Disclaimer: I own neither Stargate nor Buffy.
Author's Note: This is a response to the challenge on TTH: 'The Hero Behind the Curtains' though in actually writing it I tended to veer off course a bit. Nevertheless, the challenge itself is wholly what inspired me to write it. The Stargate time line will be off by two years in order for it to fit with Buffy. Enjoy!
2003 - Present Day
"The greatest and most horrifying day of my life was the day my daughter was born." Kinsey began his explanation. Somehow, he was back in that ominous SGC conference room, but the tables were turned. This time, it was SG-1 he had to convince if he had any hope to save the world.
"My daughter was perfect. Everything about her - and like any good father all I wanted to do was protect her." He looked down at his hands now, collecting his thoughts, before looking around at his audiences skeptical glares.
"I'm sorry but why are we even listening to this?" O'Neill asked rhetorically, his face painted with rage, "He kidnapped Hammond's grand kids! He's spent the past 7 years trying to take control of the Stargate and now that he's been forced to step down as Vice President he's calling a truce?" O'Neill's voice was incredulous and full of hatred.
"I know it's hard to believe I have anything to offer. But I think if you hear this story you'll understand." Kinsey responded humbly. He looked O'Neill in the eye, hoping his pathetic state would be enough to convince O'Neill to listen.
"Fine. Just make it fast. I heard there's jello for lunch." O'Neill nodded his head.
"Alright." Kinsey began, "When my daughter was eight, a man approached me and my wife. He told us our daughter was 'special', that she had 'potential'.
"He told me my daughter could one day become a Vampire Slayer. You can imagine upon hearing those two words I gave a hearty laugh and slammed the door in his face. But he just kept coming back. Eventually, he brought over evidence of Vampires, Demons - pretty much all of your worst nightmares come to life. I had no choice but to do something. I explained to the stout British man that there was absolutely no was he could take my little girl away and he agreed to train her at our home. My wife and I still had our reservations but allowed her the training anyways.
"I figured even if the supernatural didn't exist, my daughter was at the very least very capable of defending herself. But then, a week before her 15th birthday she was in training when she accidently kicked through a wall." Kinsey looked down at the table, reliving the memory, "We all knew exactly what that meant - she had been called."
"Okay, can we back track. What is a Vampire Slayer and what do you mean she'd been called?" Carter interrupted.
"The Watchers always did this best but here we go. Into each generation, a girl is born - one girl in all the world with the strength and skill to hunt the Vampires, demons, and other forces of darkness. She is the slayer. Or something like that. When one slayer dies, the next is called." Kinsey explained.
"Uh, I'm sorry because you do appear for once in your life to be genuine but this is pretty ridiculous." Jack exclaimed, though his voice contained some sympathy.
"As ridiculous as Aliens, Jack? If you track history, there's evidence of Vampires, Werewolves and other supernatural creatures in all sorts of cultures. It's not too much of a leap to posit they could be real." Kinsey responded abruptly.
"He does have a point Jack." Jackson mumbled.
"So anyways," Kinsey recaptured the group's attention, "my daughter was called and that's when the nightmare began. She was up all through the night hunting the supernatural. She would leave for trips when her Watcher told her she was needed at the drop of a hat. Overnight, my daughter went from my baby girl to this supernatural killing machine. It was heartbreaking." Kinsey looked down at the table and gathered his emotion.
"Not even a year after she was called, she passed away. She was at some place called the Hellmouth and some Demon got the upper hand. The Watcher came by to give us his condolences. I had never been more angry in my life." Kinsey explained, "I went off on that man - about how on Earth he could just take a little girl's child hood away. And I felt guilty I let her do it. I still do." He stopped.
"I'm sorry." Carter said, though it lacked any appropriate emotion. "But what does this have to do with anything? You gathered us here on the pretext all of your actions could be explained."
"Well I'm getting to that. It's a long story, alright?" Kinsey rebutted. "It all started after she died..."
1985
The rally was bigger than he'd ever expected. Kinsey looked on at the crowd with a sense of pride and awe. He could barely hear his campaign manager over the shouts of Kinsey! Kinsey!
"Alright people settle down," Kinsey told the crowd with a bright smile, "As you all know, one year ago, tragedy struck my family." The crowd automatically paused for a moment of silence. "I thought at first I would never recover. But then I was overcome with a strength I didn't know I had. I knew my pain and I didn't want any father to have to feel that ever again.
"But what could I, a solitary man do? I got involved. I learned more about the gang violence that killed my daughter and worked to stop it. I promise you all this, nothing is more important to me than our children and cleaning up our streets." The crowed broke into applause. Kinsey finished his speech and stepped off the podium to the familiar face of stout British man. He took a moment to compose himself before confronting the man.
"Mr. Wyndham-Pryce, what can I do for you?" Kinsey asked his daughter's former Watcher with a false smile on his face.
"Look Mr. Kinsey, I am incredibly sorry for your loss but you must stop trying to contact the Council. There is nothing you alone can do to change this. You need to leave it alone." Roger Wyndham-Pryce stated in hushed tones.
"All I'm trying to do is make a difference, what's the matter with that? And why come all this way to deter me if I'm so umimportant?" Kinsey said loudly attracting the attention of a few onlookers. The Watcher looked around, anxious to avoid a public debacle.
"I came to say, on behalf of the council, that we are sympathetic to your cause but what we do is about bare survival. Our ways, as barbaric as they may seem to you, has kept the world intact. I'm sorry for your loss but you need to grieve and end this crusade." Roger turned on his heel and left before any of the media could see him. Kinsey stared at the spot he'd been standing in, a look of fierce determination on his face.
1986
"This is Larry Heinburn reporting live for Channel 4."
Kinsey sat amongst family, friends, and campaign supporters anxiously awaiting the result of the election. "Guys, quiet down." He bellowed and the crowd immediately settled.
"We have the results from the Senatorial race in Indiana and it appears Robert Kinsey defeated the incumbent! What an upset!" The last bit was barely heard over the cheers of victory surrounding Kinsey. He himself was stunned. He looked around at what some money and charisma could pull off and for the first time thought he may actually be able to make a difference.
Later that night, Kinsey sat on the couch, drinking a celebratory glass of Glenfiddich scotch contemplating his next move.
"Robbie, what on earth could be bothering you at a time like this?" His wife asked curiously.
"I'm just trying to figure out my next move." He responded earnestly, taking a swig of his drink.
"I understand you want vengeance for her death. God knows, I miss her every day but what on Earth could you possible do to make a difference?" She asked logically.
"It's not vengeance. Okay maybe it's a little vengeance but there's gotta be something I can do to ensure someone else doesn't have to lose their daughter." He drank the last of his scotch and placed the empty glass on the table, a little rougher than necessary.
"What can you expect to do? How can you make any difference at all?"
"I'll tell ya what I can do. Whatever it takes. I'll make every connection, kiss every ass in Washington, befriend the right people, whatever. I'm sure someone up high knows about what's going on and I'm going to get right in there faces and demand to know everything. And I'm going to keep going until we can provide something so innocent young girls don't have to die!" Kinsey spat. His wife looked at him somewhat fearfully, but before she had the chance to respond, Kinsey stormed out of the room. His wife sat there, staring at the glass, wondering not for the first time whether this was the right path for her husband.
1990
"Bob, I get what your saying, but there's no way we can put more than a few million into such a highly classified project." Senator Thames from Virginia explained, "Trust me, I agree with you. We need to do something about the - you know - but what more can we do? We have a small unit, and it gets the job done. Well, it keeps the general public from learning the truth."
"Dick, there's more to it than protecting the truth. It's our duty to protect the American people!" Kinsey exclaimed.
"There was a project similar to what your suggesting in the 1940s but - it just didn't work out. These - things are just too unpredictable." Richard responded kindly. Kinsey took a few deep breaths, trying to formulate a good response. In the end, he chose to bid his friend farewell and start again another day.
Kinsey had just earned himself a spot on the prestigious Senate Appropriations Committee - no small feat for a junior senator. The committee provided him with the opportunity to find any evidence that congress knew about the supernatural. When he found this evidence, he merely followed the trail and confronted the Senator responsible.
Things were more or less going according to plan. He had begun to make a name for himself, and already political pundits were predicting his reelection come two years. The problem he was facing now was how best to help the Slayer. His first thought had been to reveal the Supernatural to the senate itself and try and form their own watchers' council, so at least the United States' government would have control of American born slayers. But Kinsey soon realized the folly in a plan that involved trying to explain Vampires and Demons to a bunch of stuffy old men and chose plan B.
He would do anything he could to eliminate the need for a Slayer. So, he was trying to create some sort of unit whose sole purpose would be to eliminate Supernatural threats - aggressively. Unfortunately so far, he had encountered resistance at every step of the way. Those who knew of the Supernatural didn't see it as a great enough threat to really care. Their only concern was keeping the general public from learning the truth.
But Kinsey knew the truth. He knew the the world's survival often came down to the actions of a young girl. And he hated it with all of his being and it was this hatred, this burning rage and undeniable grief that kept him pushing. No matter what he had to do, he was determined to fix what he saw as a fatal error in history.
1996
Kinsey was fast asleep when a loud ringing jolted him upright. "Hello?" he grumbled into the telephone.
"Robert Kinsey? This is Elana Thomson from the Washington Post. Would you like to comment on the recent scandal regarding Senator Thames? It is well known the two of you are close colleagues." The voice responded. Kinsey bolted upright, no longer the least bit tired.
"I have no comment." He responded before abruptly hanging up the phone. He immediately turned on CNN and started calling anyone who was anyone. Within the hour, he learned that Senator Thames was knee deep in a prostitution ring. Kinsey was soon on the phone with his publicist, ensuring that his friendship with the senator wouldn't harm his own political career.
"Don't worry Bob, all you did was work closely with him in the Senate Appropriations Committee. If anything it will show how dedicated you are to your work." The publicist explained. Kinsey relaxed slightly before the next realization hit him. With Thames having resigned, he could potentially gain the coveted spot as chairmen of the Committee. And though he alone wouldn't have the power to create the division he so desired, it was a big step in the right direction.
With Kinsey's heavy involvement within the committee, his placement as chairmen was a no brainer. Within the week, he was at home enjoying a celebratory glass of scotch when he heard a knock on the door.
He opened the door to find a benign man holding out a folder. Before Kinsey could ask any questions the man explained, "I am only here to give you this information. It's your choice what you do with it," before fading back into the night. Kinsey stood there a moment before walking back into his house, his heart beating erratically.
What he found were what appeared to be simple accounting documents. Upon a more thorough inspection however he realized they were a detailed break down on military spending. The committee was responsible for ensuring the proper spending of US tax dollars but often times lumped sums were spent on various branches of the armed forces with a specific set of parameters. However, if he was reading the documents right, it appeared the US Air Force was stretching those parameters and putting obscene amounts of money into a completely off the book project.
"Son of a bitch." He stated to no one in particular. He immediately called his assistant to arrange a meeting with the Senate's Air Force liaison.
After confronting the Air Force with his information, he found himself bombarded with phrases like 'need for secrecy' and other bull meant to scare him away. But Kinsey felt his duty and mission was higher and was determined to get to the bottom of whatever was going on.
Finally, after threatening to reveal the contents of the document to the entire committee, he was granted clearance to learn the truth about the Stargate Program. And Kinsey was furious. 6 years ago, he had proposed a program to take the initiative against the supernatural and was turned down on the basis it cost too much. And now, he discovered there was a program eating up billions of American tax payer dollars dedicated to exploring different planets?
He looked the Major explaining everything in the eye before responding, "This is a joke right?"
Davis looked at him, obviously not surprised by the answer, "Well sir, I know aliens are a stretch-"
"It's not the aliens. I know there's more out there than the American people are ready to hear but what I don't understand is why we're funnelling all this money for a secret program that will just put Earth in more danger!" Kinsey spat, his face growing redder with each syllable.
Davis took a deep swallow. People were usually too stuck on the whole 'Aliens are real' thing to really think about the ramifications. "Well Senator, there is the undeniable benefit of knowledge gained out in the stars as well as the potential for new technology." Davis explained as best he could to a blatantly skeptical Kinsey.
Kinsey didn't appear to be satiated by this answer. "Well from what you've told me we have more questions than answers and this new technology is always a planet away. I know you're just a pencil pusher so I'm not going to take up any more of your time. Good day Major." Kinsey stated before leaving the Pentagon as quickly as possible.
He got into his car and took a few breaths, getting control of his rage. However, he was furious. There was a war going on on Earth but since it couldn't produce viable weapons the United States chose to ignore it. But Kinsey knew first hand the damage the supernatural could cause - not only to the American people but the good people fighting it.
"Ah Hell." He said out loud before making a sharp turn onto Pennsylvania Avenue. He was going to see what the president had to say about this.
"Senator Kinsey, it's always a pleasure." President Clinton stated with a nervous smile. He held his hand out to Kinsey who simply stared at it with a determined look.
"Let's skip the pleasantries. You know why I'm here. I want to know why the Stargate Program has been receiving nearly unlimited funding while another war continues to threaten us here, on Earth." Kinsey exclaimed hitting his hand against a desk for emphasis.
The president sighed, "I know you are somehow aware of the supernatural. And as you know we do have a small unit assigned to keep a lid on it, but really Bob, what are we supposed to do? A full blown ops would cost tens of millions of dollars and the potential loss of life would be catastrophic! Even more so, what could we possibly gain besides a few enemies? I know it sounds callous but the truth of the matter is the Stargate program may very well be humanity's future whereas the supernatural is our past."
Kinsey heard the president's words, but continued to see pure red. "Oh I understand perfectly that one war is more profitable than the other. But I have a few other facts for you," Kinsey paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts, "evidence shows that the number of Vampires in the United States is growing at an exponential rate. Unexplained deaths are reaching unprecedentedly high numbers. And while in the past Supernatural activity was for the most part confined to 'hot spots', there have been reports of growing demon populations in New York, LA, even here in DC. You might choose the clear and simple war we can fight out there in the stars but at this rate, you're going to have no choice but to face the Supernatural sooner of later. And when you do, what is the public going to say?" Kinsey finished and looked at the President as if to say your move.
Clinton wore the hint of a smile as he processed his thoughts. "So, let me get this straight. You want me to shut down the Stargate Program and create an operation with the sole purpose of eliminating the Supernatural threat? Or, I imagine you're going to cut the Air Force's budget to force their hand." He summarized.
"Exactly."
"Well let me first ask, why? I heard your spiel on the supernatural, but might I ask why you care so much." Clinton asked a stunned Kinsey.
"Besides my love for America, I'm sick of the fact innocent civilians are forced to fight this war. It's our duty to protect our citizens from every threat we're aware of. This is something we have to do." Kinsey stated as flat as possible. Clinton looked at him, a small glint of recognition clear in his eyes. The man had obviously lost somebody and was making it his personal mission to avenge them. But regardless, Kinsey was not somebody the president wanted to make his enemy.
"I'm going to have to give this some thought, Senator, but I am taking this very seriously. You have raised some good questions regarding the Stargate program and it's going to take me some time to make the right decision." Clinton finished and walked towards the door, opening it for Kinsey.
"Mr. President." Kinsey nodded on his way out and marched head on high out of the white house.
2003 - Present Day
"At that point, the president wasn't all that invested in the Stargate program. When it was first discovered the gate could go to different planets, it seemed the only option was to see what was on the other side but that first year was rough. There was a lot of death and not a lot of viable new technology. The president liked the idea of the Stargate and its potential for humanity but was also aware of my own personal influence. He asked me to meet with you four as a courtesy to the program. I know none of us got along at that meeting but well - I figure it should make sense to you now. You were all warning me about these Goa'uld from other planets all the while my nightmares were about terrifying creatures on this planet.
"Of course, I'll admit, I was a bit unreasonable. My attitude at the time was not formed by logic but by emotion. I was a bit childish but I couldn't stand the idea of the Stargate program." Kinsey finished. The members of SG-1 were all looking at Kinsey with a sense of understanding.
"This story's going to take a while, isn't it?" Jack spoke up. Kinsey simply nodded. "Well, I guess we should order some Chinese food or something." The rest of the group nodded. Kinsey realized he had his first victory - he got SG-1 to take him seriously.
1996
Kinsey received a highly abbreviated account of SG-1s recent activity saving the world and realized immediately what it meant - they proved they were needed. Now, Kinsey could swear at history for allowing them to open up the gate in the first place but even he couldn't find a rational reason to kill the program, however much he wanted to.
About a month went by and Kinsey felt at a loss for what to do. He fell asleep on the couch while watching the news one day and woke up to a late night movie. He blinked a few times from the surprise of finding himself asleep on the couch and jolted upon looking at the scene. After about a moment he realized it was Frankenstein and was suddenly inspired.
He laughed out loud and clapped his hands. Here he was, cursing the SGC because they received funding where his initiative received none when the answer was staring him straight in the eyes. Hell, the president practically told him what to do. The Stargate Program received money because it was considered a good investment whereas investing in a war against the Supernatural would likely have horrific consequences.
But what if battling monsters was only half of the mission? These creatures often had beyond human abilities, what if the other half of the mission was to harness these, to create weapons or 'upgrade' humans? Kinsey realized there was great potential for the mission to lose its focus but figured it was at the very least a start.
2005
"After I realized how I could receive funding, the Initiative was born. It started out innocently enough - we recruited promising candidates out of Basic and transformed them into Demon hunters. When they found a previously unseen creature, they would capture and bring it to the scientists, who would perform tests and attempt to figure out how they 'worked'.
"It didn't take too long for things to get out of hand. A year after the project began, I found a promising scientist - Maggie Walsh. Unfortunately, she saw this project as something of an opportunity to play God. Personally, I didn't care what the hell the geeks were doing so long as the jocks were successfully eliminating the supernatural threat. And they were." Kinsey shook his head, smiling.
"It's almost funny in hindsight, I was so monomaniacally focused on eliminating the known Supernatural threat I missed the growing one right in front of me. In Walsh's efforts to create the perfect soldier she created a monster, capable of unthinkable destruction. After we realized what had happened, the only logical thing to do was shut the program down and deny its existence." Kinsey elaborated.
"You keep saying 'we' who is this we?" Carter asked.
"'We' as in myself and the NID, of course." Kinsey stated as though it was obvious. This woke everyone up. "I don't know why you are all so surprised - the NID oversees all secret military operations. The world doesn't revolve around the SGC. And don't give me those looks - the Initiative wasn't a disaster because of the NID, although arguably there was poor oversight. It was a disaster because of that woman and her mistake.
"But I'm running away from the point here. The Initiative was, well, my first attempt to help the Slayer, but it didn't really work out that way." Kinsey chuckled.
"What do you mean?" Jackson asked, leaning into the table.
"A few good things came out of the initiative. Some solid soldiers, a greater knowledge of the supernatural, and knowledge of the Slayer..."
2000
Kinsey sat in a dark room alongside a couple generals, a colonel, and a representative of the NID. "Well gentlemen we all know why we're here. Let's do this." Kinsey began and the one star general spoke up.
"There will be no problem keeping the surviving military members quiet. In fact, there has already been talk about integrating the survivors into the preexisting task force."
"Everything appears to be by the book except for the vigilante group." The three star general spoke up, an annoyed look in his eye.
"I read something about this group in my reports. But who exactly are they?" Kinsey asked.
"Maggie Walsh did everything in her power to keep the group out of Initiative records and her successor didn't do anything to correct it. The group seems to consist of a girl known as the 'slayer' and a few of her friends." The 3 star general proceeded to show a clip of a girl killing demon upon demon - doing all she could to save lives. Kinsey nearly gasped aloud. Never had he imagined the Slayer would get involved with the Initiative, and it horrified him that his project could have gotten her killed.
The general turned off the tape and continued, "The Slayer is without a doubt a powerful being. All information we have suggests she won't talk but still - it would be best if someone would talk to her and make sure."
"Question. Why don't we study her." The NID rep suggested.
The one star general nearly laughed, "We think Maggie Walsh thought to do that at first but now - it would be idiotic. She has friends, a number of whom knew about the Initiative - some of whom were apart of it. More than that, she acted as a damn hero by saving all those lives that day. And finally, I really doubt we could catch her." The general finished the explanation.
"I would like to talk to the slayer personally. Thank her for all she did for us." Kinsey suggested.
The three star general shifted uncomfortably, "Are you sure you want to do that, Bob? This girl's dangerous."
"Yeah, and it sounds like she just had a bad run in with the US military. So maybe all of this would sound better coming from me than you." Kinsey pointed out. The general nodded in agreement. Kinsey decided they'd talked enough,
"Well, it's settled then. The Initiative will be buried, both figuratively and literally. We'll attempt to integrate the surviving soldiers into the preexisting op and I'll personally handle all possible civilian leaks. We will reconvene here in about a month to assess the situation's status. Dismissed."
Senator Kinsey felt it the moment he entered the city limits of Sunnydale. There was a chill in the air, which was funny considering Sunnydale was smack dab in the middle of Southern California. Whatever the feeling was, it didn't help that there seemed to be a graveyard every couple hundred yards and a church around every corner.
Kinsey strengthened his grip on the steering wheel and took comfort in the light of day. He would need all the strength to spend time in this god forsaken town - the one that took his daughter. He finally pulled onto Rivello Drive and was parked for about five minutes as he gathered the courage to walk into one Buffy Summers' home.
"Hello?" A short and irritated girl knocked on his window, startling Kinsey. It took a moment for him to respond.
After rolling down his window, Kinsey asked the logical first question, "Are you Buffy Summers?"
The girl froze for just a second, "What's it to you?"
"Alright, fine. I know you are Buffy Summers. I just want to talk to you is all." Kinsey promised, his hands open in a gesture of surrender.
Buffy looked contemplative for a moment but shrugged her shoulders. "Fine, but we shouldn't talk out here - you never know whose listening." She proceeded to lead Kinsey out of his car and into her home, though he noted he never really invited her in.
"Buffy? Who was in that car outside?" Kinsey heard someone yell from upstairs.
"We have a visitor, Riley." Buffy exclaimed and Riley ran downstairs. He recognized Kinsey the moment he saw the senator and was torn between respect and pure hatred.
"Buffy," Riley breathed into her ear, "he's the senator who was behind the Initiative." Buffy continued to look straight at Kinsey, perhaps hoping to glean information from him by sheer will alone.
Kinsey didn't necessarily recognize Riley but was smart enough to realize he was one of Buffy's 'friends' from the initiative from Riley's stares alone. "I'm guessing he just told you I'm responsible for the Initiative? Well unfortunately for both of us, he's right. But I didn't come here to rehash that nightmare - I came here to thank you for the many lives you saved that day." Kinsey stated surprising the couple. He stuck his hand out as a peace offering, but Buffy looked at his hand as though it wasn't human.
"What are you playing at?" Buffy asked, "Because the Initiative is over. You show up my house, what do you want?"
Kinsey had to take a moment to think about it. Officially, he was there to ensure the slayer would leave well enough alone and keep her mouth shut about the initiative. Unofficially, the moment he heard about the slayer, he had no choice but to come. "Do you want to know why I started the Initiative, Ms. Summers?"
"To create a super soldier?" Buffy asked, her eyebrows raised.
"No. To help you." This silenced Buffy, whose attention she now gave fully to the Senator. "Over fifteen years ago, my daughter was called as a slayer. Unfortunately, she didn't make it long. She was a dead within a year. I promised myself I would do everything in my power to ensure the Slayer wouldn't have to be alone. That she wouldn't have to fight if she didn't want to. And that if she did - she'd have a chance. But you see Ms. Summers - I didn't have much power so I got some. But I discovered no one in office wants to put money in an unprofitable venture so I had to put a twist on it."
"You created the Initiative so the Slayer would have back up?" Buffy asked incredulously. "How much of an idiot are you?" Kinsey was taken aback by her statement. "True, maybe the Initiative took out a demon here and there but how many died on random missions to retrieve them? Too many. It's not enough to trade one life for another." Buffy took a deep breath to calm herself,
"I've given this train of thought a moment or two myself and do you know what I discovered? There's no other choice. I have the power, the instincts, the urge to fight. And I am sorry for your loss, but you saving my life won't bring your daughter back." She told him with pity and determination in her eyes.
"Well, Ms. Summers. I see we disagree on this matter. I will leave you alone but uh - please. Let me know if there's ever anything I can do for you." Kinsey stated humbly before walking out, his shoulders hung just a little bit lower.
"Wait a second!" Buffy shouted at him. He turned around quickly, "It's just. We're not going to tell anyone - the Initiative. I imagine that's important to you public officials. We have no more desire than you for the world to know of its seedy underbelly." Kinsey nodded in thanks before rushing to his car.
Kinsey drove as quickly as possible out of the wretched city. First it took his daughter, and now it took his last piece of hope. He felt the emotions he'd bottled up since that fateful day so many years ago itch towards the surface and he pulled over just outside the Sunnydale city limits.
Wrenching open the car door, Kinsey walked dizzily into a field, his mind trying to keep up with his emotions. For years he had been telling his wife his determination wasn't vengeance that he had in fact grieved but he had to do this for his little girl any ways. But Buffy was that girl. And she told him flat out he was an idiot.
But he wasn't an idiot - he was a father who forgot to grieve, who instead embarked on an impossible mission guaranteed to take up the rest of his days on Earth. He cursed everything and everyone - the council, himself, his own daughter, the demons, the SGC, the president, but most of all whatever God thought this was right.
He was on the verge of pure insanity when a man approached him. He was friendly enough looking, sporting a top hat and a friendly smile. Kinsey thought for a moment the man couldn't possibly exist, considering all of the evidence he had so far proved people were in fact not good so why would some good Samaritan see if he was in trouble and stop by?
"Hey Senator, I see you're having a bad day." The shorter man said with a knowing look in his eye.
"Do I know you?"
"Well, no, but I know you. The name's Whistler." Whistler placed his hand out. Kinsey shook it not out of respect or out of courtesy but simply because he was so sore and exhausted he didn't know what else to do. "I've been following you for some time. And I've gotta tell you, I'm glad you talked to Buffy. She really knows how to talk sense into people."
"Pardon me?" Kinsey interrupted.
"BUT she tends to well - be a little abrupt and perhaps unfair. I think you're on the right path. Maybe you got lost a little along the way but hey - it happens." Whistler nodded.
"So I should continue to help the Slayer?" Kinsey asked incredulously.
"Well, not right now, exactly. My advisers," Whistler pointed up, "have informed me that there will be an opportunity for the rules of the game to change. And you do have a role to play. But you gotta be patient." Kinsey stared at the man, unsure whether Whistler was crazy or maybe he himself was. "But in the meantime, you should invest a little more into that program, you know, the one with the Gates and the Stars. Because there might be something there that's important." Whistler gave Kinsey a small wink before walking away. A moment or two passed before Kinsey was sober enough to follow the man.
"Whistler? Wait!" But the man was long gone and out of sight, with no evidence he was ever there. Kinsey was left in that field, clothes disheveled and soaked in sweat, trying to figure out what was real.
2003 - Present Day
"Hold on a second." O'Neill began, "You're saying an angel approached you and told you to take control of the Stargate."
"Well, at the time, that's what I thought happened." Kinsey explained, "But in hindsight, I don't think I truly understood what he was telling me."
"But the point is, your saying angels talk to you?" O'Neill asked incredulously.
"Whistler's not an angel Jack, simply an agent of some powers of good." Kinsey tried to explain, "Can I continue the story? I promise it will all make sense."
"Fine." Jack submitted.
"So I grieved for my daughter. And boy, my wife was relieved I had given up my crusade. I put all my efforts into figuring out what the Stargate could possibly provide that would help the Slayer or help 'even the odds' as Whistler put it. As you all can guess, this is why I contributed so much to the NID and became so involved with them. They provided a well - unique opportunity.
"I am willing to admit now that I became a man possessed - not literally of course. I became so obsessed that I forgot why I cared. And then this thing with Anubis happened and I was forced to step down. Even that didn't phase me until the next day..."
2003 - One Week Before the Meeting
"Kinsey." Kinsey answered his cell phone abruptly. He'd been fielding calls from old friends and colleagues all day, calling to say their two cents on his unprecedented resignation.
"Senator Kinsey? This is Buffy - Buffy Summers? The Slayer? I need your help." Kinsey jolted upright, as if coming out of a dream.
"Buffy? What is it?" Kinsey asked, a combination of curiosity and genuine concern.
"It's a bit of a situation, would it be alright if we met - maybe in LA? Tomorrow?" She sounded hopeful. The two discussed the details before hanging up. Kinsey paced the apartment he'd been staying in since his wife asked for a divorce six months earlier. His left hand was shaking as his right held onto a glass of whiskey for dear life.
He stood in front of the mirror and stared at himself until he couldn't take his own reflection and threw the glass of whiskey at it. The mirror shattered and he found himself crumpling to the floor. His world was truly coming down around him - his career, his family, and all for what? For her? What could he possibly do for her now - he was useless, powerless - he was nothing.
He wondered where he went wrong, he tried to do everything the angel told him but it all back fired. Instead of saving the world, his destroyed his own. What was the point? He asked himself.
But another voice in his head pointed out that the least he could do was pull himself together for one more day. Even if it was just to tell Buffy he failed her.
When he walked into the diner, he noticed Buffy sitting at a table in the back corner. She was currently staring at her hands and appeared to be meditating. Kinsey took a deep breath and walked towards her.
"It's good to see you Buffy." He told her before nodding his head and sitting across from her.
"You too." Buffy responded.
"So, what can I do for you?" Kinsey asked, breaking the awkward silence.
"Well, I know it's a long shot but here it goes. We're facing this thing - known as the first evil. There are a lot of boring factoids I could tell you about it but the point is this thing is beating us - hard. It's going after the entire slayer line and we've used up nearly our whole arsenal." Buffy let out in one long breath, "But there's a way we can win. I had a dream, not just any dream but a Slayer Dream and in it, we were fighting side by side another team. We were fighting the ubervamps while they were doing something sciency and well - the point is I could feel it in my heart - we had a chance. So I'm just trying to figure out who these people are.
"Our - cook - Andrew tried to draw what I described," she explained as she handed him a piece of paper, "I know it's a long shot but you have connections and none of mine turned up anything so - if there's anything you can do."
But Kinsey was barely listening to Buffy - he was staring at the picture. His face lost all color because regardless of how sloppy the sketch was there was no mistaking the team - it was SG-1.
2003 Present Day
"Wait a second - you need our help!" Daniel exclaimed.
"I don't need anything she needs your help!" Kinsey responded loudly. Jack looked deep in thought as Carter looked like she was trying with all her might to remember something.
"What could we possibly do?" Teal'c spoke up for the first time.
"Well I have no idea but apparently, she needs your help." Kinsey responded,
"All I ask is that you let me bring her down here. She has the clearance as a by product of her time working with the Initiative. You all can talk to her and take it from there."
Carter whispered something in Jack's ear who looked for a second as though he was contemplating something. "Alright, we'll meet her. But Kinsey I swear to god if any of this was made up just to-"
"Jack for once I am telling you all the honest to God truth." Kinsey stood up to leave, "Thank you all." And the former Vice President was gone.
"Carter, you look constipated what's going on with you?" Jack asked.
"It's just kinda sad, sir. Somebody told him to focus on the Stargate Program, that it would help in the end. Only he mistook the meaning. He tried to take the Stargate Program, not understanding that it was us he apparently needed in the end." Carter explained.
"Yeah, well irony's a bitch." Jack breathed before taking off to the mess hall. "Anybody up for jello?" The rest of SG-1 followed their leader talking about trivial matters.
3 Weeks Later
Kinsey sat in his apartment, watching a short documentary on his political career and the speculation on why he resigned. He took a sip of coke straight from the can when the phone rang.
"Hello?" Kinsey bellowed into the phone.
"Mr. Kinsey? It's me, Buffy." Kinsey became alert, while at the same time noting she had obviously caught up with politics a little. "I was just calling to thank you. Without you, I don't think we would have ever found SG-1."
Kinsey gave a small chuckle, "I'm glad I was able to help."
"And Mr. Kinsey? Everything's changed. I'm no longer the only slayer. There are thousands of us now. Girl's are no longer going to be forced from their lives and asked to die young." Kinsey audibly swallowed upon hearing this news.
"Thank you, Buffy." He stated before hanging up the phone, his eyes visibly watering.
"And the big question is, what will Kinsey do next?" Kinsey stood up and turned off the TV, ready for the first time in almost twenty years to move on.
The End