He hadn't been able to do it when Charlie died. Tears were something that never came easy for Jack O'Neill, but as the image of Daniel being consumed by flames replayed over and over in his mind, he discovered they weren't impossible.
Colonel, help me.
He'd thought that nothing would ever compare to losing Charlie, that nothing could leave him as broken and empty feeling as the look on his wife's face when she looked at him. He knew she blamed him. Hell, he blamed himself, even now that she'd forgiven him. But the look in Teal'c and Sam's eyes left him just as hollow.
The General wasn't wrong; when you trusted someone with your life, day in and day out, you formed deep bonds. And maybe there something to the bond between him and Daniel that the United States Air Force wouldn't approve of, something he hadn't been ready to admit even to himself. Maybe there was really no maybe about it. Daniel was more important to him than he was to the mission, and goddamn it if he wasn't vital enough to the mission as it was.
"Sir?" The shakiness of Sam's voice made the gut-wrenching pain wrench his gut just a little bit more. "It's time."
Time. Time for the memorial service. Time for Jack to deliver a eulogy he'd hoped he'd never have to even think about. He nodded.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, he began. "Daniel Jackson... made this place happen."