Friday morning
"So are you going to open that trunk, or what?" Jack asked from his perch in Daniel’s lounge. It had been a week since Nick’s funeral, and Daniel had been busy going through his grandfather’s things. There wasn’t much, but the clothes he’d given to a charity shop. Daniel had been amazed to discover Nick had a savings account, which hadn’t been touched in years, the money, a tidy sum, had been donated to the mental institution where Nick had spent a large part of his life. There were a few books, which Daniel had added to his personal collection, along with a couple of artefacts. Then there was the trunk. It had arrived unexpectedly a couple of days before, along with a letter from the manager of the mental institution. There had been a burst water pipe, and the trunk had been found when the basement was cleared, and then sent on to Daniel’s home. He looked at the trunk, and key in hand, set about opening it.
The inside was musty with age, but the contents were well protected. There were several items of clothing, old shirts mostly, and about twenty small boxes, each containing a reel of film.
"Gee home movies." Jack spoke up, trying not to sound too uninterested.
"Films of Nick’s expeditions I expect." Daniel replied excitedly "I’d love to see them, I mean think how different exploration was back then Jack, no computers, no GPS, you really had to rely on your wits…"
"And a gun." Jack interrupted "Why don’t you get the boys in AV to have them converted onto video tape for you" Daniel removed the boxes; he’d take them into work later. The rest of the trunk was full of books. Jack groaned "More books!" Daniel smiled.
"Don’t worry Jack, I won’t put you through any more. I’ll sort through them later, I guess we should get going anyway, we have a debriefing with Hammond in less than an hour."
That evening
It was late, and Daniel had just been to the commissary to grab a bite to eat, or rather Teal’c had come, on Jack’s orders, and dragged him away from the translation he was working on. If he was lucky, and left undisturbed, he might even finish it tonight. General Hammond had given SG-1 the weekend off, and for once Daniel knew he wouldn’t be spending it at the base. He’d just reached his office when Sam appeared.
"So, are you coming to O’Malley’s with the rest of us?" Sam asked.
"No, actually I think I’m going to finish this, then go home and do some reading." Sam smiled, the Colonel had already filled her in on the contents of Nick’s trunk.
"Thought you might say that. Well, if you get bored you know where to find us."
"Will do!" Daniel called out, as Sam walked away. Two hours later he was satisfied his translation work was finished. He logged off his computer, locked up his office, and headed for home.
An hour later
Daniel was sitting on the floor in his apartment, mug of coffee in one hand, journal in the other, other journals were scattered around him. He’d unpacked the battered books from the trunk, and discovered to his amazement and joy that they were his parent’s journals, and was quietly reading through them. The journals were fascinating even though they only ran from 1957 to the year his parents had died, but anything was better than nothing. Daniel couldn’t figure out why Nick had never mentioned them or the trunk, although perhaps Nick couldn’t bare to look at them considering he’d lost his only child so tragically. Daniel was pleased to see that most of the journals had photographs placed loosely between the pages, and he found himself looking at pictures taken in locations all over the world. He found himself wondering again why Nick hadn’t mentioned them either. Just before he’d died Daniel had asked him if there were any photographs of his parents, simply because he didn’t have any. He thought the two of them had reached an understanding, why had his grandfather lied to him? His eye caught the clock on the video recorder, 3am, he shrugged, time for bed he decided. He had all weekend to "play."
Saturday
Jack had phoned during the afternoon, causing Daniel to jump. He couldn’t find anyone to hang out with and was bored and fidgeting, Daniel politely refused an invitation to a hockey game, fishing trip, movie, food and everything else Jack was tempting him with – including inviting himself over to Daniel’s place.
"I’ll see you Monday, Jack." Daniel told him gently but firmly "Try to stay out of trouble until then!" He replaced the receiver, and returned to his reading. He’d read 1957, and the next year, 1958 was the year his parents had married, on the 11th July. The entry in his mother’s journal was full of hope for the future and love for her future husband. The entry in his father’s journal was quite different, Daniel couldn’t put his finger on it, it was almost as if his father was frightened about something. Wedding nerves Daniel decided and after reading through the entries for the next few days realised he had been right.
That evening
The day had come and gone. Daniel had continued reading his parent’s journals, and was currently at 1963. Several times his eyes had filled with tears, his parents had truly loved one another, they were soul mates, shared everything. He was glad they had died together, as he had come to realise that neither would have been able to bear being apart from the other. Being alone after Sha’re was taken had taught him that she had filled a void in his life, a void he didn’t realise was there, until she was gone. Even now, years after her death he longed for her. Sometimes he even thought he heard her voice or the rustle of her clothing, but he knew it was just wishful thinking.
He continued scanning the journals, his eyes rested on a word in the centre of a page "pregnant" his mother had been pregnant in 1963, two years before he was born! He flicked through the pages and found an entry for the 25th November. Melburn Jackson Junior had been born in Central Hospital, New York, at 06:42am, weighing in at 7 pounds and 4 ounces. There were several photographs included with the entry. Daniel was stunned. He’d had an older brother. Where was he? What had happened to him? He got up off the floor, and wondered into his study and logged on his computer. One of the few advantages he decided of working for the Government was a high clearance level, which granted him access to many databases not available publicly.
He found the site he was looking for, and entered his security password. He typed in the child’s full name, pressed the return key, and waited. After a few seconds, a list of names appeared. Several near matches, but, only one exact match. He clicked on the exact match, and found Melburn Jackson, born 06:42 am, 25th November 1963, New York City, Central Hospital…. He ran the mouse down the page…father Melburn Jackson, archaeologist, mother Claire Ballard Jackson, archaeologist…he continued down the screen...died 21st March 1964 of pneumonia, Cairo, Egypt, aged 3 months…. Daniel clicked on the "back" button, no he hadn’t been seeing things, there was no entry for his father, an oversight perhaps. He checked his mother, and Nick, they were listed. He typed in his own details, no problem, he typed in the names of his paternal grandparents, but again, came up empty.
Daniel decided to go back to the pile of journals scattered on the floor, and continued scanning through them. He checked the entry for the 21st March 1964 in his mother’s journal, it was blank, but several days later the entries continued. His mother had been alone when the baby had died, his father had been away, but there was no mention of where he had gone. Daniel picked up his father’s journal, and read the same section. On that day his father had travelled out of town to meet someone, he mentioned that he was nervous about the meeting. The next day’s entry read that the meeting had gone well, and that his father was returning home to his family. The following pages contained details of his son’s death, the funeral, and the return trip home. Daniel learned that his brother had been buried in the same grave that his parents now occupied.
He continued reading his father’s journals, and noticed that his parents seemed to travel more than they had previously, and where ever they were, his father would go away for a few days on "business" His mother’s journals confirmed this, but never mentioned where his father was going, presumably she didn’t know.
The weekend continued, and Daniel was now reading the last volumes of his parents journals. He had read of their joy at his birth and their pride at his achievements. There were photographs of him as a baby, toddler, child. All these wonderful memories and pictures of his family, and Nick had said nothing. He picked up the journals for 1973 with trepidation. This was the year his parents had died, he wasn’t sure he wanted to read the volumes, but decided after a while that he would. He read of his parents plans for the future – they were going to cut back on their travelling to allow Daniel to settle in school. His mother was pregnant again, and needed to stop travelling on doctor’s orders. She wanted to do some research, maybe even publish some papers. There were plans to buy a house. It all seemed so idyllic.
The Jacksons had spent the summer of 1973 in Egypt, Daniel remembered the trip, and the camel he’d decided he wanted to bring home! His father had gone off on one of his outings, and had come back to camp very agitated. They’d packed up and returned to the States the next day, well ahead of their official return date. Daniel remembered that his father had barely said a word throughout the journey, and his mother he remembered had kept him occupied on the plane.
Daniel scanned through the last few pages of his father’s journal. He had been due to meet someone in New York the following week, on the 14th September, but he was frightened that his family were in danger. Daniel couldn’t believe it, his father was in fear of his life? He was an archaeologist for goodness sake! What the hell was going on?
Then it hit Daniel like a slap in the face – his parents had been murdered.
Monday morning
The morning had begun like any other. The members of SG-1 were back from their weekend off, and were gathered in General Hammonds’ office for a briefing before deciding on their next mission. Daniel had arrived late, and it didn’t go unnoticed by the others how tired he looked. Or how quiet he was throughout the meeting. The normally hyperactive archaeologist had barely said a word, and once they had been released by Hammond, quickly made his way to his office.
He looked up at the sound of footsteps.
"I take it you spent the entire weekend sorting through all those books in Nick’s trunk. Find anything interesting?" Jack asked.
"Yeah." Daniel replied quietly "They turned out to be my parent’s journals." He returned his attention to his desk, not really looking at the papers that covered the surface.
"Really? That’s great! I mean it is great, isn’t it?" Jack replied, wondering why Daniel seemed so unenthusiastic.
"You’d think so." Daniel couldn’t hold it in any longer.
"I think my parents might have been murdered Jack" Daniel spoke so quietly Jack could barely hear him.
"What?" Jack asked incredulous, as Daniel continued, the words suddenly coming out in a rush.
"Not only that, I discovered I had an older brother, born two years before me."
"So, what happened to him?"
"He died."
"Oh." Jack replied "sorry."
"And my mother was pregnant again when she died." Jack said nothing "and it looks as if my dad didn’t exist before 1957. I can’t find any record of his birth at all Jack. In fact the earliest document I found was a copy of my parent’s marriage certificate which is dated July 1958."
"You’re mistaken surely." Jack replied knowing full well that Daniel would have checked every available source.
"That’s what I thought, that it was an oversight somewhere. At first I thought maybe the person who input the data into the files I was searching had accidentally missed him out because my brother had the same name, but I checked other databases, and I checked for my grandparents too, but found nothing."
"That is strange," O’Neill admitted.
"Anyway," Daniel continued "I contacted the Pentagon, the department that sent us those files and tapes of Ernest’s trip through the Stargate, perhaps they can find something."
Tuesday evening
Daniel was back in his office, during his dinner break someone had left a pile of videos on his desk. Nicks home movies, he guessed. There was also a large brown package bearing the postmark Washington, DC. It looked as if the request Daniel had made to the Pentagon had paid off. He opened the package and pulled out a thick file. Accompanying it was a letter indicating that the contents had been declassified and the folder was Daniel’s to do with as he pleased. For some reason he decided he would rather look at the folder in privacy. He didn’t really feel like socialising right now, so switching off his computer and grabbing his coat he made to leave the base.
"Yoh, Daniel!" a voice called from behind him.
"Jack." Daniel replied.
"Where ya going?"
"Home."
"Really?" Jack was amazed, Daniel hardly ever went home. The elevator arrived, the doors parted, and Daniel stepped inside.
"I do have a life outside of the SGC, Jack." Daniel replied, trying not to sound annoyed that he’d been discovered trying to leave secretly. It was then that Jack noticed the folder. Daniel noticed Jack’s attention on the folder.
"Ah one of the reference books I need is at home, so I thought I’d work there. I mean it makes more sense than going home, getting the book, returning here…" Daniel trailed off. He hated having to lie to his best friend. He hoped he’d been convincing, lying was something he’d never been any good at.
"Well, have fun Danny!" Jack called out as the elevator doors slid shut.
Two hours later
He was back in his apartment, sitting on the lounge floor, surrounded by the contents of the folder he’d brought home from the base, his mind was racing, he kept seeing the cover stone crashing down on top of his parents, he kept hearing his parent’s screams, he wished there was an off switch in his head that he could just press and the noises in his mind would just stop long enough for him to sort everything out. It was all just a muddle, nothing made any sense, and yet somehow it did. All the blanks had now been filled in, on the one hand he was pleased, on the other he wished he’d never laid eyes on his parent’s journals. He picked one up, and threw it against the wall. A photograph fell out. He picked it up. It was a picture of him as a small child, he was sitting on his father’s shoulders. His father, who was his father? Come to that, who was he? Nothing made sense anymore. Had it ever? He didn’t know, or care anymore. Once again his world had come crashing down around him. His parents had been murdered, he knew that for sure now, and that wasn’t all. He now knew who, or rather what, his father had been.
His full name had been Alexei Nikovich Kimarov, he had been born in Kiev on the 21st October 1929. His parents, Nikolai and Marita had both been teachers. He was an only child, and had graduated from the local high school, and attended university, where he had obtained a doctorate in archaeology. Like everyone else in the country he had given two years to the service of his country, but afterwards he was recruited into the KGB, and from there into the GRU, and then into something called "The Aquarium"* a Spetsnaz or Special Reconnaissance Unit. He had been very good at his job as the file had mentioned several decorations being awarded.
During the summer of 1956 he’d been granted special leave to work on a dig in Central America, it was there that he’d met and fallen in love with Claire Ballard, and he decided to defect to the United States, who welcomed such a valuable commodity with open arms in return for certain favours. The Government needed operatives out there in the field. His being an archaeologist provided him with the perfect cover, and the Government with the perfect agent. He was granted access to many digs that others in the profession would never have gained access to. He was fixed up with contacts all over the world, and he was able to bring back to the US many important documents, films, photographs. In return he was given a new identity, and the promise of a new life.
But something had gone wrong. His cover had been blown. He had found his contact in Egypt murdered, and fled back to the United States with his family. A meeting had been hastely arranged with someone in New York on the 14th September, but that meeting never took place, as both he and his wife had died in an accident the day before. According to the file, there was no doubt that Doctors Melburn and Claire Jackson had been murdered, but the killer or killers had never been found. It was therefore presumed that the murders had been other Soviet agents.
Daniel felt sick, he needed some air. He opened the door to the balcony, and stepped out. Almost immediately the familiar dizziness hit, but he knew he’d be all right once he sat down, back against the fall, feet against the rail, where the ground below was out of sight. He put the file down on the floor next to him and looked at the photograph, and the tears began to fall. It was getting dark, the view beyond his perch like black velvet dotted with different colour crystals, but he didn’t notice. Sounds of traffic and people shouting in the street below found their way to where he was sat, but he didn’t care. It was raining and getting cold, but he didn’t feel it. He didn’t feel anything.
Wednesday morning
Someone was calling his name, but he really couldn’t be bothered to answer, what was the point, he had nothing left. He felt a hand touch his neck.
"Daniel?" the voice called softly "it’s me, Jack. What’s wrong?" Daniel blinked a couple of times, and then shivered.
"Jack?" he said so quietly Jack almost missed it over the sound of the traffic below.
"You missed the briefing this morning, Hammond sent me to give you a wake-up call." The other man continued staring at nothing.
Talk to me Daniel" Daniel shook his head, and closed his eyes, tears began to cascade down his cheeks. He rested his head on his knees.
"Who am I, Jack?"
"What?" Jack replied without thinking "Come on Daniel stop messing with me here." Jack replied, noticing that Daniel’s hair and clothing was damp. He remembered it had rained the night before. "You been out here all night?" Daniel turned his head and looked at Jack.
"Oh Janet is going to love you for this. I can almost hear the lecture from here."
Jack got back up off his knees, picked up the file from the floor, and pulling Daniel up with him,
somehow managed to get him back to base.
An hour later
"So what’s wrong with him?" Jack asked, trying not to cringe as Janet gave Daniel an injection.
"My best guess is, he’s had some kind of shock. His temperature is up, but other than that I can’t find anything physically wrong with him. I’ve given him a strong sedative, he should sleep for the rest of the day."
"He was sitting out on his balcony when I found him, I think he’d been there all night."
"That would certainly explain the temperature, he’s lucky not to have pneumonia."
"He asked me who he was." Janet looked puzzled "Had this file on the floor next to him, and this picture in his hand."
Janet took the photograph and looked at it, thinking to herself what a cute child Daniel had been, hell, he was still pretty cute now.
Jack pulled a chair up to the bed, and grabbing a couple of cushions sat down and began to read the contents of the file. Janet looked over his shoulder. Both were shocked by what they read. He closed the file and went off in search of Hammond.
Thursday morning
Jack had wanted to spend the night sitting with Daniel, but Janet had ordered him out, so out he had gone. But now it was morning, and he was back at the base, sitting in the commissary eating breakfast. In front of him was a large pile of books.
"Interesting reading, Sir?" Carter asked as she and Teal’c entered the room. Jack looked up and motioning for his two friends to sit, filled them in on the previous day’s events.
"When Janet ordered me out of the infirmary last night, I stopped by Daniel’s place, and started reading through these. They’re his parent’s journals." Teal’c raised an eyebrow. "Daniel had a brother," he informed the other two "that’s how all this started, he discovered he had a brother, Melburn Jackson Junior, born two years before him. It was only when Daniel started investigating what had happed to this brother that he discovered his father didn’t exist before 1957, and here’s why." Jack shoved the file across the table for the others to see. Sam opened the file.
"Oh my God!" she exclaimed. Teal’c looked puzzled. Jack filled him in on the matter of US-Soviet relations during the Cold War.
"He suspected his parents might have been murdered." Jack continued, and then stopped. There wasn’t really much more to say.
Teal’c said nothing. He was concerned for the health of his young friend. Daniel had never made a secret of the fact that he felt uncomfortable working for the Government. Now it looked as if that same Government was responsible for sending Daniel Jackson’s father to his death.
An hour later
Jack had returned to the infirmary to sit with Daniel.
"How’s our boy?" he asked Janet Frasier as he entered the infirmary.
"Very unsettled I’m afraid, going from passive to catatonic over anything. He stares into space for a while, and then goes back to sleep. He’s also having nightmares, and has so far refused to eat anything. He even refused coffee." Jack raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Wow!" he exclaimed. "Has he said anything about…" Jack asked. Janet shook her head.
Jack went over and sat back down on the chair next to where Daniel was lying, he looked again at the photograph which had fallen from Daniel’s hand, and looked across at his young friend, he was sleeping, though not very peacefully, and he looked hot. Janet had mentioned he was running a temperature. Daniel stirred in his sleep and slowly opened his eyes.
Daniel Jackson was awake, he knew he was awake because his head hurt. He was in the SGC infirmary, in a quiet corner where he wouldn’t be disturbed by the hustle and bustle of nurses and doctors busily going about their duties. He was in the infirmary recovering from yet another emotional crisis. How long he’d been there he didn’t know, didn’t care, and judging by the muzzy feeling in his head he was full of sedatives as well. A blurred figure appeared beside him. Daniel looked up and tried to focus.
"About time!" Jack started. "For God’s sake Daniel, I leave you on you own – in your own home I might add, for one weekend, and you still manage to get into trouble. Frasier says you’re OK by the way, although you do have a temperature – it’s what you get for camping out on your balcony overnight. She says you’re lucky not to have pneumonia." Daniel closed his eyes, and tuned Jack’s voice out of his mind. He really didn’t want to talk, not now, not ever. He just wanted to be left alone. An old expression ran through his mind "stop the world I want to get off" that was how he felt. When he was a child, he remembered, he used to hide within himself. It was his special place. Somewhere he was safe from harm.
Jack noticed Daniel’s eyes were closed. He looked at the younger man with pity in his eyes. He could only imagine what his friend was feeling right now. To discover that the father you looked up to and worshipped was someone other than who you believed him to be was bad enough, but to know that your parents had been murdered, by persons unknown, was too awful to contemplate.
"Come back to me Danny," he said softly. Daniel turned over, his back to his friend.
That night
Jack had decided to stay on base, and was sleeping in his quarters on the accommodation level. He spent the evening reading more of Daniel’s parents’ journals and and watching the video tapes he found on Daniel’s desk. He’d finally fallen asleep in the early hours. He was woken by a ringing sound. It took a few seconds for him to realise it was the phone, before he reached out and picked up the receiver.
"O’Neill." he said groggily.
"It’s Janet, sir. I’m glad you’re still here. It’s Daniel…" Jack slammed the phone down before Janet had time to finish talking, quickly dressed and shot out of his room and into the corridor. He arrived in the infirmary in record time.
"What’s happened?" he asked breathlessly.
"Daniel’s gone Colonel." Jack ran into the ward, sure enough there was no sign of Daniel.
"Any idea where?" Jack asked sharply
"No, but I’ve got people looking in all the usual places – his office, the commissary, his quarters...even the storage rooms…"
"Have you notified Hammond?"
"No."
"Then don’t, at least not yet." At that moment a nurse walked into the infirmary together with one of the security guards. Seeing O’Neill, the guard walked straight over.
"Are you looking for Doctor Jackson, Sir?" the soldier asked "Only I saw him about about a quarter of an hour ago, said he was going out for some air…" Jack grabbed a blanket and was off at a run. Janet followed as best as she could. She caught up with him at the elevator.
"What?" she asked
"I just remembered, when Daniel first came back to Earth from Abydos he used to spend hours topside, watching the stars, hopefully that’s where he’s gone now."
30 minutes later
It had been a tough climb, but O’Neill was a fit man. He’d sent Janet back to the infirmary feeling sure that Daniel wouldn’t want a crowd round him. After what seemed like forever, Jack reached the top of the mountain. During the day, the view from there was spectacular, you could literally see for miles, and at night the air was so clear you could almost reach out and touch the stars. He wondered around for a bit, and then something white caught his eye. Daniel.
He hadn’t changed clothes, and was still wearing infirmary whites, but it was definitely Daniel, sitting with his back to a tree, eyes heavenward. Jack slowly walked over, and crouched down in front of him.
"Hey," he said quietly, not wanting to startle the other man.
"Hey," Daniel replied softly. Jack sat down next to his friend, and tilted his head upward.
"Beautiful night."
"Yes. Yes it is."
"Here." Jack unfolded the blanket and wrapped it around the younger man’s shoulders. Daniel thanked him.
They sat in silence for a while, then Daniel started to speak quietly.
"I guess the base is on full alert with everyone looking for me."
"Practice alerts are always a good thing, keeps everyone on their toes." Jack replied.
"I just wanted to be alone for a while. To try and make sense of everything."
"I know." Jack replied softly. He’d expected Daniel to be angry, instead he found him perfectly calm, although he knew Janet had been filling him with dopey medicine. Daniel continued.
"I was there Jack. When they died. I was there, sitting by a display case reading. I saw everything. For months I played it over and over in my mind, wondering if there was anything I could have done that would have made a difference." Jack had always suspected Daniel had witnessed his parents’ deaths, but had never liked to ask. "The past few days have brought it all back. I can hear them screaming, I can see…" Tears started running down his face, and he put his head on his knees. Jack put a comforting arm round the younger man. "Now I know they were murdered, that someone wanted to hurt them deliberately, and I might have been killed along with them, if I hadn’t been made to go and sit down out of the way, and who ever did it was never caught…and I ended up being passed around like an unwanted parcel because my so-called next of kin didn’t want me…He lied to me Jack. A few days before he died, I asked Nick if there were any photographs of my parents, because I didn’t have any. He said there weren’t any, and all the time his trunk was sitting in that basement gathering dust, and now I have all that I wanted, I wish I didn’t. I just wish I knew why Nick lied to me. Did he know about my father? He was a spy, Jack. God! I’m the son of a Soviet agent who could have been responsible for the deaths of who knows how many people. Even after he defected he must have…damn him, he he even got my mother killed!"
"Don’t think like that, Daniel." Jack interrupted "You don’t know anything, not for certain."
"Well he wasn’t in the GRU for his health, Jack!" Daniel spat back. "I looked up to him, worshipped him, and now I’ve discovered that he wasn’t the man I knew at all…God I’m so tired" Daniel continued ranting on and on, and Jack let him, sensing that all the younger man needed was to let it all out. Finally Daniel seemed to calm down, and looked at Jack.
"I’m sorry, what must you think of me shouting like that and everything."
"You’ve had a terrible shock Daniel, but none of it was your fault. Granted your parents didn’t deserve to die like that, and you didn’t deserve all the things that happened to you. Sometimes life sucks, things happen that are beyond our control. That’s the way life is, and no matter what we do, we can’t change it." Daniel was suddenly reminded of Charlie.
"Oh Jack, I didn’t mean to remind you of…" Jack put a finger to his lips, just as Daniel often did when he didn’t want to be interrupted.
"Your father may not have been born on this side of the Atlantic, but that doesn’t make him any less worthy of your love." Daniel raised his head and looked at Jack.
"Don’t hate him Daniel. He loved you so much. They both did." Daniel looked puzzled. "I ah spent the last couple of evenings reading those journals you found." Jack confessed. "I also read the contents of that file you had sent from DC, I just wish you’d told me, Daniel. Then you wouldn’t have had to go through all this alone. How many times do I have to tell you, we’re your family, and you’re supposed to share, that’s what families do, remember?"
Daniel wiped his eyes, and smiled at the memory of all the lectures Jack had given him about not bottling things up until it was too late. "That’s better, now I don’t know about you, but I’m getting cold out here, what say we go back down and grab some coffee, and then get you back to bed, before Frasier calls the guards out." Jack stood up and reached a hand out for Daniel, and silently breathed a sigh of relief when the other man accepted.
Friday morning
Daniel had spent a quiet night sleeping in the infirmary. No nightmares had come to visit him, and although he’d woken up still feeling shaky, he was on the whole much better. Jack had been right, Jack was always right. All he’d needed was time, and someone to vent his anger at. He just wished it hadn’t been Jack again though. At that moment, the man occupying his thoughts entered the room.
"Glad to see you’re back with us, you look much better."
"Thanks to you." Jack patted him on the shoulder.
"Well don’t just lie there Doctor Jackson, up and at them." Daniel looked puzzled "Janet’s given me permission to take you out for breakfast – well as far as the commissary anyway, and then later on when you’ve had some more rest, I have something to show you."
"What ?"
"Wait and see, Doctor Impatience!" At that moment an orderly arrived with a wheelchair. Despite his protests, Jack assisted Daniel into it, and together they went in search of food.
Friday evening
Janet had finally released Daniel from the Infirmary on the understanding that he didn’t do anything too stressful, although she knew her advice would be ignored within moments of his being out of the door.
"Where are we going anyway?" Daniel asked as he and Jack wandered along one of the SGC’s many corridors. "And where have Teal’c and Sam been all day?"
"Here we are" Jack replied. They had arrived at Jack’s office. Chairs had been arranged in front of the television and Sam and Teal’c were waiting. Daniel sat, but Jack remained standing.
"Daniel, we all want to say we’re sorry for the pain you’ve suffered these past days. It can’t have been easy for you to endure, but I hope that what we’re about to show you will…hell I’m no good at this kind of thing. Carter?" Sam picked up the tv remote, and activated the video player. Jack turned out the light. Daniel’s mouth opened slightly in amazement as his father appeared on the screen. He didn’t notice when the others left the room.
My beloved son. If you are watching this film, it is because I am no longer able to be with you. But I need you to know that I will always be with you, watching over you and your mother, and wanting only the best for you. You are my life, my heart, my soul, and it tears at me to know that we will no longer be able to share all that we once did. But do not grieve, as I would not wish you live your lives in sadness at my loss. Daniel, my beloved son. You are my world, my all. I know you will grow up to be a wonderful person, generous, kind and gentle. Although it is my hope that you will follow your mother and I into archaeology, to continue our work, I’m certain you will have the most marvellous life in whatever profession you choose to follow. You are so intelligent already, and I know you won’t let that spoil you. Your arrival in this world was a gift. My life has not always been as wonderful as it has been these past years with you. I have done many shameful things, but you are so special to me and so loved my Daniel. Look after your mother for me.
The film ended, but Daniel couldn’t see anything. His eyes were full of tears. He reached a hand up and wiped his face, and noticed that someone, probably Jack had left a box of tissues on the table next to where he was sat. It was then he noticed the book. He picked it up and opened the pages. It was a photograph album, filled with the pictures he’d found in his parent’s journals. They had been beautifully arranged in the album, and someone, Sam he guessed, had written the date and locations underneath each one.
He looked through the photographs unaware that the others were standing in the doorway. A cough made him look up.
"You OK?" Sam asked. Daniel smiled.
"Yeah" Daniel replied, touching one of the photographs with his finger "Thanks, for this. It’s beautiful. I’ll treasure it always."
"Well," Jack started "I can hear a game of pool and a cold beer calling to me, anyone for O’Malley’s?" Daniel stood up, and joining the others went off in search of tomorrow.
The end
* Viktor Suvorov, The Aquarium, Hamilton Publishing, 1985
© January, 2003 The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.