Author's Notes: This took a few unexpected turns along the way, but once I visulaised the boys hanging from the rock face... the rest came as it would... Hope you liked it.
Thanks again, Brenda... sweetie, honey...
DISCLAIMER: All publicly recognisable characters and property of Stargate SG-1 belong to MGM/UA, World Gekko Corp. and Double Secret Productions. This fan fiction was created solely for entertainment purposes and no money was made from it. Also, no copyright or trademark infringement was intended. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Any other characters, the storyline and the actual story are the property of the author. Not to be archived without permission of the author(s).
'Somebody stop this ride..'cause I'm getting off."
Jack opened his eyes to find Teal'c staring down at him with a deep frown of concern. He looked past the worried face to see that he was lying in the middle of the clearing where they'd been trapped before. The trees had returned to their former positions, the sun shone brightly...all seemed once again right with this world, except...
"Daniel?" Jack sat up quickly, searching the immediate vicinity.
"No sign of him yet, Sir." Carter was at his side now, helping him to stand. "Where were you?"
Jack tried to form an answer that would make some kind of sense."In the fog. On a mountain. Places..."
'So maybe making sense is asking a bit much right now...."
Jack kept glancing around the clearing as if expecting Daniel to materialize out of thin air. He really didn't think Daniel was in any danger with the 'spirits', but...
Carter handed Jack a cup of hot coffee, her eyes begging the question. Jack took a gulp of the warm liquid and tried to sum up the things he and Daniel had been up to...literally...since their separation from Teal'c and Carter.
"So Daniel Jackson has rediscovered his faith in himself?" Teal'c asked, a deep sigh apparent in his voice.
"And us....?" Carter asked, quietly.
Jack nodded, unable to express the relief and deep regret he still felt.
"And now he's off with these 'spirits' checking out the astral plane?" Jack could sense an argument coming from Carter, but he nodded.
"How could you just let him go off like that..." Carter's tone was remarkably close to Jack's own...on dozens of different, but similar, occasions.
"Daniel's a grown man, Carter. How can we expect him to trust us, if we don't trust him?" Jack smiled at his one words...such a simple truth, such a difficult lesson. "He's a smart guy, he knows what he's doing...."
Somewhere deep inside Jack prayed that his instincts were right...
There was a sudden rush of wind beside them and Daniel was there, looking slightly dazed and bedraggled, but smiling.
Jack stood up to join his young friend, handing over his half-cup of coffee. Daniel took it with a grateful sigh and drank deeply.
"They said we can leave when we're ready...and we're welcome to come back and explore the ruins anytime we want." Daniel smiled wistfully. " It was incredible, Jack...Thank you."
Jack smiled in return, glad that his instincts...however painful it may have been for him to heed them...had been correct.
Daniel was already reaching for pen and paper to get his observations down while they were still fresh in his memory....
Jack knew that Daniel would be oblivious to them for a while, so he asked Carter and Teal'c...very nicely...to put together some kind of meal. Jack was starving and he had no doubt that when Daniel came down out of the cloud he was on, he would realize that he was hungry, too.
It was still going to be up to them to see to Daniel's physical needs when he was too wrapped up to care for himself, that's what a family did for its members. But Jack resolved to more carefully foster that fragile thing called faith. He'd gotten used to thinking of Daniel as some innocent, naive kid who couldn't come in out of the rain without being reminded. Somewhere along the way, he'd missed Daniel's transition; the transition from naive academic to capable soldier, from flaky scientist to SGC's resident expert on things alien and ancient, from innocent rescuer to contemplative team member. So many things had changed about Daniel since his return to Earth...and somehow Jack realized that not all the changes were for the better. Daniel had lost more than his wife and his home...
Looking over at Daniel frowning over his notes, Jack could only hope that the things Daniel had gained made the loss more bearable.
As if feeling Jack's eyes upon him, Daniel looked up quickly over his gasses. There was sadness there, Jack could see, but it was a familiar sadness that had followed Daniel for nearly three years...the sadness that had grown to become a constant, familiar companion....
But that newer sadness, the one they had helped to put there...was gone.
Daniel smiled briefly and Jack returned that smile with a deeper understanding. Their friend was back with them and, whatever the future might bring, Jack knew that Daniel would be allright...
As long as they remembered to have faith.