He still hadn't smiled. She had the disconcerting feeling that he might not smile ever again. Looking at him in the light of the moon reflecting off the water, she could easily see how much this was affecting him, how deeply he felt that they, that he, was truly alone. He was staring vacantly at the horizon and she felt a renewed pang of sadness. He had wanted to see this place for so long. It had been her fault he hadn't made it the first time. Of course, the General had since thanked her a few times for that intervention. She smiled slightly, then sobered at the sound of his sigh.

Looking back at Daniel, Vala knew she had to do something. He would just stand here all night beating himself up and wallowing in hopelessness. That was just unacceptable. Her first thought was suggesting they join the little shindig inside. Apparently, taking out a Wraith was cause for celebration in these parts. She thought taking out an Ori vessel too called for some heady drinks and a lot of partying. But she knew that was the last thing Daniel was going to be interested in right now. He had slipped out here as soon as he could after hearing from Sam and Mitchell.

So no party.

But there was a big city they could explore; and wasn't that what he had been dreaming of doing for a very long time now? Vala nodded to herself. They were supposed to go back to Earth tomorrow morning sometime after Sam helped McKay with something or other. And Mitchell had seemed to think he and that tall man with the odd hair...Sheppard was it? He seemed to think they needed to compare notes on weapons and enemies. From the way they were currently drinking and embellishing stories, Vala thought they would likely be up all night.

So she made her decision.

"Daniel, let's go."

He sighed again, leaning his head in his hands, elbows on the railing. He was so tired and not really looking forward to doing battle with Vala all night. He hadn't been thrilled when she had followed him out here, but she'd been quiet and rather supportive so far. Should have known it wouldn't last, he thought morosely. She was going to tug at him, cajole him and be her irritating self now. Shaking his head, he said, "No."

"You going to stand out here all night, darling? Because I can certainly think of better uses for your time."

"I'm sure you can." he muttered.

Vala just put her hand on his arm and said softly, "I just meant there is a whole city to explore. We have until tomorrow after all."

Daniel raised his head and looked at her closely. She had her hand on his arm and was so close he could smell the expensive perfume he was sure he had paid for with his long missing credit card. She looked beautiful and her grey eyes were very serious. She offered a tiny smile.

"You've wanted to see this place for years, Daniel. I think we should take advantage of the evening."

"We?" He asked, hesitant. They had reached some sort of equilibrium lately, but he still felt moments of inexplicable panic when he was around her. Especially when he was alone with her. He hated to admit it, but she scared him. However, now there was faint disappointment in her eyes. She'd been serious. He really needed to figure out how to read her and stop putting his own negative connotations on everything she said or did. They'd been through enough for him to know she was a friend.

He nodded slowly as she just watched him silently. "We don't know our way around."

Vala's smile brightened. "We are two seasoned space travelers, I am a pirate and you know how to read dusty old tomes. I think we stand a good chance of finding our way home."

Daniel nodded and turned as she started walking toward a door a few steps away down the balcony. He could see, and hear, the party going on in there and he was grateful, yet surprised, that Vala wasn't dragging him back inside. He stepped through the doorway behind her, finding himself in a narrow hallway on the edge of the revelry. He looked at Vala who was already halfway down the corridor. Just because he was in a bad mood didn't mean he should ruin her evening as well. He caught up with her and grabbed her arm. She looked at him, puzzled.

"Daniel?"

"Vala. Go back to the party. You wanted to have some fun here and enjoy the local drink specials. I'll go look around but there's no reason for you to miss out on all the fun."

Vala smiled. "Daniel, Muscles isn't here. Sam is constantly arguing with that McKay person and Mitchell and that man with the funny hair are acting like drunken fools. I'd much rather be with you."

He studied her silently.

She nodded and tentatively took his hand. "In most cases, darling, I'd rather be with you."

Daniel needed a lot of self control to keep from pulling his hand away and running, or kissing her, but there was a genuineness to her expression that held him to the spot. Fighting to control his breathing, he couldn't find words to speak but just nodded and let his hand relax around hers.
She smiled and gently tugged him down the hall.

For the next five hours, they roamed the nearly empty halls of Atlantis together. Daniel found the place every bit as enthralling as he had imagined. As they walked, he talked about the legend of Atlantis and read aloud any writing they found. Vala was a more than willing listener. Daniel was only partially surprised. She was an enigma, that was for sure. She loved shiny things and she loved to antagonize him. Even so, more often than not, when he was working in his lab, she had expressed seemingly genuine interest in his work.

She was a vivacious and dangerous woman; used to getting her way and wrapping people around her finger. Probably what scared him the most, though, was the spark of attraction he could no longer deny that he felt toward her. He'd only ever truly loved one woman. Before and after Sha're's death, he'd been completely sure he wouldn't ever fall in love again. The spark he felt whenever Vala was around made him extremely nervous. Even so, he was discovering that he felt more and more comfortable with her. After she returned from the Ori galaxy, he had felt like a missing piece had fallen back into place. A piece he hadn't even realized he was missing. He wasn't at all sure how this was going to develop, but at least now he didn't want to hit something every time Vala was around.

"So, Daniel, is it everything you hoped it would be?" She was asking, running a hand up and down his arm.

He nodded slowly, "I guess so. I don't know exactly what I expected. I thought it would be amazing, and it is. There's more here than I could ever study in several lifetimes."

Vala gently pulled him through a doorway that led out onto a pier overlooking the water. She asked softly, "You would rather stay here?"

Following her out, he studied the stars, the peaceful waters and sighed. "Sometimes I think I would."

Vala bit her lower lip. She had expected him to say that. General O'Neill had told her how much Daniel wanted to come to Atlantis. She had read between the lines how much the General didn't want him to go. He had, teasingly, told Vala that she wasn't allowed to let Daniel get lost in Atlantis. At least I think he was teasing me. It was sometimes very difficult to know with General O'Neill. Either way, it was her responsibility to bring him back. The General had muttered something about her being the only reason he felt comfortable with Daniel going in the first place. Vala wasn't quite sure what he'd meant by that, but she was taking her responsibility seriously. Clearly Daniel was discouraged and thought Atlantis was a better place to be than Earth.

She watched as he walked a few feet away and sat down, leaning back against one of the smaller buildings on the pier. When she'd first met him, back on the Prometheus, she'd thought he seemed quite the interesting man. He was exactly that, and more. Having joined his world, she was starting to realize he was also a man who carried some pretty heavy burdens. Taking a deep breath, Vala eased down next to him. Over time, she knew she had been losing some of her built in defense mechanisms. He was helping her change, whether he knew it or not. But help was a two way street and right now, he needed her help. Whether he knew it or not.

"Daniel."

"Hm?"

"This was nice."

"Yeah."

"I'm glad we took a walk."

"Me too."

She waited for more, but that was all he had to say for the time being. So she took her chances and snuggled up closer to him. To her surprise, he slid his arm up and around her shoulders. It felt good and she let her head drop onto his shoulder. It felt so nice. It felt so right. Vala could scarcely breathe lest she break the spell. If he was willing to hold her, she wasn't going to move a muscle. She couldn't deny that she had fallen in love with him. When exactly it had happened, she wasn't sure, but it was the plain simple fact. She loved Daniel Jackson.

The hours passed. Vala had dozed off at some point. She blinked slowly and yawned. The moon was lower in the sky and the hint of dawn was just barely touching the edges of the horizon. Her head was against Daniel's chest and she listened to him breathe for a few minutes. This was quite nice.

"Vala?"

"Hm?"

"Good morning."

She smiled, "Good morning, darling."

He watched as she sat up a bit straighter and looked at him. She looked beautiful in the pale light of morning. "Sleep well?"

"Mmhm. You?"

Daniel sighed, pulling off his glasses with his free hand and rubbed his eyes.

"That good?"

"A lot on my mind."

Vala liked that he still had his hand on her shoulder. "Daniel, you need to stop thinking so much."

He set his glasses down next to him and leaned his head back against the wall. "I know."

"Have you had fun?"

Daniel squinted at her. "Fun?"

"Yes, in Atlantis?"

He shifted slightly and sighed, "Well, it could have been better. I mean the Ancients aren't going to do anything to help us so I have to say I'm not as happy as I hoped I would be at this point."

"I know how I could make you happy." Vala lost her self-control and batted her eyelashes.

"Vala." Daniel put his glasses back on and shook his head.

"Sorry."

He blew out a breath. He should have known her good behavior would be short-lived.

"I'm really sorry, Daniel."

Turning slightly, Daniel met her eyes. She was serious. Most times it was hard to tell with her, but he was getting better at it.

"I had a nice time." She smiled tentatively.

He studied her for a moment, and then smiled a bit. "I'm glad we decided to take a walk."

She sat up and frowned at him. "Excuse me? We decided? I believe I had to drag you out of your blue punk..."

"Funk."

"Funk and make you take a tour of the city. Without me, you'd still be moping on that balcony."

He nodded, "Ok. You're right."

"I know." She beamed.

"We should probably head back."

"Yes, the rumors have got to be getting good by now."

"Oh crap." Daniel groaned. She was right. Everyone would be thinking...oh boy. Everybody would be thinking all sorts of the worst things imaginable. He pulled himself to his feet, dragging Vala up with him.

"Daniel, Daniel." She scolded. "Don't be so uptight. No one's going to believe that we've been up to anything out here...all alone...all night..."

"Vala!"

"Aw crap."

Sam couldn't hide her smile. He looked terrible. "Had a good night chatting with Colonel Sheppard, Cam?"

He pushed his head up from the table. "The man tried to kill me."

"Oh? The way I heard it, you were the one who started up the drinking contest."

"It wasn't a drinking contest, Sam." He had a feeling his bloodshot eyes gave him away. "We were just comparing..."

"Notes on our various enemies, yes, I know." Sam nodded. "Next time you want to compare notes, you might want to skip the liquor."

"Aw crap." He repeated, rubbing his head with one hand and grabbing the cup of coffee with his other.

Sam felt a pang, just a pang, of sympathy and didn't stop grinning. She had known the boys were going to get into trouble when they started the partying last night. She sipped her own coffee and took in the bustle of activity all around them. Atlantis had partied into the night, some later than others of course, but now they seemed to have returned to business as usual. She and Elizabeth had already spent some time finishing up some details regarding their trip back to Earth. Only a short time and they'd be back home.

She sighed. It had been a rather short trip to Atlantis; and busy. She would actually have loved to stay a bit longer. The city held fascinations not just for Daniel. Frowning, she felt like someone had just hit her.

"Daniel!"

"What?" Cam squinted at her blearily.

"Where's Daniel?"

"Don't know." He felt his head start to get back into gear. Sitting up a bit straighter, he asked, "Where's Vala?"

Sam's eyes widened. "I haven't seen either of them..."

"Since last night..."

"And the last I saw, they had stepped out onto that balcony." Sam pursed her lips thoughtfully. It seemed very odd.

Cam seemed to be finding his sense of humor. He smiled a bit. "You don't think..."

"No." Sam shook her head, but she didn't feel as confident as she thought she should.

"They've been gone all night."

"Miss us?"

Their heads snapped to the doorway as Vala's voice rang out cheerily. She had her arms twisted around Daniel's; a situation he was trying to change. He pulled his arm away and took a few steps closer to them. Vala just skipped along, clinging to him despite his efforts. He looked tired and a bit annoyed, but not as badly annoyed as Sam figured he would be given the way Vala was all over him.

"Yeah, whatcha been up to?" Cam asked a slight smile on his face.

Daniel glared at him. "We took a walk."

"All night?"

Before Daniel could answer, Vala piped up, "See, darling? I told you there would be rumors."

"Vala!"

"Rumors?" Cam leaned forward as Vala sat down next to him, grinning widely.

"Rumors of a sordid nature..." Vala stage whispered.

"Vala." Daniel repeated, more sternly.

"So, where did you guys walk?" Sam interjected. As amused as she was with the situation, she didn't want to harass Daniel too much. Yet.

Daniel shot her a grateful look. "We just followed our noses and explored quite a bit of the city."

For the next fifteen minutes, Daniel and Vala shared the tale of what they had found in the halls of Atlantis. Daniel smiled slightly, listening to Vala describe, with her usual enthusiasm, the various odd rooms they had discovered. She hadn't made any other untoward comments regarding what they'd been up to during the night. He was mildly surprised at her restraint, but very grateful. It was bad enough that Cam kept shooting them knowing looks. Crap. Just wait till Teal'c heard the rumors...

Daniel had barely walked through the door when his phone rang. He shook his head in frustration and dug through his coat pocket. Locking the door, he finally found the phone and answered it irritably, "What?"

There was a moment of silence on the line, then an amused, "That's a fine way to answer your phone, Daniel."

"Jack?"

"Well, yes. Just get in the door, didja?"

"How would you know that?" Daniel dropped onto the couch, shaking his head.

"Just got off the phone with Carter. She had the common courtesy to call and let me know she was back in the galaxy."

"I'm back in the galaxy, Jack."

"Yes, yes thank you very much. So? Well?"

"Well what?"

"For crying out loud, Daniel! You've given me fits about going to Atlantis over and over and over. And over and over. Finally, you went and you have nothing whatsoever to say about it?"

"It was fine."

"Fine? That's all you've got to say about it?"

"It was amazing, Jack. I could have stayed a very long time."

"No doubt."

"The knowledge and technology..."

"I hear that wasn't all that was so fascinating to you." Jack interrupted.

Daniel paused, frowning. "What did Sam say?"

"Oh, not Sam...Carter, I mean. Carter was all about that technology. She had nothing interesting to say."

Yeah right. Somehow Daniel knew better. Even as he thought about Jack and Sam having a conversation about Atlantis technology, he frowned, "Wait. What did you mean, not Sam? Who talked to you?" Please not Vala...

"Vala."

Crap!

"Yeah, Vala called me right up. She actually called before Sam did. And then she called again while I was talking to Sam."

"Oh, imagine that. Why does she have your number?"

"We have common interests." Jack sounded smug.

"Uhhuh. What did she say?"

"She just told me about your trip. Why so interested?"

"Jack. What did she say?"

"Oh, she told me about Morgan LeFay and her disappearing act. I have to tell ya, Daniel, those Ascended party-poopers are really starting to annoy me."

"Starting?"

"Ok, starting to annoy me is an understatement. I'm sick of the lot of them."

"Yeah." Daniel sighed, leaning his head back against the couch. "I kind of am too."

"Uh huh. Well, I'd say you have good reason to be sick of them. They did kick you out of their shiny membership club."

"Don't remind me." Daniel realized Jack had just veered the conversation away from Vala. "Jack, why did Vala call you?"

"She just called to tell me she completed her mission."

Daniel sat back up, "What mission?"

"She brought you back. I didn't think you would end up staying, not now, but I wanted to make sure..."

"What are you talking about?"

"I told her to make sure you came back."

Daniel dropped back against the couch and let his arm fall to the cushions. He groaned. This was worse than he thought. Not only was Vala out to get him, now Jack was helping! He did not need this. He could hear Jack's voice calling his name over the phone. Forcing himself to lift the phone back up to his ear, he asked, "Jack, why?"

"Why? Why what?"

"Why are we having this conversation?"

"Because I am the General and I need to know what is going on at the SGC and Atlantis."

Daniel took a slow breath. "Why are you talking to Vala?"

"I like her."

"Jack."

"I do. She's got spunk."

"That's an interesting word for it."

"Daniel, you should take her out."

Silence.

"Daniel, I'm serious."

Continued silence. Daniel felt slightly like he was in the twilight zone. What was this world coming to?

"I can hear you breathing, so you might as well talk to me, Daniel."

"Jack..." He started weakly.

"All I'm saying is you should get her off the base. Take her to a movie or get her ice cream."

"Ice cream?"

"Or something. She's only going to get crazier if you keep her cooped up all the time. She wants to see a bit more of Earth."

"I don't know."

"Just think about it. She said she had a good time with you last night wandering the dark and unchaperoned halls of Atlantis..."

"Jack!"

"What? She said you guys slept out under the stars..."

"I did not sleep."

"Oh? Occupied in some other way?"

"Stop it. I spent the night thinking, and looking at the stars."

"They tell you anything?"

Daniel sighed. "Not really."

"Maybe you should stop thinking so much."

"Are you actually telling me to do something without thinking?"

"Possibly for the first time, yes."

"Jack, I don't think..."

"There you go again, thinking. Daniel, for once in your life, don't do this to yourself. Give it a chance."

"It?"

"You know what I mean."

Daniel sighed.

"I'm not saying run head long into anything. I'm just saying give yourself a chance. You know, just two friends and coworkers out for dinner."

Two friends and coworkers out for dinner. Daniel ran the phrase through his mind a few times. Hm. That could work.

"Daniel?" Jack was sounding a bit concerned. "You still there?"

"Yes, Jack, I was just..."

"Thinking. I know. I could hear you. What did I just say?"

"I was listening."

"You often do. It's the following through on anything I say that is rare."

"I'm not promising anything at this point."

"Ok. So long as you don't dismiss it out of hand, I'm content. Now, I'll have to get the rest of the dirt on Atlantis from you later..."

Daniel smiled, "Oh? Got something more important to do?"

"Well, yes, actually. I had an important call that got interrupted earlier by your girlfriend."

"She is not my girlfriend." Daniel sat up and practically shouted into the phone.

"Right." There was absolutely no conviction whatsoever in Jack's voice, "Anyhoo...so I really need to call my not girlfriend back."

"Yes please do and stop bugging me."

"Hey, you should be thanking me for letting you go in the first place. Remember, I was the one who signed off on you taking that little two week journey to another galaxy."

"Yes, thank you Jack for finally letting me go to Atlantis."

"You're welcome. Bye."

Daniel stared at the phone and laughed. Obviously Jack was quite eager to get back to his important call. Tossing the phone to the other end of the couch, Daniel was considering taking a nap when the phone rang again. Glancing at the caller ID, he was only a pinch surprised to see Space Pirate listed. Obviously she had gotten a hold of his phone. Again.

Daniel sighed as the phone continued to ring. He basically had told Jack he'd consider his advice. So he would. He would consider it for a good long while. There was no way he was going to do anything crazy right now. Nope. Not gonna say anything to her about ice cream or dinner. Not happening. In fact, he shouldn't even answer. Shouldn't talk to her at all. For crying out loud, it had only been a few hours since he'd seen her last and they'd been stuck together for days before that! Why should he even talk to her right now? There was nothing she had to say that couldn't wait till tomorrow, no reason he shouldn't ignore her and enjoy his evening. Just ignore it.

Without another thought, he flipped the cover and answered, "Vala, how did you get your hands on my phone?"

The End

The 'two friends and coworkers' line in Momento Mori just never really quite sounded like Daniel to me. :) I just had this sneaking suspicion he was using a line from someone else and I, of course, assumed it was Jack who gave him the tip. Hope you enjoyed! :)