Welcome to the AU of my AU! Here is the place for crossovers, alternate timelines or anything else which would stretch the "In a better future" verse too much.

In the first chapter we address an important question: What if Daniel Jackson had a godfather?

Enjoy!

Daniel woke up in a hospital bed, disoriented and alarmed.

It was dark, and aside from a faint beeping nothing could be heard.

"Mama? Baba?" he called out hoarsely. He had only once been in a hospital before, and one of his parents had been next to his bed the entire time.

But neither his mother nor his father answered. Instead there was a low grunt from the chair next to the bed, and then a dark figure leaned over towards him.

Danny wanted to scream, but didn't find his breath - and then the figure switched on the lamp on the bedside table, and turned from a terrifying stranger into a vaguely familiar man.

"Hello, Danny. Do you remember me?" The man asked in a kind voice, and smiled at the boy.

Danny frowned in concentration. He had seen him before, a few years ago at a digsite in Egypt, and he also had a photograph of him and his parents at the university - "Uncle Indy?" he asked, incredulous. "What are you doing here?"

Uncle Indy was actually Daniel's godfather, and he was an archaeologist, too. As both him and Daniel's parents had been on different digs for as long as Danny could remember, he hadn't seen much of the man. But he always sent cookies or other tasty things for birthdays, and a few letters in between.

Indy reached out, and took Daniel's hand.

"What is the last thing you remember?"

Daniel thought about it. "We were coming to New York, mama and baba have an exhibition at the Museum. We were eating breakfast at the hotel..."

Daniel trailed off and shrugged. Afterwards his memory was blank.

Indy sighed. "I'm sorry, Danny. There has been an accident. Your parents -" His voice broke and Daniel saw with shock that there were tears in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, honey, they're gone."

"No," Danny whispered in horror, face white as a sheet. "That was a nightmare, it wasn't real, the stone..."

He started shaking, and Indy swept him up into his arms.

They both were crying openly now, and Daniel clung to his godfather for dear life.

He wanted it to be not real, to wake up and find his parents sleeping peacefully in the next room. But deep down he knew that it was indeed true.

It took a long time for Danny to calm down. His uncle Indy held him securely in his arms, and rubbed his back, and that helped.

At long last Daniel sat up, and wiped at his eyes.

Indy handed him a fresh handkerchief, so he blew his nose, and handed it back.

"What happens now?" Daniel asked in a small voice.

"Well. Your parents wanted me to take care of you. Would you like that?"

Daniel studied the open face of his godfather seriously. The presents and letters had always been thoughtful and nice. When his baba told stories from his days at the university, Indy always featured heavily as a great friend he had lots of fun with.

Still, there were a few things Danny needed to know first. "Where would we live?"

"I have a house in Fairfield, that's about 60 miles from here."

"What about when you're on a dig?"

"I was planning on taking you along, just like your parents did."

Daniel nodded, then looked thoughtful. "Can I have ice cream for breakfast?" He had had his first taste of ice cream just a few days ago, and thought it was the best thing ever invented.

That startled a real laugh out of Indy, and he ruffled Daniel's hair with a grin. "Nice try, squirt. The answer's no. Ice cream is a treat, not a breakfast food."

Daniel smiled, and leaned forwards for a hug. "Okay. I'd like to come live with you, uncle Indy."

Indy hugged him back, and pressed a kiss to his hair. "Thank you. I'm very glad. Why don't you catch a little more sleep, and in the morning I'll show you your new home, okay?"

"'Kay," Danny agreed. But when Indy tried to lift him back into bed, he clung to the man, suddenly feeling anxious.

"You're not gonna leave, are you?"

Indy shook his head. "Of course not, honey. I'll be right here in this chair."

Then, when Danny made no move to let go of him, he settled more comfortably into the chair. "You know what, we can sit here a little while longer. Have you heard the story of the Crystal skull yet?"

Daniel shook his head, and leaned against his godfather. He felt safe on uncle Indy's lap. In the morning things would look brighter, that's what his mama always said.

Danny let the calm voice wash over him until sleep welcomed him.

And that's it so far, my lovelies. Let me know if you want to see more of Danny and his uncle Indy (who is, of course, Indiana Jones).

The timelines have been moved up, so that Indy went to university together with Daniel's father Melburn, and they became best friends. As for the Crystal skull – well, that's a story for another time! ;)

This will be a collection of different alternate futures and/or pasts, so anything you've always wanted to see: Feel free to request! Crossovers are especially welcome.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!