Rating: PG
Genres: Angst, Romance (Daniel/Vala, some Sam/Jack), Hurt/Comfort, Humor, Friendship (SG-1 with each other, Daniel/Jack and Sam/Vala in particular).
Summary: Daniel and Vala finally "complete" their "date" -- at Disney World, and with the rest of SG-1 in tow ...This part takes place in the Magic Kingdom.
Spoilers: up to "Memento Mori", as well as for assorted attractions at the Magic Kingdom ...
Length: 3 chapters, about 13,700 words -- about 30 pages
Notes: Sequel to "Ribs", prequel to "Date with a Martian Stuntwoman", "Date with a World Traveller", "Date with a Wild Child", "Allies", and "Homecomings and Happy Endings". Why Disney World? Because it's a place I know very well, and I thought they all deserved a break. ;)
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DISCLAIMER: Disney World, Magic Kingdom, Cinderella's Royal Table, Cinderella's Castle, The Pirates of the Caribbean, It's a Small World, Peter Pan's Flight, Mickey's PhilharMagic, Splash Mountain, The Enchanted Tiki Room, The Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder Mountain, Monorail, Tom Sawyer Island, Fantasyland, Tomorrowland, Frontierland, The Haunted Mansion, Snow White's Scary Adventure, 2000 Leagues Under the Sea (the ride), Winnie the Pooh (the ride & merchandise), Tomorrowland Transit Authority, Space Mountain, Stitch's Great Escape, Stitch, Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters, Astro Orbiter, Carousel of Progress, Mission to mars (the ride), Alien Encounter, Indy Raceway, Mickey's Toontown, Aladdin's Magic Carpets, Fastpasses, the Liberty Tree Tavern, and anything else Walt Disney World-related ©, R, and TM the Walt Disney Company. This work is not intended as an ad for Disney -- It's just where I chose to set the story. Within, there is a link off-site to an item at a site where it can be purchased -- I do not post it as an advertisement, but rather so that you may simply know what the item in question (which I happen to own) looks like.

"Pack your bags," Sam told Daniel and Vala as she sat down at the table next to the dark-haired woman. She noted the worried look on Vala's face and felt a stab of pity; she forgot sometimes just how unwelcome the woman had been when she'd first arrived. Of course she'd be a bit worried by such a statement! Sam laid a comforting hand on Vala's shoulder and informed her, grinning, "We're goin' to Disney World!"

This time it was Daniel's turn to look alarmed. "C-come again?" he asked, pushing his glasses back up his nose.

"Well, originally it was just supposed to be me going -- to Kennedy Space Center, to give a symposium. But then Cassandra won some sort of contest, and she got to invite a bunch of people to Disney World. She's invited some of her school friends, of course, but she's also invited all of SG-1 -- and Jack. It's this weekend -- I leave Thursday morning to get to the symposium, and you guys will meet me at the hotel that night."

Daniel scowled. "Er, well, that's nice of Cassandra, but I think I really ought to concentrate on--"

"Not an option, Daniel," Sam informed him. "Landry said he thought we all could really use a break, and Dr Lam concurred, so this is actually mandatory leave. In fact ... I wouldn’t be surprised if he'd pulled some strings and rigged the contest, truth be told," she added thoughtfully.

Daniel rolled his eyes and dropped his forehead against his hand, leaning on the table.

"Oh come off it, Daniel, I know you like the place," Sam chastised him. He'd let it slip one, in drunken conversation, that the resort was his secret vice.

"Yeah, I do, which is precisely why I’d rather go when the fate of the world isn’t resting on our shoulders. Kinda sucks all the fun out of it."

Sam regarded him a moment. "You're not going to do anyone any good if you work yourself into a stupor. Besides, if nothing else, you should do it for Cassandra -- and Vala, since she's never been!"

"I can take her anytime!" Daniel replied grumpily, the thought of the raven-haired woman going on without him not even occurring to him.

Vala, who had watched the exchanged quietly, perked up at his remark. "Will you?" she asked hopefully, biting her lip.

Daniel softened. "Sure."

"Promise?"

He nodded with a rueful smile. "Yeah, I promise."

"Well, we could die at any time, you know. Going as soon as possible would lessen the chance of you breaking your promise...."

Sam raised her brows at that, clearly amused by Vala's guile. She glanced at Daniel, and found him scowling and speechless.

"And I do believe you owe me a date this weekend; from what I've seen on the television, this Disney Planet--"

-- "World," he corrected automatically --

"--seems like a fun place. And you wouldn’t even have to pay for it!" she added brightly.

The look on his face told them he'd given up, his feeble protest consisting only of "Vala, money's not the issue; I’d be perfectly happy to take you even if I did have to pay."

She suddenly looked so vulnerable as she said, in a small but hopeful voice, "You would?" Clearly no one had ever been willing to do something nice like that for her before. He suddenly realised how much this might mean to her, to be included in Cassandra's gathering. The last of his objections melted away.

"I just said I'd take you anytime, didn’t I?" he asked with a chuckle. "But ... yeah, I guess there's no reason to wait. All right ... we can go this weekend."

She squealed in delight, leaping to her feet and lunging over the narrow table to give him a thank-you hug and kiss him on the cheek.

Sam thought he looked a little disappointed that it wasn't on his lips.

"I better go pack!" Vala said, running out the door.

"But it's ... only Monday," Daniel sighed, realizing she was already long gone.

"Now remember," Daniel began for the eleventh time that morning, "It's a big place and very crowded, so no wandering off. Keep--"

"--hold of your hand at all times," Vala finished with a roll of her eyes. "Honestly, Daniel, I don’t know what you're so worried about! I mean, it's not like I'd find holding your hand to be a chore," she purred.

The grins they got from Cassandra and her three college companions, Daniel could understand and forgive. The ones from the rest of SG-1, Jack included? Not so much. By that logic, he should have been relieved when the Monorail pulled in at the Magic Kingdom, but in reality, his heart started racing nervously at that point. Despite Vala's reassurances, this was likely the beginning of a long, harrowing day of making sure she kept out of mischief. If he hadn’t known that the gods were all fake, he likely would have found himself praying very hard that Vala wouldn't do anything that could get them thrown out of the park....

"It's about time!" she said, practically dragging Daniel out the door.

He shook his head and sighed; they were staying at the Polynesian Resort, which was only one Monorail stop away. He could only imagine how impatient she would have been if they'd had to drive in, like the bulk of the park's guests, then take the tram from the parking lot to the ticket gates, walk up the hill to the Monorail, and ride significantly longer on the electric vehicles from the Ticket and Transportation Center to get to their destination! In mentally comparing the journey they could have taken with the one they actually had, he was struck by a horrid thought: what were they going to do about the lines? Not every attraction had a Fastpass option -- how was he going to keep Vala occupied in the longer queues?

He caught sight of a newlywed couple (as denoted by their Groom-Mickey and Bride-Minnie hats) whose faces seemed glued together. For a moment -- just a tiny one -- a voice in him said Well, that would be one way to keep her quiet, before he quickly shook the thought away.

As resort guests, they were being allowed in earlier than the regular opening, so the streets weren't quite as crowded. Daniel found it quite pleasant. They rounded the town square, coming to the corner of Main Street, by the Emporium. Vala gasped as the glittering Cinderella's Castle came into unobstructed view, her grip on his hand tightening. Her expression of wonderment brought a grin to his face; it pleased him that, despite the wonders she had seen in her travels, something made by his people, the Tau'ri, could awe her so. He wondered, then, how often in her life she'd had the chance to leave behind worries of survival and lose herself in play. Maybe that was why she seldom took things seriously -- her whole life was seriousness, so maybe being immature was a defense mechanism....

It wasn't long before the shops lining either side of the street caught her attention -- a prospect that admittedly worried him for a moment. Thankfully, though, she didn’t ask to go into any of them; she was only enraptured by the playful and sometimes mechanized displays in the dioramic windows, much as the other female members of the party were. After watching her, though, he got the distinct impression that Vala really would have liked to go into the stores, but was holding back. Maybe she didn’t want to tempt herself, or maybe she simply was afraid of upsetting him by asking; either way, she was making an obvious effort to be on her best behavior. Doubtless they would go into some shop at some point; he decided to keep an eye on her -- not because he was afriad she might steal something, but rather so that he could take note of the things she took particular interst in and surprise her later.

When they got to the Crystal Palace, just past Main Street, they still had a little time to wait for their breakfast reservation. Daniel excused himself, saying he had business to take care of, and warning that he might not be back before they were seated.

Vala was about to protest -- hadn’t he ordered her not to let go of his hand save for when they were getting on or off a ride or eating? -- but thought better of it, wanting to be as pleasant of company for him as possible. Still, even in the company of her friends, out in this crowded, loud, outdoor place made her feel naked, vulnerable, and skittish, like a wild animal.

Sam, noting how Vala clasped her hands in her lap with a white-knuckled grip, patted one of Vala's knees, telling her quietly but reassuringly, "Don’t worry -- if he gets lost, we can always track him!"

Jack raised a curious brow at that. Sam gave him a meaningful look, one that clearly said "talk to her and make her feel welcome" -- if one spoke "female". When he gave her a baffled expression in return, she elbowed him. He understood that a little better.

"You know, uh ... it ... it's been a long time since I've been here," he began conversationally. "I don’t recognise the place," he continued, looking around. The words sank home like a sword through his heart; the last time he'd been to the park was with his son....

Understanding flashed through Sam, then regret for having pushed him into saying anything that would dredge up painful memories.

Noting Jack's sudden somberness herself, Vala sensed that she wasn't the only one feeling uncomfortable, and wisely directed the conversation at Teal'c. "Have you ever been here before?"

"I have not," Teal'c answered in his typically serene fashion.

"Well, is there anything in particular that you want to see?" she asked. She'd spent an hour going over the map at the hotel pool area with Daniel, and frankly had wondered whether they could possibly see even half of everything that interested her. She had no intentions of making any requests, either, since it wasn't really her trip anyway -- she was just along for the ride. She was determined not to give them any reason to see her as problematic or a nuisance, especially after her abduction....

Teal'c considered for a long moment, long enough for Vala's eyes to get a faraway look as she remembered Daniel in his swim trunks, drops of water trailing down his well-formed -- "The Pirates of the Caribbean," Teal'c decided.

Vala pouted a little; she'd seen the DVD of the first one at the base, but hadn’t gotten out to the theatres to see the second. She suspected that Teal'c had, though. "I hope there aren’t any spoilers for the new movie on the ride!"

"Eh, not really," Peri, one of Cassandra's friends, told them. Vala remembered Peri saying she had some sort of pass that allowed her to come to the park whenever she wished; Vala felt a stab of envy at the thought of being able to roam Earth so freely. She felt a faint nostalgia for her prior life, if only for the freedom it offered. She sighed heavily, wondering where Daniel had gone and why she couldn't have gone with him.

"Well, me, I can’t wait to get on Splash Mountain," Cameron said. "In the middle of the day, that's gonna be reeeal refreshin', I'm bettin'."

Peri laughed, shaking her head. "You'll freeze to death in the air-conditioned places afterwards, and be extra humid when you're outside."

Cameron scowled, and Vala smirked. He didn’t seem to like the girl much; truth be told, Vala didn;t either.

Daniel finally returned, a bit breathless, a short while after they were seated. He found the characters hovering about a bit annoying at first, but Vala seemed delighted by them, and he couldn’t help but enjoy watching her interact with them. Plus they'd kept her too distracted to ask Daniel where he'd been.

After breakfast, they tackled the Swiss Family Treehouse, Vala remarking at one point on how the structure reminded her of the homes on PCG-7630. Daniel managed to keep the irritation out of his voice as he whispered in her ear that she couldn’t talk about things like alien worlds when they were out in public -- particularly with Cassandra's friends listening in, since they might start asking questions. Vala apologised and immediately clammed up. Daniel squeezed her hand reassuringly, to show that he understood how hard it was for her, not being able to talk about most of her life -- especially when her Earth-related experience was so limited. Then he realised that she also couldn’t ask any questions, lest she let on just how ignorant she was of her new home. He resolved to try to find moments where he could allow her to quietly ask him whatever she wanted. Ah, to be a telepath....

Cameron went on to Frontierland, to get Splash Mountain Fastpasses for them all. The girls, meanwhile, dragged the rest of the boys into the Enchanted Tiki Room, with its singing birds, flowers, and tiki carvings. Daniel was annoyed by the changes that had been made to the attraction, but again, his annoyance was tempered by Vala's enjoyment -- and by the fact that Jack and Teal'c seemed to find the experience similarly painful, albeit for different reasons than his male friends. Daniel had actually liked the old version of the show. While he also enjoyed the characters of Iago and Zazu, he felt their additions detracted from the show rather than enhancing it -- especially since some of his favorite parts had gotten cut.

Of course he wasn't about to admit a word of that to anyone.

When the show let out, they found Cameron waiting for them. He withered a little under the glares of Jack, Teal'c, and even Daniel. Mitchell wisely opted not to point out that the other guys could have come with him, rather than staying for the show.

Cassandra and her friends wanted to go on Aladdin's Magic Carpets next; to Daniel's relief, Vala decided the carpets didn’t seem particularly interesting -- and neither did the bazaar next to it (or so she claimed, though, again, Daniel suspected that was just a matter of wanting to avoid tempation). She instead spent a part of the wait trying to get hit by the spitting gold camel statues, while Daniel avoided being a target himself. Then Vala noticed the nearby tikis, which spat out even more water, and played with them instead; Daniel was content to observe from outside the tikis' range. Both were completely oblivious to the comments being made about them by the rest of SG-1, as their friends watched them; Daniel chalked his sudden sneezing fit up to allergies.

They all went on the Jungle Cruise next. After about 30 seconds of the Skipper's pun-filled spiel, Vala and Mitchell quickly decided they could do better, and essentially took over. Though he cringed with embarrassment at first, Daniel had to admit they were funny, even as he felt a bit jealous of the easy-going comedy rapport the two had. He felt a little better when Jack and Peri started to chime in, and eventually got a few zingers in himself. Vala beamed at him when he did, and he found himself sitting a bit taller.

He had a little more trouble with her at Pirates; she kept trying to reach out and touch things, or stand in the boat, or shout suggestions to the pirates. Thankfully she didn’t say anything that pointed out she was from another planet, and what she did say seemed to amuse the other guests, rather than annoy anyone. Hell, he had to admit himself that much of what she'd said was pretty funny. He wasn't sure whether to be amused or jealous when she squealed with delight at Jack Sparrow's every appearance, though. At the least, he enjoyed the expressions on Jack and Sam's faces every time Vala shouted, "Jaaaaack, I loooooove yooooooou!"

As they browsed the gift shop after, Daniel scanned the shop's inhabitants while Vala dragged him around. He'd been doing it half-unconsciously all day, urged by the paranoid expectation that The Trust might try to send more operatives after them, even with such crowds. Maybe especially with the crowds. Still, he found himself repeatedly distracted from his self-appointed task as Vala showed him object after object. He did his best to seem attentive, not wanting her to pick up on his worry or think he was getting impatient with her. In fact, quite the opposite was true; he wished he didn't have to take his attention off her at all. He noted with a soft smile that Vala was humming the ride's theme song intermittently between cries of "Oh, look at this!" The seventeenth time she told him to look at something, he couldn’t hold back any longer; he slipped his arms around her from behind and rest his chin on her shoulder as she showed the item to him. She stiffened in surprise for a moment, then relaxed into him.

"Isn’t it cute?" she asked, holding up a sparkling silver and pink cloisonne-and-rhinestone skull-and-crossbones pin, one that, even beyond the pink, had a distinctly-feminine look. There was glitter in the cloisonne, scrollwork behind the skull, and three tiny dangling skull-and-crossbones hanging from it. He noticed that there was a crown on every skull, and with that observation, it struck him that the pin would go perfectly with a "Pirate Princess" shirt he'd spotted, in his crowd-scanning, over in a corner that Vala hadn’t gotten to yet. He had a sudden vision of her wearing the shirt, with the pin on one of the pirate hats she had playfully tried on.

"Not as cute as you," he whispered in her ear, barely resisting the urge to kiss her neck, and wishing fervently that they were back at the hotel at that moment.

She ducked her head shyly, but not before he caught the bright smile she gave him.

They hadn't really done anything together to acknowledge the change in their relationship after dancing that night at the rib joint. He'd told her how he was attracted to her, but that it was difficult for him to move on after the loss of his wife, and that she needed to be patient with him. And she had been patient after that, which somehow was driving him even more mad than when she was throwing herself at him!

Peri broke Daniel out of his reverie with a shout to Vala, telling her they were heading to the ladies' room and asking if she wanted to go. To his annoyance, she did. He also felt a stab of fear, and wondered if he was going to panic every time she used a public restroom for the rest of their lives.

The rest of their lives? He wasn't sure whether he should be terrified or pleased to find himself thinking in those terms. Maybe both; did the emotions really contradict each other?

Then he realised what a perfect opportunity he had at that moment. Gathering the shirt, the hat, and the pin, as well as another pirate hat she had said looked "dashing" on him, he headed for one of the sales counters that wasn't so close to the restrooms. He filled out a form that would have the packages sent to their hotel, but kept the pin with him, pocketing it.

He headed for the mens' room; of course the girls still weren't out of their own restroom yet when he exited. The other guys were lined up against the wall across from the restrooms, looking bored. Daniel paced uneasily before them. Cameron, Jack, and even Teal'c gave him a sly smile; their expressions caught Sam's attention as she exited the ladies' room. The other girls filed out a moment later -- including Vala, Daniel noted. He sighed as inconspicuously as possible in relief. Of course, "as possible" didn't mean much; Sam caught that, too, and raised a brow at the rest of the boys, but thankfully made no mention of it.

"Aren't they adorable?" Jack remarked with an evil grin, putting an arm around Sam's shoulders as they headed towards Splash Mountain.

Emboldened by the sight, Daniel wrapped an arm around Vala's waist, hoping to distract her from the exchange -- and perhaps one-up Jack with a more brazen display of affection. Really, they've had years to build a relationship; can't he be more forthright than that? The days when something like Sha're's kissing Daniel in public had embarrassed him seemed long ago; this Daniel had been through too much to be quite so shy and modest. Vala was teaching him that life was too short to hold back.

Peri had been right about the downsides to getting wet. As they ate lunch after getting out of Splash Mountain, the air conditioning of Pecos Bill's restaurant set their teeth to chattering. Then, as they ran around on Tom Sawyer Island, the humidity seemed to quadruple -- particularly when they all chased each other through the island's secret tunnels.

But there had been an upside to getting soaked, namely how Vala's thin, pink tank top clung to her slender curves when wet. She was similarly appreciative of the way his tight green t-shirt stuck to his pecs -- and the contours of his well-muscled arms....

And they had fun, despite any discomfort. In fact, Daniel couldn’t really remember the last time he'd let loose like that; even Teal'c got to laughing. Well, perhaps Mitchell wasn't quite so amused, having apparently stumbled across Jack and Sam kissing in one of the caves' dead ends. Cam had seemed even more embarrassed than they were -- at least until Peri had asked if they needed a chaperone. Daniel, meanwhile (inspired by the state of Vala's top), toyed with the notion of taking similar advantage of the "secret passage" in the island's Fort Langhorn, but a) remembered his own warning to Vala about not doing something that could get them kicked out of the park, and b) wanted their first official kiss as a couple to be ... well, special, even if it wasn't actually their first kiss ever.

By the time they got to Big Thunder Mountain to use their Fastpasses, their clothes were dry. Daniel had to choose between wearing his glasses so that he could see the things he knew there were to see on the ride, and not wearing them for fear of losing them. He opted for the latter, which somehow made the ride even scarier. He knew it wasn't true at all, but he felt like he would be beheaded if he didn’t keep his head down. He didn’t know how Vala, Teal'c, Mitchell, and Cassandra's trio could keep their arms raised as they did without fear that their limbs would be ripped off!

A little later, he breathed a sigh of relief when they passed the Country Bear Jamboree without going in. They did, however, stop at the turkey leg cart; honestly, he didn’t know where Vala put it all! While she, Teal'c, Mitchell, and Jack sated themselves on the massive drumsticks, Daniel considered herding them into the Hall of Presidents, but then thought better of it. He'd been thinking it might along Vala's education on her new home, but decided that, however much he found it interesting, it was far more likely to make her antsy or put her to sleep than actually teach her anything. So they went straight to the Haunted Mansion.

Vala didn’t just hold his hand throughout the attraction; she held tight to his arm, eyes wide, screaming and laughing and burying her head against his shoulder at all the right moments. Though she was fearless and had, in her wanderings, seen holographic technology that far outstripped the smoke-and-mirrors of the ride, she seemed delighted by it nonetheless. Indeed, knowing that they were not holograms, she was baffled by how they managed many of the effects, and charmed by the simplistic Tau'ri ingenuity and fanciful imagination. He'd been on the ride enough that, despite the updates added, it had been a long time since he could suspend his disbelief enough to truly enjoy it as he once had; being with Vala gave at least some of that pleasure back to him, as he saw it all anew through her eyes.

When the ride was over, they found the crowds lined up in wait for the afternoon parade. The group decided, by way of mutual agreement, to forego said parade and tackle Fantasyland while so many of the children were occupied. They got Fastpasses for Peter Pan's Flight and, to Daniel's horror, decided to see It's a Small World in the interim. He tried to keep from grimacing in pain as they waited in line, not wanting to spoil the enjoyment for Vala. Instead, he found himself overjoyed when, about 20 seconds into the ride, she held tight to his arm again and whispered confidentially in his ear,

"Daniel, these dolls are creepy! They remind me of the ones in that Barberella movie!"

He snorted with mirth; the first time he'd seen Barbarella, he'd thought the dolls in it reminded him somehow of the ride they were now sailing through.

"They do have cute costumes, though," she said a bit later, clearly mesmerized by some of the sparkling headdresses. He wrapped his arm around her, telling himself it was to keep her from trying to stand and get a better look -- or worse, trying to snag some of the gems. Then he remembered he wasn't in denial about his feelings anymore, and allowed himself to enjoy the close proximity without justifying it in his head, pulling her closer still. She didn’t seem to mind at all.

They still had some time to kill before they could use their Fastpasses for Pan, so they head on over to Mickey's PhilharMagic, a 3-D movie with some other, semi-interactive features. Daniel hadn’t been to the park since before that particular attraction had opened, so it was as new and exciting for him as it was for Vala. That pleased him, being able to share the new experience together. Granted, they did that often enough with the Stargate, but at least there wasn't any danger this time! Well, except for the piped-in scent of baked apples for the rendition of "Be Our Guest", which set him to sneezing even if it did smell delicious.

They went to Peter Pan, finally. It was one of Daniel's favourite attractions, in fact, but he found himself paying more attention to Vala than the ride. Sure, part of that was because, in looking over the side of their flying ship, he was half-afraid she would fall out. But mostly it was because there was something about her innocent enthusiasm that lightened his heart in a way he hadn't felt in a long time -- a way he hadn't been sure he'd ever be capable of again.

"Look, Daniel! Mermaids! That one looks like Ariel!" Sam had brought Vala copies of every animated Disney film she could get her hands on, in preparation for the trip.

He peered at the mermaid in question. "Huh! She does!" He noted that the mermaids also now wore seashell bras, where they had once been bare-breasted (sans nipples), and mentally shook his head at whatever had prompted the change after so many years. Next thing you know, they'll start dressing the statues and painting clothes on the nudes in museums, he thought contemptuously.

"Oooh, it's like being in the movie!" she cooed as they passed Wendy walking the plank.

He gently took her hand and entwined his fingers with hers. "I'm glad we came," he told her somewhat bashfully.

Looking into his eyes, feeling his hand against hers, Vala felt a flush of warmth wash over her, something entirely different than the typical primal desires she felt when confronted with a particularly attractive male. This wasn't a new sensation for her, exactly -- she'd felt it time and again since the first day she'd met Daniel -- but she'd never felt it before meeting him, or with anyone else after. She still didn’t quite know what it was, but she thought it might be love. Didn’t all those romance books Sam had lent her say love made your stomach do funny turns, made your heart race, made you feel all tingly and want to cry when you were happy? (Either that or she had some sort of illness....) The look he gave her made her feel like she were floating -- and she didn’t think the fact that they technically were floating through the air (well, hanging from the ceiling, anyway) had anything to do with it.

"Me too," she told him, returning the look. They leaned in closer--

The jerk of the flying boat as it made contact with the boarding track startled them apart, making their hearts race for an entirely different -- and not even remotely as pleasant -- reason: the end of the ride. Sunlight shattered the spell the darkness had woven, the sense of safety and freedom from their worries that Neverland had offered for a few, fleeting moments. The presence of so many others dropped a wall of propriety between them again that simultaneously relieved and frustrated them both. But Daniel knew that the wall wasn't as strong as before, and was crumbling. He hoped he'd be ready when it finally fell for good, even as he regretted having to wait.

They got another Fastpass, this time for Winnie the Pooh, and backtracked to Snow White's Scary Adventure. Frankly, Daniel thought this one really lived up to its name: it was surprisingly scary for a kid's ride. As if to prove his point, Mitchell, of all people, yelped when the Witch popped out at them the first time. (He later claimed that she reminded him of his grandmother when she was ticked.) Vala, on the other hand, told the Witch off at every encounter, prompting Daniel to reminded her the first time to watch her language -- so she swore in a few other, non-Tau'ri languages each time after.

They went into Cinderella's Castle after that. Vala spent a goodly while studying the Cinderella mural on one wall of the tunnel that led through the Castle, while Cassandra's party had fun with the costumed characters just outside it, on the Fantasyland side. At the wistful look she bore, Daniel wondered, not for the first time, about her personal history.

"Did she remember herself?" she asked him softly, tracing a hand over Cinderella's sparkling dress. This wasn't one of the films Sam had lent her, it seemed.

"What do you mean?"

"When she was taken from poverty and made a princess -- did she still remember who she was after she'd been transformed? Or did she stop being herself?" Her voice was unsteady now. "What was the price she paid? Did she even pay one at all?" Her eyes began to shine, and her hand trembled.

With horror, Daniel realised she was remembering the very past he'd wondered about. She was asking if, in Tau'ri legend, this maiden had, when promised wealth and power, been made into a Goa'uld host. Did Vala think that having her life stolen by Qetesh was some sort of karmic punishment for daring to want a better life for herself? Taking her hand, he drew her across to the other side of the hall, out of the way of the other tourists, and drew her close, cupping the back of her head tenderly as he held her against him.

"She did remember," he told her, whispering into her hair as he gently rocked her. "She was made a princess for one night, in reward for her good heart, and in recompense for all she had suffered at the hands of her stepfamily. And even when the dress and coach her Fairy Godmother had given her had faded, the prince didn’t care where she'd come from or how she'd lived her life, because he'd fallen in love with her, not her status. He married her and she became a queen -- but she always stayed who she was."

"I was never that good," Vala said into his shirt.

"Hey!" He pulled back a little, forcing her gently to look at him. He could read the misery there as easily as Ancient text, and it broke his heart. "Nobody's that perfect. It's just a fairytale, Vala -- a greatly exaggerated morality fable. Nobody could be that pious and still be human! Hell, I've been Ascended, but I'm no prince myself," he added with a small laugh.

"You are to me," she told him quietly as she looked up at him, her eyes disquietingly serious. "Aren’t princes men who save damsels in distress? How many times have you saved me, Daniel?"

"Well, it's not like you haven’t done the same--"

"I don’t just mean from the dragons of the universe, Daniel," she said cryptically, with a bitter smile. "I've never saved you the way you've saved me -- you've never needed it."

He wished again that they could have some privacy, albeit for a much different reason this time. All hope of a moment's solitude were dashed when Teal'c and Mitchell exited the Castle's gift shop, Cameron calling out to them. Vala pulled away, and a cheerful mask slid into place so quickly it chilled him. How often that day had her smile been only a very good mask? She was changed by her abduction, but he hadn’t realised just how much until now. She was on her best behavior, as if afraid of losing everything at any moment through one false move. He almost wished she would do something bad.

Teal'c caught Daniel's worried expression and offered one of his own back, while Mitchell showed Vala some of the weaponry within the shop.

"Has she done something to upset you?" Teal'c asked, hoping that was the cause of Daniel's frown, as it so often was, but knowing in his heart that it wasn't.

Daniel shook his head, tightlipped. "Later," he said under his breath, and Teal'c knew the monosyllabic response wasn't a brush-off at all, but a promise for an explanation when certain ears weren't present. Daniel needed to talk.

When Vala was done oooing and ahhing over the swords, she moved on to the various artworks and statues to be found. Daniel got nervous; much of the shop's contents were both expensive and very fragile, but Vala once again exhibited uncharacteristic restraint, occasionally raising her hand to touch things, but always catching herself and pulling away at the last moment. She did, however, allow herself to run the ribbons of a headwreath through her fingers with something akin to longing, before turning away.

"Why don’t you try it on?" he asked after her.

She turned around, looking hopeful with a faint smile tugging at her lips. But only a small moment later, dark, impenetrable clouds filled her eyes and the smile faltered. "It doesn't really suit me," she said, seeming embarrassed. "I-I'm a pirate -- not a princess," she added loftily, tossing her twin ponytails and holding her head high as she left the shop.

He fingered the pin in his pocket thoughtfully as he followed, but she was already chatting with Jack and the girls by the time he caught up with her.

They rode the carousel next. Vala was a bit skeptical of the ride at first. "It's very pretty ... but it doesn't look very fast and it doesn’t seem to do much," she'd pointed out while they'd waited in line. When he explained that old-time carousels used to be a game, where the intent was for riders to catch a brass ring, she found it more interesting -- until he pointed out that there wasn't any brass ring on this one. Still, when they were actually on it, she seemed to enjoy herself, particularly when Cam, who was on her opposite side, pretended they were racing neck and neck.

As they passed a Winnie the Pooh-themed playpark for children, across from the ride, Daniel remarked to his companions, "It's such a shame that they got rid of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea...."

"Yeah," Peri concurred. "Although truth be told, that ride always freaked me out a little, even if the submarines never submerged all the way."

"Heh, yeah, I guess it was a bit scary."

"Scary? Wasn't it about The Little Mermaid?" Vala asked, thinking of the song the little crab had sung.

Peri eyed her askance. "Noooo, it was about 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea! You know! Jules Verne? Captain Nemo? The search for Atlantis?..."

Vala's eyes lit up at the mention of Atlantis, and Daniel broke in with "Not everyone's seen that movie, it's got to be something like 40 years old!"

Vala took the hint, and just nodded. Peri rolled her eyes, muttering "It's on DVD, for Pete's sake..." as she strode off to the Teacups.

Vala almost asked who Pete was, but thought better of it.

Tea'lc got roped into being the "spinner" for two of Cassandra's friends on the Teacups. The girls had figured, with his big muscles, he would be strong enough to make their cup spin phenomenally fast. They were right -- and the girls looked more than little green by the time the ride came to a stop. Teal'c, on the other hand, was his usual stoic self, even if one corner of his mouth couldn’t hide his amusement. Mitchell and Daniel had proven pretty adept at spinning a cup themselves, to Vala's shrieking delight. They were so dizzy after, the threesome leaned on each other, laughing hard and stumbling slightly as they exited. Sam and Jack had opted to wait on the sidelines, not because they didn’t want to get sick -- they'd been through aeronautical training, after all, so to their mind, the ride was actually a bit tame -- but because they wanted to enjoy some time alone together. Not that they actually said as much, but it didn’t exactly take Daniel or Sam's IQ to figure it out. It was their friends' turn to swap knowing glances at their expense.

They went back to Winnie The Pooh ride, and Vala spent the short time in line reading the walls, which were made out of "pages" from Milne's book, and trying to get a bearing (he groaned inwardly at his own pun) on what the story was. Daniel marveled at how much in life he'd taken for granted; he couldn't imagine not knowing who Pooh, Piglet, Rabbit, Eeyore, and Tigger were!

He also couldn’t believe Vala was voluntarily reading something.

He missed Mr Toad's Wild Ride, the attraction that had once occupied the building, but had to admit the ride that had replaced it was a lot of fun. Vala lit up when their honeypot-car started bouncing with Tigger. Daniel was smiling from ear to ear when she tried to catch a smoke-ring blown from a Heffalump's trunk. And for no reason he could name, he had a soft spot for the part of the ride where it seemed like they were bobbing in the floodwaters of the Blustery Day. Throughout the attraction, he was haunted by the notion of a little girl in glasses, with dark hair in ponytails, riding with them. Once again, the end of the ride ended the spell it had cast, and he had to fight off tears. It hurt too much to conjecture about a future they might never have -- or to think of the times Vala had been cheated of already with Adria. Normally being in the Magic Kingdom could make him forget about the outside world. Well, for much of the day it had, he supposed. What was he doing fantasising about having a child with her for, anyway? They'd hardly started dating!

He watched, thoughtful, while Vala and Sam played with the plushies in the ride's gift shop. He jumped when something landed on his head.

"Relax, Jackson," Mitchell told him. "Just thought I'd point out you were doing an awfully good impression of Eeyore for a minute there," he added under his breath, patting Daniel on the shoulder and walking away. Daniel took the object off his head and discovered a soft, green top hat with Tigger's ears and tail. Shaking his head, he was about to look for where Cam had gotten it, but instead found himself walking over to the counter and paying for it, putting it back on his head, and walking over to Vala and Sam as if nothing were out of the ordinary. They grinned.

"Oh look! Daniel bought a sense of humor!" Jack quipped as he came upon them.

Daniel stuck his tongue out, then grinned. Jack was struck by how much younger Daniel suddenly seemed, and wondered if a hat could do the same for himself. He turned to Sam, and found her beaming at him. He smiled warmly back at her and put his arm around her waist. As they left the shop, he noticed his own step seemed, in fact, a bit jauntier than it had been when the day had started, despite all the walking. He realised then that it wasn't the hat that had worked such wonders for Daniel....

Nobody in the group voiced the slightest interest in Mickey's Toontown, so they skipped it. Daniel noticed Vala looking wistfully in it's direction over her shoulder, though, and felt a stab of guilt. He considered asking the group to backtrack, or taking her there alone, but he wasn't sure there was enough time to see everything, and figured she would like the next territory more anyway.

They got another set of Fastpasses, this time for Space Mountain, then set off exploring the rest of Tomorrowland. Daniel groaned when they backtracked a bit, to the Indy Raceway. He really, really hated that attraction -- the smell, the noise, the whiplash -- but of course Vala wanted to ride, and he wasn't about to leave her side if he could help it. He felt sorry for Mitchell, who had to bear the brunt of her crashing into his bumper more than a few times. Cam just as gleefully rammed Teal'c, though, so it was only fair. Thankfully, Carter was behind Daniel; she was a most conscientious driver. Unfortunately, Jack, who was behind her, wasn't, so Daniel still got banged up a bit. When it was over, he convinced them to see the far more relaxing Carousel of Progress next; surprisingly, no one argued against it.

He guided Vala into the back row of the moving theatre, into the far corner, so that she could ask him questions as needed without disturbing anyone. Truthfully, he expected the show, which moved in a circular track around several stages dressed in period pieces set at approximately 20-year intervals, to bore her silly, much as he imagined the Hall of Presidents would have. But she was enraptured by the whole thing, not even asking many questions because she didn’t seem to want to miss anything. It was Cameron and Jack who were lightly snoring by five minutes in. Daniel felt a little sorry for Jack; Sam was snuggled up against his arm, and the man was missing it! Daniel, however, was enjoying every minute of identical behavior from Vala, even going so far as to lay his cheek atop her head.

Daniel had always felt Space Mountain (their next stop) was scarier than Big Thunder, but Vala was skeptical. They had traveled in actual spaceships, after all, she'd pointed out in a whisper at one point during the wait in line; he only smiled in response. The rocket-cars sat three, single-file, and there were two rocket-cars per train. They let Cassandra, her friends, Sam, and Jack take the first train. Vala got the very first seat in the next train, and Daniel sat right behind her (after tying the Tigger-tail from his hat through one of his belt-loops, so he wouldn’t lose it), with Mitchell next, then Teal'c. Like on Big Thunder, he experienced that bizarre fear of beheading, and this time, judging by how she hunched over, it was apparent that Vala felt it as well. There was also a section of the ride where it seemed as though the train were heading straight into the Andromeda Galaxy -- and the fact that he wasn't wearing his glasses served to heighten the effect. Despite knowing very well that it was just lights on the wall, and that they would turn off at the last second, for some reason that part always filled him with an odd mix of awe, terror, and exhilaration. Judging by Vala's scream, she again was having a similar reaction; he wished he could see her face. They were laughing when it was all over, which was actually a rather difficult feat, considering how breathless they were.

They played in the arcade adjacent to the ride for a little while. Vala and Teal'c played Capcom VS X-Men, while Daniel, Jack, Sam, and Mitchell played four-player air-hockey. Daniel was relieved Vala didn’t ask to play any of the grab-a-toy games; the Ancients only knew how much money she would waste only to not win a thing when she was done. Not that spending the money really bothered him, but he wanted her to have fun, not get disappointed. When the air-hockey was over (including the rematch), they found Vala and Teal'c playing the Mickey Mouse version of Dance Dance Revolution. Daniel couldn’t remember the last time he'd seen something so strange as the Jaffa dancing to techno music. Mitchell had to lean on Jack, he was laughing so hard; Daniel was sure he was going to crack himself soon. He focused on Vala, her ponytails swinging about as she scowled in determination. She let out a few choice expletives -- thankfully not in English -- when Teal'c won. She brightened significantly, though, when Daniel put an arm around her shoulders in commiseration.

On their way out, Cassandra and her friends noticed the photo-sticker booths. When Vala saw what the booths did, of course she wanted to try it too. Daniel groaned a little, but more out of habit than actual dismay. When the sticker sheet printed out, he even made a show of taking one of the stickers and putting it in his wallet. Vala beamed, tucking the rest away in her purse.

Next up was Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters, in which they sat two per car (save for Teal'c and Mitchell, who each took a car to themselves) and used lasers to shoot targets as they moved. Besides the lasers, there was also a joystick to swivel the car; Daniel and Cameron blamed their lower scores on the need to operate the joystick, despite the fact that Sam and Teal'c, who also had been in control of joysticks, had the highest scores. Jack blamed his own loss on being out of practice.

To catch their breath, they rode the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, which just took them in a lazy overhead circuit of Tomorrowland. With Mitchell and Teal'c in their car, they made up stories about the people they saw below, a game that proved right up Vala's alley.

Jack suggested they ride the Astro Orbiter rockets next. Again, Vala was skeptical, but she quickly changed her mind once they were actually on the ride. Between the lovely kinetic sculpture of the planets and the height the rockets could reach, the view was spectacular. Daniel really wished he had a camera, having to settle for capturing the sight of Vala in the fading light, her long raven locks, now sans ponytail-holders, streaming behind her, with memory alone. Fortunately for him, he had a photographic memory.

The last attraction was Stitch's Great Escape. Daniel remembered when it was Alien Encounter, and, before that, Mission to Mars, one of the most boring attractions the Magic Kingdom had ever beheld (and only made more so, in his eyes, by his own adventures through the Stargate). He kind of missed Alien Encounter, which had been both horrific and hysterical, but the new attraction was cute. Vala especially seemed to enjoy it, having taken a special interest in Stitch when he'd introduced her to the character -- an alien who had started out evil and changed his ways -- a few months back.

In the gift shop, after letting her browse a bit, he grabbed the "life-size" stuffed Stitch, shoved it into her arms, and steered her over to the sales counter, where he paid for it. The smile on her face as she hugged it tight was worth the price of a million dolls of the fuzzy blue alien, in his book. The notion that this was just the start of what would someday be a sizable collection flitted through his thoughts. It would have made him smile -- if he hadn’t been smiling already.

After Daniel filled out another from to have the Stitch sent to the hotel, they left Tomorrowland, taking a route that brought them before Cinderella's Castle. Daniel steered Vala up the ramp that led to the Castle itself; she didn’t notice that the others weren't following until she heard Jack call out,

"8:30, right there?"

She saw Jack -- and everyone else -- walking down a different path, towards Liberty Square. Jack was pointing back the way they came, to a stretch of sidewalk a little ways down the curve of the looping street.

She turned to Daniel in confusion, and saw him flash a "thumbs-up" back at Jack.

"What's going on?" she asked as he pulled her by the hand towards the Castle's portcullis.

"You'll see soon enough," he said over his shoulder.

A minute later, they were standing at a podium outside a doorway, across from the gift shop they'd visited that afternoon. The woman behind the podium was dressed in a period costume that reminded Vala a little of the sort of thing one saw in a medieval village. Daniel handed the woman a pretty card with a princess on it. She wrote something down and handed the card back, telling him it would be just a few minutes and waving them inside. The room they were ushered into was large, with a high ceiling and a throne on one wall. There were weapons, shields, and banners on three walls, and long, high-backed benches along two of them, half-full of families. On the fourth wall was a doorless entry, and a balcony above it. It was chilly in the room; as they sat at one of the long benches, Vala rubbed her arms in an effort to warm up.

"Are you cold?" Daniel asked her, brow furrowed in concern.

"A bit," she confessed.

He sat sideways on the wide bench, and spread his arms wide, beckoning. "Come on, lean into me."

She did as she was told, and snuggled against him as he wrapped his arms around her. He lay his chin on her shoulder. "Better?"

She nodded, smiling.

"Now seating the party Jackson!" called a young woman in medieval livery. She was accompanied by a man in a tunic who was, rather incongruously, holding a camera.

"That's us," Daniel said, waving a hand, a bit reluctant to move.

"Ooooh, that's too perfect!" cooed the man with the camera. "Could you repeat that pose for me over there for me, m'lord and lady?" he asked, directing them to the throne.

Vala turned to Daniel, questioning. "It's okay," he whispered, getting to his feet and leading her over.

They did as they'd been bade, repeating the pose and saying "Mickey Mouse!" through their smiles. The photographer bowed and left, and the handmaiden beckoned them to follow. Reluctant to leave her very comfortable position again, especially to trail a stranger, Vala again turned to Daniel, who nodded encouragingly, and got to her feet.

The woman led them up an enclosed spiral stairway, to the dining area. The ceiling was vaulted, with stained glass windows, and banners and lovely chandeliers hanging down. There were stone arches all around, and leaded-windows with stained-glass crests aligning one wall. The other walls were stone, wood paneling, and royal wall-paper, with crests adorning the higher areas.

Vala felt very self-conscious at first -- this was even fancier than the first restaurant he'd taken her to! And yet the people seated at the tables were mostly dressed like them, in t-shirts and jeans, or shorts and tank-tops, and being waited on by more of the medieval-looking servers. It was also quite warm in the room; she felt sorry for the waitstaff, having to wear such heavy garments.

They were seated at a small table by the windows. Like at the first restaurant he'd taken her too, back in Colorado, Daniel placed the napkin in his lap, and Vala mimicked him. He noticed, and smiled behind his menu.

"Hmm. I know what I want for the appetizer and dinner, but dessert is going to be tough," she said with a bit of dismay.

"Well, tell you what -- if you can narrow them down to two, we'll each order one of them and share it," he suggested. "And it's not like you have to decide dessert just yet...."

She grinned. When their waitress returned, Vala ordered the BLT salad to start, Daniel the spring roll, and they both ordered the prime rib (Daniel, having eaten there before, loved the prime rib, but agreed that the rest of the dinner menu was wholly unappetizing, with perfectly good foods ruined by weird additions). The waitress brought their drinks -- two cokes and two waters -- and a basket of bread.

When she was almost done with her second piece of bread, Vala noticed that Daniel had hardly touched his first. "Aren’t you starving?" she asked incredulously. "I am!"

He laughed. "Yeah, I definitely am, but I also don’t want to spoil my appetite. Sorry about how late it is," he added, looking at his watch, which read 7:05. "This was the earliest I could swing a reservation. I even ran over here this morning to confirm it in person, just to be safe." Making reservations had gotten a lot harder in recent years, it seemed -- if it weren't for a cancellation, they likely would have been eating with the others at the Liberty Tree Tavern.

"So this was where you ran off to!"

He nodded. "I ... I just wanted our first date -- our first real, non-Trust-interrupting date -- to be special, and I can’t think of many places more special than here."

She blushed and smiled shyly, overjoyed to hear him use the word "date" in regards to their evening. Her expression reminded him of when he'd explained why he'd taken her to dinner the first time. Like the first time, it took his breath away, but it was spoiled by the memory of what had happened to her soon after.

Especially when the next thing out of her mouth was, "Where's the bathroom?"

After nearly having a heart attack, he said, "I’ll show you," rising to his feet and holding out his hand.

She gladly took it. He lead her down a landing of the spiral stairs, and planted himself outside the door. She didn’t take very long at all, but it was long enough that he seriously considered coming in after her. In fact, he was about to do that very thing when she exited. She smiled weakly, embarrassed as she realised why he'd waited. She moved to pass him, and he thrust his arm out, blocking her.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" she asked, pretending she wasn't bothered at all.

He sighed. "Listen, I know you can take care of yourself. I just ..." he rubbed his neck with his hand. "I don’t want anything to happen to you, okay? And I guess everything that's been happening lately has me a bit ... paranoid."

She smiled, touched. "Awww! It's like you're like Mulder, and I'm Scully!"

He blinked. "What?"

"On The X-Files! Mulder is always paranoid, and even though Scully is a strong woman that can take care of herself for the most part, sometimes she still needs his help. Like me. Damsel in distress and all that." She smirked.

He grinned. "So you're a princess after all?"

Her smile fell. "Well, maybe not, I guess," she said, trying to sound nonchalant about it. "We know I'm a pirate, and one can't be both," she added, laughing nervously. She moved to go back up the stairs, and he stopped her again, taking her hand. She wouldn’t meet his eyes.

"You're wrong, Vala," he told her, his voice husky. He reached into his pocket with his free hand, turned her palm upright with the other, and laid a small item wrapped in tissue in her hand, his hand lingering on hers a moment, his fingers caressing her skin as his hand slid away.

She turned fully towards him, staring at the package a moment, then finally meeting his eyes, confused, shy, and hopeful all at once. She opened the wrapping carefully, and let out a small gasp when she saw the pin she'd admired earlier that day. She smiled, biting her lower lip, her eyes full of thanks.

"See. It is possible to be both," he told her quietly, stepping close and pointing to the crown on the skull.

She peered at it; she'd been so attracted to the gems that she hadn’t noticed that the fancy pink bit was a crown! She gave him a bright smile and, upon raising her head, found him gazing at her with a soft look that threatened to melt her legs into SGC-issue gelatin.

"Would you--" her voice broke. She swallowed hard and tried again. "Would you pin it on me?"

He nodded slightly. He took the backing off and asked where she wanted it. She swallowed again, not daring to even try speak as her mind come up with a wicked connotation to the question, with an myriad of wicked replies. Instead, she touched the right strap of her tank top and licked her lips nervously. His hand slightly trembling, he carefully pinned the cloisonne art where she'd directed. His left hand trailed to her shoulder, stroking it lightly. Her skin was so soft... It took him a moment to both meet her eyes and find his voice to ask if it was okay. She nodded. He leaned in closer still--

The shriek of a child was the only warning that company was coming down the stairs. Flustered, they moved, by unspoken agreement, back up the stairs themselves, avoiding eye contact with the descending party.

"Thank-you, Daniel," Vala told him when they got back to the table. "Not just for this," she added, holding up the pin, "but for ... this." She waved a hand at the room.

He nodded, smiling softly. "You're very welcome," he told her warmly, wishing, for all his linguistic skills, that he was better with words.

There was, for a moment, a bubble of awkward tension between them that was happily popped by the arrival of their appetizers. They moved the conversation into more comfortable small talk, Vala sharing gossip she'd heard around the base. Daniel wondered just how good a living she must have made selling intel to the highest bidder; she was exceptionally knowledgeable about the personal goings-on at SGC! Then he realised she probably knew so much because people didn’t take her seriously; she was able to observe and eavesdrop easily on others because they dismissed her presence as inconsequential. Like he once had: she'd almost lost her life in destroying the Ori Supergate, then was transported to enemy territory and impregnated, all because he'd refused to listen to her suggestions.

He pushed the spring roll away, only half-eaten.

She cocked her head at him. "Saving your appetite still?"

"Yeah," he lied, then chuckled as she immediately pounced on the remnants of his roll. He tried not to think of why she had such an endless appetite, a potential sign of a life of starvation, maybe even abuse. It wasn't like he could change her past anyway. All he could do was help her forget -- and make sure she never suffered like that again.

Cinderella's Fairy Godmother came onto the scene then, occupying their attention for a while as she flitted from table to table. She led the room in a chorus of "Happy Birthday" for one little girl.

"What was that?" Vala asked curiously when it was over.

"When people have a birthday, we sing that song to them, and then they make a wish as they blow out candles in a cake. It's funny, the song is actually a fairly new addition to the ritual, but the candles are a remnant of old pagan candle-magic." He thought at first, by the look on her face, that Vala was getting bored by the Tau'ri history lesson.

"Birthday ..." she drew the word out, as if tasting it. "This is something you celebrate every year, marking the anniversary of one's birth?"

He nodded. "Your people didn’t celebrate them?"

She shook her head. She glanced out the window, which overlooked Fantasyland, her eyes holding a faraway look that said she wasn't even seeing the view, much less enjoying it. "I don’t even know how old I am anymore," she confided into her palm.

He slid his hand across the table, taking hold of her free hand. "Sometimes Tau'ri people don’t know their birthdays either," he told her, stroking her fingers unconsciously with his thumb. "When that happens, they pick a day that has special significance to them, and use that. As for age, Dr Lam might be able to determine that, if you want to know."

She bit her lip, eyes downcast, and was silent for a long moment. She almost made him jump when she suddenly said, "Last Friday!"

"Huh?"

"That's when I want my birthday to be," she told him with a wide smile. Her eyes grew soft as she explained, "That was the day you brought me home, the day I became an official member of SG-1 ..."

... The day I admitted I had feelings for you, he finished mentally, deeply moved by her choice. "I think that's a perfect day for a birthday," he told her, squeezing her hand. He made a mental note to write it on his calendar at the first opportunity.

Spurred by a desire to know more of her history, he began to share with her some of his own, starting with his memories of coming to the Magic Kingdom with his foster parents. By the time the main course was over, he'd told her more than he'd ever told anyone of his life -- even Sha're, since there were few similarities between Earth and Abydos that would enable her to understand very many Tau'ri concepts. When the waitress arrived, asking them what they wanted for dessert, he realised ruefully that Vala had masterfully coaxed him into spilling quite a bit, but had remained tight-lipped herself.

"We'll have the Chocolate Mousse Cake and the Blueberry Buckle," Vala told the waitress, reminding Daniel of how he'd ordered drinks for them that first night. He smiled. How had she turned the tables so thoroughly on him?

He tried to turn them back, but Vala was equally masterful at avoiding his questions. When the waitress returned with the desserts a moment later, he gave up. They needed something to talk about on the second date anyway, right?

Daniel moved to divide the contents of his plate when Vala held out a forkful of her cake to him. "It's delicious!" she told him around her own mouthful.

He almost refused to take it; he most certainly would have, if she had tried such a move at their aborted dinner. But just as the post-abduction Vala had changed, so had Daniel. Hesitant at first, he closed his lips around the offering. His brows went up in surprise: he didn't normally like so much chocolate, preferring it as an accent to food rather than the majority, but this was good! Perhaps it was the raspberry drizzle that made it more palatable; perhaps it was the presentation, on Vala's utensil. He found her staring at him expectantly, and realised it was his turn. He held a spoonful of the buckle, topped by a bit of melting lemon sorbet, out to her. The way she took it, so sensuously, left him feeling a little like the sorbet, melting under the heat. He felt a little envious of their desserts.

When they were nearly done, the waitress arrived with the check and two items that were apart of the meal's package: a lithograph, and an envelope filled with copies of varying size of the photo of them sitting in the throne. Vala was delighted by the photos, and Daniel had to admit they looked good. He mentally earmarked one to go in his office.

He had the lithograph and photos sent on to the hotel. As they got up to leave, he handed Vala the reservation card he'd shown the hostess when they'd first arrived.

"What's this?" she asked.

"I have a-a box at home of ... mementos of past trips -- tickets, napkins, brochures, that sort of thing. I have a few of those, too," he added, pointing to the card. "I ... thought you might like to start a box of your own."

She grinned, then threw her arms around him, kissing his cheek. "Thank-you," she whispered.

He put his arms around her. "You're welcome," he whispered back, wishing they could stay like that a while.

"Okay, you sit right here," Daniel told Vala, pointing at a spot on the curb.

She did as she was told, and watched in confusion as he sat down about 12 feet from her, stretching his long legs out between them and leaning back on his hands.

"D-Daniel?" she asked, hurt that he would sit so far from her. What had she done that he suddenly didn’t want to be anywhere near her?

"Stretch out like this!" he said, tapping one heel against the ground for emphasis. "We need to reserve the space for everybody!"

"Reserve ... like dinner? Are we going to eat again, out here?" she asked as she did as he bade.

He laughed, waving a hand. "No, no, there's a parade at nine, but we have to get seats early!" He glanced around; they were lucky to have found so much space at approximately the spot they were supposed to meat the others at. People were already lining up....

"But ... it's only a little after 8, right?" she asked, looking at her watch in confusion.

"Trust me, this is both necessary and worth it," he promised her. He hoped the rest of their party got there soon, though; he really needed a trip to the washroom! And he didn’t like having to sit so far from his girl.

His girl. He wondered if he looked like a total grinning idiot to the people passing by.

About twenty minutes later, someone tried to sit on the sidewalk between them.

Vala coughed; the man ignored her. "Excuse me, but that space is reserved," she informed him.

"I don’t see anyone's names engraved in the cement here, sweetheart," the man told her, lighting up a cigar.

"This also isn’t a designated smoking area," she told him, getting to her feet.

Daniel got to his as well, but he was too late. Vala had kicked the cigar out of the man's hand, causing it to land, burning end down, on top of his sandaled foot. Just as quickly, she was on her knees beside him, and had him in a headlock that looked very much like a companionable hug to the not-so-close observer, but really was cutting off his cry of pain.

"My friend and I are Special Ops, here on a mission," she informed the man. "Now unless you want to potentially risk the lives of everyone here, I suggest very strongly that you allow us to maintain our cover and save this space for our fellow operatives, who will be arriving shortly. Just run along, and get that foot tended to, before I make it look like you've fainted and get you taken out of here by ambulance," she finished.

The man nodded vigorously. She let him go, and he hurried away as fast as his sore foot would allow.

When she turned, she found someone was sitting in the spot she'd vacated.

"I'm sorry," she said sweetly, "but that spot is reserved."

The guest was about to argue when, looking her in the eye, they thought better of it, vacating quickly. She went back to her original pose; Daniel sank wearily back into his. He was about to lecture her, when he heard Jack ask,

"Everything all right, kiddies?"

Daniel shook it all off. Truth be told, he couldn’t honestly fault Vala's aggressive behavior. Right or wrong, he'd wanted to do the same thing -- and she'd pulled it off without causing a scene. So why get angry, or risk ruining the rest of the evening arguing with her over something he technically agreed with?

"Naaaw, we're all peachy," Daniel said as he stood up, giving Vala a warning glance that said to keep quiet. "I do have to run to the restroom, though."

Vala moved to follow him. Sam must have seen the alarm on his face -- he couldn’t very well keep an eye on Vala from inside the mens' room! -- and chimed in that she could use a trip there as well. She tapped Jack lightly, giving him a significant look, which, thankfully, he picked up on with the first try.

"Er, yeah, I think I'll go too. You kids watch our space," he told Cassandra's crew, Mitchell, and Teal'c.

"But I ha--" Cameron started, then shut his mouth at Jack's glare. He could wait, he decided.

"Where are you going, Vala?" Sam asked as her friend headed towards the men's room.

"Oh, I don’t have to go, I just thought I'd wait for Daniel outside the door the way he did for me, back at the Castle." She claimed a bit of wall space, leaning against it.

Sam raised a brow. "Oh, he did, eh? Listen, Vala, about the restroom thing--"

"Oh, I know why he did it. I think it's sweet, really, if a bit embarrassing. I just thought ... well, if I did the same for him, it might ..."

"Even the playing field a bit?"

Vala looked at Sam blankly.

"So how did dinner go?" Jack asked as he and Daniel washed their hands.

Daniel smiled with a faraway look in his eye. "It was good," he confided. "Really good."

"You're not just talkin' the food, I hope?"

Daniel chuckled and leaned against the sinks. "No. Things are still a little awkward ... I mean, there's so much we still don't know about one another, but ... we'll get there," he said with quiet confidence. "I want to get there. It's funny ... I haven't felt this way in so long...."

"And didn’t think you'd feel that way again?" Jack supplied. "I know." And Daniel realised then that Jack did know -- he'd been married once, and now loved someone new.... "Oh, and tomorrow? It's you and Vala's turn to babysit the kids," Jack added.

Daniel grinned. "Deal. Soooo, where are you taking her?"

"What playing field?" Vala asked.

"Er, I mean that you want to make things more equal between you," Sam explained.

"Oh! Yeah, I suppose a little, but ... not entirely in the way you think. I just ... I know he knows that I can take care of myself. I just want to show him that it's okay to worry about me and feel -- or act -- protectively towards me, because I feel the same way towards him. And I don’t want him to think I'm questioning his masculinity or something if I watch his back."

"Good to know," Daniel said in her ear, making her jump.

"How ... long have you been standing there?" she asked through her teeth.

"Long enough," he replied, kissing her brow and then taking her hand.

Daniel hadn't been kidding about the parade, Vala decided. The mix of shimmering and softly glowing lights put to synthesised music sent shivers of delight across her skin -- or maybe that was just the presence of Daniel's arm around her. Either way, she felt happier than she could remember in a long time, being held by a man she loved, surrounded by friends and such great beauty. Daniel quietly explained the theme of each float and who the characters were. She let herself be thoroughly immersed; for about half an hour, she well and truly forgot all her woes, not a single thought of the Ori or Adria plaguing her. When it was over, it was like waking from a dream; she felt renewed, even a bit light-headed.

Next, they head down the walkway by the Castle that led to the border of Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. They didn’t go far, though; the front of the castle was still partially in view.

"What are we stopping for?" Vala asked.

"Yeah, what are we stopping for?" Mitchell echoed, looking around. Other than some pretty landscaping, there wasn’t anything to see in the immediate vicinity.

"You'll see soon enough," Daniel promised. He looked at his watch. "In about twenty minutes, in fact." Something towards Main Street caught his eye. "Ooh, be right back!" he told Vala, kissing her brow again, then disappearing into the crowd.

She stood on her tiptoes, trying to spot him. Losing sight of him like that made her extremely nervous -- not because she was afraid for herself, but because she feared for him!

"Hey Vala, when did you get that?" Cassandra asked, pointing to her pin.

"I didn’t steal it! Daniel gave it to me at dinner!" Vala insisted.

Cassandra blinked in confusion. "I ... didn’t say you did steal it; I just hadn't noticed it before. It's very pretty; that was sweet of him!" she added with a smile.

Vala nodded, biting her lip, eyes turned away in embarrassment. Talk about a guilty conscience.

"You know, I haven’t seen Uncle Daniel this happy in like, forever," Cassandra confided. "I'm really glad he met you," she added before turning back to her companions.

"She's right, you know," Sam said from the other side of her. "You've been really good for him."

"Well, I'm trying my best," Vala replied.

Sam chuckled. "I don’t mean that you've been behaving well -- I mean, you have, but that wasn't what I meant. I mean you've been like ... medicine. He's been really heartsick for a long time, but it's like he's finally getting better, you know?"

Vala goggled. "And you think that's my doing?"

"I know it is."

Vala shook her head, skeptical. "I don’t know about that. But I do know having him in my life has done wonders for me."

Sam put a companionable arm around her and gave a gentle squeeze. "I know that, too."

Finally, they spotted Daniel returning. Sam went over to Jack, giving Vala a wink as she went. Daniel was approaching with his hands behind his back and a strange look on his face that told Vala he was up to something. He stopped half a pace away, and brought his left hand around, holding a rose out to her. When she reached out and touched it, it lit up. She laughed, delighted, and accepted the remarkable bloom. He showed her the light switch and battery pack at the bottom. She grinned as she made it blink a few times. Then she threw her arms around him.

"A girl could get spoiled by you, you know," she half-warned.

He pulled back just enough to see her face, softly lit by the glow of the rose. "You promise to let me try?" he asked, cupping her cheek with his hand. She leaned into it, closing her eyes and laying her own hand over his.

A loud, booming voice startled them apart, announcing that fireworks display was only a short while off.

"Fireworks display?" Vala, Mitchell, and Teal'c asked.

Daniel sighed. He'd forgotten about the announcements. So much for the element of surprise! "Yeah, they have pyrotechnics display every night, when they're open late enough."

Teal'c looked puzzled. "Is it a display of weaponry?"

"No, it's purely decorative," Sam told him. "Explosions of colour, timed to music. It's really pretty!"

In a short while, Vala found out just how pretty they really were. The lights in the park dimmed, the trees began to sparkle, and the Castle was made to glow blue. Daniel pointed to an area of sky, just behind the Castle, and told her to keep her eyes on it. He slipped his arms around her from behind, holding her tight and resting his cheek against her hair. And finally, it happened: a bright light streaked upwards in the sky. A child started to sing about wishing on a star, and the sky was suddenly filled with the explosions of colour Sam had promised. Voices continued to sing about wishing and stars, and dreams as well, including snippets of lines and songs from some of the movies Sam had lent her -- some of them hitting Vala very close to home. "Wish I could be part of that world," Ariel said, and Vala couldn’t help but be reminded of her own struggle to be part of Daniel's. Ariel had eventually gotten her wish, and, Vala realised with a tearful smile, so had she -- at least some of it. She would be grateful for what she had now, but still continue to fight for the rest. Besides, Jiminy Cricket assured her that she'd never run out of wishes.

When it was over, she turned to face Daniel and revealed a face streaked with tears that were still freely falling. He had been smiling himself, but quickly traded it for a look of concern.

"Are you all right?" he asked, brushing the tears away with his thumb.

She nodded, smiling. "I'm happy," she assured him.

The smile returned. And without another thought, he pressed his lips to hers, soft and tender. Vala could swear she was experiencing the fireworks again, though her eyes were closed. They were under her skin, sparking and burning and shimmering all over her body.

They followed the slow-moving crowd down Main Street. They started on the left, browsing through the shops. Daniel bought an assortment of Jelly Bellies and a chocolate-dipped krispie-treat at the candy store, sharing the gourmet beans with everyone, and the krispie-treat in particular with Vala. Then they crossed the street to the Emporium, where Vala became the proud owner of a Mickey Mouse shirt, after Mitchell had teasingly informed her that it was a requirement of every Earth citizen. Daniel made Cam pay for it -- and for one for Teal'c as well. Daniel, meanwhile, after getting Sam to distract her, surprised Vala with a scrapbook and sets of Pirates, Stitch, Tinkerbell, and Cinderella pages for it.

Weary but happy, they headed out. Since the Polynesian was the last stop on the Resort Monorail's one-way, circular route, they were all nearly half asleep by the time they reached it. Thankfully Teal'c was alert enough and roused them all. They walked like zombies back to the two suites Cassandra had won as a prize, the most logical split being one for the girls and one for the boys.

Daniel had wished earlier that he had opted for his own room -- one that he could have shared with Vala that night. Now he realised that it was just as well that he hadn’t -- as much as he was loath to part with her company, he was far too exhausted to truly enjoy it. They had another big day ahead of them (what precisely made Landry think the trip would be relaxing?). He contented himself with another lingering kiss outside the door to her suite, in the time-honored tradition of first dates. He was definitely falling for her, hard and fast, though. It was a more frightening and exhilarating experience than any ride they'd been on that day -- and he wouldn’t have traded a minute of it.

Inside the boys' suite, he found the packages waiting for them. He got out a pad of paper and a pen from the nightstand, wrote a quick note, and put the note, along with one of the smaller photos from Cinderella's, the "Pirate Princess" shirt and her pirate hat, inside the bag with the stuffed Stitch. He opened the door to the hall and found Jack and Sam entwined.

"Oops," he said, turning to retreat.

"It's all right, Daniel," Jack called to him. "We were just finishing up here."

Sam smacked him, laughing. She turned to Daniel. "That's for Vala, I take it?"

Daniel nodded, blushing.

"She's already asleep, and there are girls running around in their underwear in here," Sam told him, smacking Jack again when he pretended to try to peak over her shoulder. "If you want her to have it first thing when she wakes up, I can arrange it in one of the chairs or something."

Daniel nodded, then explained what needed to be done with the contents of the bag. Thanking her, he returned to the other suite, Jack in tow. Both men paused to look wistfully at the now-closed door to the girls' suite, before closing their own.

In the room Sam shared with Vala, Sam arranged the shirt over the back of the chair, placed the hat on the seat, and took the pin, which Vala had laid on the nightstand, next to her scrapbook, and pinned it to the hat. She lay the note over it; the paper read "Wear this Saturday." She lay the photo on top of the scrapbook. Carefully lifting Vala's arm, she lay the stuffed Stitch under it.

Vala hugged it close, murmuring, "Daniel...."

Sam brushed Vala's cheek fondly, then turned off the light.

~ FINIS ~

...Now go on to the sequel,"Date with a Martian Stunt-Woman"!...