FF: Tumble and Fall [6]
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Author’s Notes: Again, thanks to all who commented, stuck around. I think I’m finally happy with this one. Hope you enjoy.
Summary: For when she’s this vulnerable and this open, I see her for who she really is and I sympathize. I sympathize and hate myself for liking her as much as I do. [Sam/Vala friendship; eventual Sam/Vala; spoilers for all of season 10]
Title: Tumble and Fall
Author: doubleedog (e-dog)
Pairing: Sam/Vala
Rating: G - PG-13 (although PG-13 might be an exaggeration at this juncture)
Summary: For when she’s this vulnerable and this open, I see her for who she really is and I sympathize. I sympathize and hate myself for liking her as much as I do.
6. 200: Believe
“You Tau’ri are quite odd.”
“Yeah, how so?”
“You find the most insignificant of things cause for celebration,” Vala explains.
I yawn. “Hmm.”
“Like, the day of your birth or that event in which you study a pig’s shadow.”
“Groundhog,” I correct. “You mean, groundhog.”
Vala sighs heavily. “Does it matter? Not that it should surprise me that Mitchell kept track of how many times he stepped through the Stargate. I understand that the whole concept of this wormhole business is quite amazing, but nothing worthy of cake and ice cream.”
“I guess not.”
“I’ve also participated in better parties.”
“Hmm,” I hum in agreement. She’s right. As far as celebrations go, this one is quite lackluster.
Leave it to General O’Neill to host a ‘200th Trip Through The Gate’ party on the Echo Site. The Echo Site.
Alpha, Beta, Gamma. We’ve got more sites than I care to count now and I’m not trying to say this planet isn’t beautiful. It’s a gorgeous planet, but we’re stuck inside the base. We can’t even enjoy the red, daisy-like flowers on the surface or bask in the crisper, livelier air whirling about between the trees, uninhibited by pollution and the greenhouse effect.
Cameron doesn’t seem to mind, though. Alcohol is in full abundance and he’s been going on about how he’s never been drunk on a mission before. He’s still calling this 200th trip a “mission”. Probably the five bottles of beer and that shot of tequila talking.
Occasionally Cameron spouts off some drunken, Southern phrase, garners a few laughs, but for the most part, it’s a typical SGC get together. Lots of uniforms, a few scientists. Nerds butting heads with Jocks. Usually, that conflict alone is entertaining, but after a few hours of the same ol’ jokes, I’m counting down the seconds ‘till we step back through the ‘gate to Earth.
The cake is chocolate. Not particularly my favorite. Vala loves it though and I hand the rest of mine to her. She eagerly scarfs it down.
“Let’s escape,” Vala suggests, cleaning her plate.
I look at her, somewhat intrigued. “To where?
“To the surface!” Vala says. “As you know, I spend most of my time wandering halls that look exactly like this Echo thing. Aside from our one little radioactive monster hunt on Earth, I rarely get to enjoy things like grass and blue skies. So, c’mon then! Let’s escape!”
I can’t help it. I’m always leery of Vala’s intentions, even now. “Take Daniel with you.”
“Do you honestly think Daniel traveled here to celebrate Mitchell’s 200th trip through the gate?” Vala asks, clearly a rhetorical question. Now that she’s said it, though, I do notice that Daniel is missing.
My reluctance to respond only makes Vala explain. “Some of Myrddin’s loot is here. You know Daniel. He thinks he can find the answer to everything just so long as he can touch every little piece of gold trinket found. He’s always hoping one of those is a key to some bigger clue. So, now you know. Let’s get out of here!”
“Vala . . .”
“And don’t you say you need to find something to work on. We’re at a party. Or at least a reasonable facsimile of one.”
I rub one of my temples, a headache just over the horizon.
We never make it to the surface of the planet.
Along the way, we found a recreation room and Vala shrieked like a little girl in a toy store. Finally, some entertainment!, she exclaimed. I’m sure the team assigned to Echo are thinking the same of Mitchell’s party.
Echo Site was established thanks to the constant breaches of security at Area 51. Here, any “loot” we acquire can safely be studied, then given that it meets certain security risk protocols, can be returned to Earth and ultimately end up at Area 51.
People assigned to Echo have the tedious task of cataloging, recording, and taking pictures. Exciting stuff, let me tell ya. Occasionally, the Echo site crew will exchange old stuff for new stuff, and the process starts all over again. The most thrilling of events to ever happen at Echo Site is happening right now, in the gateroom. To them, Mitchell’s little celebration is the equivalent to a frat party on a college campus.
“Oh, Sam! What’s this thing?”
Vala is bouncing from one item to the next, unable to decide what to try first. There’s a television, some video game platforms, board games, playing cards. I pick up the pack of cards, smirk to myself. I say, “Wanna see a card trick?”
“Oo, magic!” Vala says, face lighting up brightly. She plops down in a chair eagerly. “Your television has many programs concerning the subject. You Earthlings have a very interesting view on what magic is and to think you use it to entertain!”
I chuckle, shuffling the deck. “Yeah, we Earthlings like to be entertained. Using magic to dominate others isn’t really our thing.”
I dole out some cards into several piles, instruct Vala to select any three piles and to set them aside. After she selects three piles, I gather up the remaining cards, hold onto them. I instruct, “Now pick any pile and flip the top card over.”
She does so. With the extra cards in my hand, I count what appears to be an arbitrary number of cards. When I’m done, I say, “Okay, pick a second pile, do the same thing.”
She flips over the top card of another pile. I, again, count what appears to be an arbitrary number of cards. She assumes I want her to flip over the last card, but I stop her.
“Wait. It’s now my turn to guess the number on the last card. Which is five,” I say confidently. I love showing off this card trick. She squints her eyes at me and I insist, “The number on the top card is five.”
She flips the last card over and sure enough, a Five of Spades greets us. She looks at me, still quite amazed, “How are you doing it? Any self deserving con can see you’re counting cards, but I can’t pick up on the pattern at all. It all seems so random!”
I smile. “It’s a simple math equation, one that works every time. The way I count does seem to portray a random sequence, but it’s far from random.”
“Show me!”
“If I tell you, then it’s no longer a trick, now is it?”
“It’s not a trick if it involves math.”
“Sure it is. You think all those magicians on television forego the use of math or science in their performances?” I reason. “If they didn’t, their attempts at ‘life or death trickery’ would ultimately kill them or endanger their assistants. Magic, for us, is the thrill of illusion. When things appear to be something extraordinary.”
Vala huffs. “Whatever. I’m sure the Ori wouldn’t be impressed with your simple math equation.”
I smile sadly. “No, probably not.”
I shuffle the cards, mostly to fill the silence in the room. Mentioning the Ori, even when one is trying to jest, is always such a downer. Not to say we aren’t all thinking about them every second of every day. Even now, as Cameron stumbles around in the gateroom ‘drunk as a skunk’, he’s thinking about how he can defeat the Ori. We all think about it.
“Sam?” Vala says, her hand slipping into mine. She squeezes it.
I squeeze in return to signal I’m listening.
“We’re going to get through all this, right?”
Her soft hand in mine suddenly feels fragile, small. Her blue eyes dissolve into grey, expose the uncertainty that Vala usually can hide so easily. It’s times like this I wish Vala were still obnoxious, still unreasonably insufferable. For when she’s this vulnerable and this open, I see her for who she really is and I sympathize. I sympathize and hate myself for liking her as much as I do.
I grasp her hand firmly and promise, “We’ll get through this, Vala. All of us. Together.”
Vala chuckles, the gesture almost mirthful. Certainly not the reaction I was expecting to my reassuring words.
“What?” I say, curious as to why our situation suddenly seems amusing.
“Nothing, really,” she says, releasing my hand and trying to smile. “It’s just whenever you or Daniel or Mitchell tell me we’ll all be okay, I guess I. . .”
She trails off and I lean forward, gently push for her to continue. “You guess what?”
“I believe you. Even though the task seems impossible, I believe you.”
My smile is cheerless, but my efforts raise her spirits some. It’s not much, but sometimes a little faith in what you believe is all you need.
( 5. Uninvited: Cuddle )
( 4. Insiders: Battle Makes The Heart Grow Fonder )
( 3. The Pegasus Project: Sleepover )
( 2. Morpheus: Lunch and Loot )
( 1. Flesh and Blood: Trust is a Two Way Street )
Author’s Notes: Again, thanks to all who commented, stuck around. I think I’m finally happy with this one. Hope you enjoy.
Summary: For when she’s this vulnerable and this open, I see her for who she really is and I sympathize. I sympathize and hate myself for liking her as much as I do. [Sam/Vala friendship; eventual Sam/Vala; spoilers for all of season 10]
Title: Tumble and Fall
Author: doubleedog (e-dog)
Pairing: Sam/Vala
Rating: G - PG-13 (although PG-13 might be an exaggeration at this juncture)
Summary: For when she’s this vulnerable and this open, I see her for who she really is and I sympathize. I sympathize and hate myself for liking her as much as I do.
6. 200: Believe
“You Tau’ri are quite odd.”
“Yeah, how so?”
“You find the most insignificant of things cause for celebration,” Vala explains.
I yawn. “Hmm.”
“Like, the day of your birth or that event in which you study a pig’s shadow.”
“Groundhog,” I correct. “You mean, groundhog.”
Vala sighs heavily. “Does it matter? Not that it should surprise me that Mitchell kept track of how many times he stepped through the Stargate. I understand that the whole concept of this wormhole business is quite amazing, but nothing worthy of cake and ice cream.”
“I guess not.”
“I’ve also participated in better parties.”
“Hmm,” I hum in agreement. She’s right. As far as celebrations go, this one is quite lackluster.
Leave it to General O’Neill to host a ‘200th Trip Through The Gate’ party on the Echo Site. The Echo Site.
Alpha, Beta, Gamma. We’ve got more sites than I care to count now and I’m not trying to say this planet isn’t beautiful. It’s a gorgeous planet, but we’re stuck inside the base. We can’t even enjoy the red, daisy-like flowers on the surface or bask in the crisper, livelier air whirling about between the trees, uninhibited by pollution and the greenhouse effect.
Cameron doesn’t seem to mind, though. Alcohol is in full abundance and he’s been going on about how he’s never been drunk on a mission before. He’s still calling this 200th trip a “mission”. Probably the five bottles of beer and that shot of tequila talking.
Occasionally Cameron spouts off some drunken, Southern phrase, garners a few laughs, but for the most part, it’s a typical SGC get together. Lots of uniforms, a few scientists. Nerds butting heads with Jocks. Usually, that conflict alone is entertaining, but after a few hours of the same ol’ jokes, I’m counting down the seconds ‘till we step back through the ‘gate to Earth.
The cake is chocolate. Not particularly my favorite. Vala loves it though and I hand the rest of mine to her. She eagerly scarfs it down.
“Let’s escape,” Vala suggests, cleaning her plate.
I look at her, somewhat intrigued. “To where?
“To the surface!” Vala says. “As you know, I spend most of my time wandering halls that look exactly like this Echo thing. Aside from our one little radioactive monster hunt on Earth, I rarely get to enjoy things like grass and blue skies. So, c’mon then! Let’s escape!”
I can’t help it. I’m always leery of Vala’s intentions, even now. “Take Daniel with you.”
“Do you honestly think Daniel traveled here to celebrate Mitchell’s 200th trip through the gate?” Vala asks, clearly a rhetorical question. Now that she’s said it, though, I do notice that Daniel is missing.
My reluctance to respond only makes Vala explain. “Some of Myrddin’s loot is here. You know Daniel. He thinks he can find the answer to everything just so long as he can touch every little piece of gold trinket found. He’s always hoping one of those is a key to some bigger clue. So, now you know. Let’s get out of here!”
“Vala . . .”
“And don’t you say you need to find something to work on. We’re at a party. Or at least a reasonable facsimile of one.”
I rub one of my temples, a headache just over the horizon.
We never make it to the surface of the planet.
Along the way, we found a recreation room and Vala shrieked like a little girl in a toy store. Finally, some entertainment!, she exclaimed. I’m sure the team assigned to Echo are thinking the same of Mitchell’s party.
Echo Site was established thanks to the constant breaches of security at Area 51. Here, any “loot” we acquire can safely be studied, then given that it meets certain security risk protocols, can be returned to Earth and ultimately end up at Area 51.
People assigned to Echo have the tedious task of cataloging, recording, and taking pictures. Exciting stuff, let me tell ya. Occasionally, the Echo site crew will exchange old stuff for new stuff, and the process starts all over again. The most thrilling of events to ever happen at Echo Site is happening right now, in the gateroom. To them, Mitchell’s little celebration is the equivalent to a frat party on a college campus.
“Oh, Sam! What’s this thing?”
Vala is bouncing from one item to the next, unable to decide what to try first. There’s a television, some video game platforms, board games, playing cards. I pick up the pack of cards, smirk to myself. I say, “Wanna see a card trick?”
“Oo, magic!” Vala says, face lighting up brightly. She plops down in a chair eagerly. “Your television has many programs concerning the subject. You Earthlings have a very interesting view on what magic is and to think you use it to entertain!”
I chuckle, shuffling the deck. “Yeah, we Earthlings like to be entertained. Using magic to dominate others isn’t really our thing.”
I dole out some cards into several piles, instruct Vala to select any three piles and to set them aside. After she selects three piles, I gather up the remaining cards, hold onto them. I instruct, “Now pick any pile and flip the top card over.”
She does so. With the extra cards in my hand, I count what appears to be an arbitrary number of cards. When I’m done, I say, “Okay, pick a second pile, do the same thing.”
She flips over the top card of another pile. I, again, count what appears to be an arbitrary number of cards. She assumes I want her to flip over the last card, but I stop her.
“Wait. It’s now my turn to guess the number on the last card. Which is five,” I say confidently. I love showing off this card trick. She squints her eyes at me and I insist, “The number on the top card is five.”
She flips the last card over and sure enough, a Five of Spades greets us. She looks at me, still quite amazed, “How are you doing it? Any self deserving con can see you’re counting cards, but I can’t pick up on the pattern at all. It all seems so random!”
I smile. “It’s a simple math equation, one that works every time. The way I count does seem to portray a random sequence, but it’s far from random.”
“Show me!”
“If I tell you, then it’s no longer a trick, now is it?”
“It’s not a trick if it involves math.”
“Sure it is. You think all those magicians on television forego the use of math or science in their performances?” I reason. “If they didn’t, their attempts at ‘life or death trickery’ would ultimately kill them or endanger their assistants. Magic, for us, is the thrill of illusion. When things appear to be something extraordinary.”
Vala huffs. “Whatever. I’m sure the Ori wouldn’t be impressed with your simple math equation.”
I smile sadly. “No, probably not.”
I shuffle the cards, mostly to fill the silence in the room. Mentioning the Ori, even when one is trying to jest, is always such a downer. Not to say we aren’t all thinking about them every second of every day. Even now, as Cameron stumbles around in the gateroom ‘drunk as a skunk’, he’s thinking about how he can defeat the Ori. We all think about it.
“Sam?” Vala says, her hand slipping into mine. She squeezes it.
I squeeze in return to signal I’m listening.
“We’re going to get through all this, right?”
Her soft hand in mine suddenly feels fragile, small. Her blue eyes dissolve into grey, expose the uncertainty that Vala usually can hide so easily. It’s times like this I wish Vala were still obnoxious, still unreasonably insufferable. For when she’s this vulnerable and this open, I see her for who she really is and I sympathize. I sympathize and hate myself for liking her as much as I do.
I grasp her hand firmly and promise, “We’ll get through this, Vala. All of us. Together.”
Vala chuckles, the gesture almost mirthful. Certainly not the reaction I was expecting to my reassuring words.
“What?” I say, curious as to why our situation suddenly seems amusing.
“Nothing, really,” she says, releasing my hand and trying to smile. “It’s just whenever you or Daniel or Mitchell tell me we’ll all be okay, I guess I. . .”
She trails off and I lean forward, gently push for her to continue. “You guess what?”
“I believe you. Even though the task seems impossible, I believe you.”
My smile is cheerless, but my efforts raise her spirits some. It’s not much, but sometimes a little faith in what you believe is all you need.
( 5. Uninvited: Cuddle )
( 4. Insiders: Battle Makes The Heart Grow Fonder )
( 3. The Pegasus Project: Sleepover )
( 2. Morpheus: Lunch and Loot )
( 1. Flesh and Blood: Trust is a Two Way Street )