A/N: I never mean any offense to the Marine Corps when I call them jarheads in my fiction. I just remember that line from 'Broca Divide' when Jack called Makepeace's SG-3 Marines jarheads and it tickled me. I figure with the way Makepeace called Jack 'fly-boy' that there's some kind of relatively good-natured rivalry going on and I like to capitalize on it.
A/N 2: I'm still worried that my Daniel/Vala interactions are off, but I have only seen Prometheus Unbound in my own defense. So I fleshed out Vala's character in my own way. I didn't want to write a whole back-story for her, as that might have been covered in S9, but just hinted at possible vulnerability. So forgive me if this doesn't sit right with you.
Three months later
Daniel Jackson had seen Jack in a restless mood before. The man was nearly always restless, after all. In fact, if you could harness his nervous energy, there'd be no need for ZPMs to get to the Pegasus Galaxy.
But there was restless, and there was restless. "I just … I should be in there," Jack said, not stopping his stalking from one end of the Infirmary to the other. His eyes were wild, his hair even wilder, and he hadn't shaved for two days. The nursing staff had soon learned to make a hole for him, and were currently working around him.
After all, you did not cross a Major General. Especially one who was about to become a father.
"It's been thirty hours, Daniel!" Jack burst out. "I have to be in there with her."
"She indicated most strongly that you should stay here, O'Neill," Teal'c said, getting up and standing in front of Jack so that he was forced to stop.
Yeah; she'd bitten him on the hand when he'd tried to soothe her. And had sworn crudely in several languages Daniel had never realized she knew. He'd refused to translate the last insult; a little disturbed that he even knew what it meant. But he didn't think it was physically possible to do what she'd threatened.
"Jack!" A sharp cry came from the makeshift delivery unit and Carolyn Lam poked her dark head out from between the curtains.
"General O'Neill, sir; your wife wants you," she said, pushing a hand through her hair.
Jack shoved his own hand through his hair, then squared his shoulders and disappeared behind the curtains.
Daniel heard him murmur something to Sam; she murmured something back. Then it was silent.
Deathly silent.
Daniel looked over at his other best friend. "Thirty hours is a long time," he said, able to admit his worry now that Jack had gone.
Teal'c nodded his head. "It is, but Colonel O'Neill is a strong woman — she will prevail," he said.
As if to prove his words, Sam gave a muted shriek, then a lusty yell rang through the Infirmary. Jack's untidy silver head poked out through the curtains. "A boy!" he yelped before disappearing once more.
Daniel punched Teal'c in the shoulder; the usually eloquent linguist had no words for the joy he felt at the moment. "Yes!" he exulted. Teal'c just looked at him with a raised eyebrow and a small smirk.
"Unauthorized off-world activation!" the PA blared out. "All defense units on stand-by!"
Vala Mal Doran stepped off of the ramp and smiled beatifically at the group of SFs. "Stand down, boys," she said mockingly, waving her … what was it again? Oh, right … GDO.
She placed a hand on a hip and looked up at the control room, seeing the large form of General Landry standing there. A good solid leader with a slightly acidic sense of humor — she liked him quite well, although not as much as Jack and Daniel, her two favorite Tauri males.
Speaking of whom … "Where's Daniel?" she inquired sweetly of one of the SFs.
"In the Infirmary, ma'am!" he replied smartly.
Vala closed her eyes. He hadn't injured himself again, had he? He was quite accident-prone, after all. "Is he well?" she said, a little more anxiety showing in her tone than she was comfortable with. Why was she so drawn to the Tauri? It couldn't just be because of his handsome face and strong body. She'd felt sexual attraction on many occasions — capitalized on her own attractiveness — but her feelings toward Daniel were different somehow.
That was worrying.
"Oh no, ma'am," the SF was quick to reassure her. "Colonel O'Neill is giving birth and she wanted all her friends there."
"Sam?" She looked up at General Landry, telegraphing her wish to go the Infirmary.
The older man looked down at her, then leaned into his mike. "Report to the Infirmary, Vala; we'll debrief later," he said.
Vala sent him a dazzling smile of thanks, then headed out of the embarkation room and to the Infirmary.
It was surprising how much she had missed this place in the last few months. She was a wanderer by nature, never staying in one place too long, always searching out the next new thrill. Yet she'd come to enjoy Sam's friendship, Jack's sense of humor, Daniel's odd mixture of reticence and quick temper.
She walked into the Infirmary and slid her arms around Daniel's waist from behind, kissing the back of his neck. "Hello, handsome," she breathed.
He yelped and turned round. "Vala!" he said. "Uh … what're you doing here?"
"What?" she asked innocently. "A girl can't drop by and catch up with old friends?"
He narrowed his eyes at her. "Friends don't steal credit cards and go mall-hopping," he said.
Vala shrugged her shoulders. "I was bored," she explained.
Not surprisingly, Daniel was less than impressed with that explanation. "I'm not in the mood for one of your little head-games, Vala," he said, gripping her elbow with a surprisingly hard hand and leading her out into the corridor. "We're not here for your amusement. Perhaps you were a Goa'uld for so long you've forgotten that."
That hurt, but she wasn't going to let him see that. "I have none of your Earth currency, Daniel; how did you think I was going to purchase items?"
"You could have asked," Daniel said, gripping her arm even more tightly if possible. "I would have given you some money just to get you out of my hair. Or Jack. For some reason, Jack actually likes you. He would've helped you out." He looked her in the eyes. "But no … you have to mess with people; lie, cheat and steal. And you wonder why no-one wants to be around you?"
Vala stared at the handsome Tauri, surprised at how badly his cutting words hurt her. She could usually laugh off people's dislike of her — after all, they were perfectly entitled to like or dislike her as they chose. So, why could she not do that this time? Was Daniel's opinion that important to her?
Unfortunately, it seemed so.
Daniel let go of the infuriating woman's arm, not quite sure where all the anger had come from, and stalked back into the Infirmary. He was a little surprised when Vala didn't immediately follow him back in, but had to admit he was relieved also. She was such a … such a …
Beautiful, sexy woman?
Big, honkin' pain in the mikta! Daniel found the Goa'uld terminology very apt, considering who he was describing. He nudged his large Jaffa friend. "Anything more yet, Teal'c?" he asked.
"You must be patient, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c replied. "It has only been a few minutes since the first child was born — Doctor Lam indicated that it may be another hour before the second one is delivered."
Another muted cry came from Sam, then another indignant wail sounded out.
"Or perhaps not," Teal'c added a trifle lamely.
One silver head poked out of the curtains again. "A girl!" Jack said, his grin so large it looked like his face was about to split in half.
"Congratulations, O'Neill," Teal'c said.
"Yeah, Jack; you deserve it," Daniel said. "Tell Sam we'll come see her soon, huh?" he added. "I think you guys deserve some time alone together."
"Right," Jack said and disappeared once more.
Daniel and Teal'c looked at each other. "A damn good day, huh?" Daniel said from under a massive yawn. God … if he was tired from the long delivery, imagine how Sam must be feeling right now!
"Agreed, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c said. He dipped his head as they passed Vala, who was standing near the doorway looking remarkably subdued. "Hello again," he greeted the woman.
"Teal'c," she said. She aimed a small smile at Daniel. "So … a boy and a girl? I bet Jack is thrilled."
Daniel was willing to accept an olive branch, especially as he had the uncomfortable feeling he might have gone too far and hurt her feelings. Yes; she drove him insane, but she didn't deserve to be treated like a common household pest. "I think he's going to be grinning like the Cheshire Cat for days to come!" he said.
"I will bid you good night, Daniel Jackson, Vala," Teal'c said. He gave another minute bow of his head, then disappeared swiftly along the corridor.
Vala looked at Daniel quizzically. "Are cats not a domesticated animal here? How do they smile?"
Daniel had to chuckle at that one. "Right, sorry," he said. "It's from a book written in our 19th century. It was considered quite subversive in its time. It's about a little girl who finds herself in a strange realm and what she goes through there."
Vala looked at him thoughtfully. "I … see," she said. "I think this strange realm is birth, Daniel," she added. "You don't imagine anything about life actually makes sense, do you?"
Daniel considered that one. The woman had a point. After everything he had gone through in the last decade, he sometimes felt like all he had was more questions. "Hmmm," he grunted, deciding that he liked this thoughtful Vala. She was a lot more intelligent than she liked to act and had an interesting viewpoint on life. He squeezed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "I need coffee," he said. "You want to join me?"
Vala smiled at him. Not the usual wide smile that she gave but a softer, more gentle one. "All right," she said. She eyed him as they walked along the corridors. "I am … sorry about taking your credit card," she said. "It didn't occur to me that you might be willing to help."
Somehow, Daniel thought he'd found the chink in Vala's armor. It had never occurred to her that people might want to help her; to share with her. The Goa'uld had taken from her; she had taken from everyone else. She felt alone. Daniel had been lonely for much of his life before that eventful trip to Abydos — he wouldn't wish it on anyone. "It's all right," he said, ushering her into the elevator. "So … what did you buy?"
She gave him a slightly wider smile and patted the backpack Jack had given her. "They're in here," she said. "Maybe you'll get to see them tonight?"
He blinked at her, then punched the button to take them up several levels — to where the commissary was. "Sorry?" he asked.
She snaked her arms around him and punched the stop button, then nuzzled the back of his neck. "Nightwear, Doctor," she breathed. "Soft, revealing nightwear in a variety of colors and designs."
"Oh. Uhm …". Her soft breath on the back of his neck and her curvy form pressing against him reminded him just how long it had been since he'd last been with a woman. And even though she was a complete nut-job, she was a beautiful, sexy one too.
He turned in her embrace and looked into the dark eyes. "You know; you've done nothing but infuriate me and confuse me since we met," he told her. He brushed some hair out of her eyes. "But there's … something about you." He pressed a kiss to her lips, then gave a muffled yelp as her hands slid down his back to squeeze his butt.
She was a thief.
She was a liar.
She was a certifiable whack-job.
But she was his thief, liar and certifiable whack-job.
THE END
Thanks for all the great reviews and for your tolerance of any S9 details I might have flubbed (apparently Sam and Vala met during Season 9. Mea culpa!). I think I'll stick to pre-S9 or AUs for the future. Toodles!