Date: August 1999
Prologue – another suitcase in another hall.
So what happens now? (Another suitcase in another hall)
So what happens now? (Take your picture off another wall)
Where am I going to? (You'll get by, you always did before)
Where am I going to? (Don't ask any more)
The hall looked as though it had seen a lot of traffic. Several doors opened off it, with cheerful notices proclaiming "Play Room", "Quiet Room", "Kitchen", "Office". The front door bore a security chain and a notice warning against opening the door to strangers. The staircase was steep, with bright pictures lining the walls. A boy about ten years old sat on the bottom stair, with a large black bag and a suitcase at his feet. The bag contained all his clothes; the suitcase held books. He still thought of them as his father’s books, although as sole survivor of the Jackson family, Danny had inherited them officially just under a year ago.
Two boys came rushing past, yelling and fighting. A tall, solidly built man stuck his head out of the office. "Luke, give him his ball back," he ordered the older boy.
"Hey, John, I was playing with it first!" the boy answered, then yelled as the smaller one punched him. The two of them disappeared through another door, and could be heard shrieking into the distance.
John looked across at Danny. "You okay?" he asked.
Danny nodded silently, then looked back down at his bags. He would be glad to get out of here.
John walked over and squatted down beside the boy. "I’m really sorry it didn’t work out for you here, Danny," he said gently. Danny shook his head, and John patted him on the shoulder.
"I really wish you luck in your new home," John said to him, then looked up as the shrieking grew louder again. "I guess I’d better sort those two out. Give me a call when your social worker arrives."
Left to himself again, Danny eyed his suitcase and wondered if he would have time to dig his book out. The world of ancient Egypt seemed much more attractive at this moment than real life.
"Out of my way, Jackson." A teenage girl was coming down the stairs. Danny stood up and moved to let her past, but she still couldn’t resist kicking him as she stepped over his bags.
Danny didn’t mind, not really. Any moment now he would be away from here, anyway.
As if summoned by the thought, the doorbell rang, and John appeared again and struggled with the safety chain.
"Hi Rosemary, nice to see you again. He’s all ready for you."
Rosemary smiled, and held out her hand for Danny’s bags. He surrendered the bag, but refused to give up the suitcase, and clutched it tightly. They walked together out to the car, and loaded up the trunk. "Do you want to say goodbye to your friends?" Rosemary asked the boy gently.
Danny shook his head. "They’re not my friends, they won’t miss me," he said. Rosemary frowned, then smiled again.
"I’m really sorry it didn’t work out here, Danny," she said. "I know you’re not used to a crowd. I’m sure you’ll get on much better in your new home. We’ve found a couple that are ideally suited to your needs."
Danny shrugged. He’d heard that before. Why couldn’t they find somewhere where they’d leave him alone? All he wanted to do was study his books.
He strapped his safety belt and gazed out of the window as Rosemary started the car. "Do you remember what I told you, Danny?" she asked.
Danny nodded, running through a mental checklist of what he had learnt during his time in care.
<<Normal children go out and play in the yard all day, not study ancient Egypt or some obscure dialect. If I’m too well behaved they worry I’m ill. If I talk about the books I’m reading they think I’m abnormal. It’s okay at school to be good at sport, but not to be good at schoolwork.>>
"Danny?"
With a sigh, Danny realized he’d done it again. "Yes, I remember," he answered mechanically. "If there’s any problems, talk to them. If I still can’t resolve it, call you. You’ll visit again in a few days."
Rosemary nodded, and patted him sympathetically on the knee. "I’m sorry, Danny, I know you’ve had a tough time of it lately, but I’m you’ll be happy in this new home."
"You’ve said that about everywhere I’ve been," grumbled the boy.
"I know, but this time – well, wait until you meet them."
Danny looked out of the window. They were out in the country now, with nothing to look at, and he found his eyelids grow heavy…
* * * * *
He awoke with a start to find himself struggling in icy-cold water. He tried to kick out, but found it hard to move. He seemed to be draped in some kind of cloth, and his feet felt heavy. For an instant the thought crossed his mind of the orphan kittens he’d brought home once. "No use to anyone without their mother," his father had declared, and put them in a weighted sack and thrown them in the river. Was that what was happening to him? Had they finally given up trying to find him a new home? His head suddenly broke free of the surface. "Help!" he yelled, before plunging under again.
"Help! Help!" He waved his arms desperately, trying with all his might to kick out against whatever was holding him down.
Suddenly, a strong voice said, "All right, Daniel, I’ve got you," and a hand grasped the back of his collar. Danny felt himself towed through the water. "Don’t struggle so much, dammit, you’ll drown us both."
Danny obediently tried to stay still, and soon found himself sitting on the shore of a river, gasping for breath and shivering violently. The voice turned out to belong to a middle-aged man in army clothes; camouflage, Danny thought. The man was now gazing at him in astonishment.
"Is he okay, Colonel?" said a woman’s voice behind him.
"Uh, Sam, there’s something you should see," said the man, not taking his eyes off the boy.
"What?" she squatted down beside the pair, and Danny saw that she was younger than the man, with short fair hair, and also wearing camouflage. "Holy Hannah!" she breathed on looking at him properly for the first time.
"Daniel?" said the man cautiously.
Danny nodded his head.
"For crying out loud, what the hell mess have you got yourself into this time?"
Danny wasn’t sure he liked the man, so he turned instead to the woman called Sam, trying to make sense of all this. "Please," he said hesitantly, "are you my new foster parents?"
* * * * *
Chapter 1 – the mud bath.
As the gate winked out behind them, Colonel O’Neill looked around at the rest of his team, who had automatically spread out to look around. Daniel was gazing eagerly into the distance, Sam was fingering the soil, which looked rich and fertile, Teal’c was standing guard, his staff weapon in his hand, looking ready to defend the whole team should it become necessary.
"Well, Campers, does anyone have a favourite direction?" Jack asked cheerfully.
Daniel waved vaguely over to their left. "That way," he said firmly.
O’Neill raised an eyebrow. "Any particular reason?"
"There’s a river in the distance. Rivers usually lead to civilizations."
"O-Kay. Glad to hear you showing some sense. It also happens to be the most hilly way, but we’re not going to let something like that stop us, are we?"
He grinned as he caught sight of Daniel’s face. He knew Daniel loved this stage of a mission. They never knew what they were going to find, and this world bore a lot of promise. Lush vegetation suggested plenty of food sources and water, and there were insects flying around – but not too big, like some they’d seen. Jack suppressed an involuntary shudder, and led off in the direction Daniel had indicated. After the first half-mile they appeared to be following some kind of path. "Animals?" suggested Sam.
Daniel shrugged. "Haven’t seen anything yet."
"Any idea what we might find here, Daniel?" Jack asked as they strode along. The scientist shook his head.
"The probe didn’t find anything of significance, which means it’s unlikely there is a technological civilisation," he answered. "Maybe a primitive civilisation, but I haven’t seen any signs of human life yet."
Just then Teal’c summoned them over to a spot a few yards ahead, at the side of the path.
"Looks like you spoke too soon," Jack commented, as they saw what looked exactly like a small milestone by the side of the path. There were markings on it.
Daniel frowned. "They look vaguely familiar, but I can’t put any meaning to them," he confessed.
Teal’c ran his fingers over the surface of the stone. "It is a Goa’uld dialect," he informed them. "But very ancient, and has not been in use for as long as I am aware."
"Can you translate it?" Sam asked eagerly.
"I am not sure. I believe markings like this were left to indicate directions to those following a path. The path appears to branch ahead, and the stone would indicate that one way leads to death and the other leads to life."
"Wow!" Sam whistled. "They don’t muck around with their directions, do they?"
"What do you think it means, Teal’c? Daniel?" Jack looked around at the languages expert and the goa’uld expert. Daniel shrugged. "Do they mean that literally, Teal’c?" he asked, intrigued.
"I do not believe so. This sign indicates water. It could be that one way is water suitable for drinking and another unsuitable for drinking."
Jack nodded. "Well, that makes sense. I vote we head for life."
Daniel took some film of the stone, then they moved on in the direction that the stone indicated as heading to life, Daniel and Teal’c in earnest conversation about the derivatives and form of the language.
"Look, over there," Sam indicated a few yards further down the path. Where she was pointing, they saw a small herd of animals, similar in appearance to deer, but much more powerful looking.
"They don’t appear to be dangerous," Jack commented, noting how the animals grazed, looking up occasionally to check for danger.
"But they might have predators," Sam warned.
"I know, Captain. But as long as they’re not worried, I’m not."
They moved cautiously past the animals, which lifted their heads to look curiously at the strangers then returned to their grass.
"There’s only young in that herd," commented Sam.
"So?"
"So I was just looking for the leader. In Earth herds there’s usually a wise old stag that watches for danger, but I can’t see any animals that look over two years old."
"Maybe they age differently," answered Daniel absently, much more interested in looking for signs of any further wayposts.
They came to a large patch of mud by the path. The deer seemed to love the mud, moving in and out of it, rolling in it and then settling in the sun.
"Wait a minute, I want to get a sample of this," said Sam, stopping and pulling out a small jar. She tried to get a sample from a clear patch right in the middle, but couldn’t quite reach.
"Let me," offered Daniel, taking the pot from her. Grabbing a nearby branch to steady himself he reached out to his full arm’s length, and dipped the pot in the mud.
"Careful, Daniel," warned Jack.
"DanielJackson, I do not believe that branch is sufficient to hold your – "
With a crack the branch gave way, and Daniel landed full stretch in the sticky mud.
Sam stifled a giggle as Jack held his hand out to help his friend up, then changed his mind at the amount of mud on Daniel’s outstretched hand. Slowly and with difficulty Daniel extracted himself from the middle of the mud pool and waded knee-deep to the path where the others were standing grinning.
"Thanks for the warning, Teal’c," he said sarcastically, presenting Sam with the pot full of mud and then trying without much success to get some of the mud off himself.
"It’ll soon dry and flake off," Jack assured him, wrinkling his nose.
Daniel took his jacket off, but since his attempts to remove the goo from the rest of his clothes only served to spread it still further, he gave it up as a bad job.
"If the path leads to the river, perhaps I can wash the worst of it off there," he commented.
"I hope so," said Sam wryly. "Don’t take it personally, Daniel, but that mud stinks."
Daniel pulled a face at her, then threatened to cover her with mud.
"Now, now, children, that’s enough," Jack ordered. "Let’s get going, I’d like to get to the river before we camp for the night."
"Yes, Dad," said Daniel in mock obedience, as he once again shouldered his pack. Holding his jacket at arm’s length – he had to admit Sam was right about the stink – he followed the others, a pathetic sight covered from head to foot in a sticky black gunk.
Chapter 2 – the River of Life
They sensed rather than saw that they were approaching the river; the vegetation suddenly got a lot thicker, and they had to fight their way through. Finally they broke through to a clear area, where the river widened into almost a natural lake. A large ruined temple stood to one side, and Daniel walked over, open-mouthed in awe.
"Daniel, I thought you were going to wash off that mud?" said Jack, making sure he stayed upwind of him.
Daniel nodded, not looking round.
"Now, Daniel, please, before I throw you in. I’m not putting up with that stink any more."
"Okay, okay." Daniel walked to the side of the river, removed his pack, laid it down with his jacket, put his glasses on top and jumped straight in, surfacing to scream with shock at the cold.
Jack watched him for a minute, laughing, then turned to where Sam and Teal’c had started to wander around the temple.
Teal’c had found a place on the wall where there was more writing, and was trying to work out what it said. Sam had pulled out the video camera and was walking around filming as much as she could.
"O’Neill!"
"Yeah, what’s up?" Jack strolled over.
Teal’c looked up at him from where he was crouched next to the wall, and his face was serious. "I do not believe it is good for Daniel Jackson to remain in the river too long."
"There’s no way I’m putting up with that stink any longer."
"But this writing appears to indicate that it is dangerous to remain in the water too long."
"Dangerous? In what way?" Jack was instantly on the alert. Sam stopped her filming and came across to listen.
"It is very unclear, but as far as I can translate, this indicates that the river is called the "river of life". It is life to those who partake briefly, but to those who partake too deeply they will lose their life."
Jack ran to the door. "Daniel, get out of there."
There was no answer. "Teal’c, you keep working on this, see if you can figure out any more. Carter, you’re with me. Let’s go find Daniel."
The two officers ran together down to the riverbank, but there was no sign of Daniel. "Maybe he’s drifted downstream," Sam suggested. They turned the corner of the temple, but before they could go any further they heard a voice screaming for help.
"There he is!" said Sam, pointing out a figure in a black tee shirt struggling and yelling. Jack jumped in and half waded, half swam towards him.
"All right, Daniel, I’ve got you," he said, grabbing him by the back of his tee shirt. He winced as an elbow caught him in the ribs. "Don’t struggle so much, dammit, you’ll drown us both!"
Daniel obediently kept still, and Jack struggled with him to the side. He clambered out, then dragged Daniel up the bank. What the-? He stared in astonishment. It was Daniel’s clothes, all right, and Daniel’s watch on his wrist, but the figure sitting before him could not be more than ten years old!
"Is he okay, Colonel?" asked Sam, catching up to them.
"Uh, Sam, there’s something you should see," Jack replied, not taking his eyes off the boy.
"What?" Sam squatted down, and then realised that the optical illusion she had dismissed, that Daniel was suddenly much smaller, was in fact real. "Holy Hannah," she breathed, thoughts racing through her head as she considered, and discarded, one theory after another.
"Daniel?" said Jack cautiously.
The boy nodded.
"For crying out loud, what the hell mess have you got yourself into this time?"
The boy turned to Sam. "Please," he said hesitantly, "are you my new foster parents?"
Sam looked at Jack. "Sir?" she asked.
Jack wondered if it was just physical. "Don’t you remember us?" he asked.
Danny shook his head. "I’ve never seen you before, ever."
"Daniel, how old are you?" asked Jack.
"I’m nearly eleven," the boy replied, trying to draw himself up to his full height. Then he burst out coughing again, and started shivering violently.
Jack helped him take off his wet clothes, which by now were mercifully almost mud-free, and Sam grabbed a sleeping bag from her pack and wrapped it round him. The boy looked around him in dulled surprise, while Jack tried to get over the shock he had received at discovering Daniel had lost over twenty years of his life.
Teal’c had joined them on the riverbank, having been unable to translate any more of the writing. "What has happened to Daniel Jackson?" he asked curiously.
"Well, Teal’c, it appears that Daniel has somehow turned into a ten year old."
Jack was trying to prevent himself from laughing. He knew it was deadly serious, but so often Daniel had appeared to behave like a ten-year-old that it was almost poetic justice.
"So that is what the inscription meant," said Teal’c thoughtfully. "Daniel Jackson drank too deeply from the river of life and has lost part of his life instead of prolonging it."
Sam nodded. "Well, supposing such a thing is possible, that explanation makes as much sense as any other I can think of," she admitted. "It would also explain why there were no old animals amongst the herd. Especially if the mud is also linked to this stuff."
"Can it be reversed?"
"I haven’t got a clue," she admitted.
Meanwhile, Danny was sitting shivering, listening to all that was going on around him.
"Excuse me?" he said. "Can someone tell me what’s going on?"
"Okay, Daniel, what’s the last thing you remember?"
"I was with my social worker, going to meet my new foster parents. Is that you? I mean, are you them? I mean…" his voice trailed off, and he gazed down into the water, as if looking for an answer there.
Jack touched the boy gently on the shoulder. "Daniel, listen to me," he said. "A few minutes ago, you were an adult, just like us. Then you went into the river and turned into – well, into a child again."
Danny looked up at him angrily. "I’m too old for fairy tales," he muttered.
"Daniel, it’s true," Sam reassured him. "Look at your clothes, they’re far too big for you."
Danny looked at the pile of wet clothes sitting beside him. He had to admit, that was part of what he didn’t understand. The other, was how he had got here in the first place.
"So, are you my foster parents or not?" he demanded, returning to the one thing he understood.
"Uh, I guess so, for the time being," Jack answered, looking at Sam with raised eyebrows.
Danny looked up at Teal’c. "What about him?" he asked.
"That’s Teal’c. He’s a good friend of ours. And of yours, too."
Danny nodded his acceptance. "What’s your name?"
"I’m Jack. Colonel Jack O’Neill, at your service."
"You’re a Colonel?" Danny eyed him up and down as if he thought Jack might shoot him on the spot.
"I’m a very friendly colonel," Jack reassured him, but did not take away the look in Danny’s eyes. Instead the boy turned to Sam.
"And you’re Sam?" Sam nodded.
"Well, Daniel, this should prove an interesting experience for all of us," she said, trying to sound cheerful.
The boy frowned. "Why do you keep calling me Daniel? Most people call me Danny."
"Well, that’s because – "
Jack interrupted her. "Danny it is then," he said firmly. "Sam, we need to set up camp for the night. Unless anyone has any idea how to fix this, I suggest we get some sleep, then go back to base and try to figure it out from there."
The others all nodded, and started setting up camp within the shelter of the ruined temple, casting surreptitious looks over their shoulders at the boy sitting wrapped in a sleeping bag as they worked.
Chapter 3 – returning home.
Danny watched as Sam started to prepare a meal. "What’s that?" he asked, picking up a pouch.
"That’s an MRE," Sam answered absently, lighting the stove.
"Meal Rejected by the Enemy", Jack added helpfully.
Danny looked at him uncertainly.
"Meals Ready to Eat", Sam corrected. "Don’t worry about him, Danny, are you going to help me?"
Danny nodded, and let go of the sleeping bag, then looked at her hesitantly. Sam realised the problem, and found the boy some spare clothes out of Daniel’s backpack. They were a little big – well, to be accurate they were huge on him – but they managed to rig something up so that he could move without tripping up. Boots would be a bigger problem, but they could tackle that in the morning.
Sam found Danny a quick learner, not exactly to her surprise, and together they soon had a meal ready. Danny took a mouthful, then pulled a face. "It tastes like chicken," he decided. The others just grinned. Somehow, although in some ways Danny was very different from the Daniel they knew and loved, in others he was just the same.
Soon it was time to settle down to sleep. Sam took first watch, and found herself gazing down at her friend, whose features were so familiar, and yet strangely different. The long fair hair was still there, but the face it framed was much softer, younger. When awake, the blue eyes still held the same serious, intelligent look, but now, closed in sleep, he looked more fragile and vulnerable than ever. Sam knew that the man was far tougher than he looked, and she wondered whether the boy would turn out the same.
Before long it was Teal’c’s turn to take watch, and Sam settled down thankfully in her sleeping bag. It seemed she had hardly shut her eyes when she was startled by a strange screaming noise. She sat bolt upright, to find Teal’c bent over Danny, who was crying out in his sleep, his arms flailing. Teal’c ducked a flying arm, then gathered Danny up to him and held him firmly, murmuring into the boy’s ear. Gradually the screams quieted to moans, then stopped altogether, and Sam realised Danny had drifted back off to sleep in Teal’c’s arms. At that point she realised that the Colonel was watching as well, with a strange expression on his face.
"It’s all right, Teal’c," he said quietly. "I’ll take over watch now. You stay with him. He seems to trust you."
Teal’c nodded, and shifted to make himself comfortable. Sam drifted back to sleep, and when she woke again it was morning. Jack had started to heat the water for breakfast and Teal’c was gently laying Danny back down on the ground, having managed to extract himself without waking the boy.
Sam noticed that Jack said very little over breakfast, and wondered if that was because Danny said little to him, or whether there was something else bothering him. He said nothing about it, however, suggesting only that they pack up and split Daniel’s pack between them. "We can’t expect the kid to carry it," he said.
Danny’s head came up at that. "I can manage," he said tightly.
Jack shook his head. "You’re only a kid."
Danny looked furious. "I said I can manage," he insisted.
Jack smiled, and picked up the pack. "Come here and try it then."
Danny staggered slightly as he took the full weight of the pack, but refused to admit defeat. Jack was forced to give in and allow the boy to carry the pack, although Sam did notice he managed to sneak some of the heavier equipment out first.
They stuffed extra socks into Daniel’s boots, and the boy could just manage to walk in them, but they could all see that it was not easy, and no fast progress would be made. Jack made them stop several times for a rest, mainly for Danny’s benefit, and so it was nearly evening again by the time they reached sight of the Stargate.
"There, see?" Jack said, pointing out the large circle to Danny.
Danny peered into the distance. "That thing?" he said, sounding disappointed.
Jack smiled. "What were you expecting?" he asked.
Danny shook his head. "I don’t know," he admitted. "But something more impressive than a stone circle, at any rate."
"Well it is rather a large stone circle." Jack sounded rather hurt.
A couple of paces later Danny suddenly stumbled and fell, then grabbed his ankle, crying out with pain.
"What is it, Danny?" asked Sam in concern, kneeling beside him.
"My ankle – it hurts."
"Can you walk?"
The boy tried to take weight on his foot, then winced and sank back down again. He looked close to tears.
"Give me your pack," said Jack. Danny surrendered it reluctantly, then tried again to stand. This time he made it, but looked in a great deal of pain. Jack offered to carry him on his back, but the boy refused.
A few minutes later Teal’c made the same offer, and this time Danny gratefully accepted, and climbed on the big man’s back. Sam noticed the Colonel said nothing at this, but she was sure he looked a bit put out.
When they finally reached the gate, Teal’c lowered Danny to the ground, while at a nod from the Colonel Sam dialled the co-ordinates. As she activated the gate Danny shied back, afraid of the sudden whooshing as the wormhole engaged, and Jack put a hand out to him. "It’s all right, Danny, it won’t hurt. It’ll just feel really strange for a few seconds, then we’ll be back on Earth and we can get your ankle seen to."
Danny hesitated for a long time, then took Jack’s hand. Teal’c took his other hand, and with Sam close behind they stepped together into the gate.
Chapter 4 – home sweet home.
When the group reached the other side, Danny found himself standing on a ramp next to a Stargate similar to the one they had just stepped through. They were in a huge room, with large doors on either side and the front wall set with large windows.
A balding man approached them from one of the doors, and Danny tried to slip behind Jack, where he would not be seen.
"Welcome back, SG1," said the man. "Where’s Dr Jackson?"
"Uh, he’s here, General," said Jack, looking round to find Danny hiding behind him. "We had a slight mishap…"
Danny saw Sam grin, and wondered at the Colonel being so casual about it all.
Just then the General noticed him standing there. "Colonel?" he said, eyeing Danny up and down. "Who is this?"
"General Hammond, I’d like you to meet Danny Jackson."
The General’s eyes widened. "What the hell happened?"
"That, Sir, is a very good question," hedged Jack. "Daniel had a disagreement with a river that gives life, and apparently it wound back the clock somewhat."
He looked down at the boy, who looked back. "Why is he looking for my father?" Danny whispered.
"What?"
"He asked for Dr Jackson."
"Oh, that’s you. You’re a doctor too."
"I am?" Danny thought for a minute. "That’s nice."
"Colonel?" Hammond was getting impatient.
"Sorry, Sir, this really is Daniel Jackson, but as well as – the obvious problem – he’s hurt his ankle, and I’d like to get him to Dr Fraiser. I’ll tell you the whole story as soon as I’ve dealt with that."
Hammond nodded. "De-brief in one hour, Colonel, and I hope you’ve got a good explanation. I can’t wait to hear it." He headed back out, shaking his head and muttering something about archaeologists and mishaps.
Jack looked round at the others. "Well, team, I guess we’d better head over to the infirmary. Okay, Danny?"
Danny nodded, wide-eyed. He was still holding Jack’s hand, and followed him willingly enough, while Teal’c and Sam disappeared with the packs.
After walking along endless corridors that all looked alike, they reached a large room that looked like a hospital. A lady in a white coat was busy taking a blood sample from someone. "I’ll be with you in just a minute, SG-1," she said, glancing up, then did a double take. "Colonel?"
Danny grimaced. He was getting tired of this.
Jack squeezed his hand reassuringly. "Dr Fraiser, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine, Danny Jackson. Doc, I’ll tell you the full story later. Danny, this is Dr Fraiser, she’s going to check you over and sort out that ankle of yours. Okay?"
Danny looked up at him, unwilling to let go of his hand. "Are you going to stay with me?" he asked.
Jack shook his head. "You see, I’ve got to be checked over as well. But the Doc’ll take real good care of you, I promise."
Fraiser finished up and walked over. "You can stay if you want, Colonel," she said. "In fact, it sounds like a good idea. Danny?"
The boy nodded.
"I just need to check you all over, then I’ll take a look at your ankle." She helped him sit on a gurney, felt around his neck and did some other checks, then eased his boot off and examined his ankle. Sam and Teal’c arrived, and another doctor checked them and Jack out. Afterwards, while Teal’c and Jack went off to the debrief, Fraiser took Sam to one side. Danny could still hear them talking, although they went into an office. He was used to finding out about his future this way.
"Do I get an explanation for this?" asked Fraiser.
"As far as we can gather, Daniel somehow "grew" in reverse," Sam replied. "To all intents and purposes, the adult Daniel we know somehow turned into himself when he was ten years old." And she told the whole story to an increasingly bewildered Doctor.
"I thought I was hallucinating through overwork," Fraiser commented, and Sam laughed.
When they came back out, Danny hurriedly looked away so they wouldn’t know he’d been listening. The doctor gave him a reassuring smile. "Nearly done, Danny, then we’d better find somewhere for you to sleep. You must be worn out."
Danny nodded thankfully. At least they weren’t going to throw him out.
"Well, that’s not too bad, it’s not broken," Dr Fraiser reported, after checking the x-rays. "I’ll just strap it up for you. You’ll need to rest it for a few days."
Danny nodded again. His eyelids were beginning to droop. Once the bandage was finished, Sam helped him down from the gurney and took his hand. "We’ll find you a bed somewhere," she said cheerfully. "Then you can get some proper sleep. In the morning we can start working out some solution to all this."
Danny nodded, not really sure what she meant. He followed her through another maze of corridors, until they came to a door. Sam opened the door to reveal a small room with a bed, table and chair in it. There was a bathroom opening off the back wall.
"Teal’c sleeps right next door, so if you want anything just ask. I forgot to ask, are you hungry?"
Danny hesitated. He was, but really couldn’t bear the thought of going through all the "Who is this?" routine again.
Sam realised his problem, and offered to fetch him something. "See, you even get room service," she commented. "And in the morning, I’ll go shopping and find you some clothes to wear that actually fit you. Okay?" Danny nodded gratefully.
Once he had eaten, Sam disappeared to let him sleep, and he found himself on his own at last in a very strange world. Shrugging, he stripped off and climbed into bed. He’d been through a lot since his parents died. He was sure he could cope with this situation, strange as it appeared. Sam was nice, and Teal’c was nice, and Jack – he wasn’t sure about Jack, but he supposed he would get used to him.
Chapter 5 – communication problems.
"What do you mean, you can’t!" The Colonel glared down at Daria Peterson, who had spent the last twelve hours poring over the videotapes and printouts of the text on the walls at the temple.
"I’m sorry, Colonel, I just can’t get anywhere. It’s just too different to anything I’ve ever come across."
"What about you, Teal’c? You translated the stuff before."
"That is correct, O’Neill, but the second part of the inscription is different. It appears to be written by a different person, and the language is changed considerably. I can be of no further use."
Jack ran his hands through his hair in frustration. Sam walked into the room, and Jack looked up, then stiffened as he saw she had brought Danny with her. "Everything okay?" he asked.
She nodded. "I finally managed to drag him out of his office. He’s been reading all day."
Danny grinned shyly. "I thought my books were lost," he admitted. "It’s amazing to find them all again. And lots of new ones too."
"Maybe you should take a look at this for us," suggested Peterson.
Jack stared at her. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Danny wandered over and peered over her shoulder. "I can translate this if you like," he said diffidently.
"You’re just a kid, Danny, remember?" Jack was furious. Memories came flooding back of a similar time in a similar office, where Daniel had confidently announced that he would be able to get a team back from the world the Stargate led to, back in the days when they had first met. He hadn’t believed him then, but eventually Daniel had been proved right, in the first of many adventures together and the beginning of their friendship. And now his friend had disappeared to be replaced with this – this inferior substitute, Jack thought bitterly.
He looked at Danny, to see the boy’s eyes fill with tears. Head lowered, Danny limped out of the room, not saying a word.
"Sir, with all due respect, wasn’t that a little harsh?" asked Sam. Teal’c, too, looked concerned. Daria stood up.
"Colonel, I was not being flippant when I suggested that we ask the boy. From what little I know of Dr Jackson, I believe he was studying this type of thing from very early on. He is also an expert on extrapolating development of language from early origins. If that skill, too, started early in life, then that’s exactly what we need here. My speciality is Celtic languages, not Egyptian, and to be quite honest, I’m struggling. There’s too much at stake to take any risk of getting this wrong."
"Exactly why the boy shouldn’t be involved."
"Exactly why he *should* be involved," interjected Sam.
"Captain?"
"Sir, I’ve been talking to him. As far he remembers, he’s spent the last year travelling from one foster home to another, with no say in the matter. We need to give him control of his life, Sir. After all, he’s the one that this affects most directly. At least give him a chance."
Jack looked at her in despair. He really wasn’t going to get out of this, was he. "Captain, why don’t you go talk to him?" he suggested.
"Colonel, I really think it should be you."
"Me? I’m the last person he wants to talk to. He’s been avoiding me ever since we met."
"Sir, he’s in awe of you. You saved him from drowning, and he’s really worried you think he’s a nuisance."
Jack shook his head. "No way, Sam."
"I’ve been talking to him," Sam insisted. "And now *you* really need to talk to him. Sir."
Jack moved to the door. "I don’t know where he’ll be," he said.
"I believe DannyJackson will be in his office," suggested Teal’c.
*****
Danny hardly looked up as Jack walked in. He appeared deeply engrossed in a book on Egyptian Mythology. Jack moved a stack of papers from a chair and sat down.
"Danny, we need to talk," he started.
The boy looked up. "I’m really sorry, Colonel," he interrupted.
"Sorry? What for?"
"I’m sorry I’m not the adult Daniel Jackson you want me to be, and I’m sorry I’m not the kind of son you’d be proud of either."
"Son?" Jack was suddenly on the alert.
"I was talking to Sam earlier," the boy admitted. "I was kind of asking her why you were always so mad at me, and she said maybe you were upset because I reminded you of your son."
Damn. Why was life so difficult? Jack rubbed his face, trying to think of the words to get through to this kid. Idly he picked up a pen from the desk and started fiddling with it.
"I’m not mad at you, Danny," he said at last. "Sure, I miss the Daniel Jackson who was my friend. Never more so than this minute, when I desperately need someone to talk to. But that doesn’t mean I can’t like you too. After all you are him, or will be someday. And as for my son – just because I lost a son doesn’t mean I expect every kid I meet to be a replacement for him. You’re special, Danny, just because you’re you."
"Then why have you been avoiding me?"
"I’m not very good at talking, Danny, and I feel sorta like I’m reading your journals or something, prying into what makes you who you are. It makes me feel awkward to see you like this. I’ve just been concentrating on trying to fix things as soon as possible."
Danny picked up a bookmark and placed it carefully in his book. "What if you can’t fix them?" His tone was almost casual.
Jack bit his lip. "Danny, I’ll be honest with you, I really don’t know on that one."
"Then you won’t foster me?"
"It’s not that I don’t want to, but the kind of life we lead here isn’t exactly conducive to having kids around. We can’t just sit around the base playing happy families forever, you know; we’re fighting a war, and I’m impatient to get back out there, preferably with the adult you along."
"Sam told me about the Goa’uld. She also told me that the adult Daniel is married and that the Gou’ald kidnapped his wife."
"Sounds like Carter told you too much," Jack commented.
"No." Danny stood up. "She told me what I needed to know. I wanted this to last, but I guess it can’t, so I’d better help you get it fixed as soon as possible."
Jack stood up too. "You really think you can translate that stuff?"
Danny grinned suddenly. "I’ll have a very good try, Colonel" he said firmly.
Jack grinned back. "And for heaven’s sake call me Jack," he ordered.
Chapter 6 – making sense of it all.
* two days later *
Jack watched as Danny took another mouthful of the coke on his desk, grimaced as he realised it was flat, then carried his glass over to the side for a refill.
"Getting anywhere?" he asked.
Danny shook his head. "I’m not sure… In some ways it’s familiar, as if there’s something simple I’m overlooking."
"Something they don’t teach at school, huh?" commented Jack.
"No, last semester we just learnt about basic algebra, and symmetry, and Leonardo Da Vinci…" Danny suddenly looked back down at his work, with a strange expression on his face.
"Danny?"
"That’s what’s wrong. Leonardo."
"Danny, are you trying to tell me that Leonardo Da Vinci wrote that?" Jack despaired. The boy was so desperate to please that he was excelling himself in strange theories.
"Not him, but someone with the same strange habit…" Danny’s voice trailed away as he picked up a pen and scribbled furiously on his pad. Five minutes later he looked up to see Jack still watching him, and pulled himself away from his work with an effort.
"You see," he explained absently, mind still obviously on the hieroglyphs in front of him, "Leonardo Da Vinci wrote backwards. Like mirror writing."
"Oh." Light was beginning to filter in to Jack’s brain.
"Yeah. This language – many characters are symmetrical, so it doesn’t show that they’re written backwards – it just makes the order a bit strange. But others – they’re completely different, and I’m trying to translate them, but they’re just backwards. Now, it should be easy."
Once again he was lost in his work, and Jack shook his head in amazement.
A couple of hours later a noise in the corridor woke him with a start, and he realised he must have dropped off to sleep. Danny was still scribbling away, occasionally looking something up in one of the many books on his desk, and the level of the coke bottle on the side showed that he had been tanking up.
"Danny, it’s 0300. You – we – should get some rest."
Danny did not move. "Not now, Jack, I’m at a vital stage."
"Thirty minutes, then rest."
"Okay, Dad." Danny grinned suddenly, and Jack shook his head in mock despair.
*****
The next morning there was an air of muted excitement in the Daniel’s office as Jack, Sam and Teal’c waited for Danny to appear.
"Okay, folks," he said when he arrived. "As Jack probably told you, I managed to finish the translation last night."
They nodded.
Danny rummaged around his desk and produced a photograph of the temple inscription. "You’re aware that Teal’c translated this first bit. <<The river of life brings life to those who partake briefly but to those who seek to remain too long, they will lose their life piece by piece.>> Uh, that seems to be what happened to me, right?
"Right," said Jack. "So what’s the rest say?"
"Well, as you know, I had a problem with it, until I realised last night that it’s written backwards." He produced another copy. "So I did this flipped image, and after that it was easy. Well not *easy* exactly, but straightforward, anyway."
He looked around at them eagerly, and Jack thought <<if not for the size and the sound, that could be our Daniel right here in front of us.>>
"All right, Danny, so what does it say?" he asked, trying to hide his amusement.
"Well, it says << Death means life and life means death, for he who seeks to prolong his life will lose it in proportion, while he who seeks to lose his life will have it returned to him."
"So what the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Danny shrugged helplessly. "I was kind of hoping you could answer that bit."
"Captain, have you got the results of the tests on the mud and water samples yet?"
"Yes, sir, but they show nothing useful. The samples showed mild regenerative powers when put together, but they soon lost that ability, as if it uses something up. Also, we believe there are elements present in the atmosphere on P4J644 but not in our atmosphere that helps increase the effect."
"So basically, all we have to go on is Danny’s translation."
"And the waypost," Teal’c pointed out.
"Waypost?" Jack looked at him blankly for a moment. "Of course! The waypost that pointed one way to life and the other to death! You think that’s significant?"
"It would certainly be worth looking at."
"So what do we have to do, cover him with mud and throw him in the river of death?" asked Sam. Jack noticed Danny go pale at the suggestion.
"No desperate hurry," he said. "After all, Danny’s still got a sprained ankle. And we don’t know if that’s precisely how it will work. There may be further instructions by the river."
"Another temple?" suggested Teal’c.
"Yeah, could be. Sounds likely, after all. I suggest we give Danny’s ankle a couple of days to heal properly, then head back up to P4J644 and this time explore the other path. That okay with you, Danny?"
The boy nodded, but said nothing. Jack wondered what it was Danny was afraid of. Was he worried the procedure might fail, that he might never be restored? or maybe he was more concerned about what would happen if it *did* work.
Chapter 7 – interlude.
"Okay Sam, you distract the guy, I’ll smuggle Danny in through the doors while he’s not looking." The Colonel planned his assault on the cinema as seriously as any military assault, but this time his aim was to get an under-age child in to see the new Star Wars movie.
"Under age my foot," thought Jack, "he’s thirty-five, according to his birth certificate, although somehow I don’t think they’d believe it."
Somehow their subterfuge worked, and the three of them sat down to watch Star Wars.
"Wow, that was great!"
Jack and Sam exchanged amused glances over the top of Danny’s head. It appeared that the magic appealed to this kid as much as any other pouring out of the doors. Having a couple of days to kill while Danny’s ankle healed, a movie seemed as good a way as any to pass the time, while Teal’c had headed off to the Land of Light to spend time with his wife and son.
"Do we have to go back to the base?" Danny seemed reluctant.
"Tell you what, you could kip in my spare room tonight, if you’d rather," Jack offered.
"Yes please! That is, if you don’t mind…" Danny’s voice trailed off.
"Course not! I’d be pleased with the company." Jack thought of the time before Daniel had found an apartment, when he stayed in Jack’s spare room and the two of them stayed up half the night watching movies on TV and talking, with a beer or two to wash the popcorn down. "It will be great to have someone to talk to," he assured him.
Danny grinned back. "Thanks Jack, that’s great."
That night Jack was about to hit the sack when he heard a noise from Danny’s room. He knocked on the door. "You okay, kid?"
"Yeah," came a muffled reply, and Jack stuck his head round the door. In the light from the window he could see Danny sitting up in bed, huddled in the blankets and rubbing his eyes.
"Tell you what, since you’re awake, I was just about to make some cocoa. D’you want a cup?"
Danny thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes please," he whispered shakily.
Jack re-entered a few minutes later bearing two steaming mugs of cocoa. "Here you go," he said cheerfully. In the short time he had been gone, he could see that Danny had got up and washed his face. "There’s nothing to be ashamed of, having bad dreams," Jack said softly. "We all have them sometimes."
"Even you?" Danny sounded unsure.
"Even me."
The two of them sat in companionable silence for a while, sipping at their drinks, then Danny started to ask Jack about the Stargate. The man happily answered his questions, and by the time the drinks were finished Danny was looking a lot happier.
"Time to go to sleep now," said Jack softly, standing up. "I’ve got a job for you in the morning."
"What job?" Danny yawned.
*****
"Painting the porch?" Danny looked incredulous. "You want me to – I’ve never painted a porch in my life!"
"You haven’t? Well then I guess now’s a very good time to start." Jack produced a large tin of paint and a paintbrush. "Now make sure you do a good job of it."
Danny slowly picked up the paintbrush and dipped it gingerly into the pot.
"Not like that. Here, let me show you." Jack took hold of his hand and guided it, first into the paint, then with long even strokes on the wall. Very unsure at first, Danny soon got the hang of it, and by lunch he was hot, sweaty and covered in white splotches. Jack, who had found another paintbrush and was working from the other end, was delighted to see his young friend thoroughly enjoying himself. "Attaboy, Danny," he murmured under his breath. The phone rang and he went in to answer it. "Janet? Yeah, what a great idea. Yeah, I’m sure he’d love to. Okay, pick us up around 1300."
When he returned to the porch he was smiling. "Danny, have you ever been to the zoo? No? Well, we’re going this afternoon."
Just before the appointed hour the two were cleaned up and ready to go, and right on schedule a small yellow car pulled up and tooted. Janet Fraiser stuck her head out of the window. "Hi guys," she called.
Jack and Danny climbed into the back seat, since the front passenger seat was already occupied. "Hi, Uncle Jack," cried a cheerful voice.
"Cassie, it’s good to see you again."
Cassie beamed with pleasure. "Hi, Danny, Janet’s told me all about you."
Danny looked uncertain. He looked at Jack for guidance.
"This is Cassie. You remember I told you about her last night?"
"Oh, yes, I remember. Hi Cassie." Danny still seemed unsure, but settled in the back seat and let Cassie and Jack catch up on the time since they had last seen each other.
At the zoo, both children wandered round together, Cassie pointing at animals in delight while Danny explained what they were and told her a bit about them.
"It’s good to see them together," Janet Fraiser remarked.
Jack nodded his agreement. "Neither of the poor kids have had much of a childhood so far, from what I can see."
Later, as they all sat eating icecreams and watching the elephants, Danny seemed relaxed and happy, and Cassie happily giggled with him at the antics of the animals. <<Such a pity this has to end>> thought Jack.
Chapter 8 – restoration.
But end it did, all too suddenly. Danny was startled awake by someone shaking his shoulder. "Sorry, Danny, we have to go," Jack whispered in his ear.
"Go? Go where?"
"Sam just paged me from the SGC. The probe they sent through to P4J644 shows storms brewing. If we don’t go soon we’re going to get caught in the biggest electrical storm you’ve ever seen."
Danny sat up. "I’ll get dressed."
An hour later, SG-1 was standing in the Gate room, ready for action. They were travelling light, as it had been decided they would not be able to stop any longer than absolutely necessary. Jack was carrying a pack with spare clothes for Danny – or for Daniel – but other than that they carried nothing other than basic weaponry for protection, and a few supplies in their pockets. "Okay team, let’s go," ordered Jack.
This time there was no time for hesitation, no need for discussion on which way to go. They set off at a brisk pace along the familiar path, but this time at the fork they took the path marked death. Again, they knew when they were approaching the river, this time because the vegetation suddenly changed from green to brown, and appeared to be on the verge of decay.
The river soon lay before them, the waters deep and murky.
"Okay, guys, this is it," said Jack.
Danny looked in the water. What was going to happen now? He looked up at Jack. "I’m not sure I can do this," he admitted.
Jack squatted down beside him. "Take your time, Danny," he said gently.
Danny shook his head. "That’s the trouble. We don’t have enough time. If we delay, the storms…"
"Don’t worry about the storms. I’m not going to force you into anything you don’t want to do."
Teal’c called from over to one side. "There is another waypost here, with an inscription."
"Can you read it?" Jack called back.
"This river holds death to those who choose it by accident, but to those who sought life and lost life, it will return all that is lost."
Danny smiled shakily. "I guess that sounds good, anyway."
Sam came over to him. "Danny, I’m really going to miss you."
"Well, if this works out, you won’t have to." Danny looked at Jack. "What will happen to me? Will I still remember this?"
Jack raised his hands helplessly. "We can’t know that Danny. All I can tell you is that *I’ll* still remember you, and I always will."
Slowly Danny took off his jacket and boots. Sam found some of the mud that lay in a deep puddle next to the river, and approached Danny with it. He shook slightly as she neared him, then he turned and threw his arms around Jack. "I never want to forget you," he whispered, "You’re the best foster father I ever had."
Jack hugged him back, and then stood aside as the boy stripped further and Sam smothered him in the foul-smelling gunk once more. Danny took a deep breath, grinned at Sam and Teal’c, saluted Jack, then he turned back to the river and jumped in.
*****
Cold – struggle – splash – bubbles – choking – thrashing – icy, icy cold –
Danny was aware of being pulled down – currents? – then suddenly, he remembered how to swim, and struck out for the surface. His mind flooded with memories – school, college, being recruited for the Stargate project, meeting a colonel – meeting Sha’re – Oh, God, losing Sha’re – Sam, Teal’c, everything –
He broke the surface, coughing and spluttering, and swam to the side. "Help me out!" he gasped, holding up his hand. Jack and Teal’c each grabbed a hand and hoisted him easily out of the water. As he sat on the bank, gasping for breath, Sam grabbed a blanket out of the pack and wrapped it round him, holding him as if to warm him herself. Daniel managed a weak grin as he looked up at the anxious faces surrounding him. "I’m okay," he managed, shivering violently – not just from the shock of the icy cold water.
Jack crouched next to him and peered anxiously into his face. Daniel nodded. "It’s okay, Jack, I remember. I remember it all."
Jack grinned. "Welcome back, Daniel," he said quietly.
A rumble of thunder in the distance reminded them all of the urgency surrounding this mission. "All right, Danny – sorry, Daniel – you’d better get dry and dressed, then we’ll get this wagon rolling."
Despite the urgency, Daniel took his time getting dressed. He revelled in being an adult again, once more in control of his own destiny. He thought back to his childhood. "Who would ever go back and live those years again?" he thought wryly.
Then he stepped out from behind the bushes, threw the child’s clothes far into the river of death, and bade a silent goodbye to the child and a greeting to the man he had become.
"Let’s get out of here, guys," he said, looking round at his new family.
~~~~~
Epilogue – Don’t call me Danny.
"So how much do you remember?" asked Sam curiously. Daniel shrugged.
"I remember it all, I think, but it’s kind of like a dream, like I dreamed about it happening to someone else. Can you imagine being trapped inside yourself as a child and not being able to do anything about it?"
Sam thought back to her formative years and suppressed a shudder. "I’d hate to go through all that again," she said thoughtfully.
Daniel nodded. "Exactly."
Just then Jack came in. Sam disappeared muttering about some test results, and Daniel stood up to leave too, but Jack stood behind him and leaned forward, putting his hands on Daniel’s shoulders.
"How’s it going?"
Daniel stared down at the blank sheet of paper in front of him. "Difficult," he confessed. Writing mission reports was usually not too bad, but this one was proving to be extraordinarily difficult. As for what he was going to write in his journal… Daniel thought again about his childhood. Moved around from one foster home to another, he had never really felt settled until he reached college, where at last he was left alone to be the person he was. Watching through Danny’s eyes while being unable to influence him had been similar to what he imagined being possessed by a Goa’uld would be like, and it had not been a pleasant experience.
Jack nodded sympathetically. I hate reports too. Oh, by the way, Danny, Doctor Fraiser says can you wander down when you’re free, she’s got some more tests she’d like to run."
"Don’t do that."
"What?" Jack looked puzzled. "It’s not me, it’s Fraiser."
"No. Don’t call me Danny."
"Sorry, it’s just habit I guess, after last week. I just got used to having the kid around."
Daniel stood to face his friend. "I’m sorry I’m not still the kid you can push around and treat as a substitute son," he said bitterly.
"Whoah!" Jack looked at Daniel in astonishment. "Where did that come from?"
"Well, it’s true, isn’t it? You listened to me more and paid more attention to me in those two days than you usually do in a month."
Jack shook his head. "That may be true, Daniel, but only because you needed it at the time. Great as the kid was, I was wishing you were back to yourself again so we could share a couple of good beers and a really lousy movie."
Daniel waved his hand around his office. "This office belongs to *Daniel*, an adult who is in charge of his life. *Danny* was a little kid who got shoved from one place to another, with never any say in things. I saw a little kid who jumped in a river he thought would kill him just because he was told to."
"And I saw a young man who was afraid of what might happen but did it anyway because he was *strong*," retorted Jack. "You showed faith in me, Daniel, and I’ll never forget that. You remember a kid who felt like a victim, but I saw a kid who had a hell of a lot of problems, but still managed to come through them strong and intact. I *admired* Danny, and I still see those characteristics in you. *That’s* why I call you Danny sometimes, you – you headcase you." He thumped Daniel affectionately on the arm. "Come on, Daniel, lighten up. You made it this far, you’re a survivor, and you’ve found a family you belong with – us."
Daniel smiled at last, and gestured helplessly. "I guess I was right when I said you’re the best foster father I ever had," he said. "And you’re still looking out for me, right?"
"Right. Now, once Fraiser’s finished, how about those beers?"
"As long as I get to choose the movie."
"You’re on, *Daniel*."
fin.
