Crossover Fic: Interference Well Met (13/17) BtVS/Stargate SG-1
** See Part 1 for full disclaimers and story details
PART 13 NOTES: This chapter wraps up one plot line before the final push to the end. Enjoy! Many huge thanks go to Lynette, super-powered beta. I just dumped yet another 70,000 word fic on her and she didn't even blink. Her work is never done. Any remaining mistakes are purely mine as I tend to fiddle up until the last possible moment. (g) As always, any and all feedback is appreciated.
************
Part Thirteen
************
It was all a surreal blur. The descent into the lowest levels of the complex, the even more numerous security and I.D. checks, the deference of all the military personnel, and most of the civilians, that passed her and Jack as they walked side by side. She'd thought she'd seen what Jack's rank meant with her other short forays into his public military world and the upper levels of the Mountain. Now she knew she'd barely scratched the surface.
They stood in what Jack called the briefing room, a ginormous table at their backs, a full wall of windows in front. Below them stood the reason for her mental meanderings, the reason she had Jack's hand clenched tightly in hers--the activated Stargate. As she watched, four men and one woman stepped from its watery, rippling surface, their boots sending a jarring clang of noise into the room above.
“Holy crap,” she whispered, watching the waiting personnel in the large room divest the five newcomers of their packs and weapons. “You do this every day.”
He must have heard the shock in her voice since she couldn't look away from the scene below long enough to make eye contact with him. “Not every day, but close enough to count, I guess.”
“It's really real.”
“It's really real,” Jack repeated quietly, squeezing her hand. “What do you say we meet with Gen. Hammond and get your I.D. started? We do actually have to work today. It's not all fun and pretty lights.”
Of that she had no doubts. Jack had enough scars for five people and she'd seen some of them in their earliest stages in just the time she'd know him. Games it certainly wasn't.
“Faith,” Hammond greeted her as they entered his office, coming to his feet. “It's good to see you again.”
Accepting his outstretched hand, she smiled. She'd liked the older man from the first moment she'd met him. “I take it I have you to thank for my new clearance.” She ignored Jack's muffled groan and held her smile. She knew how hierarchies worked, having been a pawn of the Council for far too many years.
“Not exactly. I just forwarded the request.”
Not believing the line any more than it had been meant, Faith sat where Hammond indicated with an outstretched hand. “Well, I thank you all the same. Knowing the truth means more to me than I can ever say.”
Hammond glanced at Jack briefly before focusing on her again. “Now that you are here officially, I fully intend to take advantage of those skills I witnessed a couple of months ago. Col. O'Neill tells me you're ready to start a full rotation immediately."
"Yes, sir. My hours have already been shortened at the gym since I started working in the upper levels part time. They know I'll be leaving them sometime soon." She glanced over at Jack quickly then focused back on the general. "I just need to let them know how soon."
"Personally, I'd like you here full time starting today, but we can ease the transition a little. See if two weeks will work for them. I'll try to be patient." He smiled broadly, his face transformed by the expression. "Teal'c is off world often and I have a team of marines who need reminding not to judge an opponent by appearances.”
“Trust me, General. They'll never know what hit them.”
A momentary sense of sympathy filled Jack, but it didn't last long. He'd taken enough crap from all of the teams over the years to be entitled to a tiny bit of revenge. He doubted he'd hear any cracks about SG-1 and Unas traps in the near future.
Hammond had continued while he'd been lost in pleasant thoughts of bruised egos and bodies. “Read and sign these forms here and here,” he said pointing to the appropriate blocks, ”initial here and then Col. O'Neill can take you up to the security office and have your badge made.”
“Am I scheduled for my first session already?” Faith's tone was perfectly matter of fact as she scanned the last of the nondisclosure agreements before signing.
Sliding another sheet across the large desk, Hammond didn't bother holding back a grin. “Next week. No doubt you'll have a few rubberneckers for a while. If anyone gets out of line just let me know.”
“That won't be a problem, sir.”
Jack smiled to himself at her automatic use of the honorific. He didn't know if she'd picked it up from his team or if the general reminded her of someone from her other life. One day he might ask.
Hammond's smile widened the tiniest bit. “No, somehow I don't think so.” He accepted the forms back, tucked them into a folder then handed the entire packet to Jack. “Go get this woman's picture taken.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you.” They both knew what he was grateful for. Faith would never know just what weight Hammond had had to hurl around to get her clearance pushed through. Her conviction had been only one of the barriers they'd had to overcome. Jack had no doubt that George Hammond had personally seen this one through every step of the way.
It was but the work of a few minutes to ride up to badging, get her picture taken and wait for the machine to spit out a card proving she was authorized unaccompanied access to the Stargate Project. As he took her down the corridor to the access office, he caught her running her fingers over the card and glancing down at it more often than where she was walking. "It won't disappear, you know," he said quietly, giving her a smile.
"I know. It's stupid, but this little piece of plastic suddenly makes it all seems real. Aliens among us real." Her expression told him she was laughing at herself. "I guess the Stargate itself wasn't enough for a cynic like me.”
He wanted to laugh, but didn't think she was intentionally making a funny. If she was calling herself a cynic, what category did that place him in? "Believe it or not, I know exactly what you mean. They'd told me I was going to walk through that 'gate and onto another planet. Until I was actually on Abydos, breathing in sand, I kept thinking someone was going to jump up and shout it was all a big joke." Pausing at the door, he rubbed one hand over her shoulder and down her arm. "You'll get used to it after the first three or four visitors come through." He placed no particular emphasis on the words, but he saw her eyes widen just a little as his possible meanings sank in. "Don't worry about any of that right now. Just concentrate on the marines you'll get to pound into little pulpy pieces. Take your cynicism out on them. Masochistic freaks will probably enjoy it."
When she chuckled at the mumbled comment and stepped into the access control office ahead of him, he grinned broadly. Mission accomplished, he thought and followed her in. The sergeant on duty was eager, chatty and more than willing to guide Faith through the reams of paperwork to read, initial, sign and stamp. Jack had never seen Sgt. Rickhoff before and he doubted the young man knew who Faith was in relation to the colonel escorting her. At least he hoped he didn't as Rickhoff attempted to flirt with his fiancee in a not entirely subtle manner. He kept his grin in check as Faith either ignored or was completely oblivious to the sergeant's charms. By the time Rickhoff took one final scan of her index finger and had her create a personalized duress code to use in case of emergencies, he'd given up trying and was down to polite and professional. Jack had no intention of calling him on it. He'd gotten a kick out of watching the show. Hell, he probably would have done the same thing in Rickhoff's shoes in his younger, single years.
"So, where to now?" She held up a forestalling hand as Jack shut the door behind them. "And please God do not tell me it's to read more paperwork about non-disclosure. I get it already. I'm very good at keeping secrets."
He kissed her frowning, crinkled up nose and got swatted for his efforts, which only made him want to do it again. So he did. The second swat wasn't quite so easy to ignore, but he manned up and didn't let the wince show. "Nope. Now I have one more thing to show you, then it's lunch. And yes, I can hear your stomach talking to me from here."
"It's not my fault I have a fast metabolism. You were warned in the beginning." She was irresistible when she teased him. He knew he would never tire of it.
"And so I was. It's a good thing I have a sizable paycheck to keep you in food." Chuckling when she pushed lightly against his arm in retaliation, he shrugged. "Can't argue with the truth, right?" He ignored her glare, knowing she was enjoying the easy moment as much as he was. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so comfortable, relaxed even, within the corridors of the SGC. As soon as the thought floated through his brain he knew he was wrong. He could remember the last time. He just didn't want to remember why those feelings had come to an end. Cutting off those thoughts before they could blacken his mood, he guided Faith to a door just three down from his office and held out a key. "If you would care to do the honors?"
"Honors for what?" It took a long moment to sink in, but Jack saw the instant it did. Her eyes widened, face staining a pale pink and her lips curved up into the sweetly surprised smile he loved to see. "You mean it's mine? For me, I mean?"
"Yep. Your very own office." She had the key out of his hand and into the tumbler before he was even finished. Flinging the door open, she stared inside at the small but functional office, her eyes jumping around to take everything in.
"I'm sorry it's just a regular office. We don't have much of anything else down here-"
He couldn't get any farther when she whirled and wrapped her arms tightly around him, cutting off his ability to speak. "Thank you. I love it," she whispered barely loud enough for him to hear. She didn't give him time to respond, just gave another of those almost too quick to see movements and entered her new working space.
Pausing inside the doorway, he watched her trail a finger over the desk, the keyboard, the back of the chair, marking it as her own. Something about her actions clicked the switch in his head, making it all real. She'd said holding the ID in her hand had been her moment. This was his. Watching his soon-to-be-wife connect with her own space in the Mountain, he knew it wasn't a far off wish anymore. "You may be cursing me in a month. Hammond is nothing less than brutal about reports. And he'll expect them on each team on a regular basis."
"I don't mind hard work," she said, flashing a grin at him. "But this is more like fun for me."
"Don't say I didn't warn you." He eased the door shut, fully intending to break his unwritten rule only this once, on Faith's first day. Moving around the small desk, he slid his arms around her waist, tugging her close. "I'm going to like this place a whole lot more knowing you're down here with me."
Her grin sparkled in her eyes, hinting at dimples at the corners of her mouth it was so wide. Arms snaking over his shoulders, she stared up into his eyes and said sweetly, "Only until SG-1 gets their turn in the rotation."
"Brat." He stole her giggle with a kiss, the heat of her pressed against him sinking into his core. He hadn't thought it was possible to find someone who could make him feel so much. With all the mistakes he'd made in his life, both personally and professionally, Faith was like a gift from God Himself, one he'd never had the temerity to ask for. But he was eternally grateful she'd walked back into his life and hadn't let him walk away. "Now we can eat. Unless you want to play with your new toys some more."
She pretended to think about it briefly, fingers tapping a curious rhythm on his neck. "Nah. I'd rather do it on a full stomach. Technology and people like me aren't really on first name basis. It's guaranteed to shut down on me."
After kissing her one last time, he let her ease back. "I'll keep that in mind the next time the system crashes. Carter may not have to look very far." He could feel her tongue sticking out at him even without looking. Opening the door with a flourish, he waved her ahead. "But I'll put in a good word for you. Maybe she won't lecture you for an hour on the importance of maintaining system integrity."
"Thank God. I'd never stay awake that long."
"It'll only be half an hour."
This time the shove wasn't gentle.
************
continued in Part Fourteen
************
Thanks for reading!
(go to Master Post)
(go to "Worth Fighting For" Universe Master Post)
(Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) (Part 4) (Part 5) (Part 6) (Part 7) (Part 8) (Part 9) (Part 10) (Part 11) (Part 12)