Eight months ago…

Major General Samantha Carter-O'Neill, head of Stargate Command, sat quietly at her desk, her head in her hands. The move to the Pentagon had gone smoothly, as smoothly as it could have gone considering the circumstances. She had always expected General Landry to return home from the DC Task Force, so much so she never even put any of her personal items into the SGC main office at Cheyenne. Hell, she was put in charge of attacks against the Lucian Alliance, all while she was still left in unofficial command of a place that had become her life. And fortunately for her, as that room was decimated in the Lucian attack. That room and so many others. She'd expected Landry to return, and take charge, send Sam back to Atlantis, which remained safely shielded in San Francisco Bay, but no. The call had come from her husband, of all people, on a Sunday morning, one she had hoped to enjoy with tea in peace...

"Hello," she answered, confused as to why Homeworld Command would be calling on a weekend, this early no less.

"Sam, hey, so, well, Landry…"

He didn't need to say anymore. The decision had apparently been made ages ago, but given the controversy when Sam & Jack did run off and get married, it was hard enough for Jack to justify the promotion of his wife, let alone making her a direct report. But as Landry was needed in other areas, areas Jack would not specify, no one could really argue who should be in charge of this aspect of the Stargate program.

What was left of it.

Sam had spent more time in her and Jack's small apartment in Colorado Springs than she had ever spent at home for her entire career. After the attack, most of the SGC had been roped off for investigators, bureaucrats, anyone but those people she felt belonged there. This had sent Daniel, in particular, into a rampage, as he could not get to his lab, which seemed to be what was helping him hold on.

So, when that fateful call came, when she was promoted to Major General, when she was handed permanent control of the SGC, and SGC that was being moved to Homeworld Command in the Pentagon, she should have been happy.

Instead, her anxiety flared in a way that it never had before, as she understood the underlying message in her husband's official phone call.

Fix it Sam, he said without words, clearly reading from a script he had been given, take the mess these bureaucratic morons have done with the program and make it right...

Now, sitting here at her desk in the new main office of the SGC, Sam thought back to how she had spent these chaotic months, trying to do just that.

One of her first tasks upon arrival had been to reassemble teams. She had asked Daniel to help her, knowing that one of her closest friends was someone she could trust. It had been harder than she had thought, her memory flashing to the look on Daniel's face as they looked at the sorted piles…

"Of the active teams, there are only three complete. Out of 30 teams…" he had said as he sat back down, pouring himself a third coffee.

"29," she corrected, "SG-1 hasn't been active since the Destiny was…

"I know," Daniel grumbled, "I know."

"Have you heard from Vala?" Sam pushed, knowing it was still a sensitive issue. She had honestly been quite surprised that this timeline had not turned out like their time on the Prometheus, but she could only assume circumstances had a lot to do with that.

"Yeah, she's fine," the archaeologist answered shortly, "she sent word once she arrived at Cerador."

"Cerador?"

Daniel shrugged, "She doesn't tell me where intelligence sends her, never did. Either way, she's fine."

"Then SG-1 is accounted for, at least."

"And now, we have to make new teams...from…"

Sam forced a smile, one of care and concern, "If it's too much…"

"No," Daniel shook his head, taking a sip, "this needs to be done."

Sam nodded, "Then, I think we need to use the original pattern, a team lead, a linguist, a scientist, a liason…"

They had made it through that terrible task, concluding with 19 teams including their currently inactive SG-1.

Sam planned on changing that too.

Teal'c had not hesitated to take a leave of absence from his leadership position with the Free Jaffa Nation, knowing his friends needed him now much more than the fledgling, but stable, Jaffa government. Cam was already here at the Pentagon, training cadets, as the powers that be insisted more than ever, that Earth be prepared for a second attack. Colonel Mitchell had agreed. Vala, however, had arrived back and was taken straight to the other offices, the alien woman spending much of her time in meetings to discuss strategy in dealing with the Lucians. That was going to take a little more work, but doable with some negotiation.

That and Daniel.

Daniel was going to take considerably more work.

However, for all intents and purposes, SG-1 was restored.

Daniel hadn't been the same since the entirety of the Destiny expedition. He regretted his role in recruiting Nicholas Rush into the program. He regretted his actions in finding the Lucian Alliance mole, which he felt made him personally responsible for the death of this timeline's Colonel David Telford. Not that that mattered, since the White House had summarily placed his double right where Telford left off, and given that Telford a promotion as well. However, most of all, he regretted pushing the entire idea. He helped spear-head the research, made training videos, communicated with the stranded crew, in some cases urging them to pass along additional research. Now, among all of the rest of the guilt that he had accumulated over the years of serving on SG-1, the Destiny and the subsequent attack on Cheyenne Mountain by the Lucian Alliance had just compounded that.

And Daniel had withdrawn.

She hadn't seen him this despondent since the death of Shar'e. Exploration, the need to do the right things, helping others, all of those things had driven him after her death, and Sam had watched him over the years overcome so much despite it all. However, the Destiny and all of the events triggered by the expedition seemed like the last straw.

Since they had moved here permanently just four months before, she had tried broaching the subject of Daniel heading up an exploration mission only once...

Sam stood in front of the smartboard, preparing to address her senior staff for the first time. In front of her sat Teal'c, Cameron Mitchell, Vala Mal Doran, Carolyn Lam and Daniel, and while at first glance it seemed as if things had returned to some sort of normalcy, a tense unease had settled over the room.

"Thank you all for coming. I know that the transition has been difficult, but I want to begin by telling each and every one of you how I truly appreciate your role in this process," she began, her team members nodding in recognition.

"Honestly," Carolyn spoke up, a smile on her face, "the medical facilities are much better here and I have a greater space for research."

"The proximity to Homeworld Command is also an advantage," the Jaffa added, sensing the doctor's intent.

"And a quick metro ride to pro ball," Cam joined in. Sam smiled in appreciation.

"D.C. does have its advantages, that's for sure," she replied, noting Daniel was still silent. It seemed everyone else in the room had noted that as well, Vala in particular watching him carefully.

"So," the general continued, "Now that we are more settled, and teams have been established," she turned to click a remote, an agenda lightening up behind her, "I think one of the first orders of business is to check in on our allies. We need to make sure that there have not been any additional attacks by the Lucians and that the network we created of friendly worlds remains just that, friendly."

"SamanthaO'Neill," Teal'c interjected, "The Jaffa council has been tracking the location of the Lucian alliance since the attack of Cheyenne Mountain and would be most willing to share information with Stargate Command."

"Thank you Teal'c," Sam nodded, "That should be our first order of business, getting the lay of the, well, universe, so to speak."

"Now that we've got teams reformed," Cameron noted, "that shouldn't take too long. Vala's also got intelligence she can share with us…" he trailed looking over, "Or can you? I have no idea what those Homeworld guys are even planning on sharing anymore."

"I'm not concerned with what they allow, if Sam needs to know, I'll tell her," Vala answered shortly.

The general nodded, appreciating the sentiment, even if she knew that would not compromise Vala's position.

"Then it's settled," Sam said as she turned to the whiteboard, noting the second item on her list, "once we have a good idea of where everyone stands, I'd like to take the teams…" she clicked to another slide, outlining all of the newly shuffled SG team, "and divide them into three distinct groups that better reflect the original mission of the Stargate program: Exploration, Research & Search and Rescue, with a strong emphasis on focusing again on the exploration."

She paused for a moment, waiting for any commentary before continuing.

"In that vein, I feel as if SG-1, with Daniel taking the lead on the mission, should begin by being the first team to explore a new world. The Wraith interrupted our opportunity to explore the master list found on Atlantis, and now we are in a position to reestablish the original intent of the program."

There were smiles and nods across the room, that is, with the exception of one person: Daniel.

He sat in his chair as if he was not a part of this world, let alone this conversation.

"Daniel?" Sam addressed him directly, but softly, sensing the tension the others were feeling as well, "Is there a particular address you would recommend, or would you like to work with the archaeological staff to determine a suggested site?"

"What staff?" he muttered, Sam breathing in slowly.

"You don't need to tell me now, of course, but once the check-ins are complete, I would love to use this first off-world mission, from our new base, as a way to build morale among our personnel."

"I understand Sam," Daniel answered, making eye contact, "But I won't be leading it."

She had worried this would be his response and she tried to be prepared.

"Daniel, honestly, I can't think of anyone I trust more than you to lead -"

"I said no."

"Daniel, I-"

Daniel stood, glaring at her fiercely, as though no one else was in the room,"What, do you want more people to die Sam? Or better yet, how about forever LOST IN SPACE? Because that's what I do Sam. I get people killed. Or worse."

"Daniel, you had nothing to do with -"

"Stop," he wasn't yelling anymore, but he looked exhausted, so very exhausted, "We all need to stop acting like I had nothing to do with everything that has happened."

"But you -" Sam tried, the rest of the room sitting in dead silence.

"I said no. I'm sorry. I just can't," and without a further word Daniel walked out of the meeting, his friends and teammates at a loss for words.

She hadn't talked with Daniel much since, one of her oldest and dearest friends completely lost to her. He came in each morning, right on time, and headed straight for the lab. He was always alone, and no one saw him in the cafeteria, or at least not often. Cameron had reported to Sam that Daniel did eat with his old friends occasionally and he did go to the gym, but that there was an emptiness in his manner. Not wanting to push him away further, Sam maintained her distance, only discussing work, and only work that was meant to keep the SCG running, but not furthering exploration or anything close.

And for a while, that worked. Through careful and calculated efforts, Sam was able to establish a thorough list of planets that had been attacked by the Lucians, fortunately fewer than originally assumed, and those who wanted to remain allies. Sam made contact with all planet leaders, personally, inviting them as her honored guests to the SGC. Some came, others did not, but Sam could feel the mood across the base changing, to one that was more familiar and safe. She was not blind to the need for the hiring of additional personnel, so she asked Daniel to create a guide to dialing the gate among other guides that would serve as reference material for after a new hire had completed training. He had, without one complaint, and she had them printed and stored for new recruits.

She had spoken with the Jaffa council, who had agreed to a joint initiative that brought young Jaffa to the SGC to be trained, in the hopes they would serve on teams and as united representatives throughout the galaxy. Teal'c, along with Cam, was placed in charge of this program.

Despite a number of protests from Homeworld Command, Sam had also created a communication office, staffed around the clock with someone at the helm of the device, ready on the off chance that Eli Wallace's plan had worked, and that the crew of the Destiny would awaken, alive, and possibly in a position to be rescued.

Also, in working with Rodney McKay, Sam had altered a version of the Asgard beaming technology to make transportation between the SGC and the Atlantis base, still safely tucked away in San Francisco bay. Her system allowed Colonel Shepard, who had been awarded an interim command position of the city until a new leader was chosen, to beam back and forth as needed. All Atlantis crew members, especially those not from Earth, were given on-base quarters in Washington or were allowed to remain on the city, at their choice. Sam also ensured that the entire stranded crew had positions among the main SGC compliment. Most had taken a position without hesitation, making Sam's list of new hires needed much shorter.

Finally, she had the distinct pleasure of hiring a med student, an intern, to assist Carolyn in her duties and her research, Dr. Cassandra Fraiser.

That had to be her proudest moment, giving Cassie the same opportunity to step into her adopted mother's footsteps.

Sam was proud of what she had accomplished, and in just a few short months the SGC that Sam came to every morning was one that was more aligned to what she remembered, rather than what it had become in recent years.

Nearly everything was back to normal, or whatever could be classified as normal at Stargate Command.

Everything except Daniel, who in the past two weeks hadn't left the SGC, had barely left his lab, and she wasn't sure if he had even changed clothes or showered. She wasn't even certain what he was looking for, but in recent weeks had thrown himself into Asgard Database for reasons she didn't understand. She had racked her brain, trying to come up with any sort of solution, or a way to remind Daniel and who he was and how important he was to not only this program, but to everyone.

And then it hit her.

There was a knock at her door frame, breaking her train of thought, Vala's thin form standing at the opening, sighing out before stepping in.

"How is he?" Sam asked as Vala entered her office, shrugging and setting a box on the floor before taking a seat. Despite how long they'd been at the Pentagon at this point and how little Sam actually had to unpack in the new SGC, given the amount of what had been destroyed at Cheyenne, her office was still a mess.

"Same," the dark-haired woman replied, clearly sad.

"Vala," Sam sat in her own desk chair, reaching out a hand in concern, "I'm sorry."

"No, it's not..." Vala paused, sighing, "He was right about that, it wasn't the same, and, well, I'm not sure how, or what, but it's not about me. He's just, gone. That's the best way to describe it, gone."

"I know," Sam sighed out, standing to walk to the cabinet in the corner of her office. She eyed the time, noting it was around seven in the evening. Decision made, she opened the door and removed a bottle of wine, walking it back over to her desk.

"I've been thinking," she continued, securing a corkscrew from her top drawer, "about trying a different approach."

"Oh?"

The general nodded, "Daniel, well, look, I'm sorry Vala but other than Shar'e, he's never had much of a personal life. His life WAS his work, it defines him. His love of learning and thirst for knowledge, that has always been the greatest force in his life. I think that's what we need to help him get back to."

Vala made a face.

"That's all he does anymore, work, day in and day out. I'm not even sure if he's eating anymore, and he's lost weight."

"But," Sam interrupted, "It's work NOT exploring. It's not going through the gate to see what's out there, spending weeks on end with the Unas. It's not training new teams, or spending time on Atlantis, which hell, might as well be in our back yard now. He just translates what is brought back to him, works on the Asgard database, writes reports, records videos. It's as if he's stuck on autopilot since…"

"The attack," Vala finished.

"Yes," Sam agreed, sighing out and uncorking the bottled "sometimes I think losing Daniel was worse than losing Cheyenne."

Vala breathed out, walking over to the cabinet to produce two glasses.

"You heard him a few weeks ago," she noted, turning back to Sam with the goblets, "He refused."

"And he's not ready, I understand that, but I think I've figured out a way to start to get him there."

Vala was puzzled, her brow furrowing as she set the glasses onto the large metal desk, "Short of dragging him kicking and screaming, what else could you possibly be thinking?"

"I'm thinking about hiring him an assistant," Sam declared, pouring out two glasses of wine.

"Like Bill?" Vala asked, shocked, the memory of Daniel frantically digging through the rubble of the attack, looking for his lost colleague and friend…

"Not exactly," Sam continued, sipping her wine, "Bill worked for us, but that wasn't an official arrangement. And I'm not trying to replace the work Bill was trying to do for us, with the Destiny, we can never replace Bill…"

"But an assistant?"

Sam sipped again, setting her glass down in order to talk with her hands, "I can't give a civilian some sort of military rank and Woolsey doesn't want to give him any sort of authority over anything, but I do have the right to make him the official department head, he's really been it for years anyway, and hire him some help. See if we can jump start something by getting him working again, REALLY working. Maybe if we can get the old Daniel back he'll stop blaming himself for things that were not his fault and that he cannot change…"

Vala didn't seem convinced.

"How can giving him someone to order him around get him back to his old self?"

"It's not the ordering," Sam continued, "It's the collaboration. What if he had someone that spoke his language, or languages, so to speak? Someone to challenge him, to bounce ideas off of? What if we were able to find someone who lit a spark in him, and we get our Daniel back."

"And the guilt?"

Sam shook her head, "We're all guilty of only one thing: being curious and then doing the best we could given the situation. Everything we have done in the past few months has been in response to the Lucian attack and the loss of the Destiny. So, if we reorganize the department, hire him an assistant and get that person to help him take just a few baby steps back in the direction of exploration, then maybe he will realize why we are all still here, and why we are carrying on. Maybe fresh eyes and a new perspective will help him see that too."

Vala smiled softly, nodding her head in agreement.

"Did you have someone in mind?"

Sam shook her head.

"No, but I was thinking about starting with Smithsonian candidates. I have some contacts there, see who is applying to the ancient studies department, if there is anyone that speaks close to as many languages as he does. If not there, I can call Cambridge, see if I can find someone over there, I don't know…"

Vala frowned for a moment, thinking, sipping the wine before choking on it, swallowing quickly before waving her hand in front of her face.

"What?" Sam asked, confused, Vala nodding as she thrust up a finger, regaining control over her throat.

"There's this woman, I came upon, by accident. I was playing around the other day, on the internet. Cameron was showing me how to use Google and how your creepy government tracks what we search…"

"Do I even wanna know?"

"We looked Cam up, found nothing, he's boring, and looked up Jack, and, did you know he had a son?"

"Yes, I did," Sam shut her down quickly, urging her with her hand to continue, "so then you..."

"Well, then I got curious and looked up Daniel. I found that book he wrote; that one in his office? And there was this woman, some archaeologist who had this thing called a blog and she wrote a review of it. Called him a nutcase, kept comparing him to some man named Giorgio on some show about aliens something or another, making fun of him. It was hilarious."

Sam made a face, "Vala, how is any of this supposed to help?"

"No, it's just," Vala started, suddenly serious, "he makes me feel like an idiot sometimes. It was refreshing to see someone put him in his place, even if it was just on the damn internet."

.

"I understand" Sam answered, "but you do know that a lot of reviews and comments online are not to be taken seriously, especially the ones that are, well, like that."

"No, this wasn't a, what's it that Cam called it, a troll," Vala defended, "She was some professor somewhere, it was for her students; they read that book for her class or something. It was funny, but she was smart, and something about it just stood out to me. She taught at some school in a place called New Orleans."

"A professor?"

"Yeah, Doctor Row, uh, something. It was an odd name. She had a page listing her degree, papers she had written, things she'd done."

Sam's brain was going a mile a minute. It was a stupid idea, going by Vala's accidental internet search, but something in her gut told her to just hear her out.

"Think you can find it again?" Sam asked, "Forward it to me?"

"Yeah," Vala laughed, "You better believe I bookmarked it in case -"

Sam panicked for a moment.

"PLEASE don't show him," the general pleaded, "No matter how mad you get at him, what he says to you, to anything. The last thing I need is, well, just no, please."

"I won't, I won't, even if he deserves it," Vala replied, chugging down the glass and standing, "I'm gonna head to my quarters, I'll send it to you when I get there. It's been a long week. I might turn in early."

"I might do the same soon myself," Sam said as she finished her glass, "I just want to make a few phone calls first."

Vala turned to leave, pausing at the door for a moment.

"You think it'd work? You think he'll, I dunno, be Daniel again."

"I can't say," Sam answered honestly, "but it's worth a try. Worst case, we find a competent person that can work at Area 51, god knows they need all the competent help they can get."

Nodding, Vala tapped the door frame lightly headed to her quarters.

Sam stared at her phone, pondering her next move.

Daniel wasn't pleased when he was called into the briefing room, a mission clearly posted on the new shiny Smartboard. He had agreed to help her reorganize teams, he even helped her identify the next set of planets on the list they had been working down so many years ago. He had helped her assign teams to tasks, prioritize, and made sure that the newer teams had the proper training.

What he hadn't agreed to was going through the gate himself.

He had plenty to do with the database anyway, work that had been pushed aside when the powers that be decided to make him some sort of secret agent to sniff out a spy for the Lucian Alliance. He hadn't even felt like himself, but given how far he had been running from himself, he guessed that small foray into Jack and Cam's world had been therapy more than anything. Now, he really just wanted to spend his time here in his new, just shockingly similar in layout, office here in the Pentagon going through the Asgard database.

NOT exploring. NOT going through the gate. NOT reopening old wounds.

For possibly the first time in his career, Daniel hadn't read up on the planet, instead letting Vala do it in his stead, again something he would have never done before. He was hoping that this short trip would be enough to keep Sam satisfied and let him return to his work while other teams explored the unknown galaxy.

In fact, for the first time in his career, Daniel skipped the briefing.

He had arrived early, taken one look at that shiny new whiteboard, and left.

Now, he stood at the base of the ramp, a folder in his hand that was handed to him by Vala at breakfast, thumbing through carefully. He heard the gate activate, the familiar kawoosh, stepping through without barely looking up.

"Jackson?" Cam asked as Daniel heard the gate close behind them, "Thoughts?"

Daniel was still reading, scanning Vala's best attempt at what he would normally do, when he paused, noting the planet's location in the galaxy.

"Daniel?" Vala asked, stepping forward.

"I thought we weren't going to allied planets…" he muttered, turning pages back and forth, "I thought we were going through uncharted planets from the cartouche, or the database…"

"That is correct DanielJackson," Teal'c replied, the entire team now facing him as he stayed, frozen, standing in front of the gate.

"But we've been to this planet…"

"No," Vala corrected, walking forward and reaching for the folder, "we haven't. It was next in line on the list that you had been going down, before the Ori…"

"Tegalas," Daniel muttered softly.

"This isn't Tegalas Jackson," Cameron assured, his hand gesturing the gate, "it, well, the protectorate, the confederation, were destroyed, remember? Gate buried in the rubble? We can't get to what is left of Tegalus via the Stargate."

Daniel merely sighed out, walking the folder to Cameron, his finger trailing a gate address, "P8Y-437, that's Tegalas."

"No," Vala said slowly, "and we are on P8Y-473," she walked over to the folder, pulling it from his hands. Pursing her lips, she sighed out.

"I'm sorry, that was my mistake," she said, patting herself down for a pen, something, anything,
"I must have transposed the number, I'm still getting used to -"

Cameron interrupted, "Yeah, which is one of the places we left off when the Ori were causing all of their trouble. New planet, not Teglas. Just a typo Jackson."

"Right," Vala continued, trying to shut the folder in his hand, "a typo. My fault, go ahead and raise hell, I'm sure I deserve it considering I had to do all of this by myself…"

She was trying, the team could all tell, trying to get him to be annoyed with her, get him to snap out of it. Daniel, however, didn't flinch, merely looking up at the team, his expression melancholy.

"Is it inhabited?"

Cam perked up, nodding, "Yep, pre-industrial society I think, almost looked Wild West, so I think Vala packed some things for us to change into if we need to…"

Daniel didn't even hear what Cameron said after that. He simply took his file folder, tapping it into his hand with a sigh before handing it over to Vala. Without another word, Daniel walked over to the DHD, dialing home without a word. Vala stepped towards him, but Cam grabbed her arm gently, shaking his head. The gate activated and Daniel crossed the event horizon, leaving them all behind.

"Hey handsome," he heard behind him, peering back to see Vala striding into his lab. He breathed in deeply out of habit, it was still awkward no matter how much he tried to play that it wasn't, and her choice of vocabulary didn't help much in the matter.

"Hey," he answered, noncommittally, returning back to the folder, that had plagued him for days.

"I called you last night when we got back," she set in, "you didn't answer."

"I was tired," he replied, in haste, "and I thought we talked about that."

"Not working out and not giving a shit are two entirely different things..."

Daniel shrugged.

"The planet, it was a bust," she said, "whatever Cam thought was the 'Wild West' had been abandoned for years. Probably Ori."

"Shocker," he muttered, standing and walking to his secondary computer. Vala decided to change the subject.

"What are you working on?"

"Database," the answer was short.

"Still?"

"It's a lifetime of work," Daniel grumbled from the screen, "Literally. If Sam's going to get the program going again we need to be much more careful this time. Much more careful."

Vala breathed in slowly, deciding whether or not to broach the subject, a subject that had now been the topic of more than one conversation in the past few weeks.

"Sam said you won't let her hire you an assistant," Vala began, Daniel pinching his nose under his glasses.

"Don't know anyone qualified."

"I said I would help," she added, Daniel frowning in her direction.

"I don't need an assistant. I need to be allowed to work."

Vala frowned, "Is that a hint?"

"No," Daniel abruptly replied, "No, I just…" he sighed, trailing, "I just need to get this done."

"I could help," she offered, the archaeologist shaking his head.

"And you think that's a good idea..."

This time she shrugged.

"Fine, let's just forget we were ever friends," she spat back, starting to leave when he reached out, grabbing her arm.

"Look, I'm sorry. This is just awkward for me, still. It's not as if things ended particularly well..."

"No," she cringed at the memory, pulling away, "they didn't. But did you ever stop to think why? After everything Teal'c told us, why?"

"Yeah," he nodded, "I have."

"And?"

"And, like so many things here, so many versions of life that I, that we have experienced, I just don't think it was meant to be here. I'm not really sure what is, to be honest."

Vala frowned at his answer.

"It's the best I've got," he added quickly.

"Guess it doesn't involve screaming, so I should be grateful," she responded, leaning back on his desk, "but I am willing to help. For real this time, no more, well trying."

"Thanks," he was quiet, his finger the top of the auxiliary monitor.

"What's that?" she asked as he pushed it away, standing from his desk, "I mean, I know the database, but what part?"

"That is the reason I am on my second pot of coffee today," he said rubbing his face, "and the reason I am going to take a lap around base before continuing."

"Want company?" she asked carefully.

"Not yet," he replied, "still too soon."

"After six months?" she tried, getting a frown as her reply, "ok, shutting up now."

"I'll see you later," he said with a wave, walking out of the lab, and shoving his hands into his pockets.

Sighing, Vala reached into her pocket, taking out her phone.

I think it's worth a shot

She didn't wait for Sam to reply, but she knew their friend was right. Daniel was going to need to be reminded of why all of this mattered again.

He just needed the right motivation.