I'm continuing my story, Dangerous Secrets. In that story Xander became a real soldier on Halloween as a result of Ethan's so-called prank. Major Charles Kowalski from Stargate. Which left him with dangerous secrets in his head. Secrets about the Stargate and aliens. Classified knowledge that could have gotten him in real trouble if it came out. And you know, he would not have been able to resist using some of that knowledge to protect his friends and family, so it would have come out, eventually. So he did the right thing. He reached out to Jack O'Neill and asked for help. He got it. It changed his and Cordelia's lives.

Anyone who reads one of my stories knows, not even my favorite couple from Buffy the Vampire Slayer is spared life's pain and heartache. Because real life simply doesn't work that way. The best you can hope for is to live a life that ends with few regrets. That being said, this story will start with a devastating loss for both Xander and Cordelia.

As in all of my stories where Buffy crosses with Stargate, Xander and Cordelia have the Ancient gene. Which will lead to them being offered a place on the Atlantis Expedition. This won't just be a Xander and Cordelia in Atlantis story, though. It'll be two. I've done the switching back and forth between two au's thing in Twice the Trouble. This one is going to switch back and forth between two times.

The story will begin five years after Dangerous Secrets ended. Xander and Cordelia are now twenty six and half. Xander has recently been promoted to Captain and Cordelia has just finished Law School and passed the bar.

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Captain Alexander Harris stepped thru the Stargate and back onto Earth. He'd been gone for a week negotiating with the Melkans, a people whose language descended from Spanish. While he spoke modern Spanish, the Spanish language originally came from Latin, a language he knew in several forms. It had taken time, but he and his counterpart had managed to communicate and complete a treaty that satisfied both sides. Which was good because the Melkans were advanced medically and had a number of cancer treatments that Earth very much wanted and would now be able to begin to understand and eventually use to help people. It was a good way to begin his and Cordy's vacation. She'd just finished Law School, something that meant commuting to Denver everyday. A trip that could easily take an hour and half one way, and passed the bar. They planned to celebrate with two weeks on a Baja beach. Cordy had teased him with the knowledge that she'd purchased a new bikini just for the trip. Yes, he was most definitely looking forward to this vacation.

Which is why it scared the Hell out of him to see Brigadier General Jack O'Neill, head of the Stargate base, as well as his and Cordy's good friend, standing at the base of the ramp that led up to the Stargate, wearing street clothes and looking unshaven.

"General?" Xander said, hesitantly.

"Xander, we need to talk."

Jack never called him Xander. Jack called him kid when they were off duty and Captain or Harris when they were on duty. Xander felt an icy ball of fear form in his gut.

"Just tell me, please." He begged. "Not Cordy."

"A drunk driver ran a red light and struck her head on. Physically, she'll be fine. A concussion, some cracked ribs, broken nose from the air bag. Emotionally, she had a surprise for you, Xander. She was going to tell you while you were on vacation. When it could just be the two of you. She was two and half months pregnant. She only knew for about two weeks. Janet had her moved here, so she could monitor her, herself. Once Janet's checked you over, you can see her."

A baby. He'd known Cordy had been excited the last couple of weeks, bouncing on her toes and occasionally giggling. He'd thought she was excited over the trip. And she was. She was excited to tell him he was going to be a daddy. That their love had made a new life. And some drunk, some Tony Harris want to be, had stolen that from them.

"The asshole?"

"Dead on scene, ejected from his truck because he wasn't wearing a seatbelt."

"Good." Yes, he's was well aware of the fact that he has a vindictive streak in him. It went hand in hand with a protective streak. Because if you failed in your attempts to protect someone, whoever was responsible, then had to pay.

Xander hurried to the infirmary. The sooner Janet finished her post trip exam of him, the sooner he could get to Cordy. How long had it been? A few hours, days? Jack hadn't said when exactly the accident happened, just that Janet had had Cordy moved to the base to monitor her, herself. Good, Janet was one of the best doctors around. Cordy would get the best care, physically at least. Taking care of her emotionally was his job and he impatiently endured the exam as a necessary evil, until he could get to her. Janet's red eyes told him, she was grieving with them. She did the exam quickly and efficiently and quietly told him which of the private rooms Cordelia was in. He ran as fast as he could and entered without knocking.

She was sitting on the bed. Her face was bruised and her eyes swollen and red. She looked small. Small was not a word Xander had ever associated with Cordelia Chase, she stood five foot eight inches tall, she had curves, she was the self proclaimed Bitch Queen of Sunnydale High. No, small was not a word that describes Cordelia Chase.

She looked up and saw him standing in the doorway.

"Xander, I lost our baby."

"No, someone stole its life, there's a difference. This was not your fault. Don't ever blame yourself for what someone else chose to do. I love you, Cordelia Chase and nothing will ever change that."

They held each other and grieved for the child they'd never know.