murmuring, "Night, Jack....Sweet dreams."
Finis