Work Text:
Trading Off
by ttrummer
"Jack...?" The tone was solemn and almost too soft to hear.
"Yeah, whatcha thinkin'?"
"It's about..." The words were too painful to get around, even with Jack's arms enveloping him in strength and warmth.
"Janet?"
"Er, yeah. I mean..."
"What's running through that oversized noggin of yours?"
"Just that if I were still ascended, maybe..."
"Daniel, my poor misguided soul. Sometimes these terrible, senseless things just happen."
Daniel sighed deeply. "But-"
"Danny - you don't get to be a superhero and save the day. There will be losses. There will be casualties. You don't have to have superpowers, Daniel. We love you just the way you are - fully descended into the muck and the mess, with an actual body we can touch and feel the substance of. You are not the trade off for Dr. Janet Frasier's life. That's not the way it works; it's not the way it's supposed to work, either."
"Jack...?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks."
"Anytime Spacemonkey, anytime."
End