Disclaimer: I do not own anything… Or rather I don't own anything yet.
AN: Well, I had some very sporadic reviews. Some thought it was cool; some hated me for the suspense. Can any of you really believe that I killed Harry so soon? Congratulations to Gaul1 who figured out exactly what I was doing immediately after reading the chapter.
The Astral Diner
The bell chimed as Harry stepped into the quaint little restaurant. Tongue in cheek, he looked around seeing about a dozen people casually eating their food. Cautiously, he walked deeper into the room sitting down at a vacant table. A waitress came over to him.
"What can I get for you?" she asked.
"Information," Harry replied smiling. "Where am I?"
"This is the Astral Diner," she shrugged. "I am Oma Dessala. Now, what can I get for you?"
"No menus?" Harry wondered.
"We don't need them here," she smiled. "Just order anything you like."
"In that case, I'd like some yellow Asgard food tablets," Harry smiled. "They always seem to taste like cinnamon to me." Oma nodded and walked off. The door ringed again and a man walked in. Harry swiveled his head to look at the man for a brief moment before looking back at his table.
"Excuse me, is this seat taken?" Harry looked up to see the man whom had just entered the diner.
"No, please, sit down." The man smiled and sat across from him. "So, what can I do for you?"
"I understand if you don't recognize me," the man smiled nervously. "We haven't seen each other in a very long time."
"I wasn't under the impression that we knew each other," Harry said monotonously.
"We've only met a few times before, when you were but an infant," the man tensely replied. "My name is Janus." For several moments Harry regarded Janus with curiosity before realization dawned on him.
"Dad?"
June 6, 1998: Milky Way: Earth: Peterson Air Force Base
"What exactly am I looking at, Captain?" Hammond asked.
"You're not looking at anything, sir," Sam replied. She along with the remnants of SG1 stood on an airfield looking at… nothing. "We didn't even realize that it was there until a technician walked into it."
"But what is it?" Hammond asked shaking his head. Sam smiled nervously and pressed a button on a remote control. A MiG 29 Fulcrum appeared out of nowhere. "Captain, why is there a Russian plane on our runway?"
"We don't know sir," Sam replied. "It just appeared her under a cloaking device. We were unable to see until someone found the cockpit and climbed inside. They found a remote control that controls the cloak." She held up the remote. "According to the technician that found the cockpit, this MiG is unlike any other that we've ever seen before. Rather than made of earthen technology, it appears to be made of alien technology."
"Okay, now wait a minute," Jack said pointing at the plane. "Harry said that he was going to make a fighter of his own. Maybe this is it."
"How would Harry Potter come into contact with the schematics to build such weapons?" Teal'c wondered aloud.
"Back in Desert Storm, the Air Force captured an Iraqi Airfield that had a few MiG 29s in the hangers," Jack explained. "Harry told me that he got just about every single piece of military information the US has in exchange for hyperspace engines and sub light engines. That information would include the MiG."
"But why would he choose a MiG and not a more advanced fighter like the F-15?" Daniel wondered. He received many confused looks from his comrades. "What? When I was a kid I was a fighter-pilot buff. I wanted to fly them for a while before I figured out that I didn't have perfect eyesight."
"Regardless of the reason, we do have it now," Sam commented. "If it is jam-packed with alien technology we might be able to reverse engineer it."
"I'll have it transported to Area 51 for study," Hammond nodded. "In the meantime, Captain, I want you to continue your research into Mr. Potter's work." She nodded.
The Astral Diner
"You're my father?" Harry wondered incredulously.
"I am, Harry," Janus nodded.
"You'll excuse me if this is a little much to take in right now," Harry sputtered out. "I thought you were dead for almost eight years now."
"In a sense, you were right," Janus nodded again. "Technically, I am not alive, but technically neither are you. It's a long story."
"Well, seeing as how I'm not going anywhere you might as well tell me now," Harry commented. Janus nodded for the third time.
"Ten thousand years ago, the Ancients returned from the Pegasus Galaxy due to our losing of the war with the Wraith," Janus began. "That is a story for another time, however. The point is, your mother did not come from our time nor was she an Ancient. She'd come to Atlantis in a Time Machine I created from ten thousand years in the future. In fact, we would be nearing that time soon. Regardless, she accompanied the Ancients back through the Stargate to Earth where we lived out the rest of our lives in relative peace."
"This all seems like a fairytale story to me, so far," Harry muttered just loud enough for his father to hear.
"In time, most of the Ancients ascended to a higher plane of existence," Janus continued. "I was nearing the point in my evolution where my physical body would die if I did not Ascend. Your mother died giving birth to you. We should have been able to save her but she contracted an illness that even we did not know about. I was the only family you had left and yet you would be alone as soon as I ascended."
"I don't understand," Harry shook his with remarkable self control. "Are you telling me that you ascended and left me alone?"
"No!" Janus said quickly. "I would have died without ascending and you would have been left alone if I'd chosen to or not. I chose to live on so that one day I might be able to tell you everything that you'd ever wondered."
"But what happened to me?" Harry wondered. "If that was ten thousand years ago how am I alive now?"
"As an infant, I handed you over to an old friend of mine, Moros," Janus explained. "He promised that he would take care of you. After I ascended, he placed your fragile body into an advanced stasis chamber that perfectly preserved you. Ten thousand years later, or eighteen years ago if you prefer, your chamber was discovered by a man and a woman. After reviving you, they adopted you. These were the people that the Durselys told you were your parents though they were wrong too." Harry froze at the mention of his 'relatives'.
"Why?" Harry asked looking down, his eyes welling up with tears. "Why didn't you stop them? If I was your son, why did you let them do that to me?" Janus flinched at the word 'was'.
"Harry, one of the greatest rules of being an ascended being is that you cannot interfere with the lower planes of existence," Janus explained. "Believe me; if I could I would have destroyed those bastards who called you 'family' without a second thought. The Others would not let me, however, and I had to sit back and watch." His hands clenched into fists. "There was nothing I could do."
Harry fought back the anger and the sadness that welled up inside of him. He fought against the urge to hate the man before him. He fought desperately against the sadness knowing that there was nothing his father could have done for him.
"So, what happens to me now?" Harry wondered looking up, his face completely dry. "What happened to me?"
"You died back in the lower planes of existence," Janus said slowly. "Your desperate attempt to save your friends intrigued the others. At my request, they agreed to ascend you to this plane in payment for your sacrifice."
"So I'm ascended now?" Harry wondered in an attempt to get the facts straight. Janus nodded. "What do I do?"
"There are many rules to this existence," Janus continued. "The most important rule is that you cannot interfere with the lower planes of existence in any way. You shall be all knowing but there is little use for that knowledge when you cannot use it."
"That doesn't sound like much of a life," Harry remarked. "However, compared to the alternative I guess it can't be too bad."
"It will also give us some time together," Janus smiled. "I'm sure that you have questions for me." He almost, or rather did sound hopeful. Harry studied his father for a few moments.
"Tell me about my mother," he requested. His father smiled.
(End Chapter)
Well, there you have it: the mystery behind Harry's disappearance. Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter. While it isn't one of my bests it still provides a bit of food for thought. I do have a rough storyline laid out. While some of you may not like it, it'll provide a more realistic characterization. Please continue to review. I do enjoy it. Oh, and virtual cookies are enjoyed, as long as they are not oatmeal raisin. I hate raisins.
(Post Script: I know that the Astral Diner was from Daniel's consciousness, but I really liked the idea of ascended people being able to go to a place where they can just hang out. It's cool.)