Reversal of Fortune: Part 12
By
Gemsong

The weeks passed as Daniel and Jack settled into a routine. The weather cooled with the full onset of autumn. It was also the beginning of a new school year. Jack would be officially 6 years old in October, which made him eligible for first grade. However, without fully knowing what Jack was capable of, Daniel decided it was best that he should be home schooled. At least for this first year.

Jack's intelligence was phenomenal and Daniel was hard pressed to keep up with him. Jack only had to be shown something once in order for him to get it. It was more as if he simply needed to be reminded of what he already knew instead of actually having to teach him. His spoken English remained somewhat formal, but his writing skills in that language developed quickly.

His skill in mathematics was excellent. However, his active interest in the subject was virtually non-existent unless the lesson involved astronomy in any shape or form. Much to her surprise Sam became his astronomy tutor. As an adult, she knew he had some knowledge of the subject. Now it was clear he had access to even more. Twice during a discussion he had told her about a planet that had a stargate but wasn't listed in any directory they had.

The scholastic progress reports they were required to forward to the county kept Jack out from under scrutiny of the system, but it would be only a temporary solution. Daniel would have preferred to have Jack interact with other children more and he often took him to the park for that reason. Since the creation of the pictures Jack had exhibited no extraordinary skills beyond that of a normal bright five-year-old boy. But Daniel kept as close an eye on him as possible, just in case.

Daniel's life too had changed dramatically, as had the make up of SG-1. Daniel's position was now that of a consultant. The missions he did go on were few and far between. If he was gone for more than a day Jack would spend his time over at Janet's house. He was not pleased about this, but accepted it as a necessity.

Sam was now the leader of the new SG-1 team, a command Jack had once said she was more than ready for. Another civilian scientist took Daniel's place, and a marine lieutenant joined the team, which was a surprise to them all.

Much of Daniel's work could now be done from home, although he would occasionally have to go to the mountain to examine artifacts the SG teams brought back first hand. On these occasions Jack was allowed to come with him, which pleased the boy no end. Jack looked forward to those visits as a very special treat. He had he own set of child sized BDUs, which was the only thing he would wear when on base. On the back of his jacket were the words "Property of SG-1".

It was the middle of October, a few days away from Jack's birthday. Daniel was in his lab studying stone tablets SG-7 had brought back from a temple on P74-U48. They were of a language he had never seen before. In addition SG-7 had taken a great deal of video of the temple itself. The interior wall had more of the writing and symbols, none of them recognizable.

Daniel studied the video, trying to find something that would give him the key he needed to figure out what language this was. He had settled Jack in the corner of his lab with his Leggos and some books he was currently supposed to be reading for his school assignment. He didn't hear Jack approach the bench with the tablets. Nor did he hear the chair being moved so that Jack could climb up to get a better look.

He did, however, began to hear a gentle murmur behind him. Daniel turned to see Jack at the bench, his small hands touching one of the tablets. His young face was twisted into a scowl of concentration as he spoke, haltingly at first, then with more confidence as he moved to the next tablet.

"Som tu binto ou Oldrid korbo'na tu terako ecai'hos. O ecai'hos ou tu nalai et tu gonge." The language was fluid and almost musical sounding, even in Jack's childish voice.

Daniel slowly approached him, watching his son with interest and a touch of concern. "Jack?" he asked, as he stood next to the chair.

The boy looked up at him and smiled. "Sia, haldono?"

Daniel blinked in confusion. "What are you doing?"

"Iyta ganid'ys," Jack replied.

"English, son."

Jack blinked at him, his mind making the required mental shift. "Oh, I am reading," he said.

"What language are you reading?" Daniel asked.

"It is Ol'vananti," Jack replied, as if it were nothing of importance.

"You can read these?" Daniel asked gesturing at the tablets.

Jack nodded. "It looked familiar," he said. "I had to think about it until I remembered."

Daniel took a breath and let it out. "Remembered?"

Jack's face twisted into a scowl as he concentrated. "From the other memories," he said. "The ones that I did not do."

Daniel nodded. Jack meant the Ancients memories. "I see," he said. "You can read all of these?"

Jack nodded again. Daniel lifted Jack from the chair, carried him over to his desk and sat down with Jack on his lap. He restarted the video of the temple. "Does any of this look familiar?"

Jack frowned at the screen and leaned forward. "It is Olvanon," he said. "A place of the old ones. They went away a long time ago."

"Is that what this is saying?" Daniel asked carefully. Sometimes these memories would leave Jack distressed and upset.

The boy shook his head. "No," Jack replied. "This just writings. Stories like the tablets."

Daniel's hand gently rubbed Jack's arm. "What story does the tablets tell?" He asked.

"A great sickness, in the time of Oldrid," Jack said, shifting uncomfortably on Daniel's lap.

"Does it say what kind?" Daniel asked carefully.

Jack sighed, pressing against Daniel's chest. "A sickness of the heart and soul," he said. "It is why they built the temple."

Daniel stopped the questions despite his normal urge to push for answers. A little at a time was the best method to draw out the information from his son. His arm went around Jack, holding him close dropping a kiss on his head. "Thank you," he said. "Shame they never came to Earth." If they had there would have been some trace of their language that Daniel could use as a root.

"They did," Jack said, looking up at Daniel.

His father looked at him, startled. "They did?" he asked.

"They had another name here," Jack said tucking his head down under Daniel's chin. "The Sidhe."

Daniel stared at Jack's bent head. Jack picked up a pen and fiddled with it while Daniel mentally tried to sort it all out. He only remembered vague references to the Sidhe, or faeries. He would have to do more research to find out what he could and cross reference what they found on the planet. This was a rare opportunity to learn something new about an entirely different species that had visited the Earth in ancient times.

He was surprised that the language sounded so different. In this case he would have expected to have a more Celtic sound. Then he remembered references to the language of the Sidhe being musical. Jack's reading aloud had sounded that way. Daniel glanced down at Jack and noticed that he was no longer fidgeting. He had fallen asleep on Daniel's lap.

Daniel couldn't help but smile as he dropped another kiss on the brown hair. With one arm keeping Jack secure on his lap Daniel continued to work a little longer, one handed, but it was worth the inconvenience. Whenever Jack used the "memories that weren't his" , afterwards he would sleep, as if drawing on the memories exhausted him. Janet had asked him to keep track of how long he slept after each time it happened. This was the reason that Daniel did not push Jack too much. Jack didn't often volunteer information. He only drew on it when directed or asked specific questions. But doing so still exhausted the child.

There was a knock on the door to the lab and Daniel looked up. He was surprised to see Lieutenant Edward Lewis stepping into his lab.

"Dr. Jackson," he said with a faint smile. "I wondered if you have a moment?"

Daniel shifted the sleeping Jack on his lap. "Certainly," he said. "How can I help you?" He didn't see what he could possibly do for a medical technician, but he was glad that he had told Hammond about him.

"My daughter Rachel is having a Halloween party this coming weekend. She would like to invite Jack."

Daniel frowned slightly, remembering the altercation Jack had with Edward's older son. But again he faced the dilemma of wanting Jack to interact with children his own age. He knew he couldn't shelter him all the time. While he was thinking about it, Edward had stepped closer, taking a seat on the stool next to the desk.

"You should know that my wife, Lisa, is a history teacher," the other man said. "My son had to explain himself to her." He rolled his eyes slightly. Rachel had been more than willing to help with all the details. "Needless to say, Teddy is getting a crash course on Egyptian culture and will be presenting a report to you in the near future."

Daniel looked at him surprise. "That's not necessary, Lieutenant," he protested, but Edwards shook his head at him.

"Yes it is," Edwards replied. "Such intolerance is not acceptable in my home. We are all humans." He gestured downward in the direction of the stargate. "There is enough going out there to compensate for its lack."

Daniel nodded his acceptance of that. However as far as the party was concerned... "Still, there are some issues about Jack that could be a problem," Daniel said. He didn't want to say no. He knew Jack liked playing with other children, which is why he took him to the park so often.

"He plays well in public with other children," Edwards said. "Nothing strange has happened other than him protecting himself in a fashion easily explained away. It's going to be monitored by my wife and myself. You're more than welcome to stay too just in case." Edwards leaned forward and brushed a dark curl from Jack's sleeping face. "He'll have fun, I promise."

Daniel looked into Edward's eyes and nodded. The Lieutenant was sincere. Janet had briefed him thoroughly on Jack special needs once Daniel had vouched for him. It was his help that enabled Jack to periodically interact with other children. It was good to have a second pair of eyes on Jack. The fact that Edward's daughter Rachel and her best friend Amber had made Jack their pet project didn't hurt.

"What time?," Daniel asked, allowing the smile to touch his face.

"Two o'clock," Edwards replied. He jotted down the address on a blank slip of paper on the desk. Then he rose to head out the door. "In costume, of course." Just as he slipped out the door. "That includes the adults."

Daniel groaned aloud as the door swung closed behind Edwards.