The Games People Play Chapter 21--Intentions
Title: Intentions
Author: Lionchilde
Summary: AU "...Her methods may have been questionable, DanielJackson, but her intentions were honorable..."
Rating: PG for mild language
Length: Around 1050 words
Category: Angst/Humor
Pairings/Charaters: Daniel/Vala; team friendship; Sam/Jack
A/N: Part 21 of The Games People Play. The series follows current cannon to the end of 10x09, Company of Thieves. Takes place around Thanksgiving. Written for fic101.
Intentions
"How could you--why would you--what were you--" Daniel sputtered as he paced the floor of her hotel room, almost incoherent with anger and disbelief. His hands rose and fell with each abortive exclamation, and finally he froze, spinning to face her.
"I was trying to help!" Vala shouted back, her chin rising in defiance.
"I told you to stay out of it!" he cried, slapping his arms against his sides.
Vala's eyes narrowed. "You told me?" she repeated.
"Don't change the subject," Daniel shook his head. "This--this isn't about us right now. What did you think you were doing?"
"Sam is the first real friend I've had in a very long time. She said that one of them would have to be dying in order for Jack to come around, so I made him think she was. I wanted to see her happy, Daniel. That's all. What's wrong with that?" she challenged.
"What's wrong with it?" he repeated. "Vala, you--you can't just manipulate people to get what you want! You scared Jack to death. You owe them both an apology!"
"Oh, really," she scowled darkly, stomping toward the door. She pulled it open and turned to glare at him again. "Well, if I do, Daniel, it's not up to you to tell me. Goodnight."
"What?" his mouth popped open in surprise.
Vala gestured toward the hallway. "Your room's that way. Go find it."
"Fine!" he snapped back, stalking past her. He halted, whirling around again, but before he could actually take a step, the door slammed shut in his face. He blinked and clenched his teeth. "Fine."
***
"Sir--Jack--she didn't mean--" Sam began, biting her lip.
"What?" Jack stopped pacing and spun around. "She didn't mean what? She told me you were dying!"
His voice broke on the word and Sam held out her hand to him, her brow creasing sympathetically. "I know. But in a way it was my fault."
He sighed and crossed the room to take the hand she offered. "You wanna run that by me again?"
"We were talking about--us," Sam explained with a sigh of her own. "I said that one of us would have to by dying before…"
She trailed off, and Jack raised his eyes to the ceiling. "Y'know, Carter, that's--Sam--"
She covered her mouth with her free hand to stifle a laugh. "That's a little hard to get used to, isn't it?"
"Yeah," he agreed, sliding onto the edge of the bed. His fingers moved to comb a stray lock of hair back behind her ear, and he smiled, regarding her thoughtfully for a moment. Her gaze flicked uncomfortably to her lap, and he frowned, tilting her chin back up to face him. "What?"
"We don't have to, you know," she said, biting her lip again.
"Don't have to?" he repeated.
"Get used to it," she went on painfully.
Jack tensed. "Are you--saying no?"
"No," she said quickly. "But--you thought I was dying. You weren't thinking clearly."
He glanced away as well. On the way to the hospital, his head had been full of nothing but the painful realization of ten wasted years and a chance he might never have again. He'd told himself that the galaxy could damned well get along without him; that if she recovered all he cared about was being with her. He'd sworn, too, that this time he meant it.
Slowly, he met her gaze again, and the muscle in his lower jaw quivered as he forced out the words, "I love you."
"I know," she replied, her eyes filling with tears as she brought her hand to his cheek. "I love you too."
***
The door burst open and Cam winced as Daniel charged into the room. He and Teal'c were, as usual, sitting at the poker table, but the game had been abandoned as soon as Jack's irate phone call had told them exactly what Vala had done. Daniel had gone to confront her with Jack's accusation, and since then, the other two members of the team had simply been waiting.
"How'd it go, Jackson?" he ventured.
"How do you think it went?" Daniel snapped, then paused and let out a sigh. "Sorry."
"S'ok," Cam nodded, watching as Daniel flopped into a chair and massaged his forehead with his fingertips. With a brief glance at Teal'c, the young CO took a step toward their teammate. "C'mon, Jackson. Y'know, she was just tryin'a help…in her own weird, Vala way."
Daniel's hand dropped onto the arm of the chair and his head shot up. "Well maybe she should stop trying to help. She can't just play with people's lives like that! It's like she has no respect for people's privacy or feelings or... Just-- gah! She makes me so crazy!"
Cam and Teal'c shared another glance, but before either could speak, Daniel had leapt to his feet again and begun to pace. "I mean, what if Sam had done that to her? Saying something like that about me? I don't think she'd see it as so innocuous."
"Although her methods were questionable, DanielJackson, her intentions were honorable," Teal'c spoke up.
"That--that--that's not the point!" sputtered Daniel. "She just had no right! No right!"
"You yourself have acted similarly on numerous occasions," Teal'c replied calmly.
Daniel's jaw dropped. "I--what?"
"Your actions in bringing Lotan to meet the people of the Enkaren village were ill-advised and in violation of O'Neill's orders," the Jaffa reminded his friend. "Your objective, however, was not."
"Yeah," nodded Cam. "And what about that mission with the eugenics war?"
"What?" Daniel's eyes widened. "How do you know anything about that? You--you weren't even there! Oh, never mind, you've--"
"Memorized every mission report," Cam cut him off with a grin. Then, he looked up at the ceiling in thought, snapped his fingers and began to rattle off mission specifics almost too fast for even Daniel to follow.
"Okay, okay, Mitchell," the archaeologist sighed in defeat. "I'll go talk to her."
He walked off into the hall again and Cam followed him to the door, shutting it behind him. Turning to Teal'c again, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Y'think she'll let him in?"
"It is unlikely," Teal'c replied.
"Looks like it's gonna be a long night then," Cam agreed.
"I believe it is your deal, ColonelMitchell," Teal'c said.
Author: Lionchilde
Summary: AU "...Her methods may have been questionable, DanielJackson, but her intentions were honorable..."
Rating: PG for mild language
Length: Around 1050 words
Category: Angst/Humor
Pairings/Charaters: Daniel/Vala; team friendship; Sam/Jack
A/N: Part 21 of The Games People Play. The series follows current cannon to the end of 10x09, Company of Thieves. Takes place around Thanksgiving. Written for fic101.
Intentions
"How could you--why would you--what were you--" Daniel sputtered as he paced the floor of her hotel room, almost incoherent with anger and disbelief. His hands rose and fell with each abortive exclamation, and finally he froze, spinning to face her.
"I was trying to help!" Vala shouted back, her chin rising in defiance.
"I told you to stay out of it!" he cried, slapping his arms against his sides.
Vala's eyes narrowed. "You told me?" she repeated.
"Don't change the subject," Daniel shook his head. "This--this isn't about us right now. What did you think you were doing?"
"Sam is the first real friend I've had in a very long time. She said that one of them would have to be dying in order for Jack to come around, so I made him think she was. I wanted to see her happy, Daniel. That's all. What's wrong with that?" she challenged.
"What's wrong with it?" he repeated. "Vala, you--you can't just manipulate people to get what you want! You scared Jack to death. You owe them both an apology!"
"Oh, really," she scowled darkly, stomping toward the door. She pulled it open and turned to glare at him again. "Well, if I do, Daniel, it's not up to you to tell me. Goodnight."
"What?" his mouth popped open in surprise.
Vala gestured toward the hallway. "Your room's that way. Go find it."
"Fine!" he snapped back, stalking past her. He halted, whirling around again, but before he could actually take a step, the door slammed shut in his face. He blinked and clenched his teeth. "Fine."
***
"Sir--Jack--she didn't mean--" Sam began, biting her lip.
"What?" Jack stopped pacing and spun around. "She didn't mean what? She told me you were dying!"
His voice broke on the word and Sam held out her hand to him, her brow creasing sympathetically. "I know. But in a way it was my fault."
He sighed and crossed the room to take the hand she offered. "You wanna run that by me again?"
"We were talking about--us," Sam explained with a sigh of her own. "I said that one of us would have to by dying before…"
She trailed off, and Jack raised his eyes to the ceiling. "Y'know, Carter, that's--Sam--"
She covered her mouth with her free hand to stifle a laugh. "That's a little hard to get used to, isn't it?"
"Yeah," he agreed, sliding onto the edge of the bed. His fingers moved to comb a stray lock of hair back behind her ear, and he smiled, regarding her thoughtfully for a moment. Her gaze flicked uncomfortably to her lap, and he frowned, tilting her chin back up to face him. "What?"
"We don't have to, you know," she said, biting her lip again.
"Don't have to?" he repeated.
"Get used to it," she went on painfully.
Jack tensed. "Are you--saying no?"
"No," she said quickly. "But--you thought I was dying. You weren't thinking clearly."
He glanced away as well. On the way to the hospital, his head had been full of nothing but the painful realization of ten wasted years and a chance he might never have again. He'd told himself that the galaxy could damned well get along without him; that if she recovered all he cared about was being with her. He'd sworn, too, that this time he meant it.
Slowly, he met her gaze again, and the muscle in his lower jaw quivered as he forced out the words, "I love you."
"I know," she replied, her eyes filling with tears as she brought her hand to his cheek. "I love you too."
***
The door burst open and Cam winced as Daniel charged into the room. He and Teal'c were, as usual, sitting at the poker table, but the game had been abandoned as soon as Jack's irate phone call had told them exactly what Vala had done. Daniel had gone to confront her with Jack's accusation, and since then, the other two members of the team had simply been waiting.
"How'd it go, Jackson?" he ventured.
"How do you think it went?" Daniel snapped, then paused and let out a sigh. "Sorry."
"S'ok," Cam nodded, watching as Daniel flopped into a chair and massaged his forehead with his fingertips. With a brief glance at Teal'c, the young CO took a step toward their teammate. "C'mon, Jackson. Y'know, she was just tryin'a help…in her own weird, Vala way."
Daniel's hand dropped onto the arm of the chair and his head shot up. "Well maybe she should stop trying to help. She can't just play with people's lives like that! It's like she has no respect for people's privacy or feelings or... Just-- gah! She makes me so crazy!"
Cam and Teal'c shared another glance, but before either could speak, Daniel had leapt to his feet again and begun to pace. "I mean, what if Sam had done that to her? Saying something like that about me? I don't think she'd see it as so innocuous."
"Although her methods were questionable, DanielJackson, her intentions were honorable," Teal'c spoke up.
"That--that--that's not the point!" sputtered Daniel. "She just had no right! No right!"
"You yourself have acted similarly on numerous occasions," Teal'c replied calmly.
Daniel's jaw dropped. "I--what?"
"Your actions in bringing Lotan to meet the people of the Enkaren village were ill-advised and in violation of O'Neill's orders," the Jaffa reminded his friend. "Your objective, however, was not."
"Yeah," nodded Cam. "And what about that mission with the eugenics war?"
"What?" Daniel's eyes widened. "How do you know anything about that? You--you weren't even there! Oh, never mind, you've--"
"Memorized every mission report," Cam cut him off with a grin. Then, he looked up at the ceiling in thought, snapped his fingers and began to rattle off mission specifics almost too fast for even Daniel to follow.
"Okay, okay, Mitchell," the archaeologist sighed in defeat. "I'll go talk to her."
He walked off into the hall again and Cam followed him to the door, shutting it behind him. Turning to Teal'c again, he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Y'think she'll let him in?"
"It is unlikely," Teal'c replied.
"Looks like it's gonna be a long night then," Cam agreed.
"I believe it is your deal, ColonelMitchell," Teal'c said.