Nothing is as Simple as We Hope it Will Be

Recap: Chapter One
"What were you doing?!" Rodney cried out realising that John was awake enough to speak.

"Restoring the ZPM" John said simply as he began to sit up.

"That's impossible. ZPM works on vacuum energy, how could you restore it?" Rodney said, snapping out facts.

"Magic." John said as he stood up, leaning heavily on the ZPM interface.

Rodney snorted, "Magic?"

"Yes, Rodney, magic." John said seriously as he thought about how it was the first time he had done magic since he was known as Harry Potter.

Chapter 2
John's whole body was tingling as he felt the magic that was slowly dispersing through the air. Rodney was saying something, but he wasn't paying that much attention. He had used magic! After all those years of swearing to himself that he would leave everything magical behind. He sighed and tried to stand up on his own, but he found that his legs were still to weak to hold him entirely. He, therefore found himself clinging to the ZPM console for dear life again. He looked over at Rodney who had stopped talking. "What?" He asked.

"Here I can prove the ZPM levels are still where they were before," He paused and blinked as he looked down at the console. "ZPM levels are fully recharged!" Rodney exclaimed as he leaned over the console.

"And why is that a problem?" John asked.

"Well, not a problem. But, we have never seen a ZPM raise in energy levels. They only drop."

"I told you I recharged it." John groaned out as he rubbed his head. He could feel a headache coming on already.

"That is impossible." Rodney said, brushing off John's explanation, as he began to type furiously. "According to this." He began slowly reading from the console, "The ZPM gained a large boost in it's power about three, five minutes ago. Which means that's when you were touching it." Rodney said as he slowly turned to stare at John.

"What!" John said after a few moments of being under Rodney's gaze.

"You weren't kidding were you?" Rodney asked in wonderment.

"No, I wasn't." John said as he half walked half dragged himself towards the hallway.

"But, magic isn't real." Rodney said, trying to rationalize the fairy-tale he had just been thrown into as he followed John out into the hallway.

"And neither is is possible, in hundreds of years, for a geek to live his dream of flying space-ships and aliens." John said monotonously.

"That...that's different. There is solid math behind the flying space ships. And life that evolves on different planets is to be expected." Rodney said quickly before pausing. "I am not a geek!"

"Uh-huh. And life forms that evolve into aliens that suck the life out of humans are expected too?" John asked sarcastically as he made his way to the transport chamber.

Rodney glared over at John as he followed him. "So, you can recharge ZPMs?" Rodney bit out as he glanced over at John.

"Yes."

"With magic?"

"That's what I said."

"Well, then why the hell didn't you use your voodoo on all the other ZPM's we burnt out?" Rodney asked angrily.

John frowned slightly as he lead Rodney up to the operations center, glad that there was no one else around to overhear their conversation. "Seven years ago I swore to myself that I would never use magic again."

"Never? Even when it was obviously so much help?" Rodney asked.

"We have made it this far without magic." John said with a shrug. "Magic was nothing but trouble for me anyways."

"Wait..." Rodney said suddenly holding up a hand. "You said seven years ago."

"Yes."

"So you were doing magic on earth?"

"Yes." John said wearily.

"Why does no one else at the SGC know about this magic-voodoo or whatever it is?"

"Ever read the reports on the Nox?" John asked.

"Yes. I did. Race with the technology to hide things from sight."

"More like race with magic and powerful technology, but the magical humans on earth are not very open to non-magicals and hide everything they don't want seen just like the Nox do," John explained.

"There are more people on earth that can do magic?" Rodney asked the doubt ringing in his voice.

"A whole magical kingdom."

"So, you are telling me that there really are witches crackling over bowling cauldrons of green goo?" He asked sceptically.

"No. Most people don't have the patience to stand over a cauldron all day." John said as he gave a tired yawn.

"Well, can you show me more magic?" Rodney asked suddenly, his eyes bright as if he were in a candy store.

John rubbed the back of his head. "Uh, no. What I did was sort of wandless magic and more of accidental then regular controlled magic. Plus, I left my wand on earth."

"You have a wand." Rodney asked in disbelief.

"Yeah."

"Weird." Rodney said making a face at the idea of John running around with a stick, spouting off odd words and turning people into frogs.

"Yeah, well, as much as I love discussing this with you, are we going to crash into the planet if you don't do something?" John asked innocently as he looked down at one of the screens.

"What?" Rodney asked a look of confusion on his face before he realized what it was John was asking, "Crap," Rodney exclaimed before taking a deep breath to calm himself. "Right, it would be a better idea to stay above the planet. Now, that the ZPM is fully recharged we can remain in orbit for as long as we need to." Rodney explained as he tapped some of the controls, he worked for a few moments in silence before finally straightening up. "There, done."

"Good work, Rodney." John said as he clapped Rodney on the shoulder before walking slowly off. "Now, no more talk of magic. We have to tell Ronnon and Teyla we are okay."

"Wait, but, I have more questions!" Rodney said, but it was too late. John was already walking away.

"Later, Rodney!" John called over his shoulder.

Rodney watched John open up communication to the jumpers. There was a multitude of questions tumbling about in his mind, logically trying to piece everything together. It just seemed like a fantasy, but then again so had the stargate when he had first been approached by the United States Government. But, this seemed almost crazy. Witches and Wizards! He could hardly believe it. He had seen it though. John had stood there and had obviously done something. They were still alive.

He slowly lowered his hand and looked down at his computer and gave a small laugh, trying to quell the rising self-doubt. He had been working here for three years now, coming close on his fourth. Every time the city had a problem with a lack of power, he, Rodney McKay, had been able to overcome the lack and save the entire city. Now, he had failed to do it. John had been able to use his 'magic' and save the city before they all perished in the vacuums of space.

He had been worthless this time around.

"Rodney." He head John address him. He looked up.

"Yeah?" He asked, glad his voice did not crack.

"I am going to the jumper bay to wait for Teyla and Ronnon. Want to come?" John asked.

"You know what, I am going to try and find out where we are now that I have enough energy to keep the long range sensors on."

"Alright." John said as he began to walk out of the main control room.

Rodney watched him go and sat down at the long range sensor control panel. "Alright, McKay, nothing like burying yourself in work. Now get to it." He said to himself, pushing himself straight into his work.

"Alright, Let's see how far we can push those long range sensors." He said to himself as he fiddled with the controls. "Looking for galaxies." He said talking under his breath. "And..." he held his breath as he waited for the displays to come back. "There we have it." He said as he scrutinized the images and text. "No wonder." He said muttering to himself. "We aren't in pegasus or the milky way." Rubbing his eyes from lack of sleep he looked up at the stargate. "We are in Andromeda." He said to himself.

"Andromeda?" He heard a voice ask from behind him. It was Teyla.

"Yes. Another galaxy in our section of the universe." Rodney stated.

"I see. Well, I came to thank you for saving the city." Teyla said.

Rodney spun around in his seat.

"Saving the city? I didn't do anything. Sheppard is the one that saved the city." Rodney explained quickly.

"You did not? John said that we should all be thanking you for helping to save the city again. He said that if it had not been for you finding a planet we could have very likely perished in space," Teyla said, a look of confusion emerging on her face.

"Oh," Rodney said, just as confused as Teyla.

"You did help save the city." John said as he came and stood next to Teyla. "Without you, we would have never had a reason to go look at the ZPM and look for that malfunction you found. Right?" John said giving Rodney a meaningful look.

"Malfunction?" Rodney asked.

"Yeah, the malfunction with the power reading equipment, we had a lot more power left in that ZPM then we thought we did." John explained to Teyla, though he kept looking at Rodney every few moments.

Rodney gave a shaky laugh. He had never heard John purposefully lie outright to one of their team mates. "Right...malfunction. Well, I fixed it and it is all better now."

"That's right." John said with a nod of his head. "Well, I don't know about you two but I am going to go get some shut eye. You should too, McKay." John said as he waited for Rodney to stand up and join him on the way back towards their quarters.

Rodney looked up at John, more questions tumbling through his mind. He slowly stood up with a nod. "Alright. See you later, Teyla." He said as he walked off the bridge, John following behind him. Rodney walked in complete silence until he was sure that there was no one else within hearing distance. "Why are we lying to Teyla?" He asked quietly as he looked over at John who was walking calmly besides him.

"If you were given a super power, would you want everyone to come running to you, looking for a solution?" John asked grumpily.

"But lying to Teyla?"

"I don't like it, but it is what I have been doing for the last seven years, and I am going to try and keep my story as straight as possible."

"But, she is your friend. Our friend! Doesn't she deserve to know the truth?" Rodney asked in dismay.

"I have not told anyone." John said heavily.

"You told me." Rodney countered.

"I know, and I am starting to think I should have just left you wonder as to what happened." John said as he came to stop in front of his room. "Look, McKay, I am sorry about the whole secrecy thing, but that is just the way things are going to have to be for right now. I will think about telling Teyla and Ronan, but for now keep it quiet."

"Fine." Rodney said stiffly. "Good night." Rodney walked away quickly, not giving John any time to respond. He didn't like all this secrecy and him getting credit for something that he had nothing to do with.

Once John's door was closed he paced down across his room and let out a growl of frustration. After seven years his secret was out. He trusted Rodney, but once there was a crack in his secret, he knew it would slowly grow and then more people would know about it. He sighed as he sat down on his bed. "And so the great Harry Potter is found again." He said in irritation. He fell back down against the bed and rubbed his head. "This is just what I need right now." John pushed himself all the way up onto his bed and began to let his mind wander before he finally fell asleep, memories drifting into his mind.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were all standing upon the stage that had been erected in the main hall on the ministry of magic. The new minister of magic, Bedrich Nove, stood before the golden trio and held up his hand to silence the crowd before him. He cleared his voice and began, "Today we are gathered to honor the heroes that have freed the wizarding world from Lord Voldemort, may their names be remembered in history forever." There was a grand applause and all three of the friends blushed modestly as they heard the cat-calls and whistling coming from the crowd. "I am here today to award the Order of Merlin to our three champions. Harry Potter! Hermione Granger! and Ron Weasley!" Nove called out.

The applause was thunderous as Harry stepped forward to received his award, the memories of all those who had been lost in the war still fresh in his mind.

Harry stood nervously fidgeting on the front of a stage yet again. It was his wedding day. Ron was standing at his side, the new dress robes he had on a clear sign of the improvements in his life now that the war was over. Ginny was walking slowly up the aisle her hand delicately resting on her fathers proffered arm. Harry watched as Ginny made her way up to where he stood. Minerva McGonagall stood behind him waiting for the bride to arrive.

Harry watched as his soon to be wife came and stood in front of him, all the nervousness, anxiety, happiness and hope clearly displayed in her eyes.

Harry barely even heard as Minerva spoke, "We have gathered today..."

Harry ran into his and Ginny's small cottage and twirled Ginny around in his arms. "They gave me a position at the ministry to help put together the wizarding world now that Voldemort is gone." He exclaimed happily, laughing at the same time. "Think of all the good we can do now. They are giving me funds to build more orphanages for magical children, and they are calling out more actively for the last few death eaters that have escaped capture." He paused to catch his breath, his smile still splayed across his face. "Oh, Ginny, you have no idea how wonderful this is. I am so happy."

"But I think I can make you more happy." Ginny said bravely, a sly smile spreading over her face as she leaned in to give Harry a quick kiss. "I think I am pregnant." She whispered happily.

Harry sat as at the dinner table with Ginny as he put the last spoonful of mashed potatoes into his mouth.

"You were late again." Ginny said matter of factly. She was five months along in her pregnancy.

"I am sorry, Ginny. I just get so carried away with all of this. It is so exciting to me to be able to set up the orphanage just the way I want it." Harry said with a sheepish smile.

"I don't like it though. This is the third time this week that you have been late for dinner." Ginny said unhappily as she rubbed her hands over her stomach.

"I know. I try and keep an eye on the time, but Miss. Scarret always has the most interesting ideas and we tend to get going on something and lose track of time."

"She is more important to you?" Ginny asked angrily as she stood up.

"That isn't what I said, Ginny. I said that she distracts me because she is there talking to me. And then Ministry officials stop in all the time asking for advice and..." He trailed off.

"Whatever, Harry. I am going to bed. You can get the dishes."

Harry returned late that evening from work to find his nine month pregnant wife sitting on his couch in his study. From the red eyes and kleenex it looked like she had been crying. She did not even look up when he approached her. "Ginny?" Harry asked in a soft voice.

"I hate you, Harry Potter." Ginny said, her voice flat.

"What? Ginny, what is going on?" Harry asked confused.

"Am I not good enough? Is that why you are seeing another woman? You always come home so late and leave so early. Always saying that you are working. Always working. Saving children from horrible fates. Building up an orphanage." Ginny said hysterically as she mimicked his voice as another silent tear ran down her cheek. "You are never home, Harry." She sobbed, her voice cracking.

Harry knelt down besides his wife and reached up to brush it away, but her hand smacked his away and her head snapped around to look directly at him. "You Harry Potter are despicable." She hissed before spitting in his face. "Who is the woman you are seeing? Is it a woman? Why can't you ever spend an evening at home!"

Harry looked up at Ginny in total confusion. Where had she gotten the idea... "I...Ginny, I don't...Where in the world...I have been trying..."

Ginny cut him off before he was even able to put his thoughts together. "You know what! I don't care. I am leaving, and I don't want to see your miserable face ever again!"

Harry spent more then a week wandering around his empty home. Ginny had taken everything that had been hers and had left the house stark of the life and comfort that it had held before. All the things that they had bought for the baby were gone as were all the house elves. They had sided with Ginny, believing that horrible tale that she had woven herself. She had nullified their marriage bond, crushing Harry. Harry, however, had not chased after her. He had quietly pulled open an old journal from the war where he had listed everyone who had died, and added Ginny's name to the end of the list, right under the names of Tonks and Remus.

She was lost to him, and nothing his friends said would ever change that fact for him.

Harry closed up his house for what he hoped was the last time. He mailed his wand to Gringotts for safe keeping and apparated away. He appeared at Heathrow, showed off an american passport that said John Sheppard and flew across an entire ocean to restart his life.
John sat up with a gasp with Ginny's name lingering on his lips. His eyes focused and he realized where he was. "Damn it." He muttered under his breath as he rolled out of bed. He had not thought about his ex-wife in such detail in a long time. He rubbed his hand through his hair. It was going to be a long day.
A/N: Well there you go. Another chapter done. I know there were a lot of you waiting for this next chapter. Sorry about not having gotten it up sooner. I have just finally started to get myself organized here at college. ) It is exciting. I hope you all liked this chapter and I hope you all leave reviews, hopefully some more critical ones. -hint-hint-

R&R