Jack’s hand slowly stroked over Daniel’s head, down his back, and then started the caress over again. The other man was currently dead to the world, sprawled over Jack and a bit slanted towards the back of the sofa. He’d crawled on top of Jack about an hour ago, midway through the baseball game, and fallen asleep shortly thereafter, thanks to Jack’s soothing touches.
The argument had actually driven Daniel from him for an unheard of four hours. It was the only thing they fought about now and Daniel seemed to be getting more and more desperate that he win. He’d given in on seeing a shrink, as long as Jack was in the next room, able to poke his head in whenever Daniel needed. He’d stopped parading around naked, except at night and on the second story. Daniel had even gone to a Welcome Back party at the base and stuck around for a whole hour so that those who’d looked so long for him could reassure themselves that he really was okay.
Well, relatively speaking.
The biggest roadblock to Daniel getting back to ‘normal,’ in Jack’s opinion, was his persisting belief that he needed to belong to Jack. It was part and parcel of what Ba’al had done to him and infuriated Jack beyond belief. If he ever got his hands on the Goa’uld, Jack would put his Black Ops training to good use, making Ba’al wish for a death that wouldn’t be granted.
Daniel stirred, bringing Jack’s thought back to an even keel, the need for violence dimming. His fingers combed into Daniel’s hair, which the other man had finally allowed Jack to trim above his ears, and he asked softly, “You okay now?”
Because Daniel had been shaking in a bastardized version of the DTs from being parted from Jack for so long. They’d discovered the physical reaction purely by accident a couple of weeks ago when Daniel had insisted that he would be fine if Jack went on his own to the base, that he would enjoy some time to himself, and that, so long as he didn’t leave the house, he’d be fine. So Jack had gone back to the base to give Sumner pointers on dealing with the Tok’ra. He’d only been there about an hour when his cell had rung with an agonized Daniel on the other end.
Jack barely remembered the drive home and had Sumner’s quick thinking to thank for not getting pulled over by the cops. Janet and Sam had been only half a step behind him, sirens going the whole time. Daniel had been curled into a tight ball on the floor, motionless, when Jack had arrived. It had been a terrifying moment, thinking that after everything, Daniel had died for real, until the other man had whimpered softly. Jack had dropped to his knees and bodily hauled Daniel into his arms.
Then Janet had been there, taking Daniel’s vitals and assuring him that Daniel was fine, or he would be in a few hours, at least. It had taken blood tests a couple of days later, while parted under controlled conditions, to confirm the physical affects of prolonged separation.
Daniel sighed and answered, “Yes.”
Scratching lightly over Daniel’s scalp produced a sound similar to a purr, to Jack’s continued amusement. Kissing Daniel’s temple, he asked, “Is it sex, Danny? Are you confusing wanting to be my lover, with wanting to be my slave?”
Daniel shook his head and pushed up on his palms to look into Jack’s eyes as he said, “No, Jack. I want to belong to you, completely, for the rest of my life. I want to make you happy, to serve you and give you whatever makes you happy.”
“Danny, you don’t have to be my slave to do that, just my lover,” Jack said softly.
The earnest expression shifted into unhappiness, the pale blue of Daniel’s eyes filling with it as he stared back at Jack. He dropped back down, resting his cheek on Jack’s chest as his hand cupped the opposite shoulder. He finally whispered, “Lovers can be cast off Jack, spouses can be divorced.”
Careful to keep his tone gentle, Jack pointed out, “Slaves can be sold.”
Daniel sighed, a deeply miserable sound, and replied, “If it gets bad enough to where you want to sell me, I’ll deserve it.”
“I don’t suppose you’d consider a concubine contract?”
“Contracts can be broken.”
Jack sighed. “Of course they can. Daniel, I don’t know if I can do this.”
“I know, Jack, I’m sorry.”
And Daniel sounded so utterly wretched that Jack instantly wrapped both arms tight around him and murmured, “We’ll figure it out, Danny, don’t worry.”
Daniel sighed again and didn’t reply.
* * * *
Barring Sam’s brief visit with Janet two weeks ago, it was the first time the other half of the team had been to Jack’s house since Daniel’s return over a month ago. At the moment, Sam and Daniel chattered amiably in the kitchen as they prepared food for the cookout. Jack guarded the grill while the charcoal heated, Teal’c sitting nearby.
“All does not seem well, O’Neill,” Teal’c observed quietly.
Jack snorted. “Sometimes, T, you have a gift for understatement.”
“So I have been told. What is wrong?”
Gazing at the kitchen window through which he could see Sam and Daniel laughing together, Jack answered, “Daniel wants to be my slave.”
Spoken aloud, it didn’t sound as horrible as he’d been making it in his head. The operative phrase being, ‘Daniel wants.’
Teal’c’s eyebrow rose, the only outward sign of his surprise. “And you are resistant to this.”
Which meant that Teal’c was more surprised by his resistance, than Daniel’s desire to be Jack’s slave. Not terribly unexpected, given the enslavement of humans throughout the galaxy, due to Goa’uld oppression. Teal’c had grown up thinking that was the way of the world, that all humans were slaves, not just certain portions of the population.
Despite his words being a statement and not a questioned, Jack answered, “Yeah. I don’t believe in slavery, Teal’c. I think the work camps are unnecessary death, even for prisoners who’ve committed violent crimes. I think the license that Masters have to abuse and hurt their slaves is an abomination. I’ve never seen a happy slave, and I doubt I ever will.”
Teal’c was silent for a few moments, then asked, “Are there not persons among the Tau’ri called ‘Bonded Ones?’”
Jack grimaced, but nodded. “Yeah. Voluntary slavery is the modern term for it.”
“And these voluntary slaves, the Bonded Ones, are treated with respect, cared for and shown devotion to, by their Masters, are they not? Sometimes up to the displacement of the spouse?”
“Well, yeah, but...”
“Would you abuse DanielJackson, O’Neill?”
The mild curiosity in Teal’c’s tone stung, badly, and Jack snapped, “Of course not! I’d sooner kill myself than hurt Daniel!”
“Then what is the problem?”
Jack hesitated, images of Daniel bound to his bed, crying out in pleasure as he was whipped, flashed through his mind. Shame and arousal vied for control of him, as it had since Daniel’s first ludicrous proposal to become his slave and he finally answered quietly, “That I might like it too much. How can I look myself in the eye, Teal’c, if I become Daniel’s Master? I shouldn’t even want to be that, not ever! It goes against my beliefs, but just the thought of having Daniel truly obedient to me...unable to tell me no...it drives me crazy.”
“Will you care for him and protect him with all that you are? Will this give DanielJackson the peace he no longer has?” Teal’c questioned, almost gently.
At that, Jack had to nod, knowing the answer to both was ‘yes.’
“And can you not free him at a later date, if he returns to how he was?”
Something that Jack hadn’t thought of, and it caused him to stiffen in surprise. “I can, yes. It wouldn’t be easy, but the bond can be severed, if the Master wants to do so.”
Teal’c gave that annoying little half-shrug and observed, “Then the only thing that stops you from giving DanielJackson what he needs, is your pride.”
Jack flushed, embarrassed now that it had been put like that. Still... “If I become his Master, I don’t know if I’ll be able to...restrain myself...where he’s concerned, T. You know I’ve always wanted him.”
A soft chuckle rumbled through Teal’c and he replied, “DanielJackson does not wish for your restraint, O’Neill. Most especially not in matters of copulation.”
“You will not.”
Said with more confidence than Jack could muster for himself.
* * * *
Daniel noticed that Jack was unusually quiet throughout the meal and chatter around the table on the back porch. He noticed, but didn’t comment, letting the other man stew over whatever it was that weighed so heavy on his mind. He knew, of course, that Jack and Teal’c had most likely been discussing the dilemma of his becoming Jack’s slave.
Everything went really well,
despite Jack’s lack of participation. Daniel could feel himself becoming better
acclimatized to his friends, or re-acclimatized to them at any rate. Sam didn’t
make him at all uncomfortable and, so long as Teal’c
didn’t soundlessly appear beside him, Daniel was okay with the
By the time they were ready to go sometime in the middle of the afternoon, he and Sam had gone over a number of projects on which she needed his insight and translation skills. She got to complain about Sumner to her hearts’ content, which wasn’t nearly as much as Daniel suspected she thought it was. And Sam chattered on about Pete the entire visit, which was really nice to see. Daniel couldn’t remember the last time that Sam had been this happy, romantically and professionally, and he was relieved that it seemed like it would last.
Teal’c,
on the other hand, kept them silent company after lunch as they cleaned up and
Jack kept thinking about whatever he was thinking about. The
Jack did finally come out of his thoughts long enough to say goodbye to Sam and Teal’c, as well as offer a brief apology to them. Both assured him that it was fine and headed out.
“So you think it’ll be a fall wedding?” Daniel asked, going to the kitchen to get Jack a beer.
Jack gave him a startled look. “What? Whose?”
Laughing a little, Daniel reminded, “Sam and Pete. It’s pretty serious.”
“Really?”
Daniel shook his head fondly and held out the beer, which Jack took. “You really can be oblivious, you know.”
Lips pursed, Jack said, “You can’t say things like that to me in public, if you’re my slave.”
Daniel froze in place at the quiet words. It was the first time that Jack had ever cautioned him about anything like that. The first time that Jack had even hinted he might ever be the other man’s slave. Nodding slowly, Daniel agreed, “I wouldn’t, of course.”
Jack set the beer down and stood from the sofa. He took Daniel by the shoulder and pushed him down, onto his knees. Staring down at him coldly, Jack stated, “If you’re my slave, you’ll do more than just obey me, Daniel. You will warm my bed and my body any time I see fit. You will take care of this house and the running of it. Any projects that I need you to do, you will. I may punish you for no reason other than I want to see your ass a nice, cherry red and the way you try not to wince as you sit. I’m a hard man, Daniel, and you know it. I live hard, I work hard, and my sex life is…not for the faint of heart.
“I’ve gone easy on you, no matter what you might think, because I know that you aren’t military and don’t truly understand our ways, even though you’ve been at the SGC for almost ten years. I’ll expect instant and absolute obedience. No questioning. No interruptions. No snarky responses. Deference and respect to be shown to me at all times. You may express an opinion, but it will be done so when I tell you to, at an appropriate time. And I decide what an appropriate time will be, Daniel, not you. Take all of that into account, and think about it overnight, before you give me your answer to this simple question…
“Can you be my slave and be happy at the same time? Because I won’t have one without the other.”
It was all said with the authority that Daniel had been craving since before he’d gotten kidnapped by Ba’al. Given the honesty with which Jack had just spoken, Daniel felt compelled to say, “I’ve wanted it for a long time, Jack. If I had to give a time...well...I would say since I returned from my Ascension. Even though I didn’t remember anything, or much of anything once my human memories came back, I could feel how terrible a burden that kind of responsibility had been to me. When I got back...it felt good not to have the fate of the world in my hand. Any world.”
Jack smiled and combed his fingers through Daniel’s hair and motioning for him to stand. “You don’t have to worry about that anymore, Danny-boy. You don’t have to worry about anything, anymore.”
Hopeful, Daniel asked, “Does this mean you’ll take me as your slave?”
“Do you really want it?”
“Yes.”
There was a long pause before Jack nodded decisively, fingers tightening in Daniel’s hair and tilting his head to the side. Daniel shivered as Jack’s tongue slid up the side of his throat and then the other man bit sharply at his earlobe before whispering, “You’re all mine now, Danny-boy, no turning back.”
Daniel sank gratefully into his Master’s arms, burying his face into Jack’s shoulder.
* * * *
It was with a mild fit of pique that Daniel realized Jack wasn’t going to Claim him that night, nor even have sex with him. After filling out the proper forms, which Daniel had downloaded from the internet, they got ready for bed, same as usual. The lights were out at the regular time, as well. Curled up against Jack, he asked hesitantly, “Um, Jack?”
“Yeah, Daniel?”
“Aren’t you going to, you know, Claim me?”
Jack snorted, ruffling his hand through Daniel’s hair. “Get some sleep, Danny. We’ve got a long day tomorrow.”
Which meant no. Daniel heaved a sigh, but didn’t complain. If Jack wanted to wait, for whatever unknown, bizarre reason, then they would wait. Sometimes his Puritan streak really sucked, though.
* * * *
The first thing on the agenda was bringing the proper paperwork to the right people, to finally make Daniel his slave. They sat at the Registrar of Slaves office for an hour before it was their turn, Jack’s title getting them exactly nowhere fast. He snoozed while Daniel read, trusting the other man to wake him up if something important happened.
“Master, it’s time,” Daniel murmured, shaking him gently.
Waking instantly and completely, Jack rubbed over his eyes and stood, looking around. The waiting area didn’t look any less empty. There were still plenty of assistants waiting to file paperwork on their employers’ new slaves. It wasn’t the sort of thing that Masters did, as a rule, unless it happened to be a love match. Jack sure didn’t see any of those around, which confirmed his long-standing theory that ‘bonded ones’ as Teal’c had called them, were few and far between.
Jack walked forward to one of the Registrar’s offices, Daniel right behind him, where a petite woman waited behind a desk that seemed entirely too big for her.
She gave them a bored look before asking, “Paperwork?”
Daniel immediately held out the Voluntary Slave Status forms, which Jack took and handed over.
Her attention was garnered swiftly upon actually reading the documents and she looked sharply at Daniel. “Dr. Jackson, are you sure that you want to go through with this? You do this of your own free will and without coercion of any kind from outside sources?”
“I do,” Daniel stated firmly.
“Colonel O’Neill, would you wait outside for a few minutes?”
It wasn’t a question, so Jack did as he was told and left the office, closing the door behind him. He kept his back towards the window that was set in the center of the door, making sure the woman could see he wasn’t trying to intimidate Daniel in any fashion. He would’ve loved to know what was going on in there, but knew that there was no way Daniel would change his mind at this late date.
A few minutes later, the door opened and Daniel told him softly, “You can come in now.”
Searching Daniel’s face for any sign of distress, Jack was a little surprised to find the other man perfectly calm and even content. Smiling, Jack brushed his fingers through Daniel’s soft hair and followed him back into the office.
Not looking in the least bit happy, the woman behind the desk was stamping at various points on the documents. “The forms will be processed within the next forty-eight hours and mailed to you by the end of the week. In the meantime, you will have temporary ownership papers of Daniel which will grant you all rights to his personage, physically and mentally. Keep them on you at all times. Do not let Daniel away from your person until you have the legal ownership papers in your possession. As of this moment, Daniel Jackson is now your responsibility and property. May God watch over the both of you, guiding your actions from here on out.”
Jack took the papers from the disapproving official, wondering why she was in such a position if she so hated the thought of slavery. Shrugging it off, he put the envelope into his inner coat pocket for protection and escorted Daniel out of the office.
He paused outside the main waiting area to push Daniel into a corner and kiss the bejesus out of him, leaving the new slave dazed. Smirking, he slapped Daniel lightly on the ass and announced cheerfully, “Let’s get to it, Danny-boy. And don’t forget. Two steps behind now.”
The next thing on the list was getting Daniel a Chain. Jack hauled him around to multiple jewelry stores, trying to find something that suited Daniel perfectly. When lunchtime came around and they hadn’t found what Jack was looking for, he grumpily gave in and aimed them towards a restaurant. Taking a seat at a small booth, Jack snapped his fingers and pointed at the floor, giving Daniel a significant look.
Daniel gave him a startled one in return, then sank gracefully to his knees beside the booth.
Pleased by the ready obedience, Jack smiled at the waitress when she arrived and said, “I need a cushion for my slave.”
“Of course, Sir. Anything to drink?”
“Two waters and I’ll have a beer, whatever’s on tap.”
“Right away, Sir.”
Opening the menu, Jack gave it a cursory glance, settling on a salad for Daniel and a steak for himself. It wouldn’t be his preferred method of eating out with Daniel, the other man on the floor, but Jack wanted to gauge his reaction to being treated as a slave in public. So far, there wasn’t any sign that Daniel had a problem with it, but it was early yet. Lunch was quiet in the unassuming restaurant, being the middle of the week. It was mainly a few business people out on working lunches and a couple of families. Daniel ate his salad while Jack ate his steak, taking care of some phone calls to the Base while they were on a there.
Dinner was over with fairly quickly, but Jack ordered dessert, which he never did. He was still curious as to how far he could push Daniel, though, so he tugged the new slave onto his lap and told him softly, “Lo schiavo amato soprattutto.”
Daniel’s eyes widened impossibly behind his glasses, the love and emotion shining back at him, impossible to miss.
“Oh, Master,” he breathed, melting against Jack.
Dessert arrived just then, a plate of small, finger cookies, delicate and exquisitely made fresh, daily. Jack fed him a few pieces by hand, loving the way Daniel just opened his mouth and accepted whatever he put in it. Which thought led to other, dirtier thoughts, and he hardened beneath the firm ass sitting on his lap.
Daniel shot him another startled look, and then flushed.
Smirking, Jack carefully nudged at Daniel’s lips with a last sweet and then drew him in for a long, deep kiss where the dessert was shared. They were both flushed by the end of it, and Jack ordered, “Off. Time to go.”
Daniel instantly stood and Jack pulled out enough money to more than cover the bill before hauling his slave out of the restaurant. Finding that Chain was more important than ever, his body demanding its due of Daniel, now that the man officially belonged to him. There were two stores that he’d heard people talk about over the years and he went to them last, because he’d wanted to explore all the possibilities. Going to a shop that specialized in Chains was going to be a pain in the ass. Jack hated the obsequiousness he associated with high-end specialty stores, not to mention the outrageous prices for things that were maybe half the stated value.
None of that mattered now, though. Jack had to get Daniel Chained before Claiming him, or it just wouldn’t feel right. He had to find the right Chain, or it would be another agonizing day of waiting while they went further afield.
The first store was just as bad as he feared. The salesman was slight and reminded Jack of a rat. Literally. He was surprised the man didn’t have whiskers and a tail. The selection was good, better than expected, but nothing there struck either man’s fancy.
It was in the second store that they struck paydirt. A few minutes in, Daniel tugged on Jack’s hand and exclaimed, “Master, look!”
Turning to see what the fuss was about, Jack was taken by the Chain that Daniel pointed to. It was simple, if heavy and dark looking, gold that would look great against Daniel’s skin. What struck him as perfect was the cartouche at the end, instead of a pendant or flat panel for engraving. Curious, he asked, “What’s it say?”
Daniel smiled at him and answered softly, “Beloved.”
Jack looked to the man behind and stated, “We’re taking that. Let me have it.”
Nonplused, the salesman hastily pulled the Chain from the case and handed it over in exchange for Jack’s credit card. While the bill was sorted out, Jack put the Chain around Daniel’s neck and then kissed the clasp against his slave’s neck. Goosebumps broke out over Daniel’s shoulders and Jack chuckled, leaning in closer to murmur, “More than that at home, Spacemonkey.”
* * * *
Daniel moaned desperately as Jack continued to suck his cock avidly. He’d been fully prepared, eager even, to be the one laving attention on his new Master, but Jack simply shoved him down onto the bed and started having his wicked way.
That had been two hours ago.
“Master, oh God, Master please, please let me come, please!” Daniel begged shamelessly.
Jack sucked as he pulled off Daniel with an obscene slurp, then licked his lips, equally as shameless. “Not a chance, Danny-boy. And you will seriously regret it if you come before I say you can.”
Daniel groaned as Jack resumed his evil caresses, this time rolling and playing with Daniel’s balls with the same one-track mind that had brought down actual civilizations. His hands were bound to the headboard with comfortable, leather restraints, but the rest of his body was free to be manipulated at will by the devil torturing him with pleasure. It had been so long since he’d been with anyone that Daniel wasn’t sure he could keep from coming much longer, no matter how much he wanted to please Jack.
Maybe sensing that, Jack stopped again and pushed his legs up, opening Daniel into a very vulnerable position. “Danny. Danny-boy. Daniel!”
Struggling through the haze of sensation, Daniel forced himself to focus on Jack.
“Look at me, Daniel, watch me Claim you,” Jack ordered.
Daniel gasped in pain and arousal as Jack pushed his cock inside Daniel’s body. He kept his eyes on Jack, watching as ordered. He honestly couldn’t remember having seen anything so erotic in his life. Sweat glistened amidst the silvered chest hair and the plentiful, lean muscles moved smoothly beneath the damp skin. Jack had kept himself in good shape, better shape than men ten years his junior, and it showed. The strength with which he took Daniel appeared inexhaustible, not that Daniel wanted it to end any time soon, no matter that he went mad with pleasure in the meantime.
It had been a long time since he’d had a male lover, the last having been on an Egyptian dig between classes in the summer, and Jack wasn’t anything like that long-ago youth. This man now inside him had been his focus for so long, that the Claiming seemed inevitable, in hindsight. Best friend and sounding board, Jack had been there for Daniel more than he hadn’t and those few, spectacular failures between them were long forgiven, if not completely forgotten. Jack had the power to hurt him as no one else did, and that power had been his for nigh on a decade. Becoming his slave was simply the final resolution to the energy that had crackled between them for so long.
Moving slow but hard, Jack Claimed Daniel fiercely, hitting his prostrate as often as not and sending Daniel into paroxysms of need, begging futilely for release. His cock had barely softened with the penetration in spite of the pain, and Daniel was back where he’d started with Jack’s mouth all over him: desperate to come.
And then, finally, it happened. Jack groaned, chest-deep, and ordered harshly, “Come, Daniel! Come now!”
Daniel gasped and shuddered as he felt Jack slam one last time into him, grinding down painfully hard as he came. The wet heat sparked a reaction through Daniel, as did the blissful, scrunched up, open-mouthed expression on his lover’s face that spoke of a vulnerability he’d never before seen; one that only a handful of people had ever seen, Daniel was certain. He came violently, spurting semen between them to splatter on both of their abdomens and chests, clamping down on the shaft lodged deep within.
Jack moaned at the extra pressure on his dick and another burst of wetness filled Daniel before the other man collapsed on top of him. For several long minutes, Daniel simply lay there, letting his own breathing return to normal while they rested. He wished that he could hold Jack, but his hands were still tied.
“God, that was good,” Jack sighed.
He undulated a bit and provoking a gasp of sensation from Daniel. The wicked grin that surfaced said the move had been on purpose. He leaned up on his elbows and took Daniel’s lips in a slow, wet kiss, thrusting his tongue possessively into Daniel’s mouth. Breaking off the kiss, Jack smiled lazily and carefully withdrew from Daniel’s body. He reached up to undo the leather ties and then settled on his back, pulling Daniel to him.
Going willingly, Daniel curled up around his Master, hooking a leg over Jack’s thigh and giving his own contented sigh.
“Feeling better now, Spacemonkey?” Jack asked, kissing his temple.
Daniel grinned at the old nickname and nodded. “Much, thanks.”
“My pleasure.”
Chuckling at the emphatic response, Daniel asked hopefully, “We’ll be doing that a lot?”
Jack huffed in amusement and replied, “As often as this old body can get it up.”
“That’s a yes, then,” Daniel teased.
Slapping him lightly on the ass, Jack warned, “None of that in public, now.”
“No, Master,” Daniel agreed sincerely. “Just with us, I promise.”
Jack gazed at him intently. “So you’re still good with this.”
Surprised, Daniel asked, “Did you think I would change my mind, once it happened?”
A minor shrug moved them a little as Jack answered, “I think part of me did, yeah.”
Daniel thought about it, searching himself, but then had to shake his head. “All I feel now is…happiness…and contentment. Not things that I’ve felt often in my life.”
“I’m glad you do now,” Jack told him softly.
Snuggling down against Jack, Daniel yawned and questioned, “Are we still going to the SGC in the morning?”
Jack nodded. “Teal’c and Sam are expecting us.”
“Okay,” Daniel agreed sleepily.
He fell asleep to the continuous, slow stroking of Jack’s hand up and down his spine.
* * * *
“DanielJackson looks well.”
Jack smirked as he agreed, “He does, doesn’t he, T?”
“I see that there is a new ornament around his throat,” Teal’c continued.
“Noticed it, did you? Cost me a pretty penny, but it was worth it, let me tell you,” Jack said, watching fondly as Sam and Daniel argued over something in a book.
They were in Carter’s lab at Area 51, as opposed to the one at the SGC, or the one at the Smithsonian, or any of the other many, many places that people tried to tempt the genius away from the Air Force.
Not that they ever will,
Jack thought. She’s as far gone on the Air Force as I am, and that’s a
pretty sad statement, considering.
Teal’c offered a faint smile, high praise indeed, and said, “It pleases me, that you have taken DanielJackson as your slave. I know, now, that he will be cared for in your absence from the SGC.”
“Oh, like I was gonna really retire,” Jack scoffed. “It would’ve been, what, the fourth time? Fifth? The only reason I’m retired right now is because Daniel needs me. My knees aren’t that bad.”
“Indeed.”
“Hey, I can still toss your ass a couple of times on the gym mat.”
“Sir? Ah, we’ve got a minor problem here.”
Looking over at Carter, Jack jumped to his feet on seeing a glow surrounding Daniel in a bubble. “What the hell did you do to him, Carter?”
Daniel didn’t look at all happy, but he wasn’t panicking, thankfully. Jack glowered at Carter, who hastily explained, “I was going over this control panel of the ancients and it just happened.”
“Just happened?” Jack repeated, testy. “Things don’t ‘just happen,’ around you, Carter, you make them happen.”
She sighed. “Yes, Sir.”
Pointing at Daniel, he ordered, “Fix it!”
While she didn’t exactly roll her eyes, the expression was as close as a subordinate could get when dealing with an intransigent superior. And while it might surprise many people that Jack knew what ‘intransigent’ meant, he knew the people currently in the room weren’t among them.
The next few hours went by with excruciating slowness. Jack wound up calling Sumner at the SGC to explain Teal’c’s continued absence, and then talked to Janet about Daniel. They were approaching the four hour mark, which was the longest Daniel had ever been from him since the abduction. Any minute, he would go into the DTs and there wouldn’t be shit-all anyone could do about it, least of all Jack.
Only, it didn’t happen.
Hour four rolled on by without any problems on Daniel’s part, as did hour five. It was nearing hour six that the golden bubble finally dissipated and Jack grabbed Daniel into his arms the second he was clear of it. Daniel’s arms went around him instantly, but there was no shaking or physical sign of trauma, thankfully.
Jack stabbed a finger in Carter’s direction and ordered, “No more playing with that while others are in the room.”
“No, Sir,” she replied, that near-insubordinate expression back. “Is he all right?”
Pulling back, Jack cupped Daniel’s face and searched the pale blue eyes for any hint of trouble, but found none. Relieved, he smiled and asked, “Are you all right?”
Daniel nodded, but frowned as he did so. “Something’s different, Jack. I don’t…something’s different.”
“We’ll get you checked out by Frasier the second we get back,” Jack stated firmly.
“I’m sorry, General O’Neill, but we’ll need to examine Daniel while he’s here,” an officious type informed him.
Jack pinned the scientist with a look that had worked on heads of state with a hell of a lot more power and the man swallowed nervously.
“Or, we could accept Dr. Frasier’s notes.”
Jack snorted. “Good idea.”
They said goodbye to Carter and
left her to figure out what, exactly, had happened. The flight back to
Frasier found nothing wrong, or even anything different, so she sent them to their on-site quarters for observation. Once there, Jack ordered Daniel to strip and then did the same. They got ready for bed and were under the covers in short order. Holding Daniel snugly, Jack said dryly, “Not how I pictured our second night together.”
“As long as we are,” Daniel murmured sleepily.
Wondering how many more lives the other man had left, Jack kissed Daniel softly before urging, “Go to sleep, Daniel. Lots to do tomorrow.”
* * * *
The next day did turn out to be busy. Busier than Jack had expected, and he and Daniel saw each other for only short periods of time when he could break free of the incessant bureaucracy. Before he knew it, the day was done and there were again in their base quarters for another night.
When he got there, Jack was startled to find Daniel on his knees beside the bed. Lips pursed thoughtfully, Jack mused, “And what’s going on here?”
“I thought perhaps Master would wish for a massage.”
Which was when he noticed the oil and steaming towels in a bowl on the bedside table. Stripping quickly, Jack for once let the clothes stay where they fell and climbed onto the bed eagerly. “Go to it, Danny-boy.”
The next hour passed in an incredible haze of pleasure. Daniel’s hands were strong and knowing as they released tension all over Jack’s body. His back was first, but certainly not the only place that Daniel concentrated on. His feet got a surprising amount of attention and that alone left him a pile of goo unable to do anything but groan in pleasure.
Daniel finished off the massage with a blowjob, taking Jack from his haze of sensation into the realm of sheer bliss. It wasn’t the most skilled one he’d gotten, but that made it all the better for Jack. Knowing that Daniel hadn’t done this, or at least not in a very long time, caused him to enjoy it even more. When he came only a short time later, it was with a groan as Daniel sucked the come right out of him.
Pulling his slave up, Jack wrapped his hand around Daniel’s hard shaft and an evil, playful mood overtook him. Nipping at Daniel’s throat, he murmured into the slave’s ear, “I think this looks so good on you that I’m going to leave it there overnight. Sleep well, Spacemonkey.”
“Master, please,” Daniel begged.
Jack wrapped his arms around Daniel and sighed in deep contentment.
* * * *
They were let off the base the following day, finally, and Jack held Daniel’s hand on the way home. It was nice to have someone he could touch whenever and however he wanted. He hadn’t realized just how much he’d missed having that. Daniel wasn’t the only one who’d gone without for a number of years, though Jack was willing to bet he wasn’t as hard up as Daniel. He hadn’t, after all, ascended a couple of times or come back from the dead more than once. Well, aside from Ba’al, but that didn’t count, because no one really knew about the torture and death except for Daniel and Hammond. It hadn’t even gone in the report.
Back at home, Jack said, “Think you can order dinner without burning it?”
“Of course I can, Jack.”
Jack froze, the quiet, easy tone something he hadn’t heard from Daniel since Ba’al had kidnapped him. Looking over, he found an all-too-familiar expression in place; the unreadable one that had been around way too much that long year when he’d been a friggin’ moron and set his attentions on Carter.
“I figured out what was different,” Daniel continued. “I don’t know how, but that Ancient’s device removed whatever programming Ba’al put in my head. I guess you could say that I’m back to normal now.”
Two short, short days of having Daniel as his and it felt like someone was twisting Jack’s guts on a bayonet. Jack nodded shortly. “Looks like. You don’t have to worry, Daniel, I’ll rescind the slave paperwork in the morning when the office opens.”
Daniel closed the distance between them and told him, “I want you to know something, Jack. I want you to really hear my words, okay?”
Jack nodded again, staring into the pale, unreadable eyes. “I’m listening.”
“Good. Listen hard, Jack.”
He waited, but there was nothing more forthcoming. Just when he was about to demand that Daniel get on with it, whatever it was, the other man dropped gracefully to his knees. From there, it was a slow, purposeful bend forward onto his face, arms going over his head to surround Jack’s feet in a deliberate obeisance. Jack’s heart skipped a couple of beats as he stared at Daniel on the floor in a slave’s most traditional pose.
When his voice recovered, Jack snapped, “Get up, damn you! Don’t fucking tease me like this, Daniel!”
Daniel stood, but his eyes were again the warm, open eyes he’d gotten used to over the last couple of months. The eyes of his slave. “I’m not teasing, Master. I told you, in the beginning, that I was built like this, but you didn’t believe me. I want this, more than you can possibly know. Please accept me as your slave, Master. Please don’t cast me out or sell me.”
Completely stunned, Jack just stared at Daniel, who stared back. Finally, he hauled Daniel in for a hard, bruising kiss, devouring the other man with a hunger he’d never given full reign to, except that one night together. When he pulled back, Daniel’s lips were red and swollen, glistening with his spit, and Jack ordered harshly, “On your knees.”
Daniel knelt.
Taking a tight grip of Daniel’s hair, Jack looked down at him and stated, “You’re mine, Daniel. From here on out. I’m never going to give you up now.”
Instead of any kind of fear or hesitancy, there was only acceptance and relief as Daniel smiled. “Yes, Master. How may I serve you?”
Jack licked his lips and pulled Daniel’s face into his crotch as he murmured, “I think you can figure that out. You need the practice.”
Daniel made short work of his pants and took Jack’s erection in his mouth without any further urging. Jack had to lock his knees against the debilitating pleasure as Daniel went down on him. It was better than the last time, but only because now Jack had the knowledge that Daniel wasn’t going to wake up one day from what Ba’al had done to him and want out. It had already happened and Daniel wasn’t going anywhere.
Gripping his slave’s head in both hands, Jack thrust in all the way and came, spilling directly down Daniel’s throat only a few minutes after being sucked. Groaning, Jack pulled free of Daniel’s mouth and tilted the other man’s head up so he could see the dazed, needy expression in place, just as he was hoping. It had been the expression Daniel had worn two nights ago when he’d been Claimed.
Jack grinned and pulled Daniel to his feet, then slapped him sharply on the ass. “Go see about that food, Spacemonkey. I’m starving.”
Daniel grinned back at him and hurried off to the phone, walking stiffly to show he’d also been moved by the encounter.
Whistling cheerfully, Jack headed to the beer to grab a couple of beers.