| Dept. for Good Reading |
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| A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS Part III of the "Wars" series by Alyx J. Shaw |
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| CATEGORY: AU, gen, drama SPOILERS: None. SEASON: Daniel is in it. RATING: PG-13 WARNINGS: some language, and if you're arachnophobic, this thing is not for you ... :-) This story mentions homosexual relationships involving the author's original characters. SERIES: Yes, Part 3 of ? FEEDBACK: YES PLEASE! Directly to the author: ALYX J. SHAW ILLUSTRATION: Alyx J. Shaw ARCHIVE: no archivation, this is story is a Pink Khaki exclusive. NOTE: To read the previous parts of this story, please go here: PART I PART II DISCLAIMER: The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-I, the Goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-I Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author. (thanks to Jmas for helping us out with the rating and the disclaimers). |
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| Jack dozed in his hospital bed. His bones were mending from his fall through the roof of the Sferkkaan ruin; however the filth that had penetrated his open wounds had resulted in a mild but persistent infection. He was finally getting better, but he was exhausted from his long illness. Janet had given him a mild sedative to keep him relaxed, and now he lay in the dimly lit room, half in a dream state, listening to the world around him. It was Christmas Eve, and the Base was alive with unfamiliar noises. He could hear Christmas carols being played, and off-key singing accompanying it. There was laughter, and some other usually-unauthorized noises. Periodically, semi-drunk people crept into his room, whispering a bit louder than they intended. Gifts were piled near his bed, and then the exceptionally large and silly elves would weave out of the room once more in search of more eggnog. At one point someone put an extra blanket over him and gave him a wobbly kiss on the forehead. He wanted to think it was Carter, but he was pretty sure she didn't have stubble. He was too warm and cozy at the moment to worry about it much. He slipped into a comfortable dream and left the base behind to wander strange paths in his mind. "Hey, it's Doctor Hop-along!" Janet said as Daniel limped into the room. He smiled at her as he leaned his crutches against the wall and eased himself into a chair. His broken leg stretched out before him. Carter sat next to him with a red marker pen in one hand and searched his cast for a clean space to sign it. The cast boasted signatures in many different languages, including a note from Jack. It read; "I told you not to kick Teal'c in the butt, now look what happened." She laughed and wrote under it; "I thought he was kicking you in the butt, Colonel Hard-ass." General Stratavarus was at the far end of the room, absolutely drunk, and still beautifully eloquent, perched steadily on six-inch silver heels. Beside him was quiet and ever-present Soarin, and a little further away was Khandid. The Sferkkaans were dressed in their best uniforms; the brightest beings in the room. Stratavarus' long dark hair glittered with the jeweled ribbons they wore as medals, and the delicate painted lines on his face gave him a predatory beauty. Daniel wasn't surprised most of the women in the room were gathered around the smashed but happy alien, Janet included. He did wonder however if they noticed the way his free hand kept reaching to gently and reassuringly touch his equally exotic and beautiful companion. Khandid noticed Daniel and came over, dropping down into a chair near him. "I am so glad you're here," he signed, "I was getting tired of asking the General to translate. How are you? You look a little pale." In truth, Daniel had been very mildly nauseous all day, but it wasn't enough to distract him from the fun around him. "Fine," he said. "How is your first Christmas party going?" "Fabulous. It is so wonderful to be in the presence of women again, and to not worry about an assault coming out of the sky. What is the significance of the dead tree in the corner being humiliated?" Daniel burst out laughing. "It's not being humiliated. It's an evergreen tree, a symbol of continuance and rebirth. I suppose cutting it down rather defeats that purpose, but that is what it is there for." "Ah. Well that is good. Shall I get you anything from the table? Food? Drink?" Daniel didn't really want to eat, but as he had not eaten all day he thought perhaps a bit of food might settle his stomach. "Sure," he said, "thanks." Khandid left, and Daniel glanced down at what Carter had written. He smiled. Carter capped the pen and looked up at him. "You're a little pale. Are you feeling all right?" "Bit nauseous, but okay. Don't tell Janet, she'll have me on my back with a light in my eyes." "She'll have to find it on the Christmas tree first. You let her know if you start to feel too bad, okay?" "I will." He accepted the plate and glass handed to him by Khandid. "How's Jack? I haven't seen him yet today." "He's somewhere over the rainbow. He's been sedated so he rests instead of trying to get up and cranking at the medical staff." Daniel nodded. He picked at his food, nibbling things. It was all quite tasty, but he couldn't seem to eat. He shifted slightly to ease a mild cramp, then sipped his eggnog. It was cold and soothing, and Khandid had chosen the stuff in the non-alcoholic bowl. His stomach seemed to calm, and he felt a little better. He ate his food, then watched as some of the staff tried to encourage Soarin to speak. He blushed a little and stepped back, but refused to utter a sound. Khandid left Daniel's side to defend his commanding officer, edging in front of the much taller man like a tiny white unicorn. Soarin lurked shyly behind Khandid and the General. Carter passed Daniel another glass of eggnog, and he accepted it. He gazed around the gaily decorated room, watching people both familiar and unfamiliar to him. Kita reminded him of her presence by crawling out of his shirt pocket and onto his shoulder. She had molted recently, and was a vibrant black and gold. She sat on his shoulder, gauging the distance from him to the table, then leapt. She landed next to the butter tarts and preened, evidently pleased with herself. Then she began to explore. Somebody commented about the arrival of the traditional festive Christmas tarantula. Several other people moved away from the table. Santa Claus suddenly made an appearance, laughing in a loud and jolly manner, to the cheers of the people in the room. Stratavarus ignored him completely, Soarin hid a little further behind his lover, and Khandid literally leapt up several feet and caught hold of the wall with his boot and glove razors. He hung there like a cat for a few minutes, glaring suspiciously at the noisy intruder. Jolly old fat men were apparently a new thing to him. 'Santa' began tossing out presents and an occasional kiss to some of the women. He looked up at Khandid attached to the wall, and in typical Santa manner, boomed happily; "Well what would you like for Christmas, little boy?" Khandid hissed menacingly. Santa turned. "Okay, Santa got the message, don't piss off the Sferkkaans." Stratavarus laughed, then turned and said something to Khandid. He detached himself from the wall and dropped lightly to the floor. Santa found someone else to annoy. "And what would you like for Christmas, little boy?" he asked General Hammond. "Hair!" someone yelled. "Respect," said Hammond wearily. "Santa doesn't have that in his bag. How about a twelve year old bottle of Johnny Walker instead?" Hammond accepted the bottle with a smile, and even posed for a picture with Santa giving him a kiss on the cheek. Then the jolly fat man, whose fat was largely made up of rapidly shifting pillows, came to sit next to Daniel. "And what would you like for Christmas, sonny?" "An intact alien burial chamber." Santa just stared at him. "You're the kid the elves warned me about. Well, I hear you've been a very good little boy, regardless of your obvious necrophilic tendencies. And even though you saved Colonel O'Niell's life, we decided to give you a present anyway." He passed Daniel a beautiful and obviously ancient Chinese puzzle box. He gave him a rum-scented kiss on the cheek, and went over to Kita. "And what about you, large hairy bug? A can of Raid?" "Thhrrp." "Tough crowd. How about a fly swatter?" "Thhrrp." "Newspaper?" "Thhrrp." "Okay, how about a grape?" He passed her a grape. She pounced on it and thoroughly killed it with her inch long fangs, then began sucking the juice out of it. He watched her mutilate the grape, then looked over at Daniel. "Nice pet, Dr. Jackson. Did you get that box open yet?" Daniel smiled at him, then with a snap, sprang the lid on the puzzle-box. It was full of Belgium chocolate-covered coffee beans. Sitting on top of them was a note. He pulled it out and read it. It was brief and simple; "Merry Christmas, Danny-boy." "It's from Jack," he said. "That explains the wrapping paper," said Carter. "I still have to slap his face for what he got me." "What did he get you?" "Never mind." "Well don't slap him until he's a little better. Bean?" Carter took a small handful of the coffee beans and munched them. Daniel closed the puzzle-box and set it aside as his mild cramp suddenly became a biting pain. His nausea was back with a vengeance, and he suddenly felt himself break into a sweat. 'Oh this can't be good.' he thought. His mouth watered briefly, and he had a horrific vision of himself vomiting all over the floor. He managed to fight back the nausea, and reached for his crutches. He had to get out of there. Carter noticed his movement, and looked over at him. "Are you all right?" "No. Can you quietly get Janet to meet me in the Medical Room, I don't want to break up the party." "Sure." She watched him leave, then got up and wove her way through the roomful of people over to Janet. ******** Moving had been a bad idea, Daniel realized as he dropped onto a bed. He was running with sweat, his side was burning with fire, and he had just enough time to grab a waste basket before vomiting. Janet and Carter arrived moments later. "What's the matter?" Janet asked. "I'm dying." "No you're not, just tell me what's wrong." He told her what his symptoms were, while she pulled off his sweater and checked him over. She seemed to have some idea what the problem was already. He heard her pull over a piece of equipment, and a short time later felt something cool and hard and slippery moving over him. "What's that?" "Ultra sound, so I can look inside you." "Three cups of coffee, handful of chocolate covered coffee beans, pound cake, butter tarts, pumpkin pie, two cups eggnog, and a caramel apple." "And five vials of live embryos that the Sferkkaans hid in you. One's come loose, it may have caused a nick in your intestine somewhere. Apart from your eating habits, you'll be just fine, but they have to come out now. Want a local so you can watch?" "No!" "Can I?" said Carter. Daniel raised his head and looked at her. "Can I watch Janet take the vials out? It's... kind of a big thing, all those little lives, finally being able to emerge in safety." There was a rustle from the adjacent bed. "What lives?" said Jack sleepily. "Am I finally gonna be an uncle?" "Oh Lord, kill me now." said Daniel. He looked at Carter. "You can watch, I guess. I don't want to." "Get the camera," said Jack. Daniel didn't get a chance to answer before Janet moved him to another part of the ward. ******** Carter peered into the large room, holding the insulated medical container close. The party was still going on. No one seemed to have paid much notice to their absence. Khandid seemed to have gotten over his fear of Santa Clause, and was comfortably asleep with his head on his belly. Santa's red hat was on the table, and Kita was determined to kill the ball of fake fur on the end of it. Stratavarus and Hammond were talking animatedly. She was a little surprised to see Soarin quietly speaking with some people. She walked into the room and over to the two beautiful Sferkkaans. Stratavarus noticed her almost at once. Drunk or sober, there was no creeping up on him. He smiled at her. "Ah, my lady of the battle field, yourr absence was as the dimming of day to night. I trrust wherre everr you werre, you werre having a good time." "I was, actually." She held the box out to him, and he gazed down at it, a little puzzled. Then as he took it, he seemed to realized what its contents were. He glanced at Carter for confirmation. She smiled at him. "Merry Christmas," she said. |
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