Title: Different Windows
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Up to end of Fourth Series in Buffy and the first couple of series for SG1.
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy or SG1. I would buy Sam and Tara but I am broke.
Summary: The President calls it Classified, the military calls it redeployment of assets, and the Scooby Gang just call it the same old deal with a new twist. AU near the end of Fourth Series of Buffy, where the Gang gets relieved and moved to a different part of the fight for Earth
"" denotes speech, '' denotes thought
A/N: Apologies for the long delay.
General Hammond and SG1 were sitting at the briefing table, with the files of the self named 'Scooby Gang' in front of them.
"Are you sure about this, Sir?" Jack said.
"The orders have been given." Hammond replied. "By the President."
"Right." Jack said.
"Show them in." Hammond Ordered to the Airman guarding the door.
When they entered, all of them were dressed in blue BDUs but they were all very different. Harris and Mclay entered first, side by side and they wore the BDUs well. Next came Summers and Rosenberg, gossiping like schoolgirls. Somehow Summers made the BDUs seem like casual clothes while Rosenberg seemed to wear them uncomfortably. Doctor Giles entered last, rubbing the bridge of his nose beneath his glasses, seemingly in frustration at the girls in front of him.
Harris and Mclay stopped at the foot of the table and saluted. Summers looked at the two of them, at those seated at the table, back at her two friends and then saluted as well. Rosenberg waved while Giles simply nodded.
"Take a seat." Hammond ordered.
Giles sat at the foot of the conference table with Xander and Tara on his right and Buffy and Willow on his left.
"The President has approved a new team designated SG-19. It will be lead by Captain Harris, and will be made up of Lieutenant Mclay, Sergeant Summers and Miss Rosenberg." Hammond said. "Doctor Giles, you will be the co-head of the linguistics department with Doctor Jackson."
"Does this mean we are part of the Air Force now?" Buffy asked.
"Technically, no." General Hammond replied. "The President has classified you as an 'Independent Military Organisation', attached to the SGC. Your ranks are to help you fit into the SGC Command structure."
"Are we subject to all of the statutes the UCMJ, Sir?" Xander asked.
"Generally, Captain. There is a full list of Regulations that the President has agreed to for you peruse." General Hammond replied.
"Xand, what's the UCMJ?" Buffy asked.
"Uniform Code of Military Justice." Xander replied. "It's the rules the Military operate under."
"SG-19, Doctor Giles, familiarise yourself with the base. SG-1, SG-19, you will have a briefing in three days for your mission to P4X-639. Dismissed." General Hammond concluded the briefing.
"So, how is everyone settling in?" Xander asked, taking a sip of coffee.
"They seem to be settling in fine." Tara replied. "Giles and Doctor Jackson are busy translating the latest artefacts that SG-7 brought back. Willow and Major Carter are updating the base computer. Buffy and Teal'c are sparing down in the gym."
They were sitting in the Commissary drinking coffee. Xander was unsurprised that Tara had been given second in command of the team over Buffy, just as he was unsurprised that he had been given command. The ranks they had been given did surprise him though. Sure he had Soldier Boy in his head, but out of the four sets of memories that made up Soldier Boy, one was a Lieutenant, two were Sergeants and one was a Private. Frankly he had expected that if they were given ranks at all he would be a Lieutenant, with Buffy and Tara as Non-Coms. Once the shock had passed, he was proud of Tara for getting a Lieutenant's rank. It showed how far she had come since he had first met her.
Xander had met Tara on the day he had returned to Sunnydale from his Roadtrip, which never got further than Oxnard. It had also been the day that Tara had arrived in Sunnydale. Tara's bus into town had been delayed and thus arrived after sundown. She had been walking down the street looking for a motel to spend the night in, because the UC Sunnydale Housing Office was closed, when she had been attacked by two Vampires. Xander had been driving past in his barely repaired clunker of a car when he had heard her scream and come to her rescue. Xander had been surprised how little difficulty he had dealing with the two vampires, sure they were strong but he seemed to be able to predict their moves with ease.
Xander had taken Tara to Giles' place, where she had revealed that she was a Witch, and Xander had told the older man how easily he had fought two Vampires. Both Xander and Tara had stayed at the former Watcher's house that night, Tara in the guest bedroom and Xander on the couch, and it had started a whole new dynamic. Tara, having found in Xander the first man in her life that she could trust, had slowly become extremely loyal to him and trusted him above all others. Xander had found a new confidence in himself and a mentor in Giles that provided all the attention and guidance he never received from his parents. Giles found a renewed purpose in helping and guiding both Xander and Tara as he had once hoped to do for Buffy, before her fiercely independent nature, and need to have a 'normal' life had interfered.
By the time Buffy and Willow took time out of their busy Collage schedules to ask Giles for help, two weeks later, Xander was living in the spare room of Giles' apartment and Tara was coming by daily to train with Xander and discuss research and Magic with Giles. It had taken Buffy and Willow a while to adjust to the new situation, and Xander's more capable and commanding attitude. There had also been some tension between Willow and Tara on the Magical front, as Willow had more raw power than the blonde Witch, but Tara's greater experience had won out after an incident where Willow had gone too far with a spell and Tara, with some assistance from Giles, had bound most of Willow's power. After that, and a long conversation with Giles, Willow had begun to concentrate as much on her old love of computers as she was on slowly learning how to properly control her Magic in lessons with Giles and Tara.
"Captain, Lieutenant." Colonel O'Neill said, sliding into a seat at their table. "How are you finding the SGC?"
"Colonel O'Neill." Tara said in greeting.
"No issues yet, Sir." Xander replied to the Colonel's question.
"Captain. We have a lesson with Sergeant Siller in twenty one minutes and thirty four seconds on the operation of the Stargate and the DHD." Tara said, rising from her seat without consulting her watch.
"I will see you there, Lieutenant." Xander replied.
"She has a good head for schedules and details." Jack observed.
"Comes with the territory." Xander replied.
"I don't understand." Jack replied.
"Tara's a Wiccan." Xander said with a shrug. "When you have experience in rituals that can sometimes last up to seventeen hours and they need split second timing you learn to time things to perfection. Or you end up painting the ceiling with you own intestines."
"Does that happen often?" Jack asked in shock.
After the 'Graduation Investigation', SG1 had learnt the truth about a number of things most people would refuse to accept, but it was still a new concept for them. Sam in particular had trouble with the concept, until Giles, Willow and Tara had explained it in terms of 'energy transfer' and 'particle entropy' and a host of other things that went way over Jack's head.
"The intestine thing?" Xander said, getting a nod from Jack. "Not really. I mean I've only seen it happen maybe twice. Once was my fault, but hey, she was trying to end the world, so not that cut up about it."
"So, are you telling me that Mclay or Rosenberg could just up and explode at any time?" Jack replied.
"Nah." Xander said with a dismissive wave. "Those were specific rituals. Tara is to disciplined and Willow..."
"Unscheduled Off World Activation." The PA announced. "Unscheduled Off World 1 to the Control Room."
"We will be talking about this later." Jack said as stood and left the table.
TBC…