Shawn Allen had been an agent for the NID for over ten years. He'd managed to avoid the fallout from the Initiative and the kidnapping attempts against Abigail Harris-Chase. Why those squeamish people at Stargate Command, as well as the President, refused to see the potential of the demons or dimensional invaders, whatever one wanted to call them, he did not. Not to mention, the potential of reverse engineering a Protector, one they could control, add in this hypothetical Protector having the ability to control Ancient tech and you had gold. When he received word from his contact at Cheyenne Mountain that a child from another reality had come thru the Quantum Mirror and that said child was the offspring of Alexander Harris-Chase and his wife Cordelia Harris-Chase, Shawn could've jumped for joy. Another chance. Now all they needed to do was get ahold of the boy. Easier said then done. Especially where Harris was concerned. He'd gather his so-called Pack around that boy, tight. Shawn knew that. But the reward was worth the risk.
Meanwhile, in the Brave au:
"Giles how could you lose our son?" An astonished Xander Harris asked his father figure.
"It wasn't like it was on purpose, Xander. I was helping a customer. One moment he was here, the next he wasn't. I have no idea what happened to him." Giles answered.
"He knows better than to wonder outside, so whatever happened, happened in here." Cordelia said. "We just have to figure out what that something is. Now his scent is over here. Is there anything over here that could have affected him."
Giles walked over to where she was standing and looked around. His eyes fell on the mirror. "Oh dear."
"Oh dear what, Giles?" Cordelia asked.
"I just got this in today. It's something I wanted to study. It's believed to be cursed."
"Cursed how?" Xander asked.
"People are said to disappear. And not come back."
Cordelia felt her claws grow as she struggled for control. She could scent Xander's own anger and fear.
"You brought something like that into a place where people are at? Where my son would be?" She asked.
Xander put his hand on her shoulder and gently squeezed. "Giles, figure it out and get him back here or I will feed you to a Marnak demon. I'll probably hate myself for it, but just so you know, I won't let that stop me."
"I'll start studying it immediately."
"Do that." Cordelia growled out, barely managing to retain control. If Xander hadn't been there, she very well may not have.
In the Protectors au:
"How close are we to getting the Mirror open again?" General Landry asked.
"We don't know, sir. There are really only two people who know anything about it, Colonel Carter and Dr. McKay. Colonel Carter is on the Hammond and Dr. McKay is tied up with something in Atlantis. It'll be a week before Colonel Carter is back, but Dr. McKay says he'll be here as soon as he can. In the meantime, they advise that we do not touch it or the control. We may move it off the reality the boy came from and not be able to reestablish contact."
"So basically, just sit tight and twiddle our thumbs?" General O'Neill asked from where he was sitting. The news that his friend had spontaneously acquired a new child, had brought him to Stargate Command to get first hand information.
"Basically? Yes, sir." The scientist, Dr. Nate Rigby, said.
"Then get back to your regular job." General Landry ordered, frustrated.
"Yes, sir." The little scientist squeeked and hurried off.
"How's the boy doing?" O'Neill asked.
"He seemed okay, when Harris and his family came to pick him up. A little lost looking. He made a weird comment and Harris shut me down on it."
"What did he say?"
"That they have a little house for full moon nights and it's a family secret. Jack, you had Harris prove to me that vampires exist. Do werewolves exist?"
"Do you really want an answer to that question, Hank?"
"I was afraid you'd say that."
"You should know better by now."
"I really should."
Meanwhile back in Sunnydale:
Cordelia called the kids in for lunch. As they were eating their sandwiches, she was chatting with them. You'd never know Jesse hadn't been apart of their lives 24 hours ago. He seemed apart of them. And in a way he was. Cordelia was struggling. Part of her wanted to be selfish and destroy that Mirror so she could keep him forever. But another part knew, she'd hate herself forever for doing that to parents who loved their son. And Jesse needed the people who knew him best. It would hurt her to send him back, but she would do it, because if it had been the other way around, the other her would have been facing the same dilemma. In the end, they had to do what was best for Jesse.
"My daddy can make things go on fire. Giles says it's called pyromancy, I think. Can your daddy do that?" Jesse asked Abigail.
"No, but Uncle Jesse can make fireballs."
"Xander's a pyromancer where you're from? That must be the mystical potential Grandma mentioned. She said I might get visions too. Does your mommy get visions?" Cordelia asked Jesse.
"Pictures in her head, yes. She says they're like movies in her head."
"Neat." Abigail said.
"The pictures help the Scoobies save people."
"The Scoobies." Cordelia asked.
"That's what daddy calls our family. Uncle Giles, Aunt Willow and Aunt Tara and Aunt Faith and Dawn, Aunt Buffy's sister. Aunt Buffy died when a hell goddess, tried to make Dawn use her blood to open a door to her home. It would have broken our home."
With an astonished intake of breathe, Cordelia realized, this Dawn, must be Abigail's equivalent in that reality. The Key. Oh dear Lord, as Giles would say.