Bad News
Bad News
by Sue Corkill
Title: Bad News
Author: Sue Corkill
Email: scorkill@earthlink.net
Category: Missing scene, D/J friendship
Status: Complete
Rating: G
Content Warning: M/F
Season/Sequel info: Third season
Spoilers: Nemesis, some small ones for Seasons Two & Three
Archive: Heliopolis
Summary: Dr. Frasier has to give Daniel some bad news.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places are the property of MGM, World Gekko Corp and Double Secret productions. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks was intended. Previously unrecognized characters and places, and this story, are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Feedback: All feedback and constructive criticism will be greatly appreciated. No flames please.
Author's Notes: Someone had to tell Daniel about the rest of his team....
Copyright © M. Susan Corkill, May 2000
BAD NEWS
He was suspended in that oh so wonderful realm that exists when you're not fully asleep, yet not fully awake. He was warm, comfortable, and relatively pain-free. In the back of his mind he was aware of the comforting sounds of the infirmary. The ever present hum of machinery, the quiet steps of the nurses as they went about their duties, their even quieter voices as they talked with each other. As he slowly came to awareness, his mind drifted back over the events of the last 72 hours. He still couldn't believe, as he had told Jack, that after all he'd been through that his appendix had brought him down. He knew he hadn't been feeling well for several days, but had thought it was just a case of the flu. Fortunately he had been on base when he had collapsed. Almost ruptured, Dr. Warner had told him. He had been lucky, a few more hours and he would have been really sick. As lousy as he had felt then, Daniel was glad he hadn't fit Dr. Warner's description of really sick. As it was he had been pumped full of intravenous antibiotics for several days, and once they had taken his drip out, he was taking them orally.
As he lay quietly in the bed, eyes closed, he began to realize that there was something different about the atmosphere in the infirmary. There seemed to be a sense of urgency now in the footsteps, in the voices. There also seemed to be more people about than was usual for this time of day. He had thought that things on the base were pretty quiet right now. Of course, he didn't know which teams were off world, or were expected back. His team was off on vacation. Well, he knew at least Jack and Teal'c were. Sam had seemed insistent about staying on base and working on her reactor. She really needed to make more time for herself he thought. He wondered what he would do with a week off, well, at least a week that wouldn't be spent in the infirmary. Would he have stayed on base like Sam, studying the latest artifacts brought back by the various SG teams? Maybe he would have gone fishing with Jack, though somehow he couldn't quite see himself sitting in a boat all day just fishing. Family, he could have gone to visit his family, well what was left of it anyway, on Abydos. The General would have let him go, he'd let Teal'c go to the Land of Light to visit his son.
Of course, there were some benefits to being in the infirmary. It meant he got to see his doctor every day. And he wasn't referring to Dr. Warner, no, he was thinking about his other doctor. She had taken over his primary care after the operation, so he got to see her several times each day. Maybe she would stay and have dinner with him tonight. He knew from a conversation he had overheard earlier that Cassie was spending the evening with the daughter of the day shift head nurse. So, if he presented his case carefully, Janet might be persuaded to keep him company. As he formulated his plan, he realized that he could hear two voices talking quietly, but intently, on the other side of the curtain that was drawn around his bed.
He thought that one voice was the General's and the other had to be Janet's, but they were talking so softly he could only make out a few words here and there. Something about disappearing, base alert, the Asgard, Colonel O'Neill and SG-1. Their voices suddenly came through clearer, he thought he heard Janet say "Sir, are you sure that's wise?" And the General responding "He has to be told, and it will be easier coming from you." He was starting to become seriously alarmed. What could be happening that involved SG-1 that he would need to be told about? They were on vacation! They had to be on vacation....
Dr. Fraiser watched General Hammond leave the infirmary, her mind trying to absorb everything he had told her. She had of course been informed that the base was on a low-level alert. As Chief Medical Officer, she was expected to be prepared for whatever would transpire. Since information was doled out on a "need to know" basis, even to her, she had been surprised when the General had come seeking her out. She had just been preparing to go check on Daniel when the General found her. She still couldn't quite believe what he had said. Colonel O'Neill transported by Thor to his ship; Thor fighting a losing battle with something the Colonel had called "techno-bugs". Sam and Teal'c both transporting to the ship with enough weapons and explosives to the blow the ship to pieces.
She shuddered then, according to the General that is what they intended to do, destroy the ship before it reached Earth. And more than likely, destroy themselves in the process. Oh she knew that the General wouldn't have let them go if he hadn't thought there was some way for them to return to Earth. Sam could be very convincing. But she also knew that Sam and Teal'c would say or do anything to be with Colonel O'Neill if he was in trouble and needed help - no matter what the circumstances or situation. Teal'c due to his intense friendship and devotion to Jack O'Neill. And Sam, well, Janet was pretty sure Sam was in love with the Colonel, even if she hadn't completely admitted it to herself yet.
How was she going to tell Daniel that his team, people that he cared about, people who were for all intents and purposes his family was on a suicide mission? A mission to once again save Earth, this time from some alien infestation that even the Asgard couldn't conquer. Sure, she was use to delivering bad news to people, if you could ever get "used" to that. Her profession dictated that she learn early how to tell people that their loved ones were dead or dying. That didn't mean it ever got any easier. And it was never easy when the people involved are people that are also important to you. Sam was her friend. Teal'c, well she had plenty of time and energy invested in Teal'c. Not just as his physician and leading authority on Goa'uld larval physiology, but also she liked to think, as his friend. Colonel O'Neill, was, well, Colonel O'Neill. She had managed to develop enough of a rapport with him that they could at least get through the post-mission physicals with a minimum of fuss. And she felt that for the most part she had his respect. She couldn't imagine what life at the SGC would be like if they didn't make it back.
Then there was Daniel. Since Dr. Warner had confined him to the infirmary for a week to recover after his surgery, she was having the opportunity to spend some time with him. Not that she was glad that he had needed surgery, but now that he was recovering and feeling better, they actually had some time to talk, to just see each other. She had even thought about ordering a dinner tray for herself and keeping him company while he ate. That wouldn't be happening now. Daniel, who due to fate or whatever you want to call it, was here and not there. And she knew he would want to be there, with them, no matter what they were facing. How was she going to tell him, this man who was beginning to mean something more to her, that his friends were in danger and that the outcome for all of them was uncertain.
As she stood lost in her thoughts, separated from Daniel by only a curtain, she heard his voice calling out cautiously. "Dr. Fraiser, Janet, what's happening?"
Taking a deep breath and pasting a smile on her face, she opened the curtain and came to stand beside his bed, pulling the curtain shut behind her.
"Daniel" she said, as she came and stood next to his bed. Almost automatically she reached out and felt his forehead with the back of her hand. "No fever, that's good. How are you feeling?" She tried to keep her voice calm and a smile on her face. She could tell by his expression that he had overheard some of her conversation with General Hammond.
She lowered her hand from his forehead and reached for his wrist, feeling for his pulse. Strong and steady, a tad bit fast, but that was to be expected. When she released his wrist, he reached out and grabbed hold of her hand. "Janet, what were you and General Hammond talking about just now? Is the base on some kind of alert?" He was trying to keep his voice calm, but she could tell it was taking some effort.
Taking a deep breath and trying to keep her voice calm she started, "Daniel, I've just been informed that Colonel O'Neill, Sam and Teal'c are on board an Asgard vessel bound for Earth. It's Thor's ship, and evidently it has been overrun by some alien things they're calling `techno-bugs'. Thor transported them there to help destroy the ship before it reaches Earth." She paused for a moment, trying to discern from the look on Daniel's face just how he was taking this news. So far, so good, he looked concerned but not worried. Of course, she thought grimly, she hadn't gotten to the worst part of the story yet.
As the silence between them grew and the expression on Janet's face became even more serious, Daniel realized she had only told him part of what was going on. Tugging gently on her hand and scooting over a bit on the bed, she responded to his nonverbal request by sitting down. He took hold of her hand with both of his and said quietly, "Go on, there's more, isn't there?"
Biting her lip, she looked away briefly and then looked back. "Yes, according to General Hammond, there may not be an easy way for them to get back to Earth. Thor has been seriously injured and the ship damaged. Sam convinced the General that the space shuttle could be used to rescue them, but it's been so long since they've heard anything from them...." She left the rest unsaid her voice trailing off, her eyes dropping when she saw the sudden comprehension in his.
Daniel tightened his grip briefly on her hand, and she looked up to meet his gaze. "So, what you're saying is that SG-1 is on Thor's ship that has been taken over by some alien `bugs' and they have to destroy the ship before it reaches Earth?" She nodded her head in reply. "And what you're not saying is that they might not make it back to Earth before the ship is destroyed." It came out as a statement, not a question.
"The General won't come right out and say that, but it's what they're all worried about."
Daniel gave a quick, mirthless laugh, "Besides the obvious threat to Earth of course." Removing his hand from Janet's, he took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes tiredly. Putting them back on and looking at her concerned face, he continued, "They are suppose to be on vacation, we are all supposed to be on vacation." With an agitated sweep of his hand he gestured about the room, "But no, I'm here, stuck in the infirmary and they are stuck on some alien ship again. With no way off, no way off...."
"Daniel," she protested, "we don't know that for sure, right now almost everything we think we know is speculation."
Ignoring her, he sat up higher in the bed, his voice rising. "I should be with them. I should have gotten up out of this bed and gone with Jack, then I would be with them - instead of here, where I can't do anything!" With that last exclamation, he collapsed back onto the bed, breathing heavily and murmuring, "I should be with them".
Janet stood suddenly, leaning over him and grabbing his face between her hands. "Daniel," she said forcefully and then repeated his name again until she had his attention. When he finally focused his eyes on hers, she said, "I know you want to help them, to be with them." She knew that worrying about his teammates wouldn't help his recovery. Thinking quickly, she continued, "What if I temporarily discharge you?" She suddenly had his full attention. "You can go downstairs, talk with General Hammond yourself, see if there's anything you can do from here."
As she lowered her hands from his face, he grabbed hold of them, squeezing tightly. He looked at her uncertainly for a moment, than asked cautiously, "You'd really let me do that? Let me leave the infirmary?"
She smiled. "Yes, Daniel, I really would." Loosening one of her hands from his grip, she reached up and gently cupped his cheek. "Staying here and worrying about your team won't help your recovery at all." She looked at almost shyly. "And I want you to get better."
Reaching up and placing his free hand over hers, he held it in place as he turned his head and tenderly kissed her palm. "Thank you. I'm not sure what I'll be able to do, but I need to be there."
As they looked at each other with the beginnings of a new awareness in their eyes, the moment was suddenly broken by one of the nurses calling out "Dr. Fraiser, Dr. Fraiser? Are you in here?"
Startled, Janet dropped her hand from his face. She felt herself starting to blush. Daniel just grinned at her. "Be with you in a minute Liz," she called to the nurse. Turning her attention back to Daniel, whose grin had faded and who was once more looking somber, she said, "I'll have one of the orderlies bring your clothes and help you change." When he began to protest, she silenced him quickly and continued in her no-nonsense doctor voice. "No, if you're going to do this you need to conserve your strength and follow orders. If at any time you start to feel ill or too weak, I want you back down here pronto. Understood?"
"Yes ma'am," he responded meekly. He really loved it when she was in full doctor mode. With a quick smile and touch to his hand, she pulled back the curtain preparing to leave. "Janet", he called out quickly before she disappeared.
She turned back to look at him, "Yes?"
"Maybe when this is all over and they're back you and I can have dinner together?" he asked.
She flashed him a brilliant smile "There's nothing I'd like better." With those words, she left.
As the curtain fell back into place, he relaxed back against the bed, his thoughts quickly returning to what Janet had just told him. Jack, Sam and Teal'c would make it back, he thought, they had to make it back. There would be some way he could help them from here. And after they were back, well, if the bad news was Earth's imminent destruction then the good news was he would be having dinner with Janet after SG-1 once again saved the planet.
The End
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