Summary: Scenes that made up the Vala/Daniel relationship.

Timeline: During Unending

Rating: PG13

Archive/C2: Ask please.

Disclaimer: I do not own Stargate. I did not invent Stargate. Nothing is mine. I do this for fun only.

The Talk and other Future Ponderings

Mar. 2007

It was early morning. She could feel him start to rouse. He was a wiggler. Every night right before he fell asleep and every morning right before he would awaken he would wiggle. It had been cute at first, but truth be told; it had become one of those small annoyances you put up with in a relationship. Not a big issue, but no one liked to be elbowed and bumped when they were trying to go to sleep.

On cue he kicked her lightly. "Daniel!" She raised her voice ever so slightly, just enough to wake him completely.

He raised his head slightly off his pillow. "Huh? What?" He rubbed his hands over both his eyes, rubbing the sleep away. His brown hair was a mess with one side flattened to his head and the other side sticking straight up in some weird side Mohawk look. He needed a haircut again.

"What? I didn't hear anything Darling. You must have been dreaming again." She smirked.

"Oh. Hmff." His eyes closed again and his head hit back down on the pillow, but then he picked it back up and leaned over to her. "Morning." He puckered his lips and searched for hers for a second before she helped him out. She leaned over to him and let his lips find hers. She loved squishy morning kisses.

"Morning." She replied. "Daniel I've been thinking…" She turned toward him in their bed.

He was lying on his back, eyes still closed, but awake. "Hm. Not had coffee yet so I can't promise a coherent answer to whatever is on your mind." He gave her a side smile and then turned his head toward her, giving her his full attention.

"Where are we? I mean us. I mean…as a couple."

"Ah. Yeah…that."

"Sam has explained to me the whole relationship level thing. You start out slow…well we skipped that part sort of. Then you move toward more serious like dating that leads to choosing to move in and or being conservative and not. Then you have the choice of marriage…or these days not. And then comes the babies."

Babies got his full attention. He propped himself up with one arm, reached for his glasses and put them on. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "A baby…Vala, I think…"

"I'm not saying I want them, Daniel. To be truthful I'm not sure…never mind. That isn't the point. I'm just saying that having them is where most relationships go." She wasn't ready for that conversation. Not in a long shot.

"I'm guessing you've been thinking about this for a while? The where we are thing, I mean." His lips were pursed and he was staring intently at her. He wasn't mad; he was just prepping himself for a serious discussion.

"Well, we said we loved each other three months ago. I've basically moved in with you even though we've really never had the discussion."

He looked around at what had been his own room and realized this to be true. Half of his clothes were now in a basket on the floor because she was using three out of the four drawers in the dresser. Several outfits she refused to fold were hung on the far wall and his bathroom counter was covered in lotions, makeup and jewelry. He hadn't really noticed. It had been a slow move in. They almost always slept in his room, so naturally she had brought one or two things over when she needed it. But now that he thought of it, she had moved in under the radar. Huh. Not that he minded. It had been a natural progression.

She continued her point. "So…I'm not saying we are at the next level. I'm just saying…what is the next level?"

"Should have known this conversation would come into play at some point. Uh…well…here's the thing. We're sort of…stuck."

"That's obvious, Daniel."

"No, I mean…being stuck on the ship…makes us stuck. You're right we've technically moved in together here, but you've moved from two rooms down. If we were home on Earth it would be a bigger decision. One I would be contemplating probably about now."

"Really? You would be thinking about moving me out of the SGC?"

"Well, yeah. We've only been together for five months, but we've known each other for years. We aren't starting out like other relationships. We have history…weird and sometimes violent history, but history. The SGC would most likely be allowing you to have a place off base if you wanted one. It would make sense that you move in with me."

"Gee, that's romantic. Make sense?" She poked him in the arm.

"Okay, I would want you to move in with me. We wouldn't have a lot of privacy at the base."

"Better." She was intrigued. She hadn't really thought of what would happen when they got back to Earth. "And then?"

He smiled and patted her on her head as he got up from their bed. "And then I went and got coffee." He went over to his basket of clothes and picked out his attire for the day. Vala enjoyed the view. He was simply wearing white briefs and a tight grey t-shirt.

"Oh come on, Daniel. Don't skip the good bits. Give a girl something to look forward to. I've only ever known the SGC." She got up and moved to the foot of the bed. She lay down on her stomach and propped her head up with both arms. She bent her knees and her feet swayed in the air.

He shook his head playfully. "Really? Why is it girls have to know where everything is going all of the time?"

"Because. Now, come on Daniel and make it worth my while." He had started to undress which made story time ever so much more interesting.

"Fine…Once upon a time a reasonable and wise man fell in love with a crazy and beautiful woman."

"Brownie points for you."

"And after a time they moved in together." He pulled his undershirt over his head and briefs over his legs.

"In an apartment with a large bathroom with vanity mirror and makeup counter…continue."

"Yeah, and that." He rolled his eyes. "And after a time in which she drove him crazy to a minimal extent. The reasonable and wise man decided…"

"Yes."

"That everything was good the way it was."

"Oh come on, Daniel!"

"Seriously?" He buttoned his pants and sat down on the bed next to her. He brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. "Since when are you interested in the 'M' word." He tilted his head and put his hand under her chin. Her past had several marriages in it and they were always for something she wanted or needed. Yes, she was different in many ways, but he was surprised at her interest.

"Honest answer? I don't know. I've never done this before. Everything between us is exciting and new and at the same time…a little scary."

She tried to look away, look down. It was her trademark move. When she was telling the truth and it was something she was unsure of, she couldn't look you in the eye. With his hand he tilted her head back up, making her look at him. "If we moved in together and things went well…after a certain amount of time that would be decided by when we were ready…we would talk about the whole married thing. Nothing has to happen until we want it to. And we've never been like other relationships so why should the normal way of doing things be our way. "

She opened her mouth to make an exclamation but he put his hand over it. "That is a very futuristic event that has a lot of ifs and ands and maybes attached to it. Please…please do not obsess over it. We don't have to think about any of it now. We don't have to define ourselves…ever." He moved his hand away and she composed herself.

"Of course. Futuristic events."

"That can't happen here." He added.

"That can't happen here. But that you see…as a possibility?"

"When we get home…we will take it one step at a time." He kissed her head and headed to the door. He pushed the button to open it. The door opened and he stepped through into the hallway. He turned toward her and smiled.

"But what about you? What do you want at the end of this…if everything works out?" She was curious to know what future he might see in the far distance for them.

"If all that works out… and we were on the same page…I wouldn't mind a baby." The door closed leaving her alone.

She bit her lower lip. Is that what she wanted? It had only been five months, yes, but that didn't mean a quick snapshot of a hypothetical future with Daniel didn't enter her thoughts every once in a while. She certainly wasn't ready for some of it as she knew neither of them were. They were just thoughts, but she had changed considerably. Enough for all that? Who knew, but a part of her wanted them to get back to Earth. Maybe someday she would want all that with Daniel. Her mother had told her once it took the right kind of man to show you the things you might not think were possible. At that point in her life she had thought her mother was too sentimental and romantic. It was not the right kind of thinking for her. Not to mention all the men in her life up till Daniel were never the type to show her life could be different. Daniel had shown her she could lead a different life well before they were an item. She wasn't naïve enough to say Daniel and her were in it for the long hall just yet, but she had to admit to herself that he was the first man she thought…might be the one to change everything. For now she would have to wait till they were back on Earth. Which brought her to her next project.

Vala walked into the mess hall and sat opposite of Sam. "I want to help you." She suddenly wanted to get back to Earth more than she did yesterday.