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It wasn’t that Daniel didn’t find Vala attractive. She was, after all, a very beautiful woman. It was just that, despite all his fancy degrees in the study of cultures and human beings, he wasn’t completely sure of the intentions behind her frivolous and seductive behavior.
What did Vala want from him? A one night stand? Something more substantial? Daniel hesitated. Marriage? Surprisingly, the thought didn’t make him cringe in the same knee jerk reaction he’d had in the first few years after Sha’re’s death. It just made him uncomfortable. Marriage wasn’t something he was sure he could do again after losing his beloved wife.
True, Vala certainly seemed interested, but Daniel knew that underneath any outward interest there lay buried a whole slew of daddy issues. He didn’t know how much of it was interest in himself and how much was a subconscious need for approval from a male figure left behind from being sold as a child.
Her time spent trapped in her own head while Qetesh did unspeakable things to innocent people certainly didn’t help either. Daniel knew that some of Vala’s sometimes child-like behavior was just a cover to help Vala deal with the atrocities she witnessed while being helpless to stop them. But part of it was a result of her emotional and psychological development being hindered once Qetesh had gained control of Vala’s body. Daniel suspected that Vala would always, in some way, retain the part of her that was still just a young girl wanting to live out a missed childhood.
Once, Daniel had tried talking about Vala and her behavior with Jack, but Jack had just chuckled and made some crack about Daniel having a neon sign emblazoned with the words “TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ME” attached to his forehead. That was the last time Daniel had discussed Vala with Jack, but certainly not the last time he’d tried to puzzle through his feelings.
Vala was certainly an enigma and Daniel found it difficult to trust her. To study or observe like one of his cultures or artifacts, yes. But Trust? Not so much. Given that she hadn’t really given him any reason to do so, just the opposite in fact, he felt that his mistrust was at least a little justified.
To be fair, though, it wasn’t entirely Vala’s fault that Daniel didn’t trust her. Being orphaned at such a young age and whisked off into the foster system would be enough to shake anyone’s trust. Daniel could count on one hand the number of people he trusted implicitly. Jack, Sam, Teal’c. Everyone else had to work hard to earn his trust and to keep it.
However, if Vala were to give him a reason, some clue that she was ready to settle down and wouldn’t try to run away at the first sign of trouble, Daniel could see himself maybe falling for her a little. After all, it wasn’t as if she was a mean person. Just… confusing. And perhaps a little misguided.