( Usually resolutions were flimsy promises that are made to be broken. )

Christmas had wound to a close several hours ago in Cairo, and would soon be completely over for another year. Thankfully, he'd been able to take down all the decorations early this morning and return them to his landlady without any complaint from her or her children. Not that there had been any real holiday cheer in his home this year.

In fact, there had only been one time that he could remember, and remembering it hurt a bit to much right now.

Which was why he was sitting alone in his flat, slowly working his way through the sweet wine he had bought at a local shop. There was little light, the glow from the lamp beside the couch just barely chasing away the shadows around Daniel, let alone the rest of the room.

Holidays be damned, next year he was going someplace that had never heard of Christmas.

It's interview time. Pick any of my pups, (active or no, list is here) and ask them anything you want. You'll get a truthful answer from them.

It was nearing three a.m. when a faint thumping noise was heard in a Cairo flat. The cause of the noise was one Doctor Daniel Jackson falling onto his bed, nearly unconscious.

After being rescued by the alternate SG-1, Daniel had spent a good part of the previous day and night in the infirmary. He'd finally managed to get Sha're to bring him his pinpoint so he could get the hell out of there. He would do better on his own, at home, than being poked and prodded by Janet Frasier.

It was sometime during midmorning that Daniel finally woke. He was in even more pain than he had been in when returning home, and quite literally dragged himself to the bathroom. After popping twice the recommended dosage of painkillers, he laid on the bathroom floor for a while, waiting for them to kick in.

Once he could move without spots forming in his vision from the pain, Daniel made his way to the front room, where he booted up his computer. After sending off an email to Seifer about needing his help for another week, Daniel proceeded to curl up on the couch, pull a throw over himself, and pass out again.

( [Totally takes place before the current 'Captured and Beaten' plot] )

( It was amazing how much these places looked alike. )

A miracle was happening today, something unseen in quite a while. Doctor Daniel Jackson had actually, voluntarily, taken a break from grading and research to have lunch. He'd even gone so far as to box up his Some the Chef prepared meal and go out onto the lawn to eat it, in the sun. He found a picnic table near some trees on the green, just a bit out sight of the school, but with a good view of the kraken's moat.

Someone should witness this miracle.

Cairo was bustling today. The weather was a mild ninety degrees, with just enough of a breeze to keep things cool. Such good weather meant that everyone was outside, in the markets and cafes, enjoying life.

Daniel was one of them, but it wasn't the weather that had drawn him outside. It was the need to not be inside his flat, dwelling on memories. Being around people meant that he would spend more time observing others and less time thinking on his own life.

The cafe he was at was tucked away in the corner of the bazaar outside his flat, the tables in the shade and out of the sun. Daniel himself had a large pitcher of black tea on his table, along with a book and several papers.