"Jack, who's that?" Daniel asked staring at the slim figure seated on Jack's front step.

Jack put the truck in park and jumped out. "Daniel?"

The short young man nodded. "Uncle Jack."

"What the hell are you doing out here in the rain?"

"Hoping you show up before I get arrested."

"Arrested?" Jack yelped.

"Neighbors keep calling the cops about me sitting here."

Jack shook his head and unlocked the door and herded the two Daniels into the house.

"You look like a drowned rat,"

"Feel like one."

"March. Shower, top of the stairs, second door on the left. I'll get you some sweats. Looks like your bag's soaked through too."

~*~*~

Daniel headed into the kitchen and started a pot of coffee. A glance in the fridge had him reaching for the phone and calling for take out pizza.

"Crap, thought I had a beer left."

"Who's the kid, Jack?"

"Sarah's sorta nephew. Sarah's folks took in foster kids. Danny's mom lived with them for about 5 years. She and Sarah were the same age and pretty close. Sarah's folks tried adopting Tracy. Her mom showed up outta no where and somehow managed to get her back. Year later Tracy was all screwed up and had a kid a week after she turned sixteen. Sadie. Tracy got her self half straight, ended up in California and married a bum but a decent bum at least, might not've held a job much but he didn't drink or do drugs or beat the hell outta Tracy and Sadie so that was something. Tracy and the bum had Daniel. He's 22 or 23 now? He was three or four years older than Charlie. Sadie, hell, she's got to be 29 or 30 now. She was twenty when Tracy and the bum died in a car wreck. She'd just gotten married to her own bum, they took Daniel in. Sarah would have taken him in a heart beat but that was right around when Charlie...then the divorce." Jack shook his head. "Sadie's got a kid. Jordan. He's about six or seven I think. She sent a picture in the Christmas card last year. He's got this hair that stands on end practically and was missing four teeth in the picture. Cute little twerp."

"Think he's in some sort of trouble?"

Jack shrugged. "Who the hell knows. Blue hair. God. What was the kid thinking? At least he ain't coated in piercings and tattoos."

"Pizza will be here in about ten minutes."

Jack nodded. "That's good. What kid doesn't eat pizza?"

~*~

"Hey," the kid wandered into the kitchen a few moments later, blue hair damp and Jack's sweat pants and sweat shirt both rolled up several times at the wrist and ankles.

"Your uncle has no manners. I"m Daniel Jackson. I work with Jack at the mountain."

"Read your aliens and pyramids paper. Cool. I'm Oz."

"You read that?" Jack stared. "I haven't even read that. It's full of gobbledy gook about crosspollenating and culture."

The kid shrugged.

Daniel rolled his eyes at Jack then looked at Jack's nephew. "How did you get a hold of it though? It wasn't widely published." Not to mention that it was sealed up tighter than a drum and buried under mountains of National Security paperwork once he was pulled into the Stargate program.

"Will passed it on. She thought it was cool. She found it when she was doing some Scooby research."

"Is that supposed to make sense?"

"Yeah." the kid shrugged.

"Well it doesn't." Jack shot back.

"Will is Willow. Ex-girlfriend."

"And Scooby Research?"

That got another shrug, the kid sniffed then smirked. "Robbing the cradle, Uncle Jack?"

"Robbing the-- Oh for crying out loud! He's thirty eight! Hardly belongs in a cradle. And how..." *dingdong* "Never mind. Saved by the bell. You're gonna eat your pizza and start making sense, understood, Daniel?"

Both looked at him.

"Which one?" Daniel had to ask with a teasing grin.

"Both of you!" Jack snorted and headed for the front door.

"Oz?" Daniel had to ask.

"Huh,"

"No why Oz, not Dan or Danny?"

"Daniel Osbourne."

"Oh, that makes sense then,"

"Thought so too."

"How'd you guess...not that.."

"Yes that." Oz snorted. "No big to me as long as Uncle Jack's happy. Just pick up on stuff sometimes."

Daniel blinked not sure what to make of that.

"Alright, sit, eat, explanations. Why are you here, Danny?"

"Wondering' how Aunt Sarah and Grandpa Mike are doing since they heard but didn't want smothered and guilted into staying. Dingoes have a month booked in Denver starting next weekend. The rest of the guys are already down there."

"I think that is the most I've ever heard you say." Jack stared. He hadn't seen the kid in about five years, Sadie had drove out with Jordan and Daniel to visit Sarah and Mike for a couple weeks during the summer. He'd swung by to say hello between missions. Not that Danny had ever been a talkative kid but he seemed to get even quieter as he got older. Sadie made up for it, though, she'd always talked enough for seven people. "Let's start with Dingoes."

"The Dingoes Ate My Baby"

"WHAT?" Jack yelped.

"My band."

"The Dingoes Ate My Baby? That's the name of your band? Little sick ain't it?"

Oz shrugged.

Jack shook his head. "Since Sarah and Mike heard what?"

Oz stared at him. "Sunnydale."

"What about Sunnydale?"

Oz stared. "Whoa. Huh. You don't know."

"Know what?"

"Six weeks ago. Little earthquake, big gas explosion. Sunnydale fell in a massive sinkhole and is now nothing but rubble in a crater. Sadie, Jordy and Jerkoff didn't get out."

Jack dropped his pizza slick. "Oh Christ." he breathed and was up and around the table pulling Oz into a hug. "You--shit, kiddo, I didn't know."

"Obvious much?" Oz said with a waver in his voice for a second and hugged Jack back.

"You should go see Sarah."

"No,"

"Why the hell not?"

"If I lose it I might hurt them bad. Grandpa Mike's too frail to do much, Aunt Sarah isn't able to either. Lose it around you, you'll take me out. Not staying. Can't. Just want to make sure they're okay."

"Lose it..."

"Don't ask." Oz said quietly.

"Why the hell not!"

"I've got issues."

"Issues." Jack growled.

"Military Project a few years back. Black Ops group called NID. They picked up unwilling test subjects. They had me a bit. I'm not safe if I lose it. I won't go near Aunt Sarah or Grandpa Mike unless I know I'll stay cool."

"WHAT."

"Drop it, Uncle Jack."

"I'll kill the--"

"Already done."

That stopped Jack for a second. "Already done?"

Oz nodded.

"Do I want to ask how?"

Oz gave a small shake of his head.

"You part of the how?"

Another small shake.

"You know the how though"

Quirk at the corner of the boy's mouth.

"What is it about Daniels and extremes. That one is an Olympic babbler and you speak three sentences a year." Jack snorted and gave the boy another squeeze. "You doing okay?"

"Yeah." Oz said softly.

"I'm gonna go call Sarah," Jack said.

Oz nodded and pulled away.

Daniel stared a moment at a loss for what to say as Oz sat back down and dove back into eating his pizza.

"Work keeps us, well, we lose track of the world above the mountain sometimes." Daniel offered lamely.

Oz nodded.

Jack broke the heavy silence with his return. "They're okay. Hit Mike really hard to lose another grandkid and a great-grandkid. Sarah wants you to show up and I'm supposed to drag you by the hair if you show up here, or rip you a new one next time you call."

"Can't" Oz shook his head. "Soon maybe."

Jack nodded slowly. "You staying long?"

Oz shook his head again. "Leave in the morning."

"How?"

"Feet. Thumbs. Guys have my van."

"Where are you headed? Denver?"

Oz nodded.

"I can freaking drive you to Denver."

Oz shrugged. "Don't want to put you out."

"Oh for cryin out loud." Jack glared. "No, I'll feel much better with you hitchhiking to Denver. I'm driving you and you aren't disappearing or I'll track your butt down and beat it, got it?"

His answer was a faint smirk and a salute with pizza in hand.

Jack shook his head with a sad smile.

~*~*~

"You need anything, you call. If you don't get an answer at the house, call the base and ask for Hammond. He'll get you what you need." Jack said as he pulled up in front of a night club in a seedier section of Denver.

"Cool"

"In fact, just call." Jack ordered.

"Will do," Oz nodded and ducked out of the truck, his backpack slung over his shoulder.

"One Colonel Hen comment outta you and you'll be hitch hiking back to the Springs. Got it, Spacemonkey?"

Daniel reached over and squeezed Jack's arm a second. "He's a tough kid. Daniels are hard to knock down for long."

Jack snorted. He gave a deep sigh. "You mind if I head over to Sarah's tonight?"

"No. I've got the translation SG10 brought back. By all means go, you won't be standing over me quoting Homer Simpson half the night." Daniel smiled.

Jack snorted again with a half grin.

Two weeks later Jack returned to the house after yet another mission that fell in the realm of "Only SG1". The light on his answering machine was blinking.

"Still alive. Two more weeks in Denver, then heading to Cleveland." was the message.