Can I Have A Refund On This Body, Please? 5
Can I Have A Refund On This Body, Please? 5
by Belladonna
URL: http://www.area52hkh.net/asb/belladonna/refund05.php
Summary: Daniel and clone Jack go on an adventure, and their son Mickey has a dilemma
The sleeping woman stirred briefly as her husband carefully got up, "Dan-yel?"
"Sh, beloved, go back to sleep. I'll be back tomorrow." Daniel covered his beautiful wife up, checked on their children then quickly dressed in the pre-dawn chill before slipping out of his tent. He smiled as he saw his brother in law, "Come to keep vigil with me again?" he quipped.
"Ah Dan-yel, what if today we did not go and they tried to visit us?" Skaara asked reasonably.
Daniel sighed and rubbed his face, "It's been 6 years, I don't know if I can keep it up." He'd promised Jack that he'd uncover the gate a year after he'd left Abydos. And he had, every year for six years but no wormhole and no Jack. He'd tried to dial Earth, but it had never connected, and he reluctantly came to the realization that Earth's gate had been dismantled because of the goa'uld threat, or that Earth was gone altogether.
Skaara clapped his brother in law on the back briskly, "Let us go uncover the chappa'ai and breath dusty pyramid air brother, then we shall come back tomorrow and celebrate the day you came to deliver us from Apophis."
~^~^~
Jack Neal sat down at the conference table, the folder he'd been holding slapping onto the faux wood table top with a snap. "Well, where's Daniel?" he asked. The rest of his team just shrugged, and Sam smothered a smile. When Jack went on missions with SG-27, she became the de-facto head of the SGC since she didn't travel off world anymore.
Not a second later Daniel breezed in, "Sorry, I was consulting with Alex."
Sam shot Jack a look when he was about to speak, and he smirked, "You ready Daniel?"
Daniel had frozen, his eyes glued to the top page of his report. He'd not put it together before, and absently wondered why.
"Doc?" Ssgt. Mike Silva asked in concern. He had served with SG-27 for almost 7 years and he knew his teammate's moods pretty well by now.
This gentle question made Daniel's head jerk up and his blue eyes met Jack's concerned brown ones, "Did you notice?"
Jack frowned at his partner, "Notice what?"
"The date and the planet designation?"
Sam and Jack both looked at the report, then Sam sucked in a surprised breath, "It's almost the same glyphs as Abydos, just one off."
Jack nodded, "And it's the date that I, or rather, ~Jack~ asked Danny to unbury the gate, which set into motion alot of bad stuff." His thoughts were of Shar'e.
Memories were fast forwarding through Daniel's mind, of Shar'e's and his wedding night, of their happy year together. Of his absolute and surprising joy when he saw the kleenex box bounce at his feet after it flew through the wormhole, knowing that Jack was on the other side waiting for an answer.
"Danny?"
Daniel started in surprise, "I'm ok. Just, weirded out."
Sam cleared her throat, "Let's get started shall we?"
Siler took his wrench and smacked the casing of the transformer in frustration. The damn thing had been acting up all day and he was of two minds whether to shut it down or try and debug the damn thing. He pushed his glasses up and sighed then looked at his watch, it was time for lunch. That decided him, he'd head to the cafeteria and then come back and see if he could debug it.
Daniel stood in the gateroom, gazing at the Stargate and wondering if his previous life as one of the Ancients was trying to warn him or something. Warn him of what, he had no idea. The coincidences of the gate address and the date of their mission had kept him tossing and turning all night. Eventually he'd left the bedroom, first checking on Mickey before going to the den and pulling out his journal about his time on Abydos and settling in to read. It was there that Jack had found him that morning, asking questions that he couldn't answer, even for himself.
Sam was in the control room and watched him thoughtfully. Jack had confided in her his concerns about the mission, and between Daniel's behavior and Jack's 'willies', she was nervous too.
Jack strode in, smiling at his lover, "You ready big guy?" He was relieved to get a loving smile in return.
"Yeah, I'm ready Jack. Everything's going to be fine, I don't know what I'm so worried about." Daniel hoped he wasn't 'whistling in the dark', and his mind quirked at the old saying.
Jack shrugged, "If you're not worried then I'm not worried."
Major Dominic, better known as Dom looked at Jack, "Me neither."
Silva rolled his eyes, "Well if no one else is worried than I'm sure as hell not gonna be worried."
The familiarity of exactly this kind of exchange with SG-1 made Daniel laugh, then the rest of them joined in, relaxing just a fraction. Jack looked up and saw Sam smiling down at them, "We're ready to go Carter."
"Very well Si...Dr. Neal." She said, shaking her head at her slip. The Sergeant started dialing the gate and they all watched as the wormhole stabilized. "MALP telemetry shows it's all clear Ma'am."
"SG-27, you have a go." She announced. Jack nodded and Dom and Silva headed through first, with Jack and Daniel bringing up the rear as was their habit. Just as the two of them began to enter the wormhole, there was a violent power surge and the whole gate and the gateroom lit up and then it abruptly shut down. Sam shoved an airman out of the way and began to type rapidly on his computer, "What in the hell happened Sergeant?" She asked.
The Sergeant, also typing furiously shook his head, "It looks like an enormous power surge ma'am."
The gate suddenly lit back up without a dialing sequence, and the address that briefly glowed was burned into Sam's brain. Abydos. Oh damn.
On the planet designated Px3495, Dom felt like he'd been through the ringer and looked over at Silva, "Man, that was a rough ride!" he exclaimed.
Mike Silva grimaced, removing his hat and rubbing his short black hair, "I know! What was that..." he trailed off as the wormhole shut down, "Ok, can I be worried ~now~?"
~*~
Jack and Daniel flew out of the event horizon, landing on the hard sandstone floors with audible thumps. Jack's hat skittered across the floor to land at the feet of two robed men.
"Sonofabitch!" Jack yelped, "What in the hell was that?" He staggered to his feet, trying to stop his head from spinning.
Daniel was lying on his stomach, trying to get his breath back, "That wasn't supposed to happen. I think I sprained my wrist." Gingerly rolling to his back , he gasped, "Jack!" and scrambled to his feet, looking at his very familiar surroundings.
Jack was already looking around, "Are you ok, and are we where I think we are?" He asked.
Daniel was about to answer when his voice said, "Jack?" and he was fairly sure he hadn't even spoken!
Jack and Daniel both turned around, and froze in surprise. In front of them were two very familiar men, though they looked older, fit and suntanned, but with long hair. "Wow, um, nice hair." Jack said lamely.
"O'Neill!" Skaara crowed and swept Jack into this arms, "We have waited for many years, and now you are here!"
"Skaara, I don't think that he's our O'Neill."
The Daniel's looked at each other in curiosity, "Well, um, this isn't what I expected." Daniel said softly. The Daniel of this Abydos was younger than he, still lean though he looked to be in good shape. You had to be to survive on Abydos. His hair was shaggy, the top layer sunbleached and his glasses were held together by what looked like wire and a prayer.
The Abydonian Daniel smiled, "I didn't expect to go gray, though Nick was so I shouldn't be so surprised. No, I didn't expect this either. I mean, I've heard the theory of 'Alternate Universes' but never expected to see proof. Welcome to Abydos."
Jack had untangled himself from Skaara after a quick pat on the back, "Yeah, hi." He looked at Daniel, "This is so not good Danny. We're gonna have to deal with entropic cascade failure."
"I'm aware of the problem Jack. We'll just have to trust Sam that she can figure out what happened." Daniel replied, his eyes on the other Daniel, dozens of questions on his lips.
"I've been waiting for Jack to come through from Earth. Though Jack, you seem, well, really young." The other Daniel's perceptive eyes roamed over Jack curiously, making Daniel stiffen protectively.
Jack cleared his throat, "I'm not Jack. I'm his son." He hoped that the lie would hold.
"His son? I knew about Charlie, I didn't know he had another son!" Daniel exclaimed. There was something that this Jack wasn't telling him, he could read the younger man almost as well as he did the older Jack O'Neill and knew that he was hiding something.
Jack shuffled slightly, "I think that there a lot of differences. You've been here ever since the Colonel left you, right?"
The other Daniel nodded, "Yes, I've been studying the pyramid and Kasuf made me a village elder."
"Wow, congratulations." Daniel said sincerely, then he paled.
Jack had already gated ahead and quickly moved to take Daniel by his arms, "Danny?"
Daniel's eyes were enormous in his face, "Shar'e, she's still, still..." he stuttered.
Using his hands, Jack cupped his lover's face, "It'll be alright, breathe, take a deep breath."
Daniel and Skaara watched the unexpected drama, and then Daniel realized what must have happened, "You married a Shar'e as well?" he was a little stunned by the apparent closeness of the two men. He abruptly wondered what kind of relationship that he and Jack would've had if the other man had come back.
Jack glanced over his shoulder, "We lost her several years ago." He focused back on his Daniel, then fished out a bottle of water, opening it and handing it to the shaken man..
Skaara shook his head, "Let us go back to the village. We will sit and talk." He said pragmatically. He was eager to hear the stories of the familiar strangers.
Daniel took a deep drink of the water that Jack had given him, then sighed, "Seeing her will be so hard."
The other Daniel frowned, "I don't understand. Are you still in love with her?" He didn't want a jealous rival for his wife's affections, though he didn't expect that from the other man.
Daniel stepped around Jack, "I will always love Shar'e, but what I meant is that I failed to protect her and I still feel guilty because of that."
Jack moved to his side, "There's a lot that's happened in our corner of the universe."
Skaara impatiently took Daniel's arm, "Dan-yel, let us take this Dan-yel and Jack to the village. If we leave now we can eat the evening meal with our families."
Jack gave his Daniel a long look, and the older man straightened his shoulders and nodded, "I'm ready."
~*~*~
Alex shook his head, "What in the hell happened? What am I going to tell Mickey?" He asked incredulously.
Sam grimaced, "Siler says that the transformer put out 64 terrawatts of power and it over charged the gate, which looped through the gateroom circuits. The final gate address that showed was Abydos."
"But, but...Abydos is gone!" Alex stuttered. He remembered clearly the pain in Daniel's eyes as he'd spoke of his final, and losing gamble for the people of Abydos with the half ascended goa'uld Anubis.
"I know, I'm theorizing that they went to an alternate Abydos."
Being brilliant was something Alex did well, "And that means that Daniel and Jack are at risk for entropic cascade failure."
"I have 40 hours to get them back." Sam agreed quietly.
The younger man stood, "I'm gonna call Jack."
She stood as well, "Good, I've already got a call in to Thor."
~*~
Jack O'Neill was watching as Mickey carefully pulled off the worn brake pad and looked up at him, "Wow, this is really grooved." He handed it up to Jack who turned it over in his hands and nodded at the 16 year old, "Yep, which is why there was the damn squeal whenever you turned. So..." he explained what Mickey needed to do next and supervised as the kid replaced the brake pads on both sides.
Mickey grinned, "That wasn't so bad! Is it the same for all types of vehicles?" He was busy wiping his greasy hands on one of the rags that Jack kept especially for car work.
"Well, yes and no. Some older ones have drum brakes which is a different kettle of fish. You need a specialized tool for that job, which fortunately for you I already have."
The phone rang in the house and Mickey jumped up, "That's Jenna!" and he ran into the house.
"Hormones." Jack grinned. He puttered around, wiping off the tools before lying them back inside of the tool box. As he did, a new model BMW pulled slowly up the street, then parked in front of the house. A tall, chestnut haired man, expensively dressed got out and looked around curiously, before walking up.
"Are you Jack Neal?"
Jack shook his head, "I'm his dad, Jack O'Neill. How can I help you?"
"Is a Dr. Jackson here?"
"Nope, he's with Jack."
The man frowned, "I need to speak with one of them, I'm Michael Ryan."
Jack's eyebrows went up, "Ok, nice to meet you Michael Ryan."
"I'm Sean's dad."
This took a moment for Jack to process, but realized that the man meant Mickey. "No, Jack and Daniel are Mickey's dad's. You were just the sperm donor." He said bluntly.
Michael Ryan winced, "Listen, I know that Sean is my son. And I know I didn't show any interest in him, but it's different now."
"Why?" Jack asked, willing Mickey to stay inside.
The other man fiddled with his tie, "I saw the sports write up on him last week and mentioned to my dad that he was my son." He paused and grimaced, "They didn't know about Sean."
Enlightenment, "Ah, your parents made you come over here. You didn't want to do anything did you?"
"My wife is...unhappy." There was a wealth of understatement implied.
Jack nodded, "I had an unhappy wife once, not fun. I'll tell you what. Mickey's dad's are out of country and I'm guardian on record. I can't and won't do anything right now. Tell your folks it's gonna be a while and I'll let Mick's parents know as soon as they get home."
The man stood indecisively, then nodded, "Appreciate it." He looked at the house for a long moment, then walked back to his car and drove away.
Jack let out a breath, "Geez, just what we need." He muttered. "Not!"
"Grandpa? Alex is on the phone for you, and he sounds serious." Mickey's face was anxious in the doorway.
~*~*
Anubis paced silently on the golden decks of his ship. He could feel something, something that made him uneasy. It was not one of the Ascended, they couldn't be bothered with the petty details of war and conquest. It wasn't one of the System Lords, they were cowards, but there was a disturbance.
~*~*~
Daniel was experiencing a major sense of déjà vu, and if it weren't for Jack's strong presence it would be freaking him out. He smiled and nodded at familiar people who gawked, murmuring greetings politely, and was absurdly happy when he ducked into a familiar tent.
"Good father." He said with a wry smile for the shocked man.
Kasuf looked at the visitors, then at his son and son in law, "What is this?"
Skaara grinned, "The gate opened father! This is a Dan-yel from another Earth, and a Jack but not an O'Neill."
Daniel exchanged a grin with the other Daniel, "It's a long story good father, better told over a meal." Daniel explained.
Shar'e didn't understand her Dan'yel's explanation, but the first sight of the other shocked her. He was older, the gray at the temples noticeable, and much more muscular than her husband, but otherwise she would have recognized him anywhere. She put her veil up and served the men, then settled beside her husband, aware of the other man's gaze on her.
Jack leaned over, "Danny, you're gonna freak her out if you keep staring."
"She's still so beautiful. This is what she would've had if the gate hadn't opened Jack." Daniel murmured, the grief that he'd been carrying around for so long easing at her obvious happiness. He watched as a young boy ran up and plunked himself into the other Daniel's lap, chattering a mile a minute before speaking to his mother, then jumping up and racing off.
Jack wondered what was going on in Daniel's mind, "Danny, you ok?"
Daniel pondered the question for a long moment, wondering what he could say to Jack, when he saw the other Daniel lean to hear what his wife said, then laughed, making Shar'e smile. He turned to Jack, "I'm glad that there is a Shar'e that is happy and loved, I couldn't ask for anything else."
Skaara stood and everyone went quiet. He smiled, "We have visitors with a story to tell, a Dan'yel that is like ours, but yet not, and the son of O'Neill, one of our great heroes!" Jack smiled and elbowed Daniel.
This made Daniel smile, he knew what to expect. Storytelling was an art in the tent villages of Abydos, and though he never thought he did very well, he'd always been asked to tell them. He stood and everyone went quiet, expectation on their faces.
"Skaara is right, I am a Daniel but not yours." He paused, gathering his thoughts, "I too came to Abydos with Jack O'Neill. We saved Abydos from Ra and Kasuf gave me his daughter Shar'e in marriage." He glanced over at the other Daniel, "I promised Jack O'Neill that I would bury the gate, and that in a year I'd unbury it." He sucked in a deep breath, "On that day I opened the chappa'ai, Apophis, son of Ra came to Abydos for revenge. While I was at the chappa'ai, Apophis' First Prime came with his Jaffa and took our people for slaves."
Jack looked around and saw the expressions of sympathy and knowledge written on the people's faces. They too had known suffering.
"The First Prime picked Shar'e to become host for Apophis's queen, Ammonet, and Skaara for his son, Klorel. " There were gasps of horror, for Shar'e was well liked and Skaara was being groomed to take over for his father some day. Daniel looked down at Jack for support, and the love he saw there bolstered him to finish the story, "Jack and I tried to stop it but it was too late. Shar'e was taken from me and became a false god." The sounds of sorrow and muted wailing were heard in the large tent, "But not all was lost, Jack appealed to Apophis' First Prime and he rebelled against his false god and came with us. His name was Teal'c."
Someone had poured a cup of liquid and handed it to Jack, and he touched Daniel's arm and handed it up to him. Daniel gratefully accepted it, taking a long swallow and savoring the familiar flavor. Handing it back to Jack, he looked around and noticed that the people were waiting patiently, refusing to look at the other Daniel and Shar'e, instead looking down at Jack who smiled for him. . There were cries of babies and the sound of people talking quietly. Bracing himself he continued, "I decided to leave Abydos and help the SGC, becoming a member of a team called SG-1 so I could search for Shar'e. SG-1 was Jack, a smart and wonderful woman named Samantha Carter, myself and Teal'c." there were sounds of surprise from his rapt audience.
"How could you trust the former First Prime of Apophis?" Kasuf asked.
Daniel smiled, "He knew that Apophis, Ra and the rest were false gods and he'd been waiting for the moment to fight against them. His own father had been killed by another false god named Chronos. We served together for 8 years until Jack died." There were more sounds of sorrow for the death of one of their heroes.
Jack shifted uncomfortably, "He's not really dead. He pretended to be dead so that he could protect Daniel, Teal'c and Sam from some bad people. He's back now, though you'd hardly recognize him, his hair is white and he wears it in a ponytail." He grinned at the other Daniel who smiled back, amused by the picture of his old friend.
A quiet voice spoke, "What happened to your Shar'e?"
Daniel looked at the speaker, and knew it was Shar'e, "A year after I began the search for her I went back to Abydos to confess to her father that I had failed him, that I had not found his daughter. Jack and I were speaking to him when the tent flap opened and Shar'e walked in, a very pregnant Shar'e."
Shar'e showed surprise and Daniel leaned forward, "Was she still a goa'uld?"
"Well, we were extremely surprised. I turned to Kasuf and asked what she was doing there, she had a false god inside of her. He turned to Shar'e and asked her if this was true and she acknowledged that it was." He remembered how she explained that the god was asleep while she was pregnant, his pain and betrayal that she, his wife, carried another man's child. "She said she was there to give birth, then go back to Apophis with the child. I was sad, this was my wife who I loved very much, but she would be gone after the baby was born. We talked and she spoke of her love for me and how could I not tell her that I still loved her? That I still had hopes of being together again." He swallowed hard, it was still hard to talk about.
"Danny, this can wait." Jack whispered. He was feeling all of the distress that his lover was, and wanted it to stop.
"No, I'm ok." Daniel looked up, staring blankly at the walls of the tent, "I helped birth her baby, a son. He was so beautiful. Then I hid him and Ammonet came back, demanding her child. I lied, telling her that another false god had come and forcibly taken him. Soon after Apophis came for his queen and they were about to leave when she saw me." He smiled at Shar'e, "Shar'e was so strong, she looked at me, more powerful than Ammonet at that moment, and then continued with Apophis, never giving us away. And in that moment I knew that there was still a chance, I knew that the host survives, I knew that Shar'e and I could be together again."
"But Jack said that you lost her." Skaara spoke, his quiet voice carrying clearly.
"We did. Shar'e was so strong, she sent Ammonet's handmaid back to Abydos to hide her son from Apophis better. He was sent to a woman," he looked at Daniel, "One of the Ancients, and he was safe with her. I didn't know this, I came back for him, to take him back with me to keep him safe. Unfortunately Ammonet was there as well, and she tried to kill me. Teal'c found us and to save my life, he took hers." The memory of lying on the sand, Shar'e looking deeply into his eyes as she spoke of her love, and watching the light die in her eyes. He closed his eyes and slowly sank to the cushion, feeling Jack take his hand, feeling the love flow from the other man to him.
"Your Shar'e sounds as special as ours is." Kasuf said, smiling lovingly at his daughter. He viewed the story as a tragic cautionary tale of what could have happened, but didn't.
Soon after Jack and Daniel were led to their tent, it's interior thoughtfully lit by an oil lamp. Jack pulled Daniel into his arms, "I love you so much." He murmured in his love's ear.
Daniel let out a half laugh, half sob, holding the other man tightly, "I didn't think it would be this hard."
"It's ok babe, it's ok." Jack crooned, rocking them back and forth. He pressed his lips to Daniel's ear, then let them trail across his cheek until he reached his lips. He sank into the kiss, hoping he could make Daniel forget, if for just a little while.
"Jack, not here." Daniel whispered.
"There's no one here." Jack protested slightly. He pressed quick kisses all over Daniel's face, making him chuckle. "Daniel, let me hold you. It's been a long day, and we don't know what tomorrow's going to bring."
After a long moment, Daniel moved forward and kissed Jack, long, lingeringly, sliding his tongue over Jack's, tasting and taking. Neither man saw the flap to the tent move, then drop back down.
~*~*~
Thor listened to Sam carefully, nodding when she was finished, "I agree Colonel Carter. It seems reasonable to assume that John Neal and Dr. Jackson have traveled to an alternate universe, however I believe that it was a concatenation of circumstances forced by an outside source."
Alex frowned, "I don't understand."
Thor looked at Jack, who suddenly understood, "Someone wants them there to fix something. Then if they survive they'll be sent back."
The little alien bowed his head, "I believe that you understand."
Alex looked at the small alien, "If I had my first guess I would say it was the Asgard."
Thor gazed back, "It was not us this time Dr. Jackson."
"Then who?" Alex asked.
Major Dom Leoni, who'd been listening silently spoke up, "Oma Desala?"
"That would be interfering, and wouldn't the Ascended be against that?" Sam said.
"Ya ever feel like a puppet?" Jack asked bitterly.
"But what about entropic cascade failure?" Sam asked.
Jack leaned back in his seat, "My guess is that whatever they're supposed to fix will be happening before it sets in."
Silva looked at his watch, "They have less than 36 hours then."
Thor shrugged his small shoulders, "It would seem so."
~*~*
Daniel looked up as his wife came back into the tent, "That was quick." He said, then noticed she still had the tray in her hands. "Shar'e?"
Her big brown eyes met his, "Dan-yel, are you a lover of men?" Her mind was filled with the sight of the other Daniel and Jack in the passionate embrace.
"What? What do you mean?" Daniel asked, his eyebrows drawn together in confusion.
Shar'e carefully set the tray down and faced him, "I went to the tent and found Dan-yel and his Jack kissing like lovers." She said bluntly.
This was news to Daniel, he'd never even given a man a romantic thought, "No Shar'e, I've only loved you, and only been attracted to women." He replied solemnly.
She searched his face and was apparently satisfied by what she saw because she nodded, then indicated the tray, "You should take that to them, I will check on the children."
He nodded and picked up the tray, ducking out of their tent. He arrived at the tent that they usually gave to their guests, then taking a bracing breath, ducked inside.
Daniel pressed Jack to the cushions, kissing him deeply. He already removed the younger man's shirt, his hands restlessly moving over the bare skin. The moans from the man beneath him made him dizzy with desire and he wanted to take, wanted to forget in Jack's body. The sound of the flap made both men look up in surprise.
"Damn." Jack said, looking at the shell-shocked Daniel in the doorway, "You were right Danny."
Daniel groaned, "Hello Daniel." He sat up, moving off of Jack to sit on one of the cushions.
The other Daniel set the tray down, then eyed the two men curiously, "I'm not sure I understand. I've never been attracted to another man before."
Jack grabbed his shirt and slipped it on without buttoning it, then tried to unobtrusively arrange his hard cock in his tight pants. He glanced over at his lover and was surprised to see a soft, loving look on his face. "What?"
Daniel looked back at his counterpart, "I fell in love with a person, not with a gender." He grinned, "And he seduced me."
Both Daniel's looked at Jack, who squirmed under the intensity of their regard, "Cut it out, you're giving me the willies."
The Abydonian Daniel nodded seriously, "I think I understand. Now, are you going to tell me how Jack got so young?"
Jack and Daniel looked at each other, "You know, it's kinda annoying that you Daniel's, wherever they might be, are still so smart."
"It's a long story." Daniel said, "You might want to sit down."
~**~~*
The meeting with Thor was over, and according to the little alien, there was nothing to do but wait. Jack was out in the passageway, and he grabbed Alex as he came out of the conference room, "We need to talk. Something else has happened."
Alex sighed, then rubbed his eyes, "What Jack? What could possibly go wrong now?"
Jack looked around at the busy people filled hall, "Let's go to your office."
Inside the larger office that he shared with Daniel, Alex flopped into his chair, "Ok, shoot."
The older man paced for a moment, then looked at his young lover, "Mickey's biological dad came over to the house today."
"Biological dad?" Daniel repeated, then his face paled, "HE doesn't want to take Mickey?"
Jack shook his head, "No, I don't think so. His wife doesn't want that, it's his parents. You remember the write up in the paper?"
"How could I not? You bought about 50 copies and had me help you cut them out." Alex retorted dryly.
"Well, he pointed it out to his dad, and mentioned that Mickey was his son. His parents weren't happy, apparently that they hadn't been told and sent him over to feel Jack and Danny out."
Alex sighed, "Well, this just sucks."
"Don't it just."
~*~*~
The other Daniel shifted on his cushion, "So the Asgard are the little aliens that have been visiting Earth, and they thought that there was something special about Jack and cloned him, but made a mistake and made a younger Jack."
Jack grinned, "That's about the sum of it. Instead of the Air force Academy I went to MIT, went into the Marines, then came back to the SGC. But only for Danny."
Daniel regarded Jack for a long moment, "So Jack O'Neill had a thing for Daniel Jackson, but you made your move first?"
Now Jack was a little uncomfortable, "I decided not to deny my sexuality, it had made Jack so miserable. His love for Danny was buried under his career and regulations, but I decided to go for it."
Daniel's mind was whirling, "So Jack O'Neill still loves you?"
"Actually, there was ~another~ Daniel who came to our reality, and he fell in love with him. It's kind of confusing." Daniel said apologetically.
"Oh, you think so?" the other Daniel replied dryly.
Jack snorted a laugh, then smothered it when the Daniel's glared at him. "Hey, it was funny, give me a break!"
Daniel stood, "You need to go back to Shar'e, and we need to get some rest."
Taking the hint the other Daniel stood, "Thank you for being honest with me. I'll try to make Shar'e understand."
Jack watched the other man leave and sighed, beginning to strip. "Well, that was a little awkward."
Daniel was about to speak when his mouth went dry at the sight of Jack's body. "Um, uh huh." His hands were fisted in his shirt and he watched as the lithe and muscular body of his lover was revealed. It was ~so~ nice to have a younger lover.
"Man, I really hate sand." Jack complained, slipping off his boxers and shaking them out. He turned and was about to say something else when he saw Daniel's passion darkened eyes. His eyebrows rose, "Danny? Was there something that you wanted?"
Blue eyes snapped up to his, "I want you. Make love to me Jack."
Hands met and bodies collided in the middle of the tent. Jack's hands efficiently stripped his lover, stepping back to admire the hard body and the aroused cock, "I love you Danny."
"Then hurry up."
Jack laughed low and pulled Daniel into his arms, kissing him deeply. They fell to their knees, hands grasping, mouths and tongues tangling, then Jack laid Daniel down onto the cushions, "I'm going to make you forget your name." He prepared Daniel gently, eyes greedily watching as the older man's head tossed back and forth, skin flushing with arousal, then as he pulled Daniel's legs over his shoulders and placed his cock at the slickened entrance he spoke huskily, "Look at me Danny."
Pleasure drenched blue eyes looked at him, "Now Jack." And moaned low and long as Jack thrust into him. They drowned in each other, linked body and soul as they moved together, Jack thrusting, Daniel rising to meet each thrust, fingers linked together. The emotions were as overwhelming as the physical pleasure and their orgasms rode them both into oblivion.
~^~^~
Shar'e looked up when her husband ducked into the tent, "My husband." She said neutrally.
Daniel sighed, settling himself beside his wife, "They are in love Shar'e. I'm not going to condemn them because they're men." He looked at her sharply, "What about Kasim and Jaaran, you do not begrudge them their love?" he was referring to two men who lived in their village.
Her eyed widened, "Of course not, they are valued members of our tribe." Then she saw where he was going with the conversation and shifted uncomfortably, "How will I know that that you will not become a lover of men?" her dark eyes wouldn't meet his.
He gently took her chin, "Look at me beloved." Her eyes rose to his. "I fell in love with you the first moment I looked into your eyes. You are my beloved, my all, the mother of my children." He kissed her, then leaned back, "Daniel's life followed another path. He became a warrior, I became a husband, father and teacher. We are different men."
She thought about it for long moment. No, she couldn't begrudge the other Daniel his happiness. If he was like her husband and had lost his parents as a child, and then he'd lost his Shar'e as well...all she wanted for him was happiness. "I would want all Dan-yel's to be as happy as we are."
Daniel laughed and hugged her, "I do too beloved. I do too."
~^~^~
Daniel woke the next morning wrapped securely in Jack's arms, and his love overwhelmed him, "Jack?" he whispered.
There was a snort, "Mmph, Danny?" was mumbled.
"I love you."
Jack's eyes fluttered open, brown eyes smiling, "Love you back." He pressed a kiss to Daniel's nose, then angled his wrist to check the time, "Hey babe, time to get up."
"Oooh, I'll bet Kasuf has ordered one of Shar'e's large breakfasts! They're the best." He bounced up and began to gather up their clothing that decorated the tent from where they'd flung it around the previous evening. Jack watched, an indulgent expression on his face. "Damn, you are sooo hot." He purred.
Daniel glanced at his lover, "You know, we need to get the doc to check your eyes." He teased. He didn't see what Jack saw in him, his hair was getting gray, his shoulders ached and he was pretty sure that he was getting arthritis in his hands. Getting older was hell, and now he knew what the other Jack meant all those times he'd complained about his tricky knees.
Jack got up and smacked him on his naked ass, making him yelp, "You'd be the blind one but I still love ya." They washed up and dressed, then headed to the headman's tent. Shar'e set some dishes in front of their guests, giving the men a warm smile which was returned broadly by Jack, and shyly by Daniel. They chatted with Skaara, Kasuf and Daniel as they ate, telling about some of the missions that SG-1, and then SG-27 had been on over the years.
Suddenly something that Skaara had said in the pyramid penetrated Daniel's memory, "Daniel, how long did you say that you and Skaara have been opening the Stargate?"
Daniel shrugged, taking a large bite of something that looked like bacon, "This will be the sixth year. Why?"
Daniel did quick math in his head, "Daniel, have you found the hidden room in the pyramid?"
This made the other Daniel perk up, "I knew it! There is a hidden room, where is it? I've been over that place at least a dozen times!"
Kasuf and Skaara exchanged alarmed glances.
Jack made a face, "Oh crap. You're not thinking what I think you're thinkin'?"
"Um yeah." Daniel replied, "We need to get to the pyramid." He stood and smiled at Shar'e, "Thank you for the wonderful meal. It was one of the memories of her that I treasure very much."
Shar'e turned pink with pleasure, "Thank you Dan-yel."
Jack nodded, "Yeah, sorry to eat and run. But we have to eat and run." He looked at Daniel, "I'll get our packs." And he ducked out of the tent.
Daniel looked over at his doppelganger, "Stay here, I have a bad feeling about this."
"Why? I want to see the hidden room." Daniel complained.
"Because the last time I left Shar'e alone she was taken from me. Trust me Daniel, stay here with her."
"I'm not you, and she's not your Shar'e." Daniel tried to argue reasonably.
Jack popped his head in, "We goin'?"
Kasuf stood, interrupting the Daniel's argument, "You seek that what we promised to hide. Skaara will go with you."
Daniel nodded solemnly, "Thank you good father."
As they left the tents Jack looked at his lover, "I'd forgotten that Kasuf and the others knew."
Daniel nodded, "They were entrusted to keep it out of the wrong hands. Unfortunately I was the wrong hands in our particular scenario."
"Oh Danny, you tried your best." Jack said softly.
"Our Abydos is gone. Apparently my best wasn't good enough." Daniel said bitterly.
~*~*~
Alex looked over at to where Mickey was working on his advanced Spanish. The 16-year-old was quiet, too quiet. Usually he was butchering the words just to make Alex wince. "Mick, you ok?"
Mickey shrugged, "Yeah."
This made Alex sigh. The shrug and the reply were classic Jack, both of them. "Liar."
There was a snort, "You sound like Dad."
"Because I know you, so give, tell me what's going on?" Alex got up and moved over to the dining room chair beside Mickey.
Mickey thought back to what he'd heard at school that day. He'd been eating lunch with his friends, of which he had alot, when from the table behind him he'd heard, "Isn't that the guy who has the fags as parents?" It was the new girl that had transferred from a school on the other side of town that month. He'd froze but his friend Jason had stood, turned around and said, "You must be new here, because if you weren't then you'd be dissing some of the greatest 'rents in this school. So I'd suggest you shut your big pie hole until you know what you're talking about." There had been laughter and clapping, and Mickey had struggled to hide his emotions. He hadn't seen the girls' reaction, had only heard that she'd turned red and ran from the lunchroom.
"I guess I just never appreciated how great my dad's were until today."
Alex frowned thoughtfully, "Why? I mean, I know you love them. What specifically happened today?" and Mickey told him.
"Huh, so, what does Jason want for his birthday? A car? Airplane?" Alex asked, making Mickey laugh.
Alex stood and looked out the window and now Mickey wondered what was going on. "Alex?"
"Your dad's are stuck somewhere, again. Oh, and your biological father's parents want to meet you." He turned to look at Mickey seriously.
Mickey translated what Alex had said, then looked at him, "Ok, and what are we gonna do?"
"Wait. Jack said that's all we can do."
The 16 year old sighed, "Oy."
~^~^
Shawna sat in her room, her chin on her knees. She couldn't believe what had happened at school, and knew that if her dad ever heard then she'd be in big trouble. It was just that knowing that the tall, handsome jock that was so popular with everyone, from the geeks to the most popular kids, was her older brother. She'd accidentally overheard an argument between her parents and realized today who he was.
She had wanted to punish him for suddenly barging into her life, changing everything that she'd known about herself. It turned out to be one of her worse ideas. Any new friends that she'd made had disappeared, and school without friends was pretty fucking lonely.
A knock at her door made her look up, "What?" the door opened and her dad peeked in.
"Are you ok? Your mom says you've been in here all evening." He shut the door behind him and sat beside her on the bed.
"Yes, no."
"Is this multiple choice?" Her dad asked, noticing the strain around his daughter eyes. "Do I have to beat him up?"
This made her smile, then sigh. "Do you love me?"
"Of course I do. You're my baby."
She rolled her eyes, "Geez dad, I'm 14, you can call me Shawna now."
He grunted, "You'll always be my baby."
She turned to face him, "I heard you and mom arguing the other night, why didn't you tell me about Sean?"
Michael's jaw dropped, he hadn't known that his daughter knew. "Because, well, I don't really know."
"That's a lame excuse." The fourteen-year-old said.
He sighed, everything was so black and white to kids. "I met Sean's mom a couple of years after I graduated from college. Her name was Vanessa and she was amazing. Neither one of us were exclusive, she had an important career and I was traveling all over for the company, so we'd just get together when I was back in the 'Springs. One day she told me that she was pregnant." He remembered back to that day, how thrilled she was. "I told her I wasn't ready for kids. She said she understood, but that I couldn't change my mind and suddenly decide I want a part in the baby's life. I told her ok."
Shawna was shocked, "Just like that?"
Her reaction made him wince, "I wasn't ready. Then I met your mom and all bets were off, everything I didn't want or need from Van, I desperately needed from your mom. That meant kids, the house, everything."
"But what about later?"
This was the difficult part, "You were about 2 and we'd found out that we couldn't have any more kids after you, and I thought about it. Then I found out that Van was a lesbian, and I decided that I didn't need any contact with her or her child."
She sat for a moment, absorbing this new information. "His mom was a lesbian?"
He nodded, "Was being the operative word. She died of AIDS when Sean was about 10 or 11. Soon afterwards I was sent forms to sign, giving up all rights to him, and that's when your mom found out." Michael sat for a long moment, "She didn't want another woman's child."
"But two gay men did? I think that makes them better than her." She sniped.
"Shawna, that's not fair. You aren't her and you can't know what she was feeling at that time."
"I guess."
Her father stood, "So now you know. I had to tell Nana and Poppa which is why your mom and I were discussing it the other night."
Shawna nodded, "Ok Dad." She had alot to think about.
~*~*~
In the end Daniel had lost, and the other Daniel had won. He'd gotten to go with them to the pyramid, and they'd taken Shar'e as well. Inside she'd set down her package of food and drink and settled herself down to watch the men as they worked.
The Abydonian Daniel walked up to the familiar wall and read it carefully, his twin beside him. "Here, it mentions the Eye of Ra, and here and here." He pointed to the sections and turned to Skaara, "We've searched how many times Skaara?"
"Countless times." Skaara said, looking over at Jack and sharing a commiserating look between friends of archeologists. Shar'e smothered a smile at the identical look of scorn on her and the other Dan-yel's face.
Daniel kept on walking, "It's here." He pointed to the jewel imbedded in the wall, "Jack, if you would?"
Jack nodded and raised his P-90 but the other Daniel yelped, "You're not going to shoot it up?"
This made Skaara chuckle, and Daniel shook his head, "No, just watch."
Jack activated the laser sight and aimed it at the jewel and the door slowly opened, "Sweet."
There was a grumbled sigh, "By the way, we need to talk about the aliens you've corrupted Jack."
"What did I do?" Jack asked in bewilderment as he followed his lover, then Skaara, Shar'e and the other Daniel into the chamber filled with what looked like enough stuff to start a goa'uld yard sale. Daniel went directly to the tablet and handed it to the other Daniel, "Take that and keep it safe."
Daniel began to read it, his eyes widening, "It talks about the Ancients and some other race called the Ascended and something about a lost city!" Shar'e stood beside him, but her eyes were wide, taking in all of the riches around her.
"City that was lost," Daniel corrected absently, "and I know." was said grimly. He turned around, and looked at the walls thoughtfully, "I think it's over here. Jack, give me that." He pointed to a gold and jewel encrusted staff. Jack handed it to him and Daniel began to tap on the walls until he reached the same section that Jonas had and then he pointed, "Jack, now you can shoot, but aim high."
Jack raised his eyebrows but obeyed, using a controlled burst to make a large hole in the wall where Daniel requested, and sure enough there was what looked like a plate with the Eye glowing in the center. Daniel gently took it and turned it over in his hands, "What a dangerous little bauble."
The sound of rings activating nearby made their heads whip around and Jack grimaced, "So I guess this is showtime?"
Daniel moved protectively to his wife, "Shar'e, hide back in the corner. No matter what happens, don't make a sound." She nodded and quickly hid behind some large clay jars, her eyes on her husband.
~*~*~
Sam smiled at Siler, "You're sure you can duplicate the accident, then maintain the power throughput to keep the gate open?"
"Yes Ma'am."
She looked over at Jack and Alex, who both nodded, "Do it Carter." Jack said softly.
Siler got up and left the conference room, headed down to start the transformer on overload. Jack stood and paced, his nerves getting the better of him. Something had gone wrong, he felt it in his bones. He knew Daniel, and knew that if something had happened is was because his old friend had done something selfless and stupid, and he only hoped that Jack was ok.
Alex watched his lover with concern, "You're sure that something's happened."
Jack met his eyes, "I know it." He said grimly.
This made Sam nervous, "Let's head to the control room and see if this works."
~*\
In the control room Sam and the Sergeant were watching their computers while the energy began to spike, then suddenly Siler's voice boomed out, "It's stable!"
"Dial it up!" Sam snapped.
The sergeant began to dial, "Chevron one encoded..." he intoned and so on, until the seventh one locked and Jack let out a breath, "Thank you God."
"Send the MALP through."
~^~^
The sound of booted feet came closer and Jack raised his P-90 and fired a warning spray in front of them, "Stay where you are." There were 9 Jaffa, staff weapons at the ready.
The Jaffa were surprised but did as he said, moving apart to give their master room to move forward, "Who are you?" The cloaked goa'uld demanded.
Daniel moved to the front, Jack hovering protectively behind him, "I know who you are and you can't have the Eye of Ra."
Anubis laughed, "What can prevent me from killing you and taking it?"
Daniel began to glow, and Jack cried out, "Danny, no!"
Daniel looked at his lover, "I'm sorry Jack, it's the only way."
"You bastard, you knew that this might happen!"
Blue eyes glowed with regret and love, "I'm sorry." Daniel completed his transformation and zipped away, and Jack growled, raised his P-90 and began to fire. Anubis turned and disappeared while his Jaffa began to drop like flies under the withering hail of bullets. After a few minutes there were no more Jaffa left. Jack sank to his knees, tears running down his cheeks, "Damn it to hell Danny, you left me again." He mourned.
Daniel knelt beside Jack, "Jack, what happened?"
Jack wiped his face with the back of his hand, "Daniel was one of the Ancients. He disobeyed their rules and got kicked out. Anubis is part goa'uld and part Ancient and I guess we were brought here so Daniel could stop him. Now he ascended again."
The gate began to hum and Jack got to his feet and scrambled up the stone steps and into where the gate was, watching as the wormhole whooshed into existence, then a MALP trundle on through. A tinny voice said, "Dr. Jackson? Jack? Dr. Neal, can you hear me?"
Jack moved into the small camera's line of sight, "Yeah, I'm here."
Sam and the rest could see the look of utter devastation on Jack's face, "What happened?" she asked softly. Alex sucked in a breath as he saw another Daniel Jackson, a Shar'e and a Skaara, move into frame behind Jack.
"Anubis came for the Eye and Daniel ascended." Jack replied dully.
Jack O'Neill cursed bitterly, "Sonofabitch." He said, then leaned to the mike, "Come on home kid, Mickey needs you."
Sam sighed, "Hurry Jack, the wormhole could close at anytime."
"Mickey." Jack said softly. He shouldered his P-90 and turned to the others, "I suggest that you hide that tablet. I don't know what's gonna happen next, but I think Daniel was brought here to take care of it. Be careful."
He accepted a hug from Skaara, then one from Daniel, and a kiss from Shar'e before he turned and walked into the event horizon.
~^~^
~*~
The bell for class hadn't rang yet and Mickey was in the library doing a quick look up for his report when someone cleared her throat. He looked up at the girl who'd been so nasty to him the day before. "Unless you're here to apologize I have nothing to say to you." He said flatly.
"It's an apology, and an explanation." She replied hurriedly in case he changed his mind.
He pointed to the chair across from himself, "Sit." And watched as she did as she was told. He thought her name was Shawnette or something, and she was pretty. Tall, smooth brown hair that curved just above her shoulders, parted on the side and framing a nice set of hazel eyes that were currently full of misery. She smoothed her white shirt nervously.
"You know that you're adopted, right?" She blurted.
"Yeee-eah." He drawled sarcastically, "I was there!"
"Oh, right." She murmured, then sighed, "This is harder than I thought. Um, my name is Shawna Ryan."
His eyebrows rose, "Nice to meet you Shawna?" The sarcasm in his voice making her wince.
"My dad is Michael Ryan."
Mickey frowned, the name was familiar but he didn't know from where, then suddenly it dawned on him and his eyes went round with surprise.
Shawna nodded, "Yeah, I just found out the night before last when I heard my mom and dad arguing. I never knew about you, and I'm really sorry I was such a bitch. It was..." she trailed off.
"A shock?" He finished, a little in shock himself. He had a sister, and suddenly he could see all of the similarities between them, from their hair color to the shapes of their faces and their height. "Wow. So, why did you come here?"
Shawna could hear that he'd forgiven her for what she'd said the day before. She leaned forward on her elbows, "Because I do track and your track program is the best in the conference. I want to be the best."
Mickey nodded slowly, then smiled, "Hey, I'm your big brother, does that mean I get to bug you?"
Shawna rolled her eyes, "Oh god, bug me how?"
Evil grin, "I'll think of something." He promised.
~*
At lunch he stood in the line and talked to his friends, shoving Kyle Warner good naturedly into the girl ahead of him, making them both glare. He got his tray, picked something semi healthy to make his dad happy, 'What did you eat while we were gone Mick?', and then turned to see a whole table with just one person sitting at it.
Shawna was quietly reading while she ate her lunch, trying to ignore the emptiness around her when there was a thump at her left side. She looked up into the grinning face of her newfound brother, "Mickey."
"Shawn-a!" he replied. Jason sat down on her other side and Kyle sat across from her, and they both looked at Mickey.
"You do realize that she's the one that said that yesterday." Jason Ferretti pointed out to his friend, while Kyle nodded, glaring at Shawna.
Mickey took a big bite of his burger and nodded. He chewed for a moment, then swallowed, taking a glug of milk so he could talk, "I'm cutting her some slack. She heard something the night before from her parents that threw her for a loop."
Shawna was looking down at her tray, moving her jello from side to side. Mickey shoved her gently with his shoulder, "It'll be ok."
Jason looked at Kyle, confusion on his face, then sighed, "Ok, what happened?"
Mickey grinned, "She found out that I'm her big brother!"
His friend regarded him with open mouthed surprise, then Jason said, "Huh?"
"It's like this. Mom met a guy, had me. Guy went on to have another family. Her name is Shawna." He nudged Shawna not so gently, "She just found out and predictably freaked, after all, I'm a 'god'." He preened, then laughed as Shawna groaned and rolled her eyes.
"Oh please." She sputtered, trying not to giggle.
Kyle shook his head, "Only you would have this much drama in your life. Hi Shawna, I'm Kyle."
Jason gently nudged her from the other side, "And I'm Jason."
Feeling decidedly warm and fuzzy, Shawna said, "And I'm the under appreciated little sister of the 'god'. Pleased to meet you."
Mickey guffawed and the four of them began to talk about school, asking Shawna about her classes and warning her about teachers and such. The teacher in charge of the lunch room could only smile, the 'Three Musketeers' had done it again, turning something bad into something good.
Later in one of the bustling hallways Shawna felt someone yank on her hair. She turned to make a nasty comment on juvenile behavior, then rolled her eyes, "Oh come on, can't you be more original?"
Mickey laughed, he was liking this big brother thing, "Nope."
A teacher suddenly loomed, "Mr. Jackson-Neal, that can be construed as sexual harassment."
Shawna looked at Mickey, and in unison they made faces and went, "Ewwwwwww!"
~*~*~
Jack was waiting when the younger man stepped through. He watched as the grief made him stumble down the ramp and into his arms, "He's not dead, tell me he's not dead." The younger Jack whispered desperately.
Jack tightened his hug, "He's not dead, I promise." He crooned, feeling the younger man begin to tremble, "It's ok, we'll find him."
"HE knew, that bastard knew that it was a possibility but never told me."
Jack's eyes met Alex's over the younger Jack's shoulder, "You know that's how Danny is, if he thinks he can protect you..." he trailed off.
Sam came over and rested a tender hand on the younger man's head, "Let's go see Doc Warner then you can go see Mick."
~*~*
Alex was mad. Mad at Daniel, mad at himself if he acknowledged the truth. He knew that if he'd been in Daniel's shoes he'd have done the exact same thing, and broken Jack's heart. He would've hated himself, but justified it in his own mind.
"You would've done the same thing, wouldn't you?" Jack asked from the doorway, his brown eyes bleak.
"I can't know that unless I was in his shoes Jack." Alex lied. It sometimes blindsided him at how well Jack knew him. "How's Jack?"
The older man ran a tired hand over his white hair, "Resting. I called Ferretti's wife and asked her to keep Mick overnight."
"Jesus." Alex rubbed his face, "What can we do? Do we go to Vis Uban?"
"I hate to keep sayin' it, but I think we wait."
Alex snorted, "Well, I gotta tell you. This waiting thing sucks." Jack merely grunted agreement.
~*~
Daniel crushed the Eye of Ra out of existence, then flew on, what passed for the heart of an ascended cracked and bleeding, the loss of Jack and their son almost more than he could bear and survive. He circled back to the ship that had borne Anubis and took the other Eyes, destroying them as well, before suddenly facing the enraged half goa'uld, half Ascended being.
"You interfered." Anubis roared, throwing his weight behind the power he forced at his enemy.
Daniel only protected himself, didn't attack, "I did what I had to do."
Anubis kept trying another angle, another method of attack but was unable to defeat him. Suddenly Daniel felt stronger, and looked around to see the other Ancients ringing them as if they were an audience. He could feel them, Orlin and Oama, Skaara, Shifu, Kasuf and many others sharing their power and knew what he had to do.
"Anubis." He said softly and the half goa'uld, half ascended being paused in his attack. "You have been found guilty of not learning from our past. You have been found guilty of not using your knowledge to enlighten others as is our way. You have proven that you do not have the capacity to change."
"I do not need to change." Anubis snarled.
Daniel concentrated, ramped up his power exponentially and Anubis disappeared in a bright flash that destroyed stars. "There, I've done your dirty work for you. Send me home."
Oma sighed, "You do not wish to remain with us?"
"Not that I'm not glad to see you all, but I have a family that I love very much. I just hope that they're ok."
Daniel suddenly felt like he was flying through a thousand wormholes, the speed dizzying. As he moved, he had a thought, "Oma, don't drop me naked again." Then his world went black.
~*~*~
It had been over a month, and now Mickey sat on the front porch, watching his dad quietly grieve in their garden. His cat rubbed against his legs and he reached over to rub its ears automatically. Alex and his grandpa had explained, though not in alot of detail, about what had happened. He knew that Daniel was not dead, just... missing. He and his Dad had left the topic of 'why' alone, and just concentrated on the loss. Now Mickey was wondering if that hadn't been a mistake. "Dad?"
"Yeah Mick."
"You know he's going to fight to come back to us." The simplicity, the truth of this blazed through Jack, and he shook his head trying to wrap his mind around it.
"He left us."
"Dad." Mickey said quietly, the reproof clear in his voice.
"He chose!" Jack insisted stubbornly.
Mickey sighed in exasperation, "He didn't ~not~ choose us! He just chose to do something else, something important in addition to us. For cryin' out loud Dad, have some faith!"
Jack turned to look at he and Daniel's son. The blue eyes were steady on him, no hint of the grief that was ripping him apart, "How can you know?"
Mickey smiled, "You know it too. It's called love Dad."
~^~^
Teal'c strode into the encampment, his eyes straight ahead. Another Jaffa saw him and met him, "Greetings Master Teal'c."
"Is it true?"
Ja'lac smiled, "Yes, come and see him. Ma'arek found him at a settlement several days away. They say there was great flash of light and then he was just there, naked upon the ground. He asked to be brought to our leader."
Teal'c nodded and went to the tent, ducking under the flap, and he had to smile. It was indeed Daniel Jackson.
"Teal'c, it's good to see you."
Astonished, Teal'c eyed his old friend, "You know me?"
Daniel smiled wryly, "Oma still dropped me naked but didn't take my memories this time. I really need to go home, do you know how long I've been gone?"
"It has been 37 Earth days."
"37 days?" Daniel asked in dismay, "I've got to get home!"
Teal'c inclined his head, "Then we shall head to the Stargate."
As they walked, Teal'c noticed that his old friend seemed, well, younger. "You seem to be in good health Daniel Jackson."
Abruptly Daniel stopped in his tracks, then smiled hugely, "Oma must have healed me. I feel younger." His fingers went to his temples, "Am I still gray?"
Teal'c tilted his head, "There is some gray but it does not detract from your appearance."
Daniel laughed, "I guess it's not my physical appearance that she was worried about."
They continued on, and Teal'c looked at his companion, "Can you tell me why you were ascended?"
"Yes and no." Daniel replied, "It was something to do with Anubis, but that's all I can say. I do know that I chose to ascend, and that I chose to descend."
The Jaffa nodded soberly, "Then it is of no consequence."
"It will be to Jack." Daniel whispered. He was terribly afraid that he'd broken the bond between them, and that they would never be the same again.
~*~*
"Unauthorized off world activation!" The Sergeant announced. Sam, Jack and Alex looked up from their notes, then all got up and headed to the control room.
"Who is it Martin?" Jack asked.
The man watched his computer screen, "It's the Jaffa rebellion Sir."
"Open the iris."
The wormhole whooshed out and stabilized, then Teal'c and another person stepped into the gate room.
"Danny." Jack breathed, stunned into immobility.
Daniel looked up into the control room, trying to control his fear, and his wish to run up and hug Jack forever. "I'm baaa'ack." He said instead.
Alex touched Jack's shoulder, "Go to him Jack."
The next thing he knew he was flying down the metal steps, through the big blast doors and was in Daniel's arms. "Ohgod I missed you, I missed you, I missed you." He chanted into Daniel's ear.
Daniel closed his eyes, though the tears still slipped through, "Jack, I'm so sorry. I didn't want to leave you, I didn't, I swear!" He reveled in the strong arms that held him so securely.
Jack pulled back and took Daniel by his biceps, and began to shake him, "You ever pull a fucking stunt like that again and I'm gonna kick your ass from here to Kelowna! Understood?"
This made Daniel laugh through his tears, "Never again! I swear it!"
Teal'c exchanged a look with Sam and Alex who were in the gateroom now, "Daniel Jackson was found naked, again."
Sam snickered, and Jack looked at Teal'c, "Again?" he looked back at the love of his life, "What, Oma has a thing with clothes?"
Daniel took the handkerchief that Alex handed him and wiped his eyes, then blew his nose, "I have no idea. But I have all of my memories this time."
"Thank goodness for small favors." Jack said with feeling. He draped an arm over Daniel's shoulders, "Let's go see Doc Warner, then head to Mick's school. He needs to see you and tell me 'I told you so'."
"I missed you both." Daniel said softly. His eyes searched out Sam's and other familiar friends, and he smiled, "I missed everyone and everything."
~*
Mickey was listening to the teacher expound on a part of Egyptian history with absolutely no facts correct when the intercom beeped, "Mrs. Kelly, can you send Sean Jackson-Neal to the office please?"
"Ooooooohhhh." Everyone said, Jason giving Mick a reassuring pat on the back, "It was nice knowin' ya."
"Yadda." Mickey said, waving at the class as the door shut. He sauntered down to towards the office, wondering what Shawna was doing when he saw Daniel in the hallway.
"Dad!" He yelped and raced to his father, to be swallowed up in his open arms. There was the abrupt realization that they were the same height when he felt his dad smother a sob, "You're back." He whispered.
"I'm back." Daniel agreed, his eyes tightly closed as he absorbed the feel, the smell of his son. "I missed you Mick."
Mickey laughed, "Not as much as we missed you!" he looked at his other dad, "I told you so." He added triumphantly, and Jack threw back his head and laughed. Mickey thought he looked years younger.
Daniel chuckled then pulled back, "I can't believe it, I think you've grown!"
"I think that you're younger." Mickey replied frankly. It was true, there was still some gray in the temples but his hair was darker, and he looked, well, younger.
Jack eyed his lover with a perplexed expression, "I think he's right."
"Later." Daniel said firmly, "The principal said we can take you home early and that he'd get Jason or Kyle to gather up your homework and books."
Mickey grinned broadly, "Let's go, I've got stuff to tell you! I changed the brakes on the Mustang!" he began.
Jack listened with enormous contentment as his son and lover caught each other up on the news in their lives. They got into the truck and had just pulled out of the parking lot when Mick said, "Oh, and the guy who got Mom pregnant? His parents want to meet me."
The brakes squealed and Jack leaned around Daniel to glare at his son, "Can't that wait?"
Daniel patted Jack's leg, "It's ok Jack." He focused on his son, "Do you want to meet them?"
Mickey thought about Shawna, then nodded, "Yeah, I think that I do." He had yet to tell his dad's about Shawna.
Jack grunted, "Alex dug into them and they seem like nice people, not homophobic or anything."
Daniel nodded, "Then Mick should go."
"I want you both to go with me." Mickey said decisively.
"If that's what you want." Jack agreed, and Daniel squeezed his leg reassuringly while adding his agreement.
~*~*~
Julia Ryan looked out the window at the half circle drive and sighed again, "I can't wait Jimmy."
The elderly Jimmy Ryan smiled at his wife, "Any minute darling, just be patient."
The sound of a truck on gravel made both of them head to the door. Jimmy put his gnarled hands on his wife's shoulders, "Breathe."
Her blue eyes twinkled as she obediently took in a deep breath, "There, happy?" and the doorbell rang.
Mickey was nervous as he rang the doorbell. The door swung open and in the doorway two older people stared back at him. "Hi, I'm Mickey."
Charmed, Julia pulled him into a big hug, "Hi Mickey, I'm your grandmother." Her eyes met the sympathetic blue ones of the man standing behind her grandson. She pulled back and held out her hand, "I'm Julia Ryan."
Daniel smiled, "Daniel Jackson. And this is Jack Neal."
The older man held out his hand to Mickey, "I'm your grandfather Jimmy Ryan. It's nice to finally meet you."
"You too Sir." Mickey said formally.
"Come in, come in." Julia said, and everyone walked inside. Mickey was looking around curiously, wondering about these adults who'd suddenly dropped into his life. What he saw reassured him. There was tons of pictures of family, old sepia toned and black and white ones interspersed with color ones of Shawna and a couple that he assumed were her mother and their dad.
Daniel smiled and indicated the Chinese cloisonné vases on a table, "Beautiful vases."
Jimmy smiled, "I got them while in Tsing Tao China during World War II."
Jack's attention was caught, "Oh, what branch?"
"Navy. 20 year man." Was the proud answer.
"Ah, I was a Marine in Iraq and Afghanistan."
Julia gave a smile, "Everyone sit down and I'll bring refreshments." Anything to keep her hands busy and off of her grandson. She didn't want to scare him away.
Jack picked a comfortable looking chair while Daniel sat with Mickey on the leather couch. Jimmy picked up an embroidered pillow, scowling at it before winging it into an empty chair then settling into a nice well worn recliner. "Won't let her get rid of the old beast. The only thing I can sleep in when my back acts up." He explained gruffly.
Mickey grinned at Jack, then at his grandfather, "I have our old one in my bedroom. It was the one that I always watched T.V. in with my dads. It has alot of patches."
Daniel snorted, "It's almost older than Jack."
Julia shook her head as she came into the room, "It makes us women despair." She sat the tray on the table, "I have lemonade, Dr. Pepper or something stronger." She looked at Daniel and Jack.
"Something stronger." Mickey immediately piped up, then grunted as his dad thumped him on the head. "Or Dr. Pepper would be good."
Jimmy liked the kid, he had pluck, and nice manners which was a rarity nowadays. His eyes telegraphed his approval to his wife, who was already blindly in love with the boy. "So, we know you like sports. What else are you in to?" he asked.
Mickey sipped his Dr. Pepper, "I like cars, math, science, computers and languages."
Julia looked interested, "What languages do you speak?"
Mickey actually had to think, "Um, Latin, Spanish, French, low and high German, Italian..." he looked at Daniel, "What else Dad?"
"Arabic?" Daniel added.
His son waved a hand, "That was one of the first, um, and I'm beginning Chinese."
Both Jimmy and his wife were non-plussed, "That is a substantial accomplishment." She said.
Jack smiled, "Daniel is a linguist and Mick took to languages like a duck to water. He has the gift."
Jimmy regarded Mickey, "You know that I own MagnumCorp.?"
Mickey nodded, "Alex told me. You build and design really good security systems for the military."
"Alex?" Julia asked.
"My cousin." Daniel filled in.
"What are you going to do when you graduate?" Jimmy asked.
Both Jack and Daniel had prepared Mickey for this, questions that were about his future. They'd told him not to be insulted, it was an expression of love.
Mickey shrugged, "Maybe MIT, maybe the Academy. I don't know yet."
"There's been alot of interest from college baseball teams." Jack interjected proudly.
Daniel rolled his eyes, "There's more to life than sports."
Jack glanced at Mickey and they said, "Sacrilege!" in unison. This made the older couple laugh. The sound of the front door opening made everyone glance over, and Shawna and her Dad walked in.
"Grandpa and grandma!" she said cheerfully, then stopped at the sight of company, "Oh sorry, hey Mick."
Mickey stood, "Hey Shawna." And all of the adults stared at them.
"You know each other?" Michael Ryan asked. He looked between his daughter, and the son he'd never met before now.
Mickey and Shawna exchanged a look, and Shawna laughed, "Way to be on top of things Dad. We go to the same school!"
Jack and Daniel fixed Mickey with the 'look', and he shrugged, "I was gonna tell you."
Julia stood and gave her granddaughter a hug, then hugged her son. "Hello you two."
Jack stood and held out his hand, "I'm Jack Neal, and this is my partner Daniel Jackson."
Michael eyed the two men curiously, honestly surprised at how, well, 'non-gay' they were. "I'm Michael Ryan, pleased to meet you both." He shook their hands, then he looked at the tall boy who he realized was his son, "You must be Sean."
"Mickey." He and Shawna chorused, then laughed. "I go by Mickey." He picked up a glass and looked at Shawna who nodded. He poured her some lemonade and handed it to her, the ease of their interaction surprised the adults.
Shawna made a face, "Oh geez. You realize that we're Sean and Shawna."
"Yeah, we sound like a musical group, like Donny and Marie or something."
"Who's Donny and Marie?" Shawna asked. Daniel began to chuckle and Jack outright had to laugh. Even Michael shook his head, smiling, "Never mind. We'll get to your neglected pop culture education another time."
There was an awkward silence and Michael went over to his dad, "Hey old man. I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were having company. I thought the truck belonged to the foreman."
Jimmy smiled at his son, "Oh, it's no problem. It's about time you met the child that you engendered."
"Dad." Michael sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"It's ok Grandpa. Mickey has his own dads, he doesn't need Dad." Shawna said seriously.
The teenagers exchanged a knowing look, and Jack leaned forward in his seat, "Just how long have you two known each other?"
The girl on the verge of womanhood stuck out her tongue at Mickey who'd just thrown a balled up napkin at her, "Long enough for the big brother pain in the neck routine to get really old."
Mickey whistled and tried to look innocent, "Since October. Give or take." Shawna rolled her eyes at him, The grandparents watched all of this, thrilled that their two grandchildren got so well.
"Shawna's right though. I don't need her Dad, though I guess I'm glad to meet him." He looked at Michael, "She's told me a lot about you, and meeting you has satisfied my curiosity." He moved around the table and took her hand, "Dad's, this is my little sister, emphasis on little, Shawna." He grunted as she elbowed him sharply.
Both Jack and Daniel stood and greeted her like an adult, noticing the similarities between their son and his sister. Their hair was the exact shade of chestnut, their eyes had the same shape from their grandmother, though Mick's were blue and Shawna's were green. Their builds were similar, tall, long legged and broad shouldered without being bulky.
Jimmy looked at his son, "What do you think?"
Michael smiled at the kids, "I think that Mickey has enough parents in his life. I'd like to be a friend though." His eyes sought out Shawna's and she smiled in approval.
Mick regarded the man seriously, "I've learned that you can never have too many friends."
Daniel and Jack looked at each other, both ridiculously proud of their son.
~*~*
It was spring again and baseball season. Jack, Daniel, Sam, the Ferretti's, Mickey's grandparents, Shawna and her parents were all seated together in the bleachers. It had taken several months but now seeing each other at school and sporting events was now commonplace. Amanda Ryan pulled a soda out of the cooler and handed it to her daughter who passed it down to Daniel, "Come on Mickey! Hit a homerun for me!" Shawna put her fingers into her mouth and whistled shrilly, making her mother wince.
Mickey glanced up from the dugout and waved. "Geez Mick, your sister has a big mouth." Jason said cheerfully.
Kyle snickered, "And he want's to put his mouth against hers." Jason slugged his friend and Mickey made a pained face, "Ick. That's my ~sister~ you're talking about!"
The game went an extra 2 innings and Mickey's team squeaked out a win. Parents, team members form both teams, assorted kids and even a couple of big league scouts were mingling around when one of the guys from the other team swaggered up to Mickey, "Hey lesbo-boy."
Jack bristled but Amanda touched his arm, "Wait."
Shawna was looking particularly pretty, she was wearing red and gold to match the team's colors, a short skirt and a matching baseball t-shirt. She heard the other boy and walked up to him, "What did you say?"
Mickey stepped up, "It's ok Shawna."
The other boy sneered, "Yeah, listen to your boyfriend little girl."
Shawna tilted her head, and Daniel winced, he knew that look from his son. "Is it hard to be so stupid?" she asked, ignoring the interested crowd of people.
The boy gaped, "What?"
She rapped his chest with her fist, "You're a moron. First you have to a WOMAN to be a lesbian, and two he's my BROTHER! And I don't want to go on to three, it might make your brain hurt, assuming you actually have one."
Jason and Kyle had muscled their way up to stand on either side of Mickey and Shawna, and the other boy realized that he should cut his losses, "Well, whatever." And he turned around and walked off after his team mates.
"Oy." Shawna said with an eyeroll. Sam gaped at her, then looked at Daniel before beginning to laugh. Mickey turned to his sister and wrapped her in a sweaty bearhug, making her squeal.
"Thank you." He whispered.
Sam was laughing so hard she had tears running down her cheeks, and Jack put his arm around Amanda's shoulders, "Say, has she ever thought about the military?"
Amanda gave the handsome man a laughing look, "She's something else isn't she?" She looked over at her husband and smiled at him fondly.
Daniel only sighed, and elbowed Sam, "I heard it, stop laughing like a hyena."
Sam straightened up, wiping the tears from her cheeks, "It's too bad that the Alex and the General weren't here, but man, I can't wait to tell him and Teal'c when he visits." She snickered again.
Daniel smiled, thinking about his old friend. Jack O'Neill would be tickled pink.
