Message-ID: Date: Sat, 25 Jul 1998 14:44:16 +0100 From: Heather Markham Subject: alternus-tempus.p05 CHAPTER SIX Al had been doing what he did best, observing, offering encouragement, words of sympathy and his version of wisdom. He was now outside the the Waiting Room observing the forlorn and depressed figure of Daniel Pendrell, sitting head in hands, cross-legged on the waiting room reception bed. Verbena walked up beside the silent Project Observer and joined him to peer through the observation window, "How's Sam?" she asked softly. Al took the nearly spent cigar from his mouth, blew out a thin stream of smoke, dropped it to the floor and ground it out with the toe of one of his highly polished black and white brogues. "Oh Sam?...he's good, yeah, couldn't be happier!" He gestured towards Pendrell, "Guess he's not though....poor kid. Did you give him the sedative to help him sleep?" She continued to watch, her voice was touched with concern, "Yes, about half an hour ago, it should start working soon." Al's brow was furrowed in thought. "Looks like my words of comfort fell on deaf ears. How long has he been moping like that?" Verbena checked her wrist-watch, "Couple of hours. Let's see now, they're ahead of us by two hours in Washington D.C. He's been getting stronger flashes of Sam's thoughts and memories over the past couple of hours. From what you told me, that would be from about the time Sam arrived at Dana's. I'm worried about him, it's the first time we've ever had someone here, in the waiting room, who's shared Dr Beckett's memories, let alone his emotions and feelings!" Al continued to stare at the figure of the despondent recipient of Dr Beckett's aura. "It's happened to Sam several times, well, getting memories and stuff at least. He coped with it." "Yes, but Sam's different, at least he had some idea of what was going on, he knew why things were happening to him and he always had you, his best friend to help and guide him." she nodded towards the leapee, "He's a very clever young man and although he's very much like our Samuel Beckett......even without Sam's memories in his head.... he's not on a mission. He had no idea what was happening to him when he woke up in there. He had no idea what was going on when someone else's thoughts and memories started scrolling through his head, invading his mind. For a while there he must have thought he was losing it! Just imagine how hard it would have been for him to wake up in a strange, clinical room, getting the standard explanation we give to all our guests, seeing yourself in your own body then looking at your reflection and discovering that everyone else sees you as another person....it can't be easy. Okay, so some people handle it better than others but I suspect that's because they think they're dreaming." she sighed, "It must be very hard at the best of times....sometimes we forget that. But for him it must be far worse, getting strange recollections and feelings which belong to another man must...must be terrifying...imagine the confusion. And for him, in this particular case, I don't think it can be easy coming to terms with what's being done on his behalf." Al shook his head in agreement, "Doesn't bear thinking about, does it! But he does know what's happening now, he knows he's going to end up with Dana eventually, that all this is for him." Verbena laid a hand on Al's shoulder, turning him so she could look searchingly into his coalblack eyes, "Is it? Are you sure it's all for him...it could be for Sam as well and if I can suggest that, then I'm certain he can too. I think that fact is cold comfort for Danny. I suspect he's loved Dana for a very long time, I think he feels the same way about Dana as Sam. He's a deeply sensitive guy, he feels it should be him there with her tonight. You know how Sam would feel if the situation was reversed." Al sighed and nodded almost imperceptibly, "Yeah...I know and the awful thing is, the situation *will* soon be reversed. All I hope is, the next leap will be normal...if any leaps can be classed as such, that his memories will be completely eradicated, swiss-cheesed and he'll forget all about Dana and won't pine for her like a little lost puppy dog." Verbena looked sad, her voice was shaking a little, "Let's hope so, I really hate to see Sam suffer emotionally, it's worse than seeing him get hurt physically." Al shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his red suit. "You and me, both. Hey, look, he's stretching out on the bed, perhaps he's feeling sleepy now. A good nights undisturbed, dreamless sleep might just be what the doctor ordered." Verbena drew in a deep breath, the worry on her face lessened a little, "Yes, I'm sure it'll do him good, he may feel better by tomorrow. It'll give his subconscious a chance to sort things out before he disappears back to his own time, Which, if Ziggy's right, could be very soon. If Sam's only mission was to get Dana and Daniel together, then after tonight, I think he would have succeeded." "Yeah...yeah, let's hope he's okay and can step into our friends capable shoes, without Dana noticing too much of a difference." Al straightened his back and rubbed a hand around the back of his neck, "I guess we could all do with a little rest. I think I'm gonna take the chance on getting some shut-eye myself, Sam's made it pretty plain that he doesn't want me back there tonight and Daniel looks like he's settling down now." Verbena agreed with him and they walked together in silence from the confines of the project control area back to their own quarters. Daniel Pendrell lay on the bed in the small blue room, the lights had been dimmed to a soft glow. His eye lids felt heavy and flickered shut. He still couldn't shut out the painful thoughts of Dr Beckett and Dana Scully being alone together. Visions of Sam and Dana together haunted and teased him. A strange sensation crept over him. It felt to him as though he were a fly on the ceiling of her apartment, looking down through a hazy mist to watch events unfold beneath him. It was a strange feeling, he was elated to think that soon he'd be with Dana but felt cheated to think that she was with someone else, even if that man did look like him. He felt hurt that she was sharing her love with an imposter...someone trying to be him. His emotions were confused, his feelings switched between joy and anger, jealousy and frustration. He felt as if his emotions were on a roller-coaster ride over which he had no control. He could sense very strongly the other man's love for his Dana. He picked up snatches of jumbled thoughts and emotions, which painfully mirrored his own, mingled and mixed confusingly with his own. He choked back a sob, his thoughts became tears which welled within him and escaped from his closed lids to trickle wetly down his face and dampen his pillow. Daniel turned onto his side, curled into a protective ball beneath the thin cover and yearned for the release of the deep unconsciousness of sleep. Suddenly, he had the weirdest sensation of plummeting and spiralling down from his lofty watching place into Sam's...his own body! It felt as if he'd somehow leaped back but was joined in some way with Dr Beckett. He really felt as though he was there with Dana....every kiss Sam gave her was his, every kiss she laid upon him in return, he felt. Every touch was his, every sensation was his. He was there, he had merged with Sam! The strange sensations and feelings mingled with the beginnings of a beautiful vivid dreamlike state. His eyes darted back and forth beneath closed lids. In his sleep, his muscles twitched and his body trembled and jerked. His pulse raced and his breath quickened. It *was* him there with Dana, kissing her, touching her, making love to her. He could feel her lips on his skin, he could feel her touching him, their bodies entwined. Wave after wave of emotion, love and delicious sensation engulfed him and washed through him. He was carried on an intense tide of passion and exquisite pleasure, through a dream of paradise which he was sharing with Dana, sharing, courtesy of Sam. Finally, the dream came to a climactic end and gradually drifted away from him carrying him into the comfortable darkness of a deep, warm and contented slumber. Early next morning Daniel was woken by the sounds of a breakfast trolley rattling into the room. For a brief moment he forgot where he was, he stretched out an arm and felt for Dana beside him, his hand closed on the cold metal rim of the narrow bed. Al pushed the trolley next to him. Daniel opened his eyes, stretched out from the position he'd slept in, he felt warm, glowing and elated...he felt...different. He sat up and smiled at the concerned face of the brightly clad observer, reaching out he grasped the smaller man's arm, "Ohh Al, last night I was there with her in my dreams...no, it was more than a dream...we were together, we were actually together. I think I must have merged with Dr Beckett! Thank you Al...thank you so much." Al looked surprised and shocked but relieved. He patted the young man on the back in a show of affection. "You were? You were really there? Gee, that's real nice Sam." Al froze, even he was getting confused, Danny sounded so like his time-travelling friend it was uncanny. For a moment he could even see Sam's face mingled with Dan's. The gesture of friendship was only a small one but it was one he'd so often wanted to share with Sam. Thinking about it brought a lump to his throat. He shook himself, the confusing image disappeared. "I should eat breakfast while you can, if I know fate, it's about ready to ship you back home." The younger man, swung his legs from the bed, picked up the fork and began eating, "What do you mean." he asked, his mouth stuffed with toast and bacon. Al lit his first cigar of the day, as he talked, "I mean, I think Sam's achieved the aim of this leap. I think he got you and Dana together." Danny stopped eating, grinned up at Al and interjected, "Boy, did he ever!" Al did a double take at that, paused to stare at Daniel for a few seconds, then a sparkle lit his eyes and he chuckled. "You mean you really were there...like reeealy there?" Danny's grin broadened, he nodded and continued to eat ravenously. Al chuckled again and continued, "Er...yeah, well, in that case he should be leaping out real soon. In fact I'm surprised he hasn't already gone, God must be treating him to a couple hours extra grace! I'll leave you to finish breakfast and go check on everything, see what Ziggy has to say." Danny's plate was almost empty. "Any chance of seconds?" he asked eagerly. Al's eyes widened with humour, "Yeah, I guess so. Boy, you really have gotten back your appetite this morning!" Pendrell stood up and quickly stepped in front of the silver-jacketed observer. "Al, before I go, could I see the control room? I swear I won't tell any one....I know how important security is in a research facility like this, how imperative it is to keep it secret but I'd love to see if my...if the memories I've been getting are real. I already know in my head what this place looks like, I'd like to feel a real part of it all before I go....I kinda feel at home here...I'd love to say 'Hi' to Ziggy, see everything working....Please, Al?" Albert Calavicci had never been faced with this situation before. He was very tempted to give in to the young forensic expert's pleas but he knew the risks involved in allowing anyone out of the Waiting Room, even for a few minutes and especially so close to the end of a leap. "I'm sorry, it's not possible, it's far too dangerous, not just for you but also for Dr Beckett." Daniel nodded gloomily, "Yeah, I understand, perhaps I should've asked earlier. Oh well, never mind." he walked back across to the bed, sat down, then and added, "I'll just sit here and rust then!" Al blinked. Dan grinned across at him. "It's a line from a character in a humourous sci-fi book I once read. It was used by a manic-depressive robot with a brain the size of a planet, who wasn't given anything important to do!......Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy." Al scratched at the top of his head, "Never heard of that one but then I don't get much chance to read fiction." "Well, You should read that one some day. I think you'd enjoy it. Tell you what, perhaps one day I'll come out here and look you up, bring a copy of it for you....if I can find this place...where did you say the nearest town was?" Al replied absentmindedly, "Oh yeah, were down in..." He suddenly realized Danny had almost wrangled the Project location out of him. "Hey, you almost got me there, kid. Ya know I can't tell you that. It's enough that you might be able to remember some of this stuff when you get back to where you belong. I'm surprised Sam's memories haven't imprinted this location into your mind in any case." The younger man frowned and asked, "Will I recall everything...all of this, I mean?" "Yeah, some of it, the bits that are relevant to your future. It has to work that way or all the people who end up here would go home with amnesia and probably undo all of Dr Beckett's good deeds. It could throw everything out of line. They wouldn't be able to pick up where he left off. The only thing is, memories of events here tend to fade very quickly. Don't ask me why, I don't have a scientific explanation for it." he stabbed the fresh cigar towards the ceiling, "I got an idea HE has something to do with that. You'll remember clearly the events leading up to the shooting incident and getting to know Dana will be fuzzy but it will be there in the back of your mind, it'll all feel like a distant dream. "Pendrell got up, walked across to Al and looked deep into his dark eyes. "No it won't, not the things concerning Dana and I, the things that happened last night were real and will stay with me forever!" Al closed his eyes briefly, nodded, sighed and replied, "Yeah.....I guess they will, kid. Well, I got work to do, no rest for the wicked as they say...hey, maybe that's why I get so tied up with work now, I must've sinned a lot in my life." he paused, a wry roguish smile crept across his face, his voice was filled with mirth, "Yeah, I guess I have sinned rather a lot, but in the nicest possible way!" He held out his hand to Daniel, "Well, I guess you won't be here much longer, you'll probably be gone by the time I get back. This is it, kid, it's been nice getting to know you." Daniel took his hand and pumped it up and down in a gesture of firm friendship. "It's been great knowing you too, Al, I'll never forget you either. And I will find my back way here one day." Al pondered Daniel's words. The Project's guests didn't usually recall their times in the Waiting Room, but then again, noone of the other guests had shared Sam's memories. Perhaps Daniel would remember. Al released the hand and nodded. He smiled warmly and left the room and Pendrell to himself. CHAPTER SEVEN Sam felt warm and comfortable, he drifted on the edge of a beautiful dream, filled with images of Dana.....Dana and huge cups of coffee and bacon and.......coffee and bacon? The dream faded, his olfactory senses had kicked-in, linking reality to his dream world. He could smell something good, cooking. Instinctively, he reached out an arm to search for Dana...the place next to him was empty. In the fuzziness of sleep an awful thought struck him, panic began to rise from the pit of his stomach, if he had completed his mission then he could have leaped unawares during his sleep? Was he in someone else's bed or some cafe somewhere? He quickly felt beneath him, his hand slide across soft silken sheets to reassure him he was still in a bed....somewhere. He sighed heavily with relief, then a sudden thought occurred to him, was it the same bed he'd fallen asleep in last night with Dana. In one swift action he sat up, pushed away the covers and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. The previous night he'd helped drink two large bottles of wine and a cup or two of coffee, at around five in the morning he'd had to go in search of the bathroom. He remembered coming back into the bedroom and looking at several framed photos standing on the dresser. In the dim orange light cast from the street lamps outside, he'd guessed they were pictures of her parents and her sister. He remembered Al telling him that both her sister's death and that of Mulder's father had been linked to their special investigations with the bureau. It was a thought which plagued him with worry but he knew that wishing to stay with her to protect her forever was pretty pointless, he also knew he didn't have that much time left with her. He hoped instead that Pendrell would somehow be able to protect her from the dangers of the job. He glanced around the room, his eyes settling on the standing photos on the dresser, he drew in a deep breath and held it for a second or two, then puffed it out. His heart quietened a little, it was Dana's room....he still hadn't leaped! The door which led from the room was open slightly, the smell of a cooked breakfast grew stronger. Dana nudged her way through the door and danced bare foot into the room grinning, wearing his shirt and carrying a large tray laden with hot, delicious smelling food. "Good morning, sleepy head." She chirped. He quickly slid back between the sheets and drew the thick overlay up to cover himself. She tilted her head to one side and chuckled, "Now you're shy?" she said, as she laid the tray across his lap. Sam grinned coyly, "No...," he looked down at the tray, "that's why I covered up....a hot tray!" She laughed, moved across to the window and opened the blinds, letting the morning sunlight flood in to brighten the femininely decorated room. She bounced into the bed beside him. Sam grabbed for the tray in an effort to stop a major breakfast-quake. She scrambled beneath the cover and nestled lovingly against him. He surveyed the breakfast...toast, bacon, eggs, tomato and mushrooms for two. "Well now, what did I do to deserve all this?" Dana linked one arm through his, with the other she rubbed and tickled at his arm, "You need to ask?" she chuckled. He blushed, "I..er..I could get used to this! I can't remember the last time anyone treated me to breakfast in bed." She pinched him, playfully, "I can, it was while you were in hospital. I noticed the way that nurse made a fuss of you, she made goo-goo eyes at you too! She had a thing for you, you know!" He had just begun sipping at the hot coffee, the thought tickled him, he laughed. "No she did not! Anyway, that doesn't count, hospital food is awful, breakfast generally consisted of soggy branflakes in lukewarm milk." He waved a hand over the food, "this is...this is wonderful. Make this fuss of me too often and you'll never get rid of me." A thought flowed through his mind, 'Oh Dana, if only you knew....If only I could stay here with you forever. You could serve me pigs-swill and I wouldn't care...just waking up next to you every morning would be bliss'. Dana disentangled herself from him, picked up one plate and held it on her lap and began to eat. "I told you I like to cook and I guessed you'd be hungry too. Anyway, why would I want to get rid of you?" Sam tucked an arm around her drawing himself closer and smiled contentedly. He reached out and began eating, onehandedly. "Why so early though? It's Sunday and it's only 7.30. You don't have to be somewhere, do you?" She turned to look at him, answering with a mouthful of food, "No, half an hour ago I was woken by a call from Mulder," She paused to swallow and caught the impending look of disappointment registering on his face, "No...no, it's okay, he just wanted to let me know what he'd seen, he's like a big kid sometimes, he has difficulty controlling his enthusiasm. Anyway, he said he wouldn't be back until tomorrow morning. You slept through the call but once I was up, I felt hungry. I don't usually eat much in the way of breakfast," she giggled, "soggy branflakes and luke warm coffee is usually all I have time for. And I'm never usually this hungry. Too many mornings like this and I'll have to start counting calories." Sam had finished eating, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her hair, "I'm sure I can think of healthy ways for us to exercise!" She dug him in the ribs, "What shall we do today?" she enquired as she too finished eating and slid the tray down from his lap. He gathered her tighter into his arms and kissed her on the nose, "We could stay here, it's still fairly early." She nuzzled against him, "We could, but all day! It's beautiful outside. The birds are singing, the sky is a deep blue and there are so many things I want to share with you." Sam sighed, he knew he didn't have long with her, he was amazed fate had give him this much extra time but he guessed she thought he'd be around for a long time, Daniel Pendrell would be around forever. He could feel her eagerness to explore all of life's other little things with him. He lay back against the pillows, gently resting her head against his chest and thought. "How about a picnic?" She tickled at his stomach, "Mmmm, that would be lovely and I know said it was gorgeous outside but it's still early March, remember, it's not exactly the weather for an outdoor picnic." Another idea popped into his head, in his heart it wasn't exactly how he'd have preferred to spend the day, nevertheless, it could turn out to be special for them. "Dana, do you like horses?" "Mmm, yes. I always wanted a pony when I was little but living most of my young life on a Naval base didn't provide for the kind of place to keep a pet like that. Why do you ask?" Sam stroked her hair as he talked, "It's just a thought, we could go up to my folk's ranch. Pop told me that he'd bought a pregnant mare last year and it recently gave birth to twin foals. It's sort of a rarity but he knew the mare was carrying twin foals when he bought it. He said Jo and her husband are moving back closer to the family ranch, so he'd got them for the babies, you know, so they could sorta grow up together." She sat up next to him, surprise in her voice, "Babies? Your mom has babies?" Sam held back his head and laughed, "No, silly...didn't she mention it to you when you talked with her at the hospital? My little sister's just had twins, too! I'm a double uncle. They've all gone down for a visit. They wanted to go as soon as it happened, which was a the beginning of the week but mom felt they should wait 'til I'd gotten out of hospital. They wanted me to go with them.....it would have been nice but I didn't want to put off last night's date. So, what do you think? We'd have the place pretty much to ourselves." "Sounds a terrific idea, where is it, is it far?" Sam suddenly realized that although he knew the name of the place he didn't know how to get there or how long it would take and he also couldn't very well start looking for a map! He racked his brain for a suitable answer. "Ah, now that's part of the fun, it'll be a mystery tour for you." Fate was definitely being kind to him, because at that precise moment Al chose to step into the Imaging Chamber. The hologram appeared beside the bed, wearing a silver bomber jacket over dark red collarless shirt and wearing silver grey pants with matching dark red side seams. He serveyed the discarded tray and raised his eyebrows in surprise, "You've eaten breakfast already, that's a bit early for a weekend morning? Sam, you must be losing your touch!" Dana continued to question him playfully, "Oh, come on, Danny, at least tell me how far away it is? I have enough mystery trips with Mulder!" Sam shot his friend a sideways glance as he tried once again to answer her question. "How far is it to the ranch? well, let's see now...." Al cottoned on to the fact his friend needed a little help, "About an hour and a half away." Sam repeated the words. "Hour and a half's journey, not too far." The observer interjected with some more information, "I remember Danny telling me about the place, they have a small indoor swimming pool. Danny's mom and pop had it put in for your....Danny's sister Kelly, they thought it would help her exercise her legs. He also told me his mom always keeps a well stocked fridge, just in case visitors drop by. Ooow, yeah, he said his mom won the blue ribbon for apple pie every year at the county fair. Might be some in there too." Sam had turned back to Dana and was kissing her lightly, "We could maybe take out a couple of horses, I could show you around the place. You'd get the chance of sampling my mom's cooking. she does a terrific apple pie.....won prizes. The ranch has an indoor pool, too. We could have our picnic in the pool house. You do swim, don't you?" "Yes, of course, you're forgetting my father was a Naval man, he taught me to swim, he also gave me a healthy respect for the sea and water. Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to swim in years. I don't think I even have a costume any more." Sam smiled to himself, he remembered how dedicated she was to her work, she rarely gave time for herself. He was very lucky to have her spend time with him, "That's okay there's bound to be some spare swim-wear at home." She stroked her hand gently across the small dressing covering his wound, "Is it alright for you to swim with this, You've only just got out of the hospital." He looked down at the plaster dressing, and fiddled with it, testing the edges for adhesiveness. He prized a corner of the tape from his skin, flinching as it took several of his chest hairs with it, "Yeah, the doctors said it would be okay to get the dressings wet, they're supposed to be water proof. They gave me batch of them as replacements before I left. The doctor even said swimming would be good exercise for my shoulder and arm. I'll change this dressing after I've showered. If you hear me yell, don't worry, it'll just be me ripping this thing off." With that Dana bounced from the bed, calling back to him as she hurried from the room, "Okay..If you're sure you'll be alright, it sounds great to me...lets get going....I bags first shower." Al stared at her as she left the room, he stabbed a cigar in her direction and began to trail after her. "She looks better in that shirt than you did, can't wait to see her in a swim suit!" Sam scowled and yelled, "Al." a little too loudly. Dana replied from the bathroom, "What?" Sam leaped from the bed, getting between him and the door trying unsuccessfully to block his friend's way. "I just said, guess A'll shower next." He glared at his friend, wagged a finger at him, speaking as quietly as he could, "Don't you dare follow her in there!" Al shrugged, looked Sam up and down and cackled, "I think you should get dressed too, Sam." Sam blushed and quickly turned away to search for his clothes which were scattered between the lounge and the bedroom. He found his underwear and trousers and quickly pulled them on. "Al, how's Danny this morning?" "Oh he's just fine. I don't quite know how to tell you this, he..er..kinda leaped into you last night..well, that's how he described it, he kinda merged with you." Sam's mouth had dropped open in astonishment, "He did? Is that possible," he swallowed hard, "He knows what happened?" Al drew a breath in through closed teeth, "Yeah well, I'm not sure it wasn't just all a dream but I tell ya this, he seems a totally different guy to yesterday evening. He seems quite happy and contented. I don't know what you did, Sam, but he seems a very happy bunny this morning." he paused in thought for a couple of seconds, "Funny thing, he looks kinda different this morning too, almost like he....Nah! couldn't have, could he?" "You really think that's possible, that he could actually have been inside my head last night, feeling everything I felt?" "From his account it wasn't just your head he was inside! He was inside yur body! Sam raised his eyebrows and and puffed out a deep breath as he considered the embarrassing possibility. The conversation was brought to a halt by Dana calling from the bathroom, "Sam, could you bring me a fresh towel please. They're in the linen box at the bottom of the bed.....Oh-my-god!" The two friends gasped and stared at each other. She appeared, dripping wet dressed in a silk dressing gown which had plastered itself to her wet skin. Her face was flushed with embarrassment, "Oh, Danny I'm so sorry. I called you Sam...I really don't know why...I don't think I even know anyone of that name! Please forgive me, it must have sounded awful of me. I..I don't know what to say?" Sam hurried across to her, wrapping her in his arms, "It's okay, it's okay....I believe you," he glanced significantly at Al, "It's okay....Sam is a...a kind of nickname of mine, you probably heard one of the other guys call me by it at sometime. I know you didn't mean to confuse me with some other guy." He drew her closer to him and kissed her forehead, then her nose, they melted into each other. Al laughed, "Be careful now, let's hope she doesn't see you as you really are, that really would put a spanner in the proverbial works. You want I should leave you two alone and come back later. Oh, but don't forget, you need me to direct you out to the ranch." Sam came up for air and playfully tousled her wet hair, "Better get the towels, can't have you catching cold on me. I'll just go shower and join you in a minute. Er, where did you put my shirt?" She kissed him before letting him go, "It's on the hot rail next to the shower, there's a fresh pack of disposable razors in the cabinet.....Mulder put them there ages ago, just in case," Sam's eyes widened, "In case of what?" he asked. She laughed, "It's okay, don't worry. Sometimes after a case, he'd sleep over...on the couch!" Sam smiled sweetly, grabbed a towel from the box and left her to dry off and dress while he took a quick, hot shower. CHAPTER EIGHT Al had accompanied his friends for most of the journey. Daniel had related to him precise details of the location and how to get there, which, in turn, he'd given to his time-travelling friend. To all intent and purposes, he'd appeared to sit in the back seat of the car, just behind Dana. A smug grin had settled on his face, he'd been enjoying the fact that he could join in with the chat and make comments and Sam couldn't tell him go away or shut up. He'd also enjoyed the beautiful scenery of the countryside. It reminded him of all the wonderful days he'd spent with his Beth, driving out into the country, picnicking, laughing and planning for the future. A future which was not to be, a future of which the Vietnam War had robbed him. He felt sad for his friend, he knew that Sam and Dana's love would be shortlived too....it wouldn't be much longer before his time-travelling friend would be moved on by fate. Dana would still have Pendrell but what of Sam...would he remember? It would be better for him if he didn't. Towards the end of the trip, when he was sure he knew where he was going, Sam had discreetely worked a few words into the conversation which implied that he wanted to know why he still hadn't leaped. The hand-link was misbehaving again, so Al went back to find out the information directly from Ziggy. The hybrid super computer with the sultry voice and touchy attitude, had run all the relevant unrestricted data but couldn't yet speculate on exactly what Sam was there to do. Perhaps because of Pendrell's work, the details of a case connecting him to this leap had been classified. Al had wondered what on earth Sam could do, that Pendrell couldn't. After all, Daniel was one of the finest forensic crime technicians in the business. He paid the young man a brief visit in the Waiting Room to tell him he was going to be around for a little while longer. Daniel didn't seem to be overly worried by that, in fact, he'd noticed a sparkle in the young man's eyes as he'd informed him of the new situation. "Does that mean I can get to see the Control room, now?" Al couldn't help but laugh at the other man's persistance, "No, it does not! Sorry, kid but if Sam knew I'd relaxed the rules and let you have full run of the facility he'd chew my head off!" Pendrell tilted his head to one side and pouted, his mannerisms were so like Sam's it was unnerving. "Aw, come on Al, what harm could it do? it's highly unlikely that Dr Beckett will leap within the next couple of hours." Al chewed on his cigar, he was very close to letting Daniel have his own way but rules were rules and his time in the Navy had conditioned him to follow them no matter how hard someone tried to wheedle him into changing them. He shook his head, "I'm sorry, we can't take that chance but if you're bored, if there's any thing else I can do or bring you, that will keep you happy, just say the word." Daniel got up from the comfortable arm chair in front of the small television and VCR which had been added to the sparse furnishings of the blue room, and paced around like a caged cat. "Al, I'm fed up with sitting in here and watching tapes of old movies.....yes, I know people keep popping in to keep me company and I appreciate that, but I have an active mind, I need to do something creatively stimulating to stop the boredom." He stopped in front of the Navy man, "I've got an idea? Could you get a computer for me, a lap-top would do? There's something I'd like to try.....something I'd like to work on." Al raised his eyebrows with curiosity. "Yeah, I suppose that would be possible. I'll go see Gushie and and arrange for one to be put in here...what do you want to do on it?" Pendrell grinned, "Oh, you'll soon find out....please, would it be possible for Dr Gushman to bring the computer himself, I'd like to have a word with him." Al took the chewed cigar from his mouth and ground it out on the floor, "Okay, just so long as whatever it is you're up to doesn't interfere with the project equipment." Pendrell followed the observer to the door, "Don't worry, I think you and Dr Beckett will approve of my idea." Al requested the door to be opened and as a parting shot replied, "Let's hope so, this leap is causing me enough headaches as it is. Ziggy still has no idea why Sam is still where he is. I'll see ya later." Gushie delivered a small lap-top to Pendrell and had spent about an hour with him. He emerged from the waiting room looking rather flushed and with a definite glint in his eyes. He'd asked Al for the key to Sam's old personal laboratory so that he could remove the special computer and take it into the waiting room. After ascertaining that it wouldn't breech security, he'd agreed. He tried to persuade Gushie to give him a clue as to what he thought Daniel wanted with Sam's high powered computer but the head technician wouldn't comment, he just told him to wait and see. Although curiosity was now nibbling away at him, he resigned himself to the fact that he'd have to do just that....at least whatever it was would provide a distraction from boredom. He decided that Sam probably wouldn't need or want him popping up, playing gooseberry on the rest of their day out, so instead, he'd stick around and see just what it was that Danny and Gushie were doing. He'd only turn up to see Sam if he found out any new important data from Ziggy. -- Heather Markham