Blinded: Chapter 2
by Mr. Eggers
EMAIL: mintchocolatebear@hotmail.com
STATUS: incomplete, Chapter 2
CATEGORY: Daniel/Janet, Sam/Jack?
RATING: PG
SEASON: Future Season
SPOILERS: None
SUMMARY: Janet suffers a devastating injury on a mission gone wrong.
DISCLAIMERS: Everything related to SG1 is owned by MGM/Showtime, not me.
FEEDBACK: Please send feedback to mintchocolatebear@hotmail.com
Janet was kept in the Infirmary for two more days. She had been graciously
given her own private room which was furbished with a television, couch,
loveseat, an assortment of plants, and a small dresser. Not that she would
need any of that. The cause of her blindness was still undetermined, but the
doctors assumed that it was ‘permanent flash blindness’, a rare injury where
the eyes are subjected to a flash of light so powerful, it burns the retinas
and overloads the sensors in the back of the eye, rendering the victim
forever unsighted. This was of course no consolation to Janet. Every aspect
of her life, especially her profession, depended on her ability to see. Now
she couldn’t.
During her stay, she was constantly visited by SG-1. They weren’t due for
another mission anytime soon so they stopped by every few hours to check up
on her. That is when they weren’t trying to find a cure for her. Daniel
himself ended up keeping her company 24 hours a day. Unlike Sam and Jack, he
wasn’t exactly on active duty. And Teal’c was unavailable most of the time;
teaching fighting moves to the security guards, practicing his own
techniques, or deep in Kel-no-reem. Since it was Daniel who comforted her
when she first woke up, Janet had asked him to stay. He had no other
commitments, so he happily obliged.
In that 48 hour period, Daniel kept a constant vigil over Janet. At night
he slept on the couch; during the day he talked with her, laughed with her,
ate with her, attended to her, comforted her, held her when she cried...
The only time he left her side was to use the toilet or shower. For the
latter, he always returned within twenty minutes. Since they both realized
that her blindness was permanent, it was decided that it would be best if he
moved in with her once she was released. Someone needed to help her when
Cassie was at school and Sam had already moved in with Jack. They said it
was to keep mortgage payments down. Why Hammond or anyone else bought that
idea was beyond Daniel.
At the end of the second day, the doctor signed the release form, allowing
Daniel to take Janet home. The IV was removed and Sam helped her into a
fresh set of clothes. Considering the garments were from Sam’s wardrobe at
home, they were kind of baggy on the petite doctor. But they served their
purpose. Daniel and Janet said their goodbyes and slowly made their way out
of the Infirmary, towards the elevator. About halfway down the corridor,
Daniel decided to be squirrelly and quickly scooped the tiny Janet up into
his muscular arms.
“Daniel!?”, she called, her legs kicking the air, “What’s going on?” He
smiled.
“Just having some fun,” he answered playfully. She immediately recognized
the affection in his voice and calmed down, allowing herself to enjoy the
treatment. Besides, she sometimes fantasized about being carried
romantically in his arms. Okay, so this wasn’t exactly romantic. But she
wasn’t complaining either. She entwined her arms around his neck and let
him carry her as he continued to walk to the elevator. If only he had on a
Navy officer’s hat.
------------
About an hour later, they arrived at Janet’s house. And it was a beautiful
house. Two stories, a farmhouse really, with the wraparound porch and the
extended second story windows. Several trees were growing tall in the front
yard and a row of flowers framed the first floor. It reminded Daniel of the
kind of house he would have loved to live in when he was a child.
“Home sweet home.”, he said as they drove up into the driveway.
“Thank God.”, she sighed. “I could use a shower.” Once in front of the
garage, Daniel turned off the engine and headlights; then extricated himself
from the car and walked over to the passenger’s side. He opened the door,
letting the shoulder strap move forward automatically. Upon its completion,
he unbuckled Janet’s lap belt and guided her out of the vehicle, taking care
not to bump her head on the frame. She noticed that a warm breeze blew
through the cool air. Fall was definitely here. They walked up to her porch
where he helped her up the one step to her door. After they were inside, he
led her to the living room and they both sat down on the couch. A few
moments passed.
“Do you want something to, uh, drink?”, he asked.
“Yes.”, she answered, nodding. “Tea, if we have some.”
“Okay.”, he said. “Tea it is. I’ll be right back.” He patted her hands and
slowly got up, walked to the kitchen. She heard him rummage around the
kitchen, looking for tea bags.
“We have peppermint, orange, and chamomile!”, he called to her.
“Peppermint please!”, she shouted back.
“Cream and sugar?”
“Please!” Within a few minutes he was back with two cups of creamed and
sugared Peppermint tea. One was hot, for him. The other was warm, but not
scalding, for her. His own he rested on the coffee table. He then sat down
at the corner of the couch (she was sitting on the middle cushion) and with
her cup in one hand he guided her to it. She accepted the drink and clutched
it tightly as not to drop it. It smelled delicious. She took a drink and
eased it to her lap. Eagerly, he took a long, warming sip of his and
replaced it on the table, then sighed.
“Welcome to my home,” she greeted, “Is it as messy as when I left?”
“Um, well...”, he said, “Considering Cassandra lives here...it doesn’t look
that bad.”
“Really? So she DID clean up like I told her to?”
“I’m not sure. Are dinner plates and pop cans supposed to be...sitting...on
the coffee table?”
“Oooh! That girl just never listens.” Her voice was full of irritation.
“Actually,”, he said to calm her, “compared to what my place looked
like...as a teenager, I’d say she’s, um, spotless.”
“Really? How bad were you?”
“Let’s just say my lab is very clean by my standards.” At this they both
laughed quietly. Then Daniel took another drink of his tea. So did Janet.
“I have to admit,” Daniel said, “I’m looking forward to staying here.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. I’ve always thought I needed a place I could really call home.”
“Well, let’s just hope home doesn’t become a burden to you.” Daniel put a
hand on her shoulder. She jumped a bit, but then relaxed.
“Shhh...It’s okay.”, he said reassuringly “The people I care for are never
a burden to me.” Several moments passed without a word spoken. Suddenly
Janet finished her drink in one gulp and unceremoniously fumbled her cup
onto the table. The tea was refreshing. But she still felt cold, lonely. A
small look of sadness melted onto her face.
“Daniel?”
“Yes?”
She reached her hands out to him, wordlessly asking for affection. He
gently entwined his fingers with hers.
“Come here.” He pulled her over and let her snuggle into him, his arms
wrapped affectionately around her waist. It had been a long time since he
held a woman in his arms like this. He loved it. With her head just below
his, he took a long sniff of her hair. She smelled wonderful.
As she rested her head on his chest, she could hear his heartbeat, feel
his breathing rise and fall. She felt the warmth of his body against hers
and delighted in it. She knew that lying here, with him, she was safe.
“Don’t let me go, Daniel.”, she whimpered.
“I won’t, Janet.”, he reassured tenderly, “I promise.”
--------------------------
Sam chewed tediously on her pencil as she, Teal’c, and Jack sat at the desk
in her office, trying to think of why the crystal blinded their friend.
“Okay”, she said, the pencil dropping from her mouth to the desk, “We know
that the crystal told of ‘wisdom and joy’, right?”
“Yeah, so?”, answered Jack indignantly. He squirmed at the idea that
someone would consider blindness and being thrown violently against a wall a
representation of ‘joy’. Teal’c raised an eyebrow.
“I do not believe that the wisdom and joy it spoke of included pain and
suffering MajorCarter.”, he mused. Jack pointed to Teal‘c.
“Thank you Teal’c.” The big Jaffa nodded once. Sam shook her head.
“But what if the crystal‘s action” she waved her hands as if to try and
think of something, “led to wisdom and joy?” Jack gave her a glance that
said ‘You’re sick!’ Teal’c’s expression didn’t change.
“Sir...What if her blindness was supposed to occur. What if it changed
someone’s life so that they found a new joy, or a new...wisdom?”
“Like what?”, retorted Jack sarcastically, “ ‘Oh, boy! Now that I don’t
have to look at things, I can hear just great!’ ”
“Or perhaps, MajorCarter, this injury to DoctorFraiser was an adverse
reaction to the crystal.”
“Ladies and gentlemen”, said Jack, “he’s two for two.”
“Maybe...” she muttered as an idea formed in her head, “In any case, we
have to get General Hammond to let us go back and find out.”
“Agreed.”, said Teal’c. Jack shrugged.
“Okey-dokey.”, he said, “Let’s go ask the boss.” The three of them walked
out of the room and on to General Hammond’s office.
-----------------
“SG-1 you have a go!”, blurted Hammond into the microphone as Teal’c, Jack,
and Sam stood at the bottom of the ramp, awaiting the order. With them was
Dr. Lucas Kardiphilous, a military linguist who was fluent in the
Latin-based languages which the SGC had discovered. At the sound of Hammonds
voice, the group nodded to him and ran toward the Stargate, disappearing
once they crossed the terminus.
‘Those kids sure know how to impress me.’, he thought proudly as the
wormhole collapsed.
On the other side, the three travelers stepped away from the gate and began
looking over the cavernous room they had previously returned from. Something
there told them how to cure Janet, and they’d be damned if they didn’t find
it. Teal’c started removing items from the shelves, looking behind them. He
didn’t know what he was looking for. For all he knew it was a small clown
doll holding a vial of magic syrup. But he kept looking anyway.
Jack, Lucas, and Sam looked on the floor, the walls, the ceiling. They even
took another look at the crystal which Teal’c so graciously deactivated.
Lucas, or Luke as he liked being called, read some of the text and shrugged.
“Allz it says here”, he explained in his thick Brooklyn accent, “is dat by
touching dis here crystal, you gain your smarts and grins.”
“Your smarts and grins?”, parroted Jack.
“Do you not mean ‘wisdom and joy’ DoctorKardiphilous.”, corrected Teal’c.
“Yeah, dat’s what I just said, ‘smarts and grins’...” Sam giggled.
“Keep reading,” growled Jack under his breath. Luke bobbed his eyebrows,
then set back to translating more text.
------------------
It was dark outside when sixteen year old Cassandra arrived home from a
friends party several hours after Janet and Daniel made it back from the
SGC. She unlocked the door and quietly stepped inside, careful not to wake
anyone, even the family dog who was sleeping in the hallway. As she walked
past the kitchen and into the living room, she found a sight which surprised
even her. There on the couch, sleeping in each others arms, were Daniel and
Janet.
The teenager crept up to the two slumbering adults and tried to shake
Daniel awake. Nothing. She nudged harder with her hand. Still nothing.
“Daniel...”, she said. “Daniel...” His eyes fluttered as he regained
wakefulness. Stretching an arm to the coffee table, he got a hold of his
glasses and slipped them on. His eyes blinked through blurry vision.
“Hi, Cassie.”, he yawned, “When did you get home?”
“Just now.”, she answered, “And what are you and Mom doing sleeping
together on the couch? Isn’t that going a little fast? Or is there something
I should know about?”
Daniel squinted again and rubbed his eyes. He looked down at the sleeping
form lying on top of him and ran his fingers through her hair.
“Cassie”, he began, “There is something you should know about.”
Cassandra’s normally self-assured expression dissolved into worry at the
sound of those words.
“What?”
“Your mother, she can’t see.” Cassie’s eyes darted everywhere, trying to
come to grips with what Daniel was saying.
“Can’t see what?” she asked, hoping that she misinterpreted his statement.
She didn’t.
“She’s blind, Cassie," he continued, looking down at her mother “An
accident on a mission we just recently came back from.” The young woman
sat down in the large rocking chair close to the couch and began rocking
back and forth.
“How?”, she demanded softly.
“A light...blast...of some sort.”, he fumbled, “We don’t know for certain.”
Cassie merely kept rocking back and forth.
“I’m sorr--”
“No!”, she stated harshly, cutting him off and waking Janet. “We’re gonna
get through this.”
“Cassandra?”, the doctor called, looking every which way in vain. The
teenager walked over to her mother and touched her cheek.
“I’m here Mom.”, she said, “So’s Daniel.” Janet waved a hand in front of
her daughters face, then ran it down the girl’s features.
“Cassie, honey.”, she said, “There’s something I have to--” Cassandra
interrupted.
“I know, Mom. You’re blind.” For the first time in a long time, Janet was
at a loss for words. She buried her face in Daniel’s chest and let out a
heavy sigh.
“I’m...uh...staying here.”, said Daniel, “From now on. To help out.”
“Thanks.” was all Cassie could manage to say. Her day had gone from great
to awful, in ten minutes.
Chapter 3
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