Some Things Change, Some Things Remain the Same: Chapter 19
TITLE: Some Things Change, Some Things Remain the Same (Chapter 19)
AUTHOR: aeryn_b
RATING: NC-17 for this chapter (explicit love scene, but still tasteful I think)
WARNING: (should extreme sappiness, fluff and sugar be a warning?)
CATEGORY: Alternate Universe, Romance, Adventure, Hurt/Comfort
PAIRINGS: Daniel/Vala
CHARACTERS: Daniel Jackson, Vala Mal Doran, Samantha Carter, Cameron Mitchell, Teal'c, Hank Landry, Bill Lee
SPOILERS/TIMELINE: "Beachhead" through Season 9 to "Flesh and Blood"
SUMMARY/PREMISE: What happens if both Vala AND Daniel are transported to the Ori galaxy at the end of "Beachhead"? How will they survive and how will they get back?
Chapter 1 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/7859.html
Chapter 2 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8109.html
Chapter 3 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8411.html
Chapter 4 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8464.html
Chapter 5 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8747.html
Chapter 6 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9042.html
Chapter 7 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9319.html
Chapter 8 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9507.html
Chapter 9 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9873.html
Chapter 10 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10219.html
Chapter 11 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10404.html
Chapter 12 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10712.html
Chapter 13 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10881.html
Chapter 14 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11201.html
Chapter 15 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11379.html
Chapter 16 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11560.html
Chapter 17 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11961.html
Chapter 18 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/12196.html
Click here to read on FFN
Click here to read at alldanielfic.com
Chapter 19
Of all the ways to wake up in the morning, she liked Daniel's gentle touches the best. From tracing circles on her back, to skating his knuckles up and down her arm, to now, when he scattered soft butterfly kisses across her stomach. In moments like these all their problems seemed galaxies away…until the phone rang and brought them back to reality.
"Don't answer it," Daniel mumbled against her stomach, inching her top and his mouth up her body."
Vala sighed when his lips reached their destination. "But it could be important. I am a VIP, darling." She didn't really want to answer the phone, but there was a chance it was Sam with news about the communication program and maybe Kira and Denya. Before the final ring, she picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Hello, ma'am, it's Sgt. Harriman. I hate to disturb you, but is Dr. Jackson with you by any chance?"
"Daniel?" The man in question lifted his head and raised an eyebrow. "You've called his quarters and his office already." Vala echoed Walter.
"Dang it," Daniel muttered under his breath and immediately leapt out of bed and headed for the shower.
"Have you checked the cafeteria? You know how he needs his coffee in the morning."
"We made a base-wide announcement, but we don't usually broadcast the announcements in personnel quarters," Walter replied. "Anyway, he hasn't checked in yet, and he didn't sign out at the main gate, so we don't think he went home to his apartment last night."
"Yes, good thinking, Walter." She heard the shower shut off and bit her lip. "Look, um, I think he'll be there in five."
"Thank you, ma'am. I'll tell everyone he finally returned our call from his quarters."
"Thank you." She hung up and called out to the bathroom, "Pretend you slept through their calls to your quarters."
"You didn't tell them?" Daniel raced around the room, grabbing clothes from various drawers. He kept extras here for just these sorts of occasions.
"Well, I didn't want them to send out search parties." She bit her lip again. "But don't worry, Walter is keeping our secret."
"Yeah, okay." He bent over and kissed her. "See you later," he said, and then he was speeding out the door.
After SG-1 briefed Landry on the situation at Tegalus, Sam went to work on discovering why their shield modifications hadn't worked. She couldn't find any flaws and had to assume the Ori were modifying their weapons. They must have realized that when Daniel and Vala escaped with the scout ship their technology had been leaked. She and a dozen or so other engineers and scientists were put on the task of figuring out how to stay a step ahead of the Ori. Yet again, they contacted the Asgard for assistance.
Things started going smoother after that and the latest 304 was being finished with the new shield generators.
One would think Sam would relax after such an accomplishment, but as Vala kept her company one day in her lab-sitting at the opposite work table with the communication terminal prototype Bill Lee had finished last week-the short, sweet little scientist walked in needing help with yet another piece of Ancient/Alterran technology. Sam agreed to help, so Vala accompanied her to Bill's lab, where they spent the rest of the day. Sam studied the device and Bill's notes and Vala continued to use the communication prototype.
"Hey, Vala, Sam," Mitchell said as he walked by and popped his head inside the lab.
Both women looked up from their computers and said hi.
"Did you two sleep here last night?" He frowned at them.
"Of course not," Sam replied, giving Vala a pleading look. "We slept in our quarters."
Mitchell looked to Vala who smiled and nodded until Sam looked back at her monitor, then she frowned and shook her head back and forth repeatedly. Mitchell laughed to himself then walked over near Sam. Vala took the opportunity to wipe the stone she'd been holding and placed it back in its container. She'd been at it for nearly 24 hours, so she definitely needed to take a break. She stood up and stretched her aching back.
At the other worktable Sam was babbling on and on about EM readings and high and low frequencies. Vala was only mildly interested but still walked over near her friend to show support. Before she knew it, there was a bright light emanating from the Ancient device and a curious, queasy sensation washed over her.
They soon determined there was something terribly wrong when Bill came in and passed directly through Sam. Mitchell tried to pick up a coffee cup on the table but it was like it wasn't even there. Vala started to feel really dizzy next and went to sit on the couch in the corner of the lab. Both Mitchell and Sam went to catch her before she fell through it onto the ground.
Vala sighed dramatically. "Does anybody else feel like Ancient technology is more of a curse than a blessing?"
"Have you seen Vala?" Daniel asked Teal'c as they met in the conference room for Landry's briefing. "I've checked everywhere."
"No, Daniel Jackson. And Colonel Carter and Colonel Mitchell appear to be missing as well."
"Isn't it odd that no one's seen any of them?" Daniel shook his head as he, Teal'c and General Landry tried to figure out the problem.
Daniel was only half-heartedly listening to Bill and his latest attempt to figure out what Sam's algorithms had been trying to do at the time of their disappearance. At least he'd learned that Vala was with Sam and Mitchell and that they were all okay. He finally lifted his head to look at Bill when he heard the man give a triumphant cheer. A bright light flashed before Daniel, and all of a sudden he could see Sam in front of him. He looked around for Vala next and saw her lying on her side on the floor near Bill's couch.
"Vala! I thought you said you all were okay."
"I am okay, I'm just a little bit tired, and maybe a tad nauseous again," she tried to sit up as Daniel helped, but then she winced and lay back down, "and sitting up makes me want to throw up." She exhaled slowly and relaxed. "But at least all that helps me ignore my hunger, which as you know is always present."
"Well, we'll take you to the infirmary and get someone to bring you a snack from the cafeteria. Hey, Bill, can you call the infirmary for a med-team?" He looked over at Dr. Lee who was now frowning at his computer monitor. "Bill?" The scientist still didn't hear him, so Daniel reached out to try to open the door of the nearby cabinet. He couldn't grasp the handle. Daniel dropped his head in dismay.
"At least the translation will go faster this way," Sam said sarcastically.
Daniel kind of laughed with her as he dug around in his pockets and produced a protein bar. "Don't you always have a couple of these with you, Vala?"
Sam walked over and sat down with them. "She gave Cam and me one to split. We made her eat the second one herself."
"I wanted to save some for later but they stood there watching while I finished the whole thing." She took two bites of the bar Daniel offered her and wrapped up the rest for later. Daniel eyed her, so she waved him off. "This is as much as I can have now. Anything more and it may just come up later."
"Okay." He looked over at Sam. "We need to get back, and where the heck is Mitchell?"
"Short version," Sam replied, "he went to help Teal'c."
"You know, it really doesn't make any sense."
"Hmm?" Sam asked. "What's that, Vala?"
"Well, if I can't lie down on the couch, or lean against the cabinet, how come I can lie here on the floor? How are we not falling through to the center of the planet? Or floating up into space? Does gravity still work on us? And how come we can still see everything from our original dimension? How come we don't see anything else that's in this dimension besides that display? How is there even air here for us to breathe?"
"Vala," Daniel focused her attention on him with a pointed look, "do you honestly want an answer?"
"Ye-es," she said slowly, reluctantly.
"Well," Sam took a deep breath and began.
"No. No, no," Vala interrupted. "I think there might be some truth to the saying 'ignorance is bliss.'"
Sam smiled and went back to look over Bill's shoulder. "Oh, geez. Bill, I don't think that's a good idea."
Back in Vala's quarters, all completely in phase and back to normal, Daniel sat with her on the bed. "Can we now please talk about you moving away from this death trap mountain?"
"Oh, and you'd consider leaving someone else in charge of investigating that address where Merlin's weapon might be?"
Daniel sighed and lay back on the bed. "I have to see this through. And I need you to be safe while I do it."
"Too bad, I'm staying put." Vala lay back on the bed next to him and tried a different angle. "Do you honestly think you'll worry less for me if I'm not here?"
"No," he admitted reluctantly. She heard him take a long, deep breath, then he reached in his pocket. "Vala, I want to give you something." He pulled out a black, velvet box and turned over on his side, propping his head in his hand.
She'd watched a few Mitchell-termed chick-flicks in her time here, so when she opened the box and saw the diamond ring, she had a pretty good idea what Daniel was asking. She just didn't know how she felt about it.
She looked him in the eyes. "If you're giving me this in order to get me to leave the SGC and be 'safe' somewhere away from you-"
"No, no. You're absolutely right," Daniel broke in. "You living somewhere else would never work. I'm giving you this so you have something to remind you that someone belongs to you…that I belong to you."
Vala hesitated but looked back at the ring. "And I to you?"
"Yeah."
Daniel was quiet for a moment while she gazed at the ring. She couldn't help the tears starting to form in her eyes.
"I know it's not very showy. It was my mother's. I've had it in my pocket for weeks, practically since we got back, I just couldn't decide when or how to give it to you."
She stopped his babbling by placing a finger on his lips and smiling. "I love it, Daniel," she paused for a second, "but I don't need anything to remind me that you're mine. People will definitely notice this."
Daniel smiled back. "I don't care, but if you do, you can wear it on a chain around your neck or something. It's yours now, just like I am," he blushed, "always have been, I guess."
Vala laughed with him but continued to stare at the ring. "It's so beautiful, but it can't possibly fit. I feel positively bloated all the time."
She was about to return it to the box, when Daniel took it from her and gently eased it over the knuckle of her ring finger on her left hand. Her only response was a look of utter shock.
"I may have asked Sam and Carolyn to get you to try on some rings the first time you three went shopping at the mall."
Vala lightly punched his shoulder. "You sneak!" But she lay back and admired the ring on her finger as she held her hand up above her head. "Do I need to get you a ring, too? Would you wear one?"
"My dad's wedding band is in the box too, beneath the cardboard. I'll wear it if you want."
Vala nodded and she took it out and placed it on his left hand as well. "Does this mean…I mean, you know…are we…"
Daniel frowned in confusion at her.
"It's just that, from what I understand, your planet has a variety of ceremonies involving the, uh, commitments of couples."
He smiled back at her. "This can mean whatever you want it to mean. If you want, then yes, this can mean that we're married." Daniel laughed as he saw her eyes light up. "Or if you want it to just mean that we're mutually connected in some way greater than mere friends and co-workers, then that's fine too."
"I like the first one." Vala jabbed him in the shoulder again, but a second later she frowned. "It's more than just putting rings on each other. Doesn't a wedding, a marriage, require vows, or…or promises of some kind?"
"Oh, there's all kinds of common features to wedding ceremonies. There's usually some kind of outward symbol, like the rings, and witnesses, which I guess we don't have right now-"
"Except the whole base thinks we fight like an old married couple anyway," Vala teased.
"Good point. And yes, usually there are promises made. For instance, I promise to…to never work so hard that I miss a meal."
Vala laughed. "And I promise to…to share all my treasure with you…" he raised an eyebrow at her. "Fifty-fifty," she promised.
"I further promise to…get at least six hours of sleep a night."
"Eight."
"Seven."
"Fine, but you also promise to take a thirty minute nap every day…say around noon," she bargained with a wink. Daniel laughed back and agreed, so Vala continued with her next vow. "Okay, let's see…I also promise to…" a thought crossed her mind and she started to frown, "…to only steal something if I need it to save your life." She touched his cheek tenderly, and felt herself tearing up again. "I promise to…"
Daniel turned his head and placed a kiss on her palm. "I promise to give you the benefit of the doubt from now on, to respect you and trust you in all things." He softly kissed her lips. "I promise to love you, Vala Mal Doran, with all my heart, body and soul for as long as I live."
Vala started crying freely, but she made her final vow wholeheartedly. "For the rest of my life, I promise to love you, Daniel Jackson, with all my heart, body and soul." Their lips met in a passionate, soul-searching kiss.
Minutes passed, and the kiss that had started as a seal of their vows turned desperate with a fiery need. Tongues melded, lips fused. They separated for only moments at a time, gasping for breath then coming together for more. They used their teeth and left love bites on each other's lips. They swept their tongues around each other, licking and sucking in a blatant mimic of things to come.
Vala reached under Daniel's shirt and forced both his black t-shirt and army green BDU top up over his head. She was wearing a similar ensemble, which remained unbuttoned to accommodate her pregnant belly. Daniel helped her to sit up and proceeded to remove both her BDU shirt and the black tank top she wore under it. He gazed at her appreciatively as she sat there before him.
Daniel brushed a few strands of hair from her face. "I know you already know this," he grinned, "but you truly are the most beautiful woman I've ever met."
She smiled back at him, thanking him wordlessly for easing her anxieties. She teased him back then, "Oh, darling, I bet you say that to all the girls." Her hand grazed down his arm over his bicep. "This may sound silly," she lifted her gaze from his body to his eyes, "but knowing you're mine makes me feel like…like the wealthiest woman in the universe. I feel as if…I've found my heart's desire at last."
Daniel found her lips again with his, and they kissed long and hard, the force of his movement propelling them down to the bed once more. He kept himself propped up on his side so as not to crush their baby, but his other hand caressed her from her jaw to her navel and all the places in between. Vala kept one hand on his neck, the other on his back, holding his head and his mouth tightly against her own.
She was drowning in the kiss, in the feeling of his muscles tensing and flexing, in the sensation of his hand fondling her breasts over her bra. She twisted more on her side then, and tried to free her breasts on her own. Daniel released her mouth and smiled against her cheek, helping her to undo the small hooks behind her back. When she was free, he didn't immediately reach for her as she expected, but instead, knelt on the ground and started unlacing her boots.
She never laced them up all the way anymore, so it didn't take him long to remove her shoes and socks. He worked on his own next while Vala debated whether she should take her pants off herself or let Daniel do it. It took her maybe three seconds to decide to do it herself. The pants were too uncomfortable to sleep in anyway, Daniel couldn't accuse her of trying to skip ahead. She left her underwear on, though she couldn't really figure out why. She hoped her stupid, insecure subconscious wasn't starting to get the upperhand.
But even as she thought it, Daniel was there beside her, stripped down to his boxers and slipping under the covers with her.
"Look, don't hate me for this, but I don't actually want…to uh…"
"What?"
"No, no, let me explain. I'm just kind of afraid of hurting you, that's all," he begged her to understand. "Let me go slow this time. Let me just touch you."
"Daniel, you won't hurt me or the baby. I'm sure there's nothing to worry ab- Oh, good lord!" He'd slipped his hand underneath the elastic of her underwear and pressed down on her clit knowingly.
"You all right, dear?" She heard slight laughter in his voice.
"Yes, okay then…" she gasped and writhed beneath his hand, "maybe for now…we'll let you…do it your way. Mmm."
He used her momentary distraction to pull her underwear all the way off, then went back to teasing her throbbing flesh. He moved his thumb in ever tightening circles around her, pressing down then pulling back. He didn't seem to follow any rhythm, so there was no way she could anticipate his movements. Her eyes were closed in pleasure, but she could almost feel him staring at her in the dim, shaded lamplight, watching her emotions fly across her face.
After a moment, he abandoned her clit and sent a finger probing into her. Like her nipples, her insides were just as over-sensitized. Having never been pregnant before, the experience of him stroking her with his fingers felt like something new and unknown. She squeezed her thighs around his hand, keeping him in place, hoping he'd never leave her.
Daniel spent many minutes exploring and learning her most intimate place, stroking with one finger, then with two. She felt so tight around his fingers that Vala just knew he'd never actually fit right now. Better to wait until after the baby was born…if they possibly could wait that long. She reached up with her outside hand and brought Daniel's head down to hers for a long, tongue-sweeping kiss. With her other hand, the one between them, she sought out his erection, gripping it and starting to pump.
Daniel broke the kiss at once and inched his body away from her. "Ah, ah, ah," he chided. "This night is for you."
"Let's have another night be for me and this one be for us," she bargained, reaching out again to thread her fingers into his boxers.
"I'm serious, Vala," Daniel choked out when she had pulled him partially free. "I don't last long at all when you touch me," he groaned as she tugged a little harder. "God, you'll be the death of me."
He sat up quickly then clamped both her wrists above her head with one hand. "Vala," he looked her straight in her eyes, "I need you to make one more promise tonight."
She shook her head in protest until he sent two fingers inside her and pressed down on her clit with his thumb. She closed her eyes and squirmed against him, the sensations becoming all too powerful. "Harder, darling."
"Promise me not to derail this." He kissed the upper swell of her breasts while stroking shallowly inside her. "Hold your hands there out of the way and let me love you."
Daniel flicked his tongue over one of Vala's nipples and heard her gasp. She bucked her hips up into his hand, urging him to stroke her. "Please, Daniel."
"I'm here, Vala, but you have to promise." He drew his fingers out of her and gently pinched her clit between his wet forefinger and thumb. When she still hadn't responded to his plea, he bent down and licked the nipple he'd been teasing. Then he released it and blew across it. "Will you keep your hands to yourself? Just for tonight?" he asked while rubbing the heel of his hand against her and kissing her neck just below her jaw.
"Fine. Yes! Damnit, Daniel, just finish it already!"
He loosened his grip on her wrists slowly, but she held to her word and stayed put. He bent down and flicked her nipple once more with his tongue, then he drove his fingers into the soft, wet flesh between her thighs. He stroked her for a few minutes, hard and fast, but then he abandoned that track and sent his fingers to her clit, flicking and strumming like the strings of an instrument.
In seconds, her body clenched. She brought a pillow up to her mouth and she screamed into it in utter ecstasy. Daniel brought her down easy, stroking her inner thighs and belly lazily, brushing the lightest, barely-there kisses across her breasts.
When her breathing evened out, he got up from the bed and shuffled into the bathroom. She heard the water running and winced when she thought he might be getting into a cold shower. But it sounded more like the faucet than the shower, so she tried to relax.
He came back a minute or two later with a warm washcloth and rinsed her off. He went part way back to the bathroom and tossed it in the sink, then returned to lie down next to Vala.
"You okay?" Vala asked, curling into him.
"Fine, sweetheart," he whispered. "Just relax."
She took a few breaths then blew out a laugh against his chest. "You know what? I think we might actually have the potential for being 'vigorous' in bed."
Daniel blurted out a huge laugh of his own. "I never doubted it for a minute."
********
Chapter 20: http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/12697.html
AUTHOR: aeryn_b
RATING: NC-17 for this chapter (explicit love scene, but still tasteful I think)
WARNING: (should extreme sappiness, fluff and sugar be a warning?)
CATEGORY: Alternate Universe, Romance, Adventure, Hurt/Comfort
PAIRINGS: Daniel/Vala
CHARACTERS: Daniel Jackson, Vala Mal Doran, Samantha Carter, Cameron Mitchell, Teal'c, Hank Landry, Bill Lee
SPOILERS/TIMELINE: "Beachhead" through Season 9 to "Flesh and Blood"
SUMMARY/PREMISE: What happens if both Vala AND Daniel are transported to the Ori galaxy at the end of "Beachhead"? How will they survive and how will they get back?
Chapter 1 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/7859.html
Chapter 2 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8109.html
Chapter 3 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8411.html
Chapter 4 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8464.html
Chapter 5 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/8747.html
Chapter 6 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9042.html
Chapter 7 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9319.html
Chapter 8 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9507.html
Chapter 9 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/9873.html
Chapter 10 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10219.html
Chapter 11 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10404.html
Chapter 12 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10712.html
Chapter 13 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/10881.html
Chapter 14 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11201.html
Chapter 15 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11379.html
Chapter 16 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11560.html
Chapter 17 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/11961.html
Chapter 18 http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/12196.html
Click here to read on FFN
Click here to read at alldanielfic.com
Chapter 19
Of all the ways to wake up in the morning, she liked Daniel's gentle touches the best. From tracing circles on her back, to skating his knuckles up and down her arm, to now, when he scattered soft butterfly kisses across her stomach. In moments like these all their problems seemed galaxies away…until the phone rang and brought them back to reality.
"Don't answer it," Daniel mumbled against her stomach, inching her top and his mouth up her body."
Vala sighed when his lips reached their destination. "But it could be important. I am a VIP, darling." She didn't really want to answer the phone, but there was a chance it was Sam with news about the communication program and maybe Kira and Denya. Before the final ring, she picked up the phone. "Hello?"
"Hello, ma'am, it's Sgt. Harriman. I hate to disturb you, but is Dr. Jackson with you by any chance?"
"Daniel?" The man in question lifted his head and raised an eyebrow. "You've called his quarters and his office already." Vala echoed Walter.
"Dang it," Daniel muttered under his breath and immediately leapt out of bed and headed for the shower.
"Have you checked the cafeteria? You know how he needs his coffee in the morning."
"We made a base-wide announcement, but we don't usually broadcast the announcements in personnel quarters," Walter replied. "Anyway, he hasn't checked in yet, and he didn't sign out at the main gate, so we don't think he went home to his apartment last night."
"Yes, good thinking, Walter." She heard the shower shut off and bit her lip. "Look, um, I think he'll be there in five."
"Thank you, ma'am. I'll tell everyone he finally returned our call from his quarters."
"Thank you." She hung up and called out to the bathroom, "Pretend you slept through their calls to your quarters."
"You didn't tell them?" Daniel raced around the room, grabbing clothes from various drawers. He kept extras here for just these sorts of occasions.
"Well, I didn't want them to send out search parties." She bit her lip again. "But don't worry, Walter is keeping our secret."
"Yeah, okay." He bent over and kissed her. "See you later," he said, and then he was speeding out the door.
After SG-1 briefed Landry on the situation at Tegalus, Sam went to work on discovering why their shield modifications hadn't worked. She couldn't find any flaws and had to assume the Ori were modifying their weapons. They must have realized that when Daniel and Vala escaped with the scout ship their technology had been leaked. She and a dozen or so other engineers and scientists were put on the task of figuring out how to stay a step ahead of the Ori. Yet again, they contacted the Asgard for assistance.
Things started going smoother after that and the latest 304 was being finished with the new shield generators.
One would think Sam would relax after such an accomplishment, but as Vala kept her company one day in her lab-sitting at the opposite work table with the communication terminal prototype Bill Lee had finished last week-the short, sweet little scientist walked in needing help with yet another piece of Ancient/Alterran technology. Sam agreed to help, so Vala accompanied her to Bill's lab, where they spent the rest of the day. Sam studied the device and Bill's notes and Vala continued to use the communication prototype.
"Hey, Vala, Sam," Mitchell said as he walked by and popped his head inside the lab.
Both women looked up from their computers and said hi.
"Did you two sleep here last night?" He frowned at them.
"Of course not," Sam replied, giving Vala a pleading look. "We slept in our quarters."
Mitchell looked to Vala who smiled and nodded until Sam looked back at her monitor, then she frowned and shook her head back and forth repeatedly. Mitchell laughed to himself then walked over near Sam. Vala took the opportunity to wipe the stone she'd been holding and placed it back in its container. She'd been at it for nearly 24 hours, so she definitely needed to take a break. She stood up and stretched her aching back.
At the other worktable Sam was babbling on and on about EM readings and high and low frequencies. Vala was only mildly interested but still walked over near her friend to show support. Before she knew it, there was a bright light emanating from the Ancient device and a curious, queasy sensation washed over her.
They soon determined there was something terribly wrong when Bill came in and passed directly through Sam. Mitchell tried to pick up a coffee cup on the table but it was like it wasn't even there. Vala started to feel really dizzy next and went to sit on the couch in the corner of the lab. Both Mitchell and Sam went to catch her before she fell through it onto the ground.
Vala sighed dramatically. "Does anybody else feel like Ancient technology is more of a curse than a blessing?"
"Have you seen Vala?" Daniel asked Teal'c as they met in the conference room for Landry's briefing. "I've checked everywhere."
"No, Daniel Jackson. And Colonel Carter and Colonel Mitchell appear to be missing as well."
"Isn't it odd that no one's seen any of them?" Daniel shook his head as he, Teal'c and General Landry tried to figure out the problem.
Daniel was only half-heartedly listening to Bill and his latest attempt to figure out what Sam's algorithms had been trying to do at the time of their disappearance. At least he'd learned that Vala was with Sam and Mitchell and that they were all okay. He finally lifted his head to look at Bill when he heard the man give a triumphant cheer. A bright light flashed before Daniel, and all of a sudden he could see Sam in front of him. He looked around for Vala next and saw her lying on her side on the floor near Bill's couch.
"Vala! I thought you said you all were okay."
"I am okay, I'm just a little bit tired, and maybe a tad nauseous again," she tried to sit up as Daniel helped, but then she winced and lay back down, "and sitting up makes me want to throw up." She exhaled slowly and relaxed. "But at least all that helps me ignore my hunger, which as you know is always present."
"Well, we'll take you to the infirmary and get someone to bring you a snack from the cafeteria. Hey, Bill, can you call the infirmary for a med-team?" He looked over at Dr. Lee who was now frowning at his computer monitor. "Bill?" The scientist still didn't hear him, so Daniel reached out to try to open the door of the nearby cabinet. He couldn't grasp the handle. Daniel dropped his head in dismay.
"At least the translation will go faster this way," Sam said sarcastically.
Daniel kind of laughed with her as he dug around in his pockets and produced a protein bar. "Don't you always have a couple of these with you, Vala?"
Sam walked over and sat down with them. "She gave Cam and me one to split. We made her eat the second one herself."
"I wanted to save some for later but they stood there watching while I finished the whole thing." She took two bites of the bar Daniel offered her and wrapped up the rest for later. Daniel eyed her, so she waved him off. "This is as much as I can have now. Anything more and it may just come up later."
"Okay." He looked over at Sam. "We need to get back, and where the heck is Mitchell?"
"Short version," Sam replied, "he went to help Teal'c."
"You know, it really doesn't make any sense."
"Hmm?" Sam asked. "What's that, Vala?"
"Well, if I can't lie down on the couch, or lean against the cabinet, how come I can lie here on the floor? How are we not falling through to the center of the planet? Or floating up into space? Does gravity still work on us? And how come we can still see everything from our original dimension? How come we don't see anything else that's in this dimension besides that display? How is there even air here for us to breathe?"
"Vala," Daniel focused her attention on him with a pointed look, "do you honestly want an answer?"
"Ye-es," she said slowly, reluctantly.
"Well," Sam took a deep breath and began.
"No. No, no," Vala interrupted. "I think there might be some truth to the saying 'ignorance is bliss.'"
Sam smiled and went back to look over Bill's shoulder. "Oh, geez. Bill, I don't think that's a good idea."
Back in Vala's quarters, all completely in phase and back to normal, Daniel sat with her on the bed. "Can we now please talk about you moving away from this death trap mountain?"
"Oh, and you'd consider leaving someone else in charge of investigating that address where Merlin's weapon might be?"
Daniel sighed and lay back on the bed. "I have to see this through. And I need you to be safe while I do it."
"Too bad, I'm staying put." Vala lay back on the bed next to him and tried a different angle. "Do you honestly think you'll worry less for me if I'm not here?"
"No," he admitted reluctantly. She heard him take a long, deep breath, then he reached in his pocket. "Vala, I want to give you something." He pulled out a black, velvet box and turned over on his side, propping his head in his hand.
She'd watched a few Mitchell-termed chick-flicks in her time here, so when she opened the box and saw the diamond ring, she had a pretty good idea what Daniel was asking. She just didn't know how she felt about it.
She looked him in the eyes. "If you're giving me this in order to get me to leave the SGC and be 'safe' somewhere away from you-"
"No, no. You're absolutely right," Daniel broke in. "You living somewhere else would never work. I'm giving you this so you have something to remind you that someone belongs to you…that I belong to you."
Vala hesitated but looked back at the ring. "And I to you?"
"Yeah."
Daniel was quiet for a moment while she gazed at the ring. She couldn't help the tears starting to form in her eyes.
"I know it's not very showy. It was my mother's. I've had it in my pocket for weeks, practically since we got back, I just couldn't decide when or how to give it to you."
She stopped his babbling by placing a finger on his lips and smiling. "I love it, Daniel," she paused for a second, "but I don't need anything to remind me that you're mine. People will definitely notice this."
Daniel smiled back. "I don't care, but if you do, you can wear it on a chain around your neck or something. It's yours now, just like I am," he blushed, "always have been, I guess."
Vala laughed with him but continued to stare at the ring. "It's so beautiful, but it can't possibly fit. I feel positively bloated all the time."
She was about to return it to the box, when Daniel took it from her and gently eased it over the knuckle of her ring finger on her left hand. Her only response was a look of utter shock.
"I may have asked Sam and Carolyn to get you to try on some rings the first time you three went shopping at the mall."
Vala lightly punched his shoulder. "You sneak!" But she lay back and admired the ring on her finger as she held her hand up above her head. "Do I need to get you a ring, too? Would you wear one?"
"My dad's wedding band is in the box too, beneath the cardboard. I'll wear it if you want."
Vala nodded and she took it out and placed it on his left hand as well. "Does this mean…I mean, you know…are we…"
Daniel frowned in confusion at her.
"It's just that, from what I understand, your planet has a variety of ceremonies involving the, uh, commitments of couples."
He smiled back at her. "This can mean whatever you want it to mean. If you want, then yes, this can mean that we're married." Daniel laughed as he saw her eyes light up. "Or if you want it to just mean that we're mutually connected in some way greater than mere friends and co-workers, then that's fine too."
"I like the first one." Vala jabbed him in the shoulder again, but a second later she frowned. "It's more than just putting rings on each other. Doesn't a wedding, a marriage, require vows, or…or promises of some kind?"
"Oh, there's all kinds of common features to wedding ceremonies. There's usually some kind of outward symbol, like the rings, and witnesses, which I guess we don't have right now-"
"Except the whole base thinks we fight like an old married couple anyway," Vala teased.
"Good point. And yes, usually there are promises made. For instance, I promise to…to never work so hard that I miss a meal."
Vala laughed. "And I promise to…to share all my treasure with you…" he raised an eyebrow at her. "Fifty-fifty," she promised.
"I further promise to…get at least six hours of sleep a night."
"Eight."
"Seven."
"Fine, but you also promise to take a thirty minute nap every day…say around noon," she bargained with a wink. Daniel laughed back and agreed, so Vala continued with her next vow. "Okay, let's see…I also promise to…" a thought crossed her mind and she started to frown, "…to only steal something if I need it to save your life." She touched his cheek tenderly, and felt herself tearing up again. "I promise to…"
Daniel turned his head and placed a kiss on her palm. "I promise to give you the benefit of the doubt from now on, to respect you and trust you in all things." He softly kissed her lips. "I promise to love you, Vala Mal Doran, with all my heart, body and soul for as long as I live."
Vala started crying freely, but she made her final vow wholeheartedly. "For the rest of my life, I promise to love you, Daniel Jackson, with all my heart, body and soul." Their lips met in a passionate, soul-searching kiss.
Minutes passed, and the kiss that had started as a seal of their vows turned desperate with a fiery need. Tongues melded, lips fused. They separated for only moments at a time, gasping for breath then coming together for more. They used their teeth and left love bites on each other's lips. They swept their tongues around each other, licking and sucking in a blatant mimic of things to come.
Vala reached under Daniel's shirt and forced both his black t-shirt and army green BDU top up over his head. She was wearing a similar ensemble, which remained unbuttoned to accommodate her pregnant belly. Daniel helped her to sit up and proceeded to remove both her BDU shirt and the black tank top she wore under it. He gazed at her appreciatively as she sat there before him.
Daniel brushed a few strands of hair from her face. "I know you already know this," he grinned, "but you truly are the most beautiful woman I've ever met."
She smiled back at him, thanking him wordlessly for easing her anxieties. She teased him back then, "Oh, darling, I bet you say that to all the girls." Her hand grazed down his arm over his bicep. "This may sound silly," she lifted her gaze from his body to his eyes, "but knowing you're mine makes me feel like…like the wealthiest woman in the universe. I feel as if…I've found my heart's desire at last."
Daniel found her lips again with his, and they kissed long and hard, the force of his movement propelling them down to the bed once more. He kept himself propped up on his side so as not to crush their baby, but his other hand caressed her from her jaw to her navel and all the places in between. Vala kept one hand on his neck, the other on his back, holding his head and his mouth tightly against her own.
She was drowning in the kiss, in the feeling of his muscles tensing and flexing, in the sensation of his hand fondling her breasts over her bra. She twisted more on her side then, and tried to free her breasts on her own. Daniel released her mouth and smiled against her cheek, helping her to undo the small hooks behind her back. When she was free, he didn't immediately reach for her as she expected, but instead, knelt on the ground and started unlacing her boots.
She never laced them up all the way anymore, so it didn't take him long to remove her shoes and socks. He worked on his own next while Vala debated whether she should take her pants off herself or let Daniel do it. It took her maybe three seconds to decide to do it herself. The pants were too uncomfortable to sleep in anyway, Daniel couldn't accuse her of trying to skip ahead. She left her underwear on, though she couldn't really figure out why. She hoped her stupid, insecure subconscious wasn't starting to get the upperhand.
But even as she thought it, Daniel was there beside her, stripped down to his boxers and slipping under the covers with her.
"Look, don't hate me for this, but I don't actually want…to uh…"
"What?"
"No, no, let me explain. I'm just kind of afraid of hurting you, that's all," he begged her to understand. "Let me go slow this time. Let me just touch you."
"Daniel, you won't hurt me or the baby. I'm sure there's nothing to worry ab- Oh, good lord!" He'd slipped his hand underneath the elastic of her underwear and pressed down on her clit knowingly.
"You all right, dear?" She heard slight laughter in his voice.
"Yes, okay then…" she gasped and writhed beneath his hand, "maybe for now…we'll let you…do it your way. Mmm."
He used her momentary distraction to pull her underwear all the way off, then went back to teasing her throbbing flesh. He moved his thumb in ever tightening circles around her, pressing down then pulling back. He didn't seem to follow any rhythm, so there was no way she could anticipate his movements. Her eyes were closed in pleasure, but she could almost feel him staring at her in the dim, shaded lamplight, watching her emotions fly across her face.
After a moment, he abandoned her clit and sent a finger probing into her. Like her nipples, her insides were just as over-sensitized. Having never been pregnant before, the experience of him stroking her with his fingers felt like something new and unknown. She squeezed her thighs around his hand, keeping him in place, hoping he'd never leave her.
Daniel spent many minutes exploring and learning her most intimate place, stroking with one finger, then with two. She felt so tight around his fingers that Vala just knew he'd never actually fit right now. Better to wait until after the baby was born…if they possibly could wait that long. She reached up with her outside hand and brought Daniel's head down to hers for a long, tongue-sweeping kiss. With her other hand, the one between them, she sought out his erection, gripping it and starting to pump.
Daniel broke the kiss at once and inched his body away from her. "Ah, ah, ah," he chided. "This night is for you."
"Let's have another night be for me and this one be for us," she bargained, reaching out again to thread her fingers into his boxers.
"I'm serious, Vala," Daniel choked out when she had pulled him partially free. "I don't last long at all when you touch me," he groaned as she tugged a little harder. "God, you'll be the death of me."
He sat up quickly then clamped both her wrists above her head with one hand. "Vala," he looked her straight in her eyes, "I need you to make one more promise tonight."
She shook her head in protest until he sent two fingers inside her and pressed down on her clit with his thumb. She closed her eyes and squirmed against him, the sensations becoming all too powerful. "Harder, darling."
"Promise me not to derail this." He kissed the upper swell of her breasts while stroking shallowly inside her. "Hold your hands there out of the way and let me love you."
Daniel flicked his tongue over one of Vala's nipples and heard her gasp. She bucked her hips up into his hand, urging him to stroke her. "Please, Daniel."
"I'm here, Vala, but you have to promise." He drew his fingers out of her and gently pinched her clit between his wet forefinger and thumb. When she still hadn't responded to his plea, he bent down and licked the nipple he'd been teasing. Then he released it and blew across it. "Will you keep your hands to yourself? Just for tonight?" he asked while rubbing the heel of his hand against her and kissing her neck just below her jaw.
"Fine. Yes! Damnit, Daniel, just finish it already!"
He loosened his grip on her wrists slowly, but she held to her word and stayed put. He bent down and flicked her nipple once more with his tongue, then he drove his fingers into the soft, wet flesh between her thighs. He stroked her for a few minutes, hard and fast, but then he abandoned that track and sent his fingers to her clit, flicking and strumming like the strings of an instrument.
In seconds, her body clenched. She brought a pillow up to her mouth and she screamed into it in utter ecstasy. Daniel brought her down easy, stroking her inner thighs and belly lazily, brushing the lightest, barely-there kisses across her breasts.
When her breathing evened out, he got up from the bed and shuffled into the bathroom. She heard the water running and winced when she thought he might be getting into a cold shower. But it sounded more like the faucet than the shower, so she tried to relax.
He came back a minute or two later with a warm washcloth and rinsed her off. He went part way back to the bathroom and tossed it in the sink, then returned to lie down next to Vala.
"You okay?" Vala asked, curling into him.
"Fine, sweetheart," he whispered. "Just relax."
She took a few breaths then blew out a laugh against his chest. "You know what? I think we might actually have the potential for being 'vigorous' in bed."
Daniel blurted out a huge laugh of his own. "I never doubted it for a minute."
********
Chapter 20: http://aeryn-b.livejournal.com/12697.html