Magnetism
Magnetism
by GateGremlyn
Gen
Angst Hurt/Comfort
I wrote this ages ago for a friend on a list. I've brushed it off to post for Gen Fic Day. Enjoy! And let me know what you think.
~o~
Carolyn wondered (not for the first time) if the mountain possessed some kind of magnetic property of which she was unaware. Better yet, she wondered if Daniel Jackson himself possessed some kind of magnetic property of which she was unaware. It would explain many things, not the least of which would be the number of times the man managed to get in the way of a metal projectile. His medical file, perched at the moment on the edge of her desk, took up most of the top drawer in one of her file cabinets. Her reading told her that he'd been shot, zatted, blasted, and dead-more than once. She'd read the file, and then read it again just to convince herself it was all true. As far as she could tell, it was all true-and in her crazy job, that was really saying something. But magnetism, she didn't remember anything in the file about that. A burst appendix, yes--magnetism, no.
She put the latest file folder--the one on Daniel's bullet wound to the chest, the one that chronicled two days in intensive care and another five in the ward--on top of the stack and made ready to put the whole thing back in the cabinet. Magnetism wasn't something they covered in med school, although she had to admit that most of what she'd covered at med school didn't cover any number of weird scenarios she'd seen in her infirmary. Or the weird things she'd seen off world. She still had trouble even saying that-off world. Who would have thought that she'd go through a big round circle of metal into a vortex of energy and end up on another planet? Weird. But she didn't remember learning anything about magnetism, on world or off. Doctor Daniel Jackson, linguist, anthropologist, and interstellar traveler had been off world many, many times. He'd been possessed by aliens, made invisible (no not invisible, out of phase, she corrected herself) and mentally transported to another galaxy-that one on almost her first day at the SGC. But he'd never made any mention of magnetism. Still, she didn't see any other explanation.
As the drawer of the filing cabinet squeaked open, the sound was drowned out by noise from the the outer room. Carolyn turned to look through the glass. Maybe she'd have to see about adding a chapter to the medical books on the power of magnetism, Daniel Jackson style. She couldn't see him at the moment, not that that surprised her. He was surrounded by bodies: Samantha Carter, Cameron Mitchell, the Jaffa Teal'c, her father General Landry, Vala Mal Doran, and one General O'Neill come all the way from Washington, DC. There were so many bodies she couldn't see the one body presently in her care. Magnetism, pure and simple. Daniel Jackson attracted a following like a magnet attracted paper clips, drawing them out behind him in a long line. Ever since his admittance to the infirmary seven days ago, he'd been surrounded by people. During the first few hours, when his next breath hadn't been a guarantee, he'd been surrounded by his team constantly, first in pairs--Sam and Teal'c, Colonel Mitchell and Vala. General O'Neill had taken over the vigil as soon as he'd arrived at the mountain, sitting himself by Daniel's side and not leaving for the next two days even as the other team members circulated in and out. One at a time or many, they'd parked themselves by Daniel's bed, moving only when she ordered them to, and only far enough that she and her staff could provide necessary medical care. They'd stayed that way until Daniel had opened one eye, looked at his audience and said, “Go 'way, Jack.” And Jack had gone once he'd been sure Daniel wasn't talking in his sleep. He'd stayed away for all of five or six hours while Sam sat beside the bed.
Once they'd moved Daniel out of Intensive Care, the rest of his team had relaxed a little, coming one at a time (instead of in flocks) to sit by his bed. Even then they'd never left him alone, except at night when she threw them all out to get some sleep. Except for General O'Neill. The next five days saw O'Neill in the infirmary at all hours of the day or night. He left every once in a while to eat or sleep; he even spent some time with her father at meetings and briefings, but most of his time was spent right here in the infirmary sitting beside a very sick friend.
Carolyn looked again at the crowd around the bed. She was releasing Daniel today. He was on medical leave for at least a month, and unless his magnetism wore off (something she didn't see happening), he'd be well cared for. Even now she could see General O'Neill waving around set of keys. She thought she could hear Daniel's voice saying, “You're not driving my car, Jack,” but General O'Neill's response was drowned out by the laughter. With a snort she wondered why the car keys hadn't jumped out of the general's hand and stuck themselves to Daniel's body. His magnetic force had worked it's magic on everything else. When people sat beside Daniel, they touched him: an arm, a hand, a brush of the hair, a kiss on the cheek. She found herself doing it too when she went to check on him. It was like she couldn't help herself that she let her hand linger on his wrist or squeeze his fingers. Even now, she could see Sam standing at the foot of the bed with her hand on Daniel's leg. She wondered if one chapter on Daniel in her new book of miracles and wonders would be enough.
The crowd parted a little so that she had a quick glimpse of the focus of all this magnetic power. She could just see the top of the sling on his left arm, but the bruises on his face, now a dull yellow and green, stood out quite clearly. He looked wan and tired, something General O'Neill had already grilled her about. She'd assured him that Daniel was on the mend but not mended. She'd pointed out that Daniel was lucky to be alive to which the general had muttered something about “luck has nothing to do with it.” The pale face had a small smile on it and his right hand reached out to grab the keys General O'Neill dangled just out of reach. With a little surprise, she assured herself that the keys were going to stay in safe hands and marveled at the power of magnetism.
Her medical books had served her well, in school and out. She understood the intricacies of the human body, and how to treat its injuries and diseases. Her experience had served her better. Each day at the SGC she put her scientific and analytic skills to the test as she learned new and better ways to deal with the many problems placed before her by the Stargate. Injuries took on a different dimension when they came from a battle with weapons she'd never even heard of, and diseases from alien viruses put the whole base on alert. She'd adapted and learned. But as a doctor she was always acutely aware of one thing: she couldn't save everyone. Not even the remarkable alien technologies she'd been introduced to could do that. She knew it from personal experience; she knew it from the files she read. Daniel Jackson should have been dead several times over. He should have been dead seven days ago. The one thing neither education nor experience could teach her was the power of the human spirit to heal itself. She had no doubt that Daniel's rapid recovery was due in large part to the power of the people around him.
She prepared to go in and give Daniel one last examination before she let him leave her infirmary. She'd pull the crowd away from him, listening to all of them complain about it as she did. She was secure in the knowledge that they'd be right back--because they had no choice. They'd been drawn to Daniel in his need as they always were, and they returned back to him all the things he gave them on a regular basis: friendship and laugher, caring and hope; the strength of his character and the warmth of his love. Like the bands of a magnetic field they circled out and came back again to make an unbroken chain, one strong enough to help and heal in a way she'd never understood before.
The ring of Daniel's laughter brought her eyes back to the group where Vala now held the keys away from Teal'c's reaching hand and Jack complained about getting no respect from anyone. She closed the file cabinet with a bang and walked out of her office and into the crowd, eager to get her next lesson on the power of magnetism.
~o~
by GateGremlyn
Gen
Angst Hurt/Comfort
I wrote this ages ago for a friend on a list. I've brushed it off to post for Gen Fic Day. Enjoy! And let me know what you think.
~o~
Carolyn wondered (not for the first time) if the mountain possessed some kind of magnetic property of which she was unaware. Better yet, she wondered if Daniel Jackson himself possessed some kind of magnetic property of which she was unaware. It would explain many things, not the least of which would be the number of times the man managed to get in the way of a metal projectile. His medical file, perched at the moment on the edge of her desk, took up most of the top drawer in one of her file cabinets. Her reading told her that he'd been shot, zatted, blasted, and dead-more than once. She'd read the file, and then read it again just to convince herself it was all true. As far as she could tell, it was all true-and in her crazy job, that was really saying something. But magnetism, she didn't remember anything in the file about that. A burst appendix, yes--magnetism, no.
She put the latest file folder--the one on Daniel's bullet wound to the chest, the one that chronicled two days in intensive care and another five in the ward--on top of the stack and made ready to put the whole thing back in the cabinet. Magnetism wasn't something they covered in med school, although she had to admit that most of what she'd covered at med school didn't cover any number of weird scenarios she'd seen in her infirmary. Or the weird things she'd seen off world. She still had trouble even saying that-off world. Who would have thought that she'd go through a big round circle of metal into a vortex of energy and end up on another planet? Weird. But she didn't remember learning anything about magnetism, on world or off. Doctor Daniel Jackson, linguist, anthropologist, and interstellar traveler had been off world many, many times. He'd been possessed by aliens, made invisible (no not invisible, out of phase, she corrected herself) and mentally transported to another galaxy-that one on almost her first day at the SGC. But he'd never made any mention of magnetism. Still, she didn't see any other explanation.
As the drawer of the filing cabinet squeaked open, the sound was drowned out by noise from the the outer room. Carolyn turned to look through the glass. Maybe she'd have to see about adding a chapter to the medical books on the power of magnetism, Daniel Jackson style. She couldn't see him at the moment, not that that surprised her. He was surrounded by bodies: Samantha Carter, Cameron Mitchell, the Jaffa Teal'c, her father General Landry, Vala Mal Doran, and one General O'Neill come all the way from Washington, DC. There were so many bodies she couldn't see the one body presently in her care. Magnetism, pure and simple. Daniel Jackson attracted a following like a magnet attracted paper clips, drawing them out behind him in a long line. Ever since his admittance to the infirmary seven days ago, he'd been surrounded by people. During the first few hours, when his next breath hadn't been a guarantee, he'd been surrounded by his team constantly, first in pairs--Sam and Teal'c, Colonel Mitchell and Vala. General O'Neill had taken over the vigil as soon as he'd arrived at the mountain, sitting himself by Daniel's side and not leaving for the next two days even as the other team members circulated in and out. One at a time or many, they'd parked themselves by Daniel's bed, moving only when she ordered them to, and only far enough that she and her staff could provide necessary medical care. They'd stayed that way until Daniel had opened one eye, looked at his audience and said, “Go 'way, Jack.” And Jack had gone once he'd been sure Daniel wasn't talking in his sleep. He'd stayed away for all of five or six hours while Sam sat beside the bed.
Once they'd moved Daniel out of Intensive Care, the rest of his team had relaxed a little, coming one at a time (instead of in flocks) to sit by his bed. Even then they'd never left him alone, except at night when she threw them all out to get some sleep. Except for General O'Neill. The next five days saw O'Neill in the infirmary at all hours of the day or night. He left every once in a while to eat or sleep; he even spent some time with her father at meetings and briefings, but most of his time was spent right here in the infirmary sitting beside a very sick friend.
Carolyn looked again at the crowd around the bed. She was releasing Daniel today. He was on medical leave for at least a month, and unless his magnetism wore off (something she didn't see happening), he'd be well cared for. Even now she could see General O'Neill waving around set of keys. She thought she could hear Daniel's voice saying, “You're not driving my car, Jack,” but General O'Neill's response was drowned out by the laughter. With a snort she wondered why the car keys hadn't jumped out of the general's hand and stuck themselves to Daniel's body. His magnetic force had worked it's magic on everything else. When people sat beside Daniel, they touched him: an arm, a hand, a brush of the hair, a kiss on the cheek. She found herself doing it too when she went to check on him. It was like she couldn't help herself that she let her hand linger on his wrist or squeeze his fingers. Even now, she could see Sam standing at the foot of the bed with her hand on Daniel's leg. She wondered if one chapter on Daniel in her new book of miracles and wonders would be enough.
The crowd parted a little so that she had a quick glimpse of the focus of all this magnetic power. She could just see the top of the sling on his left arm, but the bruises on his face, now a dull yellow and green, stood out quite clearly. He looked wan and tired, something General O'Neill had already grilled her about. She'd assured him that Daniel was on the mend but not mended. She'd pointed out that Daniel was lucky to be alive to which the general had muttered something about “luck has nothing to do with it.” The pale face had a small smile on it and his right hand reached out to grab the keys General O'Neill dangled just out of reach. With a little surprise, she assured herself that the keys were going to stay in safe hands and marveled at the power of magnetism.
Her medical books had served her well, in school and out. She understood the intricacies of the human body, and how to treat its injuries and diseases. Her experience had served her better. Each day at the SGC she put her scientific and analytic skills to the test as she learned new and better ways to deal with the many problems placed before her by the Stargate. Injuries took on a different dimension when they came from a battle with weapons she'd never even heard of, and diseases from alien viruses put the whole base on alert. She'd adapted and learned. But as a doctor she was always acutely aware of one thing: she couldn't save everyone. Not even the remarkable alien technologies she'd been introduced to could do that. She knew it from personal experience; she knew it from the files she read. Daniel Jackson should have been dead several times over. He should have been dead seven days ago. The one thing neither education nor experience could teach her was the power of the human spirit to heal itself. She had no doubt that Daniel's rapid recovery was due in large part to the power of the people around him.
She prepared to go in and give Daniel one last examination before she let him leave her infirmary. She'd pull the crowd away from him, listening to all of them complain about it as she did. She was secure in the knowledge that they'd be right back--because they had no choice. They'd been drawn to Daniel in his need as they always were, and they returned back to him all the things he gave them on a regular basis: friendship and laugher, caring and hope; the strength of his character and the warmth of his love. Like the bands of a magnetic field they circled out and came back again to make an unbroken chain, one strong enough to help and heal in a way she'd never understood before.
The ring of Daniel's laughter brought her eyes back to the group where Vala now held the keys away from Teal'c's reaching hand and Jack complained about getting no respect from anyone. She closed the file cabinet with a bang and walked out of her office and into the crowd, eager to get her next lesson on the power of magnetism.
~o~