To Be His Book
By: dvshipper
CATEGORY: General
SEASON/SPOILERS: Set in Season 10
WARNINGS: None
AUTHOR’S NOTES: Thanks to Lisa (lmichelle599) for being my beta on this one.
AUTHOR’S WEBSITE:
http://dvshipper.livejournal.com/
Daniel Jackson sat at his desk, open books strewn about before him. Vala Mal Doran watched him from the door as he squinted trying to translate something or other. He paid more attention to those books than he did anything else. Though it was his job, she knew it was more of an obsession to know the events of the past. Sometimes he spent entire days at that desk covered in paper only getting up a few times when necessity required.
Vala occasionally dropped by during these days to check on him. She soon learned that it was useless because he didn’t even notice she was in the room. The rest of SG-1 had learned long ago that when Daniel was intent on his work, hardly anything could distract him. As always though, Vala was curious and needed to find out for herself.
As she looked at him, she was actually amused. How his forehead wrinkled when he was frustrated. The way his hand intuitively reached for his coffee mug. His lips moved silently as he read the ancient text that lent its words to him. The pencil he made barely legible notes with scratched the paper quietly. Dr. Daniel Jackson, linguist, in his natural element. The scene she witnessed was perfect.
Vala often wondered what it would be like to actually be one his books. How could a girl not want to be? Books were the only thing he ever gave his complete and undivided attention to. He would spend the entire day with her, by choice not simply because he was physically bonded to her. He would look at her as if she held every secret he wished to know. She would be able to see his blue eyes light up when he made a major breakthrough. She would be able to feel the gentle way he brushed the edge of the pages with his fingers, delicately turning to the next. Feel his breath on her when he finally fell asleep at four in the morning, so exhausted from hours of work that he let his head drop to his desk.
Vala could sit on his shelf and watch how he acted when no one else was around. Be a comfort to him when the events of his life were overwhelming and he turned to history as his escape. She would listen to his whispering voice when he occasionally talked to himself. If she were his book, she would be with him always and that seemed like a wonderful idea.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” Daniel’s voice brought Vala back to reality from her pleasant daydream. She smiled and stepped further into his cluttered office. The walls of bookshelves and dusty artifacts had become familiar over the past months. She sat on the edge of Daniel’s desk, careful not to disturb any of the papers it was covered in. After becoming a member of the SGC she wasn’t as careless as she had once been. She had gotten to know Daniel better and now showed more respect for the things he cared about though she’d never admit it.
“Daniel, why do you like books so much?” Vala asked, leafing through the thick pages of a large book that sat underneath the bright lamp that illuminated the desk. The writing was something she guessed was Ancient but wasn’t sure.
“They’re part of history and part of my job. I’ve always loved them. The thought of discovering something new is exciting. Haven’t you ever felt like holding a book in your hands and just reading it?” Daniel replied, looking at her with piercing blue eyes.
“I guess I’ve never thought of it that way. Books always seemed so boring. Maybe you could convince me otherwise. You’d have to try pretty hard though because Tre Chic magazine is pretty interesting,” Vala said playfully. Knowing Daniel never gave up the chance to tell someone about history and the importance of reading she hoped the ensuing talk would allow her to spend more time sitting on the edge of Daniel’s desk.
“Well, reading a book allows you to be drawn into the world it describes. Every page gives you some knew piece of information that you weren’t aware of before. I’ve always found that the book itself, not just what is written in it, is part of the experience. The smell of the paper, the feel of its pages beneath your fingers is one of the things that I enjoy. Sometimes it’s nice to just lose yourself in a book for an entire day. Something that can wrap you up in its plot and not let go is something truly incredible,” Daniel spoke with his typical rapid speech. When he was talking about something he truly cared about he got this expression on his face. It looked as if it was the combination of a happy memory of an old friend and a distant look in his eyes that made you wonder if he had been transported to those ancient cultures he studied.
It was a mixture of that look, his eyes looking directly into hers and the context of actually being his book that had Vala wondering if she had literally turned into a puddle of goo dripping from his desk. Daniel had a way of making the most boring subject sound sexy with just the tone of his voice. She let out an involuntary sigh which made Daniel give her a strange look. “What?” he asked her in that same make-a-girl-melt voice.
“Hmm? Oh, nothing. I think I’m gonna go now,” Vala said trying to collect her thoughts as she got up from his desk. “Just wanted to make sure you were still breathing. You know, there’s a rumor going around that when you really get into your work, you go into some sort of trance. Trances can be dangerous you know.”
“Glad to hear you’re in tune with the SGC’s rumor mill,” Daniel rolled his eyes because he knew that even the craziest untruth could circulate through the SGC within an hour. “I can assure you that I neither go into a trance nor turn into a bat,” Daniel replied with a smile, pleased with himself at making such a witty reference.
“Why would you turn into a wooden stick?” Vala asked now confused more than anything.
“Nevermind,” he sometimes forgot that Vala wasn’t from earth. “I’m glad you stopped by. Maybe you could swing by around dinner time and make sure I actually eat something.”
“Absolutely, it’s a date!” Vala replied with a wide grin and she watched as Daniel’s head dropped. It was cute how she always seemed to trap him with his own ideas. Vala scampered out of Daniel’s office and down the hall towards her quarters leaving Daniel sitting at his desk shaking his head. It wasn’t a restaurant but it was still a dinner date. She’d fix her hair differently and maybe use the computer in Sam’s lab to do some quick research on Arthurian myth. Vala could surprise him by actually knowing something about his work. That would get his attention, something Vala continually aimed to do. Hopefully she wouldn’t have to be his book to receive the same care and devotion.
**
The End **
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