Forgotten

By: Lionchilde

CATEGORY: Angst, Alternate Universe

AUTHOR’S NOTES: Written for sg_challenges yay! I've finally figured out the timeline on these. If Nicky's 8 and Manda's 10, that means this takes place like 16 years after s9. Well, technically, after Beachhead, since that's when it goes AU.

AUTHOR’S WEBSITE:

http://so-out-of-ideas.livejournal.com

He didn't sleep well that night. Vala listened to him toss and turn for a while and finally wrapped her arms around him, snuggling soothingly against his back. Her warmth and softness settled him for a while, and he managed to drift off, but found himself awake again a few hours later. He slipped as quietly as he could out of bed and made his way down the hall to their daughter's empty room.

She'd forgotten Fitzgibbon, which somehow made the fact of the sleepover even more nerve-wracking and lonesome for him. He walked over to pick up the dilapidated giraffe, which had done guard duty on her pillow since she was barely a week old. The black plastic eyes had lost their sheen now, and there were more than a few threadbare patches. Daniel smiled fondly and fluffed the pillow before he set it down again, trying to make it seem a little less forlorn.

In the morning, he jumped up whenever the phone rang, sure it would be Manda calling for a ride home despite having permission to stay at her friend's house until after lunch. The third time it wasn't, Vala finally shooed him outside with a box of old, chipped dishes, scratched silverware, and assorted empty perfume bottles to bury in what had once been their back yard, but had long since become the Jackson family archaeological dig site. He was still working when the sound of a car pulling up in front told him that she had to be home, and forced himself not to run around to the other side of the house.

"Hey, monkey!" he called, then winced as he remembered he wasn't supposed to use that nickname in front of her friends anymore. She didn't react though, racing over to fling her arms around him.

"Hi, Daddy," she planted a loud kiss on his cheek, then wriggled away, running toward the house.

Daniel's jaw dropped in surprise. "Hey, where you going?" he called after her.

"Gotta get ready!" she replied without turning.

"Wh--" Daniel stammered, bewildered and more than a little hurt. "For what now?"

The only answer was the slamming of the screen door. It bounced twice behind her, and Daniel checked a sigh, forcing himself through the obligatory small talk with her friend's mother. About halfway through, he suddenly realized how filthy he must have looked, and hoped the woman would assume he'd been gardening or something. Fortunately, she didn't ask, and after she left, he wandered dejectedly over to the stoop and sat down with his head in his hands.

The door creaked behind him, and he looked up, smiling a little as Vala squeezed out and lowered herself down next to him. She smiled knowingly and slipped her arm around him, but before they could speak, Manda's footsteps came charging back through the house toward them.

"Are you ready?" she asked, bouncing back out onto the steps, now dressed in the worn old pair of jeans and grungy t-shirt Vala allowed her to keep only for dig purposes, with an equally worn bandana tied securely on her head.

Feedback to: lionchilde@msn.com

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