The Final Death Of Daniel Jackson?

by Belladonna

URL: http://www.area52hkh.net/asb/belladonna/final.php
Summary: Daniel has died again. Will Jack cope with knowing he never told his best friend how much he loved him?

The battle with the Jaffa was fierce, and for a moment Jack thought they weren't going to make it but then Carter got the gate open.

"Colonel!" She yelled.

"Danny! Go!"

Daniel was behind a low wall, firing at the Jaffa when he heard Jack's voice. He turned, his eyes meeting Jack's when he was hit with a zat. The look in his best friend's eyes turning Jack cold. "Daniel!" Jack yelled, and ignoring the Jaffa he dashed towards the low wall that Daniel had fallen behind. As he was running he heard, and saw the Jaffa point the zat again, and fire.

"No!" Jack screamed and pulled out his pistol, shooting the Jaffa dead, then hurdled over the wall to find Daniel slumped over.

"Daniel! Don't do this to me Daniel. Damnit, Daniel?" Jack was frantically feeling for a pulse when Teal'c appeared.

"O'Neill, we have to go."

"He's gone Teal'c." Jack cried.

"Bring him, we must go." The former Jaffa said, his eyes dark with pain.

Jack rose and pulled his best friend over his shoulders in a fireman's carry and together they ran for the gate, Teal'c watching their back while Sam covered them.

After the event horizon closed Nirrti stepped out, a cruel smile on her face. It was done.

*~*~*

They exited the wormhole into the gateroom, and Jack sagged with grief and Daniel's dead weight.

"Get Dr. Frasier in here." The General snapped but Jack was already shaking his head. He laid down his precious cargo and took Daniel's limp hand in his.

"Oh Danny." Was all he said. When Janet came in she saw him kneeling beside Daniel, Sam at his shoulder in tears and Teal'c on the other side, his head bowed. No one else intruded on the team's private grief.

"What happened Colonel?" General Hammond asked softly, so soft that it shouldn't have been heard in the bustle of the gateroom, but it was so silent that it was clearly heard.

"He was zatted. Twice." Jack's head came up, eyes so full of pain and loss and the General had to swallow the lump in his throat.

"Let Dr. Frasier take him Jack."

Jack's eyes met Janet's, and then he looked down at Daniel, a shaky hand taking his glasses off, "Let me take those for ya big guy." He whispered, then stood and strode out of the gateroom.

*~*~*

Daniel was in disbelief. He felt the zat blast hit him and he saw the look in Jack's eyes, and suddenly realized that he'd lost. There was no more time to tell Jack how he really felt.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but when he awoke he couldn't move, couldn't see, but he could hear.

"No Goddamnit! You will not do an autopsy on Danny. I won't have you cut up his body, he deserves better than that!" It was Jack's voice, Jack's angry defiant voice.

Janet tried to soothe but he wasn't having it, "Take his blood if you must, but that's it!"

Daniel heard the General sigh, "Very well Colonel." He turned to Janet, "Do we really need an autopsy Doctor?"

Reluctantly Janet agreed, "No Sir. He died of the second zat blast. I'll take blood samples."

"I'm staying with him." Jack stated flatly and there was murmured agreement.

"Jack, I'm not dead!" Daniel screamed silently.

Before Daniel couldn't feel, but now he could feel the needle enter his arm and he felt Janet run a trembling hand over his hair, "Oh Daniel." She whispered.

"What's happening? Jack? Jack?" Daniel was incredibly frightened until he heard Jack settle in the seat beside him.

"Danny, what am I gonna do without you?" Jack whispered.

"Oh God, they must think I'm dead. Am I?" Daniel's thoughts ran around like a hamster on a wheel and he nearly missed the next thing that Jack said.

"I've loved you for so long, just never had the courage to say anything." There was a harsh laugh. "How goddamned stupid is that? If anyone knows how short life is, it's us."

Daniel was in shock. Jack loved him and it was literally too late.

Jack leaned over Daniel's body, gently stroking his hair, "Daniel, there was so much I wanted to show you. How much I love you, how I wanted to touch you, wanted to sit wrapped around you while watching hockey, or the Discovery channel." Jack hiccuped a laugh, sniffling slightly. "You heard me right, I'd watch it willingly, just to make you happy."

Daniel could feel himself smile inside, imagine, Jack volunteering to watch the Discovery channel.

The door opened and Sam and Teal'c came in and the three of them cried together, reminisced and laughed over their memories.

"Why can I still hear them? If I'm dead shouldn't I be gone?" Sam touched his face, tears falling onto it, "I can feel that! I'm not dead! How can I let them know?"

They left together, Jack gazing at his best friend for a long moment before closing the door.

General Hammond eyed his 2IC with concern, "You're listed as next of kin Jack."

Jack rubbed tired hands over his tired face; "I can't deal with that now."

"How do you want to handle a service?"

Slowly raising his head, Jack looked up, "I want to do what the Tok'ra do, use the event horizon."

"Are you sure?" the General asked.

"Yes Sir." Jack said with certainty.

Daniel was going through every language he knew, writing them in his mind, when the door opened and Jack stepped inside.

"Well Daniel, this is the day." Jack said. With loving care he dressed his friend in a blue shirt that would've matched his eyes, a black suit and a dark tie. With that finished Jack sat down and touched his friends hair, "So, this is it. And I'm going with you."

Daniel was speechless, literally and well, figuratively, "Jack was what?"

"Yeah, I was at the service for the Tok'ra at the Alpha Site and they opened the gate and let the event horizon take the bodies. Simple but effective. And I'll take that step with ya, because without you I have nothing." He sighed and stood up, "Well, we have a date Danny boy." And he walked out.

Daniel was howling his grief, "No, not Jack!!"

Everyone was assembled in the gateroom, Daniel's body on the ramp, awaiting his last journey.

Janet was in the infirmary, emotionally unable to go to the service. Daniel's blood panels were on the screen above her, as still as the body in the gateroom. As she gazed up at the slides she noticed something odd, and frowned.

Jack looked at the assembled and smiled, "Well, this is the final good bye for Doctor Daniel Jackson. And I know we've said this about 6 times." There were chuckles at this. "He was the most valuable member of the SGC. If we hadn't had him we wouldn't have opened the gate when we did, and saved the world as we have." Jack stopped and had to visibly control himself, "He'll be missed."

Both Sam and Teal'c said something and then the General gave a short speech to conclude the service. He nodded at Sgt. Davis who started the dial up sequence.

Janet heard the gate activate and closed her eyes. After a moment she opened them and looked up and saw a miracle. Daniel's cells were becoming active, as if they'd been frozen then awakened.

"Ohmigod!" she gasped and raced for the gateroom.

"Chevron six encoded." Sgt. Davis said and Jack was bracing himself to run when they heard shrieking.

"Stop! He's alive, Daniel's alive!" They could hear Dr. Frasier screaming outside the gateroom.

"Major Carter." The General began when Janet burst in, eyes wild.

"Sir, he's not dead! He was in stasis of some sort!"

Jack looked down at the shaken woman carefully and he turned and dashed up to Daniel, "Danny?" He bent down and rested his head on Daniel's chest and listened. "Quiet!!" He commanded and everyone went silent.

Jack listened with all of his might, and heard a thump, then another.

"Daniel! We know you're there, come back to us!" Jack's voice was joyful, his eyes bright as he looked up, "He has a heartbeat!"

It took Daniel 6 hours to recover his power of speech and to be able to move, and SG1 was there. 2 days later he was released, alive again. It was discovered that it was an engineered virus, designed to make Daniel appear to be dead, almost guaranteeing he was. It was agreed that Nirrti was probably behind it.

After he was released from Janet's clutches Daniel wandered the SGC looking for Jack, only to find that the man head fled the mountain.

"Thanks Sgt." Daniel told the man and headed to his car, "Oh no you don't Jack O'Neill." He muttered and headed down the mountain.

Jack was shaking like a leaf, a glass of Bushmill's Irish whiskey in his hands as he realized how close he'd come to losing his best friend, and dying himself.

There was a loud banging at his door and he sighed, "Go away Daniel."

"Jack? Jack, I'm gonna use my key." Daniel threatened.

With a sigh Jack set his glass down and opened the door, "Hello Daniel."

Daniel used a right hook and knocked Jack to the floor, "Don't you hello me Jack O'Neill. You were going to kill yourself because of me! How stupid can you be? The SGC needs you!"

Jack was on the floor eyes wide as the man of his dreams ranted at him. "Um Daniel?" he began.

"Shut up! I'm not done!" Daniel snapped. He straddled Jack, his erection grinding into Jack's. He grabbed Jack's shirt and pulled him to him, his mouth so close he could feel Jack's harsh breathing, "I love you too Jack O'Neill." He said before locking his lips with Jack.

Jack's eyes went wide before closing them to enjoy Daniel's alpha male kiss, feeling Daniel's tongue demanding entrance, feeling their heartbeats race against each other's chest. Both men pulled back to breathe.

"How did you know?" Jack asked, using his hand to cup Daniel's face, tracing his fingers over the handsome cheekbones, the sharp jawline, the slight stubble from his beard, the full lower lip.

Daniel's eyes softened, "I didn't tell anyone but I could hear everything you said to me Jack. It was terrible, knowing I was alive, but wonderful finding out that you loved me."

"Oh god, I didn't know, You must have been so scared." Jack hugged Daniel tightly to him, running a comforting hand over his back.

Daniel closed his eyes, "You were with me, it wasn't so bad." He paused, "I love you Jack."

"Me too Daniel, me too."

The next morning Daniel stirred and realized that he wasn't alone. He tilted his head back and looked at the man who held him in his arms, the man who'd comforted him during his nightmares, the man who loved him. Life was good.

finis