Normally a 6am wake-up call would have sent him running for the shower, cursing under his breath because damn it he was going to be late. It had been a while--nearly a decade, in fact--since he'd gotten this kind of wake-up call on a Saturday morning. A January Saturday morning. Jack smothered the grin warring for escape and lethargically rolled onto his stomach. He kept his eyes resolutely closed, burrowed into the pillows and performed the very best "sleeping" impression he could manage.

It wasn't even a minute after he'd assumed his rather comfortable position when a very irritated, very long-suffering sigh gusted against his exposed cheek and two very determined hands shook his shoulder. "Jack! Wake uuuuuup; we're gonna be late!"

Shifting his head enough to slit one eye open and get a look at the disturber of his peace, Jack could no longer hide his smile. Peering through the cage of his goalie mask, wide blue eyes way too alert for the hour and the day of the week, was Daniel. Just over his left shoulder, the clock's digital readout merrily informed the room at large that it was, indeed, extremely early in the morning, but it was closer to five than six.

"I know you're awake!" Daniel bellowed in his face. "I can see your eye!" To prove it, a little digit made a daring quest toward the back of Jack's cornea.

"I'm watching you in my sleep," Jack retorted, and turned his head away. In response, Daniel scrambled up onto the bed, stood on it for a brief moment as if contemplating jumping on it, but obviously thought better of that idea and satisfied himself with diving on Jack's back, his helmeted head coming to rest painfully on Jack's shoulder and the rest of his five-year-old self draped over Jack's back. "Good idea. Let's just get some sleep. Good idea." The combination of his drowsy relaxation and the just-right arrangement and warmth of the bed lured Jack back toward oblivion.

"No!" Daniel protested--loudly. "You gotta get up; you said we wouldn't be lat--and I made breakfast'n'everything!"

Okay, that encouraged some movement. Jack rolled over halfway, dislodging Daniel, suddenly very awake. "What'd you do?" he demanded--firmly, but calm....yes, calm...babbling brooks, marathons of The Simpsons...

But instead of a shamefaced-yet-hopeful, eager-to-please little pout, Daniel responded with a rollicking, full-blown laugh; he shucked his helmet and bounced to his knees, hysterically congratulating himself on his joke. "Nothing!" he chirped. "But you got outta bed!"

He'd been had, and there was only one way to get even. "Jack!" Daniel made a frenzied attempt to escape as Jack lunged at him, taking him down carefully onto the bed and proceeded to attack the ticklish ribs hidden beneath Daniel's blue flannels. Breathless and squirming, the boy begged for mercy, and Jack triumphantly celebrated his own victory, succeeding only in making him laugh even harder.

=====
=====

"Are you sure all this is supposed to go on?" Daniel asked Jack uncertainly as Jack snapped up the numerous buckles on his right pad.

"Yep."

"It's heavy," he protested, finering the mask absently. "How'll I move?"

Jack jiggled the pad, making sure it was secure, then helped him slip on his blocker and trapper. "It'll just take some getting used to," he assured Daniel. "In a few weeks, moving with all this stuff on will be second nature to you."

Daniel looked unconvinced, and not for the first time Jack wondered if the little guy was doing this for his own enjoyment or Jack's. Ever since Daniel had received the blocker and trapper as a Secret Santa gift at Miles Tanner's Christmas party, he'd eagerly and endlessly chattered on about giving hockey a try, and had directed Jack to sign him up for the local minor hockey association. As enthusiastic as he was about Daniel potentially sharing his passion for the sport, Jack was having about as much luck reading this Daniel's motives as he'd had the adult one's. When a Daniel Jackson didn't want you to know what he was really thinking, he was a stubborn son of a bitch when it came to hiding it. Jack decided that the best way to deal with it was to reassure as much as possible, and now he gave Daniel a light tap under the chin and offered him a smile. "Hey. You know you don't have to do this if you really don't want to. Some people like sports, others don't. It's no big deal."

A blink. "I do wanna try Jack, really!" Daniel promised. "The big me might not've wanted to play hockey, but I want to see if it's fun like you say it is."

"Okay. Just making sure." Jack popped the helmet onto his head, but held him back while the other kids and their parents began to leave the dressing room. "But if you don't have fun and you don't want to do it anymore, you'll tell me, right? You know you can tell me and I can pull you out in no time."

In one of his disconcertingly mature moments, Daniel balanced his blocker on his lap and patted Jack's cheek with his right hand. "I know, Jack."

"Good." Jack glanced around at the now-empty dressing room and grinned. "You ready for your first big practice, then?" At Daniel's excited nod, he pulled him to a standing position, giving him a once-over to make sure everything was hooked up as it should be. "Let's have a ball, then."

Out of habit, outside the dressing room, Jack inhaled the cold, recycled air of the arena, breathing in the smell of sweat, hockey gear, ice, the Zamboni's exhaust and various unidentifiable smells of canteen goods.

Rink smell. There was nothing better. Beside him, Daniel did the same and Jack grinned, palming the top of his helmet in lieu of tousling his hair. "Have fun," he reminded lightly. "I'll be up in the stands cheering you on."

Daniel smiled up at him, a little nervously now that he saw the other kids already out skating and shooting pucks around. "You'll be great," Jack assured him confidently, and he got the Daniel Special as a thank-you smile before he tentatively stepped onto the sleek ice and pushed off. He stuck close to the boards initially, and Jack walked along the other side of the glass with him, breaking off to stand behind the Home bench as Daniel turned and skated along the first blue line. He'd had him out skating a few times, and Jack proudly told everyone who asked, and even some who didn't, that the kid was a natural. While the goalie gear was cumbersome, Daniel was already moving well for his age.

As Jack watched, Daniel followed the lines and the boards, staring at his skates for the most part but glancing up every now and then to get a glimpse of his teammates and his direction. When he made to follow the curve of the ice surface's corner at the far end of the rink, Matt, the coach, blew a sharp blast on his whistle and waved the novice-aged kids to centre ice. The sound caught Daniel off-guard, startling him out of his concentration, and he twisted and fell. Jack tensed, waiting for an embarrassed appeal for Jack to facilitate a retreat from the ice, but the coach skated over, offered Daniel a hand up, and Jack relaxed when Daniel flashed a delighted smile up in his direction. Jack returned the smile and waved, and watched with pride as Daniel took his place among his fellow players.

=====

Daniel couldn't believe how much fun this was! Matt, his coach, was giving them skating drills now, and when he blew his whistle three times, Daniel, along with the others, hopped in the air as best he could, giggling breathlessly when his padded behind found the cold ice again. He wasn't the only one in goalie gear, and Terry hopped past him in his gear, grinning as Daniel tottered back to his feet. "Race you!" he shouted.

Matt's next whistle was their starting gun, and Daniel and Terry took off, awkward and clumsy in their gear, but making it to the goal line at the same time. Any nervousness Daniel had felt before practice had faded away quickly when he realized that lots of the other kids were falling as well--and some of them had been playing hockey even longer than he'd been! Daniel looked up to find Jack, hoping he'd seen his race. Jack was smiling down at him and Daniel waved, wobbling a bit as the movement put him off-balance, but warmed inside when Jack waved back from between two other fathers. It felt good, and Daniel wondered if his big self knew what he'd been missing by not joining hockey.

Oops! Because he was older! The kids here were only his age and a little bit older, but Daniel knew that when he was bigger he was a lot older than them! Almost as old as Sam! He still wondered, though, if his big self knew how happy hockey made Jack.

"Okay boys and girls!" Matt called loudly. His voice echoed and sounded really small in the big rink, but Daniel automatically turned to see him in the center circle, waving them in again. "Gather 'round!"

Terry glided up to his side and another boy--Daniel thought his name was Aaron--shakily stopped at his other side. The other kids looked just as happy as Daniel felt. "All right guys," Matt said, "great practice! Give yourselves a pat on the back!" He tapped the blade of his stick against the ice and everyone else did too; they weren't as coordinated as Matt was, and one little boy fell over when he leaned forward too far and his stick slid forward on the ice, but Daniel enjoyed the clapping sounds--like the had all kinds of fans! Matt laughed. "Are you guys ready for another three months of great games and lots of fun?"

"YEAH!" Daniel joined in the cheer, even though he didn't play at all during the first three months of the season. The excitement was contagious.

Matt skated over to Daniel and patted him on the shoulder. "Okay guys, you all probably noticed a new face--this is Daniel Jackson, and he'll be joining us for the rest of the season. He and Terry will be splitting time during games, so give him a warm welcome."

"HI DANIEL!" his teammates cheered, and Daniel felt a flush in his cheeks. He waved shyly.

"Hi."

"Daniel's never played before, so we'll all give him a hand if he needs help. That--" Matt pointed up to Jack "--fine fella up in the stands is his dad, Jack. He's a big Minnesota fan." Daniel was a bit shocked at the loud chorus of boos that followed that comment, but Jack was laughing in the stands and the fathers around him slapped him on the back and laughed too, so Daniel joined in. "Let's give him a hand if he needs help finding a better team! Sound good?"

The kids were delighted. "YEAH!"

"Okay! I"ll see all of you next Saturday--remember, we're playing the Wildcats! Have a great week!"

=====

"Great job!" Jack enthused, meeting Daniel at the dressing room and collecting his blocker, helmet, trapper and stick. "You looked like a pro out there. Have fun?"

Face flushed, hair sticking up at all angles, Daniel looked the part of the classic hockey player. He beamed up at Jack. "Yeah! I was gonna say, I can't believe I didn't wanna play when I--" he caught himself at the last minute, blushing an even deeper red. "When I was littler," he finished weakly. Jack tousled his hair with his free hand--Daniel was excited and five; they couldn't expect him never to slip up even a little bit. Daniel being excited about hockey was a big deal; Jack decided he could let the almost-mistake slide unmentioned.

"Can I get that in writing?" he quipped instead, effectively deflecting Daniel's anxiety at how the near-miss had been received. The little nose scrunched up and Daniel shrugged at him as Jack held the dressing room door open for him.

"I dunno..."

"Don't you trust me?" Jack asked with mock indignation.

"Prob'ly as much as I used to."

Jack gave his shoulder a light smack as Daniel scooted into the dressing room after the last of the kids. "Smart mouth."

=====
=====

"Jack! It's almost gametime! Hurry!"

"In here!"

Daniel skidded into the kitchen a moment later, looking very surprised and pleased. If possible, his first game meant more to him than his first practice, and Jack had forced himself out of bed extra early to...

"Bacon and eggs!"

Oh yes. He was just The Shit right now, and couldn't have been more pleased. He set a heaping plate in front of Daniel and snagged his own, planting a kiss on the top of his head before he sat down. "Nervous?"

"Ummm...." Daniel carefully considered that as he chewed an extra-large mouthful of bacon, then shook his head, hair flopping. "'Cited," he tried to enunciate around his breakfast.

Jack grinned. That was an understatement; he hadn't stopped talking about the game all week. "I know."

"Mmmm...Maybe a little bit nervous. What if I don't do very good?"

Jack didn't bother to correct his grammar this time. "You'll do fine. Remember, this is only your first game, so cut yourself a little slack if you're not Patrick Roy the minute you hit the ice."

"Who?"

"Er--never mind, kiddo. Just remember what we've practiced in the driveway and on the pond, and do your best. That's all anybody can ask of you."

"Okay..." He didn't sound convinced, but let the matter drop. Daniel wanted to be invincible, Jack knew, and smiled slightly. Charlie had been the same way...hell, he was the same way; still was...only sometimes, of course.

"Were you a goalie?" Daniel fell back on the familiar--his own curiosity, asking the question Jack had answered about fifty times since Christmas. But, like every time, Jack answered as though it was the first time Daniel had asked.

"Nope. I was a center. Sometimes I rotated between center and left wing, but I was more comfortable at center--more freedom to move around."

"Oh, right. Should I be a center?"

This was new. "Why? Don't you like being a goalie?"

"Uh-huh...I do, but wouldn't it be easier for you to teach me if I played the same thing as you?"

"Nah--besides, if you were a center, I wouldn't have anyone to rob me on my best moves. You know how big my ego would get then."

Daniel giggled. "Oh, right."

"Now finish up--we don't want to be late for your big debut!"

=====

"Colonel!" Jack followed Carter's beckoning yell up to the spot she and Teal'c had staked out about an hour before the game, as if the rink was going to be sold out. "How is he?" She waved enthusiastically to Daniel, who was relegated to the bench for the first half of the game. He wasn't phased though, and was cheering just as loudly as his new teammates as the referee blew his whistle for the opening face-off. "He's fine," Jack assured her. "A little nervous, but thrilled."

"O'Neill is it wise to allow Danieljackson to take up such a position?" Teal'c asked, his voice muffled by the thick scarf that covered the lower half of his face--overkill, Jack thought, but who was he to ruin the fun? Both Teal'c and Carter were outfitted to the tee in rink-wear, complete with mittened hands wrapped around steaming cups of coffee. "Recalling the difficulties encountered by MartyTurco, it would be far safer for DanielJackson to blend in among the pursuers of the rubberized disc of death."

"T--Murray, it's novice hockey--the oldest kid is seven. He'll be fine." "If you say so, O'Neill..."

Jack pretended not to notice Teal'c's wince when the puck was dropped.

---

When the whistle went at the seven-minute mark of the second period, Terry Peterson headed to the bench, Matt clapped Daniel on the shoulder, and Jack's kid scurried out onto the ice. He tripped and fell in his haste, landing on his knees, and some of the kids laughed. 'Uh-oh.' Jack was prepared to launch himself over the boards and pull him up himself, but Daniel shook it off and got up on his own. Carter, Teal'c and Jack cheered like maniacs--well, Carter and Jack were maniacs; Teal'c clapped politely, which Jack actually considered maniacal for him--and Daniel looked up at them briefly before coasting down to his net. His team was up 5-2, and Jack found himself praying that it was enough of a lead to spare Daniel the potential embarrassment of losing his first game.

The ref waited patiently for Daniel to glide into his net, and when he received a nod in answer to his unheard question, dropped the puck to Daniel's left. The swarm of green-clad Wildcats followed the bouncing puck, and Daniel's blue teammates followed suit. One of the kids--in the crowd Jack couldn't begin to guess who--must have gotten a stick on it, because the puck suddenly zipped out from between the kids and slid along towards Daniel--who expertly dropped to his knees and slapped his glove over it.

Once again, the SG-1 crowd went wild.

"Way to go, Daniel!" Jack and Carter yelled.

"Be vigilant, DanielJackson!" Teal'c boomed.

=====

A smallish little right winger, who Jack could swear must have been Wayne Gretzky in disguise, deked Daniel out. Daniel was still a little sluggish when it came to slipping back and forth, and the winger flipped the puck neatly over his shoulder on Daniel's blocker side.

"Oooh," Carter sighed.

"It's all right, Daniel!" Jack hollered reassuringly. "Shake it off, kiddo; you're doing great!"

=====
=====

At the end of the game, it was 8-7 for the opposite team. Jack met Daniel as he came off the ice behind his teammates, drawing him to his side and squeezing him as they walked. "Hey, buddy--good game; you did great."

Daniel shrugged slightly, but didn't answer. Jack pulled him up short and knelt in front of him, tugging off the bulky helmet as the last of the parents filed by. "Hey," he said softly. "You did great," he reiterated firmly.

"I lost."

"You didn't lose--you win as a team and lose as a team. Besides, what did we both agree was the most important part of this?"

Daniel dipped his head and whispered his response. "What's that?" Jack asked loudly, cupping a hand to his ear.

A little smile tugged at Daniel's lips. "Fun," he repeated.

"Uh-huh; and did you have fun?"

Another shrug.

"Hmm...let me put it this way: when you totally stoned that little number six with the same glove save you used on me the other day, was that fun?"

Smile. "Yeah."

"And...?"

"And...I liked when you, Sam and Teal'c cheered for me."

"Yeah, we did that a lot, huh?"

"Yeah."

"So the verdict is?"

"I had fun. When they weren't scoring."

Jack chuckled at that. "Well I don't think that's supposed to be fun." Jack tousled his hair and gave him another little squeeze. "But you were great, got it?" He nodded. "Good. Go ahead and get your gear off. Sam and Teal'c are waiting in the lobby, and we're going to get ice cream."

"In January?" Daniel asked dubiously, but his eyes were bright with eagerness.

"We earned it! Now go on; I'm starving!"

======

To Be Continued