The Past Reunited
Spoilers: none
Summary: Returning home from a difficult mission, Daniel is confronted with a face he hasn't seen in years, and never expected to see again.
Warnings: One itty bitty little swear word and that's it.
Author's note: As always, I want to thank my wonderful betas, who worked hard to help me with my story, come charity bake sales, illness, and vacations. You ladies are the best! I also want to thank the people (all two of you ;)) who read and reviewed Safe Harbor, and anybody who read it but didn't review, and to remind you that the more reviews I get, the quicker I'm likely to update.
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Stargate. However, I worked hard on this story and if you try to steal it I'll have to chase you with a pointed stick. ;) If you want to archive, ask first.
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Daniel Jackson climbed slowly out of his car. It had been a hard few days, and he looked forward to sleeping in his own bed tonight. He turned and reached toward the passenger seat of the car to grab the large stack of mail he'd picked up at the post office on the way home.
He carried the pile up to his front door, then tried to balance it in one hand while he dug in his pocket for the key. By the time he had the key out and the door opened, a few errant envelopes had managed to escape his grasp. As he stooped, painfully due to the stresses of his last mission, several more fell out of the pile. Finally he collected it all and managed to get up and through the door without dropping any more.
As he entered the house, he pushed the door closed behind him with his foot. He walked into the living room and sank gratefully onto the couch, kicking off his shoes the instant he landed.
Bill, bill, 'you may have already won' yeah, right. Oh, my new Archeology Odyssey magazine is here!
He separated the magazine and tossed the rest on the coffee table. The pile was so tall that several items skittered over the far edge, but he didn't notice. Instead, he lifted his legs onto the couch, settled back to find a comfortable position, and took his first good look at the picture on the cover.
It was a small group of archeologists, all looking excited, standing in front of a temple, with the headline, "New Discovery May Change the Face of Archeology." The temple itself wasn't quite like anything he'd seen before. It looked like the builders had combined architectural elements from several different ancient cultures. After examining the temple his eyes were drawn back to the scientists. As he followed the line of archeologists, he examined each happy face. An older, distinguished-looking gentleman, standing very straight and looking directly at the camera. A middle-aged woman who looked a bit uncomfortable, as if unused to being photographed. However, when his eyes shifted to the third and final scientist, he did a bit of a double take. She was a younger woman, in her early thirties, with auburn hair and hazel eyes. She was standing casually, gazing at the camera as though it were an old friend, with a genuine smile that showed in her eyes and an easy posture that exuded confidence.
Rebecca?
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When he was just starting middle school, he was living with foster parents in the outskirts of New York. He didn't really have any friends at school; on the rare occasion the other students noticed him, it was only to call him a geek. He spent most of his lunch breaks in the library reading. His only friend was a girl who lived down the street from him. Rebecca Cale.
Daniel had taken his book into the front yard to read; to escape the noise, really. His foster parents were arguing, about him, as always. Their shouting followed him out through the closed door. When he started reading, he forgot about everything else. About 20 pages later, he suddenly got the feeling he was being watched. He looked up and realized there was a girl standing on the sidewalk looking at him. She was holding a bicycle and looked a couple of years younger than him.
"Hi," he said shyly, wondering why she was staring at him.
"Hi," she replied, returning his curious gaze. "Are you okay?"
"Um… yeah…" he stated cautiously, "Why?"
"Well, I said hi before and you didn't answer me."
"Oh, I was just really involved in my book, didn't even notice you there," he said, still wondering why this girl would be talking to him, the geeky orphan with the dumb glasses.
"Okay, I'm trying to figure out whether I should feel insulted…"
"Oh, no! I didn't mean it like that!" he exclaimed. When her face lit up with a smile he realized she had been joking with him.
"Relax," she said, laughing softly. "I'm just foolin' with ya. Name's Rebecca," she added, stepping forward and extending her right hand.
"Daniel," he replied, standing up, brushing off his somewhat ratty clothes, and taking her hand into his for a handshake, all the while being careful not to lose his place in his book.
"So, Daniel, whatcha readin'?"
"The Odyssey," he answered, showing her the library book's cover.
"Yikes. That for class? I heard some teachers require that one and it's really hard to read."
"Nope, just for fun. It's a really good book. You should give it a try."
"No thanks. Think I'll pass on that one. Anyway, I was just out giving my new bike a test ride. Wanna join me?"
"Uh, no. I don't have a bike."
She sized him up, then seemed to make a decision. "Well, that shouldn't be a problem. You can use my brother's old bike. It's a couple of years old but it should be about the right size, and he doesn't use it anymore. Come on! I live just down the street; we can walk down there and give it a try."
Daniel looked at her, somewhat shocked. She actually wanted to hang out with him? Most people took one look at the dingy clothes he had to wear, his glasses and his somewhat mousey appearance and decided he wasn't worth their time. "Okay," he said quietly, trying to mask his excitement. "Just let me put my book inside!"
He walked to the door. Then, remembering the fight that had been going on before, he put his ear to the door to determine their whereabouts. Sounded like they were still fighting, but the voices were more muffled than before. If they've moved into the bedroom, I may be able to make it to my room and back without being noticed. He quietly opened the door and snuck inside. He tiptoed to his room to put the book away. Can't just put it out here anywhere, I'll get in trouble again. His foster parents didn't like to see his stuff, what little he had, lying around.
The hardest part was getting past the master bedroom, which was between him and his room. Fortunately, his foster parents were too busy screaming at each other to notice him. He was able to get into his room, put the book away, and get out with relative ease. He did have a bit of a scare when he reached the front door and grabbed the doorknob. The argument stopped for a moment, and he thought they'd seen him. He braced himself for the inevitable repercussions, but was surprised when they never came. The shouting simply started up again, louder than ever, and he realized he'd gotten off scot-free this time.
As he walked out, their yells followed him. Rebecca walked up to him, looking concerned.
"What was that about?" she asked, motioning toward the door with her head. "Your parents having a fight?"
He stammered, not wanting to reveal the truth for fear she wouldn't like him anymore.
"Hey, you okay?" she asked, with a stare that seemed to penetrate soul-deep. "Come on, you can tell me."
"Foster parents," he said, his voice hardly more than a whisper.
"What?" she questioned kindly.
"Foster parents. They're my foster parents. My real parents died when I was eight."
Silence. Here it comes. 'Oh, sorry, I didn't know. Well, have a nice life!'
"Oh, God, I'm so sorry! I had no idea!"
He was expecting her to make some excuse and walk away right then.
He certainly wasn't expecting this perfect stranger to suddenly reach out and throw her arms around him. Even more surprising, for the first time since he was in his mother's arms, he felt comfortable letting down his defenses with another person, and allowing himself to cry at the injustice of it all. It was the first time since a tragic accident had stolen his parents and his happy childhood that anyone had shown him true kindness. He was helpless to prevent the outpouring of emotion caused by this simple act from a young girl. Rebecca let him. She allowed him his release of all those emotions he had hidden so long. When he was feeling better she handed him a tissue, helped him up, and told him they'd better hurry or they would run out of daylight for their bike ride.
They had been best friends ever since.
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It lasted almost a year, until that day. The social worker told him he had to leave. Under other circumstances, he would have been glad to go, because even the orphanage was better than this set of foster parents. But he had finally made a friend, and he didn't want to lose her. The orphanage was so far away, and they were both too young for their driver's licenses.
The social worker said he had two days to pack up his belongings. What belongings? She would be back on Friday to pick him up. As soon as the woman climbed back into her car and left, he started running. He didn't know where he was going. He ran without seeing, or caring, where he was. He finally came to a halt on the sidewalk outside of Rebecca's house. Once he realized where he was, he walked up to her door and rang the bell.
Mrs. Cale, a very sweet woman with laughing eyes, answered the door. She knew him pretty well, since he went to Rebecca's every time things at his foster parents' house got to be too much to handle.
When she opened the door, she took one look at him, sweating, panting, and near tears, and ushered him quickly inside. She called out for Rebecca, then promptly herded him into the kitchen. She led him unresisting to the kitchen table, where she pushed him gently into a chair and set out making cocoa.
Rebecca came downstairs soon after. When she saw Daniel, no longer panting but still looking utterly miserable, she pulled him into a hug, just like the first day they met. This time, though, he didn't cry. Faced with the thought of losing the one friend he'd made since being orphaned, he had gone past crying.
Daniel had retreated into himself once again, and it would be many years before a hard-assed military colonel would break through the cracks in his façade.
When Rebecca reached out to comfort her friend, she was surprised that he didn't return her hug. They had helped each other through a lot of hard times before, why was he pulling away now? Confused, she let go of him, grabbed another chair, and sat down next to Daniel. Just then, her mom came up and set two mugs of cocoa in front of the pair. She cradled a third mug in her own hands as she sat, facing the young man who had so thoroughly worked his way into the hearts and minds of her little girl, and her own as well.
The three sat in silence for a bit, until Mrs. Cale spoke up.
"So, Daniel, want to tell us what's wrong?" she asked gently.
As if waking from a deep sleep, Daniel jerked and looked around. Spotting the mug on the table in front of him, he picked it up and took a sip. After a while, he spoke in a voice so quiet the women, barely two feet away, could hardly hear him. "I came to say goodbye."
The stunned look on Mrs. Cale's face at the announcement matched the one her daughter wore.
"W...what do you mean?" Rebecca stammered. "Where are you going?"
"The social workers came today. I'm going back to the orphanage Friday."
"But…but they can't do that!"
"Actually, they can. And they will. And there's nothing I can do about it."
Nobody who knew Daniel half as well as Rebecca did could have mistaken the bitterness in his voice. Everything was so damn unfair. This was a wonderful person who should have been living happily with his parents, but in the blink of an eye all that had been ripped from him, and things just kept getting worse.
"Well, maybe there's something I can do." Mrs. Cale interjected, smiling for the first time since she'd seen the look on Daniel's face.
"What do you mean?" Rebecca asked, a faint glimmer of hope returning.
"Well, I… I don't think John would object… and you two are like brother and sister already…"
"Mom, spit it out already! What are you trying to say?"
"Well, I'm saying that… oh what the heck…. Daniel, what would you say if I offered to adopt you?"
Rebecca screamed with delight and threw her mom into a stranglehold. "You'd really do that?"
"Absolutely."
This brought on a fresh bout of screaming, which was abruptly cut short by the quiet but very firm sound of Daniel's voice.
"No."
After a brief stunned silence, Rebecca once again spoke. "No?"
"No."
"You… you don't want us to adopt you?"
"No, I don't." He had gotten his hopes up so many times, he was afraid to do it once more. Looking back, Daniel decided that may have been the biggest mistake of his life. Then again, if they'd adopted him then, he never would have ended up evicted from his apartment, living out of a pair of small suitcases, never have joined the Stargate program, never have met Jack, Sam, and Teal'c, three of the best friends a man could ask for. Funny how one decision could change so much.
"Well, of course, I would never try to force you into anything, I just thought…"
"I said no!" Daniel shouted.
Yet another uncomfortable silence settled over the room. Mrs. Cale had gotten to know Daniel in the past year, better than he ever knew. She probably knew more about him than he ever would have wanted her to. She had heard him talking about those good times he experienced in the past, and had heard the disappointment beneath his assumed casual attitude, the sadness that those good times had ended. And they always did. She could hear that very same disappointment in his voice now, along with the fear. She suspected that he was afraid to get his hopes up again, because every time he did, he ended up having those hopes crushed. She wished she could say something, but she didn't know what to say. She couldn't fix in two days a problem that had taken years to create. Only time could heal these wounds.
Finally Mrs. Cale stood up and collected the mugs. "The cocoa must be freezing by now. What do you say I make some more?"
"No thanks, Mrs. Cale," replied Daniel, standing. "I should just go home and… pack."
He walked out, his posture signaling utter defeat.
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Daniel stared at the magazine in front of him, memories flooding into his mind. After that day, he had avoided Rebecca. He already knew he wasn't going to be able to see her after Friday, so he wanted to make the separation as quick and painless as possible. He didn't go to her house anymore, and when she came to his he pretended not to be home. She didn't buy it, he knew, but at least this way he had the small element of control over his life that he'd come to treasure. However, that didn't stop her from being there on that day, the day they came to take him back.
When the social workers came up the driveway, he was already standing out on the front porch with all his belongings thrown into the bottom of a tattered duffel bag. At the same time, Rebecca walked up the sidewalk toward him, her mom beside her with her arm draped supportively on Rebecca's shoulder. When they were a few feet away, Rebecca pulled free and walked the rest of the way alone. She walked up to Daniel and tried to wrap her arms around him, but he wouldn't let her. Instead, she settled for putting a hand on his shoulder and saying goodbye. She told him what a good friend he had been and how much she would miss him. He kept his eyes averted, staring down at his shoes, but she didn't stop. She kept talking, and when she had finally finished, she put her arms around him once more. This time he didn't resist. He didn't say anything, but when she released him, they both had tears in their eyes. And when he turned to follow the social workers to their car, she thought she heard him say, "I'll miss you too."
That had been the last time they had seen each other. After the painful edges had smoothed out, they started writing letters to each other. Every so often they would send each other school pictures, and every year he got birthday presents from her, though he couldn't afford to return the favor, nor did she ever ask him to. After a while, though, the letters trickled off. Eventually, they stopped entirely. They had had a strong friendship, but apparently not strong enough to break through the emotional and geographical barriers between them. But no matter how things had turned out, she had been his first real friend, and one of the best he'd ever had, even if it was not truly meant to be.
Now, looking at the picture on the magazine, the resemblance was striking. He hadn't seen so much as a picture of her since she was 17, but he would know that face anywhere. It was Rebecca Cale, it had to be. She hadn't changed a bit. Still the same easygoing person she had been as a young girl, always smiling, always looking on the bright side of things. She had been the perfect contrast to him, who had become quite pessimistic since being thrown into the foster care system. He opened to the page indicated for the article, and flipped rapidly through the pages, looking for more pictures of the girl who had changed his young life so profoundly. She had given him a way to release emotions bottled for years, and taught him that there were still good people in the world, and he would never forget that.
He had just come across another of her, when something caught his eye in the photo on the next page. There was a wall with several forms of writing, including one that was the last thing he'd been expecting to see. It was a form akin to Linear A script, which he had once encountered on another planet. It was Goa'uld.