Summary
Stories of life aboard the Odyssey while SG-1 and General Landry were stuck in the time-dilation bubble of the episode “Unending”.
My notes
A 3-part series that starts by following Daniel and Vala during “that scene” in Unending in part 1 (A Love-Hate Thing), then showing the rest of the team observing the changes in D/V’s relationship in part 2 (Cats, Candles, and Confessions), culminating in the meatiest part of this series (part 3 – Imaginary Friends, 18K+ words), which dives into the years the team ends up spending on the Odyssey and how they cope and live their lives.
The series as a whole is certainly worth the read (select “Read story” for the whole series), but they could all be read independently as well, which is why I’ve included the links to each part too. That said, they all have different tones. Part 1 and 2 are much lighter and shorter (3.5-4.5K words), while part 3 is much lengthier and deals with heavy issues (read the story tags on AO3 for details).
It’s worth noting that part 1, A Love-Hate Thing, contains some of the most thoughtful and beautifully written reflections on Daniel and Vala I’ve ever read. It’s first told from Daniel’s point of view (POV), and then switches to Vala’s POV so you can read her internal dialogue as well. They both walk through where their minds are at and their own reasons for the anger and confusion we all witnessed in that scene, which unfolded in such a griping and realistic way given their individual personal baggage and defense mechanisms. I’ll probably reread this forever.