Disclaimer: I don't own anything but Teal'la, the sweet punch she landed on
Daniel, and the pissy mood that she's understandably in.
Prodigal Son...er...Daughter
Chapter Six
Teal'la had not responded to Teal'c's gentle transport to the infirmary, nor Janet's soft oath at her complete compliance, seeing as she was fully conscious, or so it seemed. She could have been catatonic, they never would have known. She was put in the bed beside the unconscious Daniel's, despite Jack's quiet insistences that this was not such a hot idea. She did nothing, lying quietly on the hospital-like bed without complaint and not even flinching when Janet stuck the IV in her arm.
Or when she shone the penlight in her eyes. She just laid there like she was dead.
Except of course that her heartbeat was still as strong and steady as ever.
Even so, Jack and Teal'c hovered over her and Daniel, even through Janet's demands that they exit the infirmary. She said it was disturbing the patients, but given that they both appeared to be unresponsive to the living world, they pretty much ignored her.
Occasionally, Teal'la would blink, and they took this as a relatively good sign. Teal'c watched her in a mother hen-ish way, and Jack switched his gaze between the two of them. He had gained a great deal of respect for this young girl, considering that she hadn't gone crazy and killed anyone...or herself.
Yet.
"Do you think she will be well, O'Neill?" asked the concerned Jaffa as he watched the teenager for any signs of improvement. Jack looked at him.
"That depends on if she wants to be well." responded the colonel. Teal'c looked at him.
"I do not understand, O'Neill."
"For cryin' out loud, Teal'c, she just found out that she's been snaked for pretty much her entire existence, Would *you* want to recover?" he asked. Teal'c considered.
"Indeed I would O'Neill, disgusted as I would feel for the rest of my existence. I would prefer life knowing exactly what I am." he said, stoic expression remaining on his face, apart from his eyebrow arching. "Knowledge of oneself allows one to become all that they are capable of being."
Jack stared at his friend for a long moment and shook his head.
"Including a homicidal maniac?" he asked, incredulously. Teal'c's eyebrow, having returned to a resting position, arched again.
"Indeed, if that is the path chosen." he replied, unperturbed. At that moment, Teal'la took a deep breath and let it out through her nose, blinking slowly and calmly.
"I'm trying to induce a coma, could you keep it down, please?" she asked, in a somewhat smooth voice, that indicated that she had decided to stop crying and simply roll over to die. Jack and Teal'c looked at her, both of them raising eyebrows now. "Kinda hard to be catatonic with people yapping incessantly, if ya know what I mean."
"In other words, you want us to shut up and leave you alone." Jack translated. She gave something that might have, on a good day, passed as a smirk.
"I see all your facilities are in order. This means of course that Daniel has lied more than once." she said, and then abruptly rolled over onto her side, away from them. "Please leave."
"I do not believe that this would be sound judgment on our part if we were to comply, young Teal'la. If we were to leave you, you might injure DanielJackson, or worse, yourself. We would be deprived of the ability to study you as both a strategic interest and as a person." Teal'c said. She was silent for a moment, then rolled back to look at them.
Hers was a look of masked interest.
"Why would you want to get to know me? I'm permanently of the Goa'uld race, whether or not I want to be. I am the embodiment of everything that you people are against." she said, not even bothering to mask the disgust in her voice, or check her volume level. Teal'c glanced at Daniel to see if he could hear this and saw that he was remaining still, but he was aware.
"Yeah, well, you seem like a nice person." Jack said, precipitating an incredulous stare from Teal'la as Teal'c arched his eyebrow...again.
"Indeed, O'Neill speaks the truth." he said. She stared at them and shook her head.
"Well, when you're not running all over the place and getting Teal'c to throw me up against walls and junk." Jack continued. Teal'la looked back at him and he searched her face for any sign that she might find this amusing. Her mouth twitched...once.
"O'Neill, have I not already offered my sincerest apologies for this misunderstanding?" asked Teal'c, and Jack looked at him, shrugging.
"It's fine, Teal'c, really." he insisted. Carter arrived at that moment, and hesitated upon seeing Teal'la, before plastering a smile to her face. At this show of uncertainty masked by friendliness, Teal'la rolled over, turning her back on the woman, whose smile disappeared abruptly, realizing her faux pas. It was then that Daniel opened his eyes.
"Mmm." he murmured, about the brightness, and they all looked at him except Teal'la, who hunched her shoulders and drew her knees in as well, closing her eyes. Jack glanced at her and then looked back at Daniel, trying to think of a way to include her in the almost guaranteed conversation that was about to ensue. "What happened?" he asked.
"Teal'la hit you." Teal'c supplied, truthfully. Daniel's eyes lit up with dawning recollection and he reached a hand towards his face, wincing as he touched the purpling, bruising imprint of Teal'la's fist.
"Oh yeah." he said, dryly.
"In her defense, you were all for keeping this extremely important and personal information from her. Not a comparatively good way to ensure a prolonged and healthy existence." Jack said. Daniel grunted, closing his eyes.
"As you are constantly reminding me, Jack; I'm not a particularly wise person. Smart, but not too bright." he replied. Jack had crossed to Teal'la's little cot and was sitting on a portion that she was not occupying. He nudged her gently with an elbow.
"You listening to this?" he asked, a hint of amusement clear in his voice.
"No." came the flat reply. He made a face.
"Right." he said, rolling his eyes. "Of course, I should have expected that, you're made up of all of our genetic material, you would be just as stubborn as he is." he continued casually. Teal'la stiffened and then pushed herself up, standing, ripping the IV from her arm and grabbing her jacket, turning to go and not looking at any of them.
That is until Teal'c placed a soft, but firm hand on her shoulder.
"Teal'la, Doctor Fraiser wishes you to stay." he said, firmly. She jerked her shoulder roughly from his grasp and turned, looking him in the eye.
"Look at me very closely, and then ask me if I care." she said. And, in their moment of stunned silence, their jaws brushing the floor, she turned on her barefooted heel and left, arms folded over the familiar leather of her jacket. Jack looked at his teammates as they turned their disbelieving eyes towards him and searched his vocabulary for the appropriate thing to say.
"Oops?" he offered.
Prodigal Son...er...Daughter
Chapter Six
Teal'la had not responded to Teal'c's gentle transport to the infirmary, nor Janet's soft oath at her complete compliance, seeing as she was fully conscious, or so it seemed. She could have been catatonic, they never would have known. She was put in the bed beside the unconscious Daniel's, despite Jack's quiet insistences that this was not such a hot idea. She did nothing, lying quietly on the hospital-like bed without complaint and not even flinching when Janet stuck the IV in her arm.
Or when she shone the penlight in her eyes. She just laid there like she was dead.
Except of course that her heartbeat was still as strong and steady as ever.
Even so, Jack and Teal'c hovered over her and Daniel, even through Janet's demands that they exit the infirmary. She said it was disturbing the patients, but given that they both appeared to be unresponsive to the living world, they pretty much ignored her.
Occasionally, Teal'la would blink, and they took this as a relatively good sign. Teal'c watched her in a mother hen-ish way, and Jack switched his gaze between the two of them. He had gained a great deal of respect for this young girl, considering that she hadn't gone crazy and killed anyone...or herself.
Yet.
"Do you think she will be well, O'Neill?" asked the concerned Jaffa as he watched the teenager for any signs of improvement. Jack looked at him.
"That depends on if she wants to be well." responded the colonel. Teal'c looked at him.
"I do not understand, O'Neill."
"For cryin' out loud, Teal'c, she just found out that she's been snaked for pretty much her entire existence, Would *you* want to recover?" he asked. Teal'c considered.
"Indeed I would O'Neill, disgusted as I would feel for the rest of my existence. I would prefer life knowing exactly what I am." he said, stoic expression remaining on his face, apart from his eyebrow arching. "Knowledge of oneself allows one to become all that they are capable of being."
Jack stared at his friend for a long moment and shook his head.
"Including a homicidal maniac?" he asked, incredulously. Teal'c's eyebrow, having returned to a resting position, arched again.
"Indeed, if that is the path chosen." he replied, unperturbed. At that moment, Teal'la took a deep breath and let it out through her nose, blinking slowly and calmly.
"I'm trying to induce a coma, could you keep it down, please?" she asked, in a somewhat smooth voice, that indicated that she had decided to stop crying and simply roll over to die. Jack and Teal'c looked at her, both of them raising eyebrows now. "Kinda hard to be catatonic with people yapping incessantly, if ya know what I mean."
"In other words, you want us to shut up and leave you alone." Jack translated. She gave something that might have, on a good day, passed as a smirk.
"I see all your facilities are in order. This means of course that Daniel has lied more than once." she said, and then abruptly rolled over onto her side, away from them. "Please leave."
"I do not believe that this would be sound judgment on our part if we were to comply, young Teal'la. If we were to leave you, you might injure DanielJackson, or worse, yourself. We would be deprived of the ability to study you as both a strategic interest and as a person." Teal'c said. She was silent for a moment, then rolled back to look at them.
Hers was a look of masked interest.
"Why would you want to get to know me? I'm permanently of the Goa'uld race, whether or not I want to be. I am the embodiment of everything that you people are against." she said, not even bothering to mask the disgust in her voice, or check her volume level. Teal'c glanced at Daniel to see if he could hear this and saw that he was remaining still, but he was aware.
"Yeah, well, you seem like a nice person." Jack said, precipitating an incredulous stare from Teal'la as Teal'c arched his eyebrow...again.
"Indeed, O'Neill speaks the truth." he said. She stared at them and shook her head.
"Well, when you're not running all over the place and getting Teal'c to throw me up against walls and junk." Jack continued. Teal'la looked back at him and he searched her face for any sign that she might find this amusing. Her mouth twitched...once.
"O'Neill, have I not already offered my sincerest apologies for this misunderstanding?" asked Teal'c, and Jack looked at him, shrugging.
"It's fine, Teal'c, really." he insisted. Carter arrived at that moment, and hesitated upon seeing Teal'la, before plastering a smile to her face. At this show of uncertainty masked by friendliness, Teal'la rolled over, turning her back on the woman, whose smile disappeared abruptly, realizing her faux pas. It was then that Daniel opened his eyes.
"Mmm." he murmured, about the brightness, and they all looked at him except Teal'la, who hunched her shoulders and drew her knees in as well, closing her eyes. Jack glanced at her and then looked back at Daniel, trying to think of a way to include her in the almost guaranteed conversation that was about to ensue. "What happened?" he asked.
"Teal'la hit you." Teal'c supplied, truthfully. Daniel's eyes lit up with dawning recollection and he reached a hand towards his face, wincing as he touched the purpling, bruising imprint of Teal'la's fist.
"Oh yeah." he said, dryly.
"In her defense, you were all for keeping this extremely important and personal information from her. Not a comparatively good way to ensure a prolonged and healthy existence." Jack said. Daniel grunted, closing his eyes.
"As you are constantly reminding me, Jack; I'm not a particularly wise person. Smart, but not too bright." he replied. Jack had crossed to Teal'la's little cot and was sitting on a portion that she was not occupying. He nudged her gently with an elbow.
"You listening to this?" he asked, a hint of amusement clear in his voice.
"No." came the flat reply. He made a face.
"Right." he said, rolling his eyes. "Of course, I should have expected that, you're made up of all of our genetic material, you would be just as stubborn as he is." he continued casually. Teal'la stiffened and then pushed herself up, standing, ripping the IV from her arm and grabbing her jacket, turning to go and not looking at any of them.
That is until Teal'c placed a soft, but firm hand on her shoulder.
"Teal'la, Doctor Fraiser wishes you to stay." he said, firmly. She jerked her shoulder roughly from his grasp and turned, looking him in the eye.
"Look at me very closely, and then ask me if I care." she said. And, in their moment of stunned silence, their jaws brushing the floor, she turned on her barefooted heel and left, arms folded over the familiar leather of her jacket. Jack looked at his teammates as they turned their disbelieving eyes towards him and searched his vocabulary for the appropriate thing to say.
"Oops?" he offered.