If one of the SGC personnel had been tossed through the Stargate-framed portal, they would have been transported to Diagon Alley. However, since none of them were, Hermione was alone on the trip to retrieve help.
She ran into the Leaky Cauldron, glancing around for a familiar face. She caught a flash of bright green hair and skittered around some tables to where the person sat. "Tonks!" she said, breathless, as she came to a stop next to the booth. "Harry and Ron are in trouble!"
Auror Nymphadora Tonks' eyes widened. "What?" she exclaimed. "What happened?"
Hermione hastened to explain, keeping her voice low. When she finished, Tonks looked angry. "Damn that boy! Harry is certainly good at getting himself in trouble, isn't he?"
She stood. "Let's go find Mad-Eye and Mr. Weasley. They'll need to hear this."
"Then what?" Hermione asked.
"Then we hunt down that spell-caster, arrest him for illegal practice of Dark Magic, and then get him to bring Harry and Ron back."
Hermione hesitated before plowing on. "Um, I’m not sure that was Dark Magic."
"Of course it was." Tonks looked at her, eyebrows furrowed. "What else could it be?"
"I don’t know, exactly," Hermione said. "But it was definitely something else."
Harry and Xander were escorted to a holding cell while Carter and the technicians figured out what damage had been done to the Stargate and Fraiser and her medics saw to the injured. The mountain was placed under lock down while the remaining personnel divided into search parties in the hopes of locating the intruders, assuming they were still on base. So far, they had found no one.
Xander paced while Harry sat on one of the bunks. He continued to pace for a quarter of an hour before he finally collapsed onto the bunk across from the wizard. Xander studied Harry and Harry regarded him back.
"You're Harry Potter, aren't you?" he asked after a while.
Harry started. "Yes, I am," he said. "Who are you?"
"Xander Harris," he responded with a friendly smile. He held out a hand and Harry shook it.
"How'd you get here?" Harry asked him. "You weren't in the alley."
"I got shot through a portal in Cleveland." Xander raised an eyebrow. "Alley? As in Diagon Alley?"
"Um…no, but it was nearby," Harry said. "I went through a portal, too, but I was with my friend, Ron. I hope he's all right."
Xander shrugged. "Maybe he landed in Cleveland. If he did, my friends will find a way to fix this."
"Yeah, and Hermione's going to find a way to get me back home, too," Harry said. "Do you know where we are?"
"Stargate Command," Xander answered automatically. "Converted missile silo located under the NORAD base in Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado Springs, Colorado." He paused, then added, "USA."
"Stargate Command?" Harry's brow furrowed. His eyes widened. "Stargate SG-1! But, hang on-that's a TV show."
"How do you think I know so much about it?" Xander asked him. "It's a TV show where I come from, too. We've just both traveled to an alternate reality where Stargate is real."
Harry raised an eyebrow at him. "You don't sound too surprised."
Xander shrugged. "I'm not, really. After the things I've been through, very little surprises you anymore."
There was bitterness in his voice. Harry wondered why.
"It can't be anything like I've been through," he said.
"Oh, I wouldn't place any bets on that if I were you," Xander told him. "You've only been fighting the bad guys for - five years, right? I've been fighting them for longer than that."
"How do you know so much about me?" Harry asked him. The light dawned in his eyes. "I'm not a fictional character in your universe, am I?"
Xander smiled understandingly at him. "Bingo. My turn to ask the same question."
Harry took a few minutes to process that his entire life wasn't real in another reality before he answered Xander's question. "Um…I don't know. I don't watch a lot of television."
Xander shrugged. "That's okay. I probably wouldn't be the focus of a syndicated TV show, anyway, being just the average Joe sidekick. Buffy would probably get more recognition."
"Buffy? As in Buffy the Vampire Slayer? The TV show?" Harry asked.
Xander sighed. "Yep. The Buffster gets her own TV series. Not that she doesn't deserve it, but still…so there's a TV show, huh? You ever watch it?"
The wizard shook his head. "Sorry, no."
"Oh, well. So, Mr. Wizard, think you can get us out of here?"
Harry's shoulders slumped. "They took my wand."
Xander shrugged. "It was worth a try. Still, if these guys are anything like the characters of the TV show, then they should be willing to help us."
Harry looked at him incredulously. "They locked us up!"
"Just a precaution," Xander assured him. "They looked like they had bigger problems to deal with first. At least I hope that's why we're in here. We'll know soon enough."
Harry sighed. Crossing his arms, he leaned back against the wall and stared at the little window set high inside the door of their cell. He hoped Xander was right and that their captors hadn't forgotten about them.
The building that Buffy took Ron to was on the outskirts of downtown Cleveland. The building was actually two buildings, a hotel and a gym, combined into one. An older Slayer of thirty-five owned the hotel while the parents of a younger Slayer owned the gym. It had been a blessing and a welcome donation to the New Watcher’s Council, and the Slayers and Slayerettes had set up shop in them immediately.
Ron didn’t know any of this, of course, and he probably wouldn’t have understood all of the references to Slayers and Slayerettes if Buffy had told him the headquarters’ history. He couldn’t help but stare as the Alpha Slayer led him inside the front door of the gym half.
Sitting at the secretary’s desk out front was an older woman. She was, in fact, one of the owners of the gym. She worked there as a secretary during the summer while Buffy and the others used it.
"Good afternoon, Buffy," she said, smiling. She didn’t even blink at Buffy’s torn, goo-splattered clothes or the sword she still held. She glanced at Ron. Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember where she’d seen the boy before.
"Afternoon, Katlyn, although whether it’s a good one remains to be seen," Buffy said, glancing at Ron. Ron didn’t notice; he was still looking around.
"How goes the plumbing in the second story bathrooms?" Buffy asked.
Katlyn Prairie only winced. "Not good. A good number of the girls are upset, too. Fortunately they’ve taken their frustrations out on the training equipment in the gyms. Unfortunately, some of those have broken beyond repair because of it."
"Wonderful," Buffy deadpanned. "Oh, by the way, this is Ron Weasley. Ron, this is Katlyn Prairie, the mother of one of the girls that go to summer camp here."
"This is a girl’s camp, right?" Ron asked, thinking over what Buffy had told him in the car.
Buffy nodded. "Right. But a lot of guys are here, too. They’re mostly relatives of the girls, though."
She turned back to Katlyn. "Have you seen Dawn or Willow anywhere?"
"Dawn’s upstairs, I think. Last I heard, Willow and Kennedy were still in their room," Katlyn replied with a grin.
Buffy rolled her eyes. "Those two really need to give it a rest."
Katlyn smirked and looked back at Ron. Her brow furrowed again. "Ron Weasley, was it?"
Ron just nodded, wondering why she was looking at him like that.
Katlyn’s eyes widened. "Oh, my god! You look just like him!"
Ron was understandably confused by this comment. "Look like who?" he demanded.
"Like Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter movies! Added to the fact that your name is the same and-" Her eyes suddenly widened even further in sudden understanding. "You’re not-"
"Uh, Ron, let’s get started figuring how to get your back, shall we?" Buffy said, grabbing Ron’s arm and dragging him toward the stairs.
"What was she talking about?" Ron demanded as they headed up the steps. He tried to shake himself loose but Buffy’s grip was unnaturally strong.
Buffy hesitated. "I’ll explain as soon as I round up the gang. Then we can figure out a way to get you back home."
"I’d really prefer if we talking about it now, thanks," Ron said as they walked onto the second floor landing. He glared at her. "What was she talking about when she said ‘Harry Potter movies’? A movie is a moving picture thing that tells a story, right?"
"Yeah," Buffy said, sighing. "Look, you came from a portal, and my guess is that you came from an alternate universe. Hate to break this to you, but here, you’re a fictional character from a bunch of books."
"I am not!" Ron protested automatically. He stopped to think about what she was trying to tell him. "You’re saying I’m not in my universe anymore?"
Buffy smiled sympathetically. "Yep."
"And I’m in a bunch of fictional books? How the bloody hell is all of this even possible?"
Buffy shrugged. "Beats me, but don’t worry. We’ll find out."
Mad-Eye Moody and Arthur Weasley had been retrieved from their rooms at the Leaky Cauldron, and Tonks had been sent to the owlry to send a message to Dumbledore as well as call in an Auror team from the Ministry. Hermione led Moody and Mr. Weasley to the spot behind Diagon Alley where the events of less than an hour ago had taken place. Mrs. Weasley had stayed behind with Ginny, Fred, and George, despite the fact that all four of them had wanted to help.
The portal had closed, and only the bowl splattered with dried blood had been left behind as evidence that a ritual had taken place there.
Moody examined the area with his magic eye while Arthur picked up the bowl and performed a few revealing spells on it. After a moment, Arthur sighed in frustration. "Nothing but blood and a wooden bowl. No traces of any spells left on it."
"Anything, Professor Moody?" Hermione asked, worried. Like the others, she too was eager to find out what had happened to the two boys.
He only shook his head. He looked puzzled and weary. "Nothing I can see. It’s as if nothing happened here."
"But it did. I saw it," she insisted.
"We know, Hermione. We’re not disputing that," Arthur assured her. "It might have something to do with the ritual. You said it didn’t look like Dark Magic?"
She nodded. "Yes. I’ve read about Dark Magic, and it didn’t look anything like I remember. I mean, there was a blood ritual involved, and chanting, but…it just didn’t feel right, somehow." She felt her cheeks burn as she struggled to explain it.
"Whatever it was, there’s nothing here, now," Moody growled. "Arthur, Hermione, you two should get on back to the inn. I’ll stay behind and wait for Dumbledore and the Aurors."
Hermione tried to contain her helplessness as she and Mr. Weasley left the alley behind. She sincerely hoped that her two best friends were all right, and wished there was a way to make it stop feeling like they were running out of time.
Two more hours went by before there was finally some commotion outside of their cell. Harry and Xander stood, exchanging glances. Harry wished he still had his wand; he felt naked without it. Xander hoped that everything in the next few minutes went smoothly.
The door opened and both young men steeled themselves. When she walked into the holding cell, Xander felt his jaw just drop. "Ay, carumba!" he said before he could think coherently enough to get his mouth to shut up.
She blinked at him and actually blushed before she could stop herself. She was a blonde and her hair was cut short and crips, all military-like. She wore olive green fatigues and had the clearest blue eyes he’d ever seen. He knew who she was, of course, and he’d always known she was hot. He just never thought she’d be this gorgeous in person.
Thoughts of Anya flitted into his mind, accompanied by the usual pangs of remorse and the newer pangs of guilt. Anya may have been dead for close to a year now, but he knew he’d miss her always.
The rest of the group entered behind the major. General Hammond came first, followed by Col. O’Neill, Dr. Jackson, and Teal’c. Xander couldn’t help but feel in awe. He felt like Andrew when one of the Trainee Slayers had given the geek a gift certificate to his favorite video game store for Christmas because she had a crush on him.
"My name is General Hammond," the general began, all business. "I’m the Commander of the SGC. These are-"
Smiling, Xander interrupted, "Colonel Jack O’Neill, Major Samantha Carter, Dr. Daniel Jackson, and Teal’c." SG-1 and Hammond certain looked surprised. "I’m Xander Harris. The other guy is Harry Potter."
They didn’t appear to recognize either names, which Xander found strange. Sure, he’d see how the supporting cast’s character names of Buffy might not be known, but where he was from, the Harry Potter books and movies were really, really big.
"How do you know who we are?" Dr. Jackson asked.
"That’s a long story, believe me. It might be better for all concerned if we went to the Briefing Room for this."
After a little more discussion, the seven of them moved to the Briefing Room. Immediately upon being seated, Col. O’Neill said, "All right. Explain."
"Okay," Xander said, taking in a deep breath. "We’re from alternate universes. In mine, Harry’s world is completely fictional and is composed of a group of books and movies that I imagine have made one British woman in particular very rich. In Harry’s universe, my and my friend’s lives can be viewed weekly on a TV show called Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Now, here’s in the clincher: in both of our universes, the Stargate, the SGC, SG-1, all of you – you’re all fictional and are from a TV show called Stargate SG-1."
"Riight," O’Neill drawled. "Sure. Tell us another one."
"Actually, it is possible, sir," Carter said.
Xander breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing her words. At least some of them were considering it. He gave the major a lopsided smile. He was fairly certain he saw her blush again before she looked away.
"Major?" Hammond questioned.
"We already know that alternate realities exist, sir. It’s not improbable that in at least one of those realities we’re the characters of a TV show."
"But they came through the Stargate, Sam," Daniel argued.
"I don’t think the Quantum Mirror exists in my reality," Xander said. "If it does, then it’s just as a prop for the Stargate set.
"Then how did you accomplish traveling across realities, XanderHarris?" Teal’c questioned. "The Stargate does not possess such capabilities."
"I don’t know about Harry, but I got here by magic," Xander said.
"Oh, right, and now you’re going to tell me that where you come from, monsters do live in the closet," O’Neill countered.
"Don’t know. Haven’t met any," Xander quipped. "I do know there are vampires and demons in my world. I’ve fought them on a regular basis, even."
"How exactly did you get here? If we're just fictional characters in your universe, you couldn't have used a Stargate," Daniel pointed out.
"Right," Xander said, nodding. "My friend Buffy and I were fighting these demons who were protecting this warlock. The warlock was opening a portal using this blood ritual or something. I got knocked into the portal and the next thing I know, I'm here."
Harry looked at him with some surprise. "That's how I got here!" he said. "Only there weren't any demons, just a wizard. He was opening a portal, too, and my friend Ron and I ended up getting sent through."
"Ron?" Carter asked.
"He's one of my best friends. Xander thinks he may have gotten sent to Xander's universe."
SG-1 and the general exchanged glances. "What exactly did this guy look like?" Jack asked. "Not that I'm saying magic exists, which I'm not."
"My guy was in desperate need for a tan," Xander said. "He had black hair that was turning gray too, not to mention the glowing green eyes."
Harry nodded. "That's what the wizard in my universe looked like, too."
The SGC people exchanged a look again. Xander caught it and asked, "What happened here before we showed up? Did you guys have a visit from Mr. Pale-and-glowy-eyes guy?"
"As a matter of fact, we did," Hammond said.
"Well, that's great!" Xander said. "All we have to do is find him and then maybe he can help us get back home."
"What do you think, Teal'c?" Jack asked after their two guests had been taken to the infirmary for physicals.
"I believe that XanderHarris and HarryPotter were telling the truth, O'Neill," Teal'c said.
"But magic?" Jack objected. "Teal'c, even you would have to admit that's a little crazy. Even if they are from an alternate universe."
"I don’t know, Jack," Daniel countered, deep in thought. "The leader of the base's attackers did look like he was performing some sort of ritual."
Jack couldn't believe him. "For crying out loud, Daniel!" He turned to the remaining member of his team. "Carter, help me out here."
"Well, sir, it might not be magic. It could be some sort of technology that's so advanced that it only appears to be magic. Obvious, that man did something. The chevrons hadn't even engaged, but the computers did say that an outgoing wormhole had been established."
"Then how did Mr. Harris and Mr. Potter came through, Major?" Hammond asked.
"I don't know, sir," Carter said. "Of course, considering the chaotic moments that preceded and followed the wormhole's opening, two wormholes could have been established and closed without our even realizing it."
"That's another thing I don't like," Jack said. "How did they do that? Advanced technology again, Carter?"
"Either that or magic," Daniel said with a half-smile. Jack glared at him.
Dawn, Willow, and Kennedy were all retrieved and sent to Buffy's second floor office. They, along with Xander and Buffy, made up the scope of the Cleveland Scoobies. The Slayers-in-Training and their various relatives didn't count in these kinds of matters, and Giles, Wood, Andrew, and Faith were in other parts of the world.
Buffy went looking for them and returned with the three girls in tow. She'd already filled them in on the situation, and all three viewed Ron curiously. The attention made him shift uncomfortably.
Willow and Dawn were both ecstatic. "Wow, you like just like Rupert Grint!" Willow exclaimed. "Can you do the magic with the wands from the movies? 'Cause that would be so cool. I've always wanted to compare J. K. Rowling's version of magic with wiccan magic."
Ron was confused again. "Rupert Grint? J. K. Rowling? Who the hell are they?"
"J. K. Rowling wrote the Harry Potter books," Dawn explained. "Rupert Grint plays you in the movies."
"Oh, yeah? I'd like to see these books and movies, myself," Ron said. "See how much they got right and all. Although it is still weird that there are any books or movies about my life at all."
"Actually, they focus more on Harry, but you're in pretty much all of it," Kennedy said.
"Hey, Buffy, where's Xander? Didn't he go with you on patrol?" Willow asked, noticing that her other best friend wasn't present.
"I hadn't gotten to that part yet," Buffy said, wincing. "Xander got sent through the portal before Ron arrived."
"What?" Dawn exclaimed, shocked. "We have to get him back."
"We will," Buffy assured her, biting her lip in worry for her friend. "And we'll send you back, too, Ron, and find out what happened to your friend Harry."
"Harry Potter got sent through with you?" Kennedy asked. "What happened to him?"
"I think we got separated," Ron explained. "I’m not really sure what happened, exactly, but it's obvious he didn't wind up here." His brow furrowed and he turned to Buffy. "Where is here, anyway? Besides being in an alternate universe. And what's wiccan magic? And how come all of you aren't more freaked out?" He hesitated. "You are Muggles, aren't you?"
Willow giggled. "Muggles. I always thought that was a cute name. Yep, we're all Muggles. Although, maybe I'm not a Muggle, seeing as how I know magic even though it's not your kind of magic."
"Here would be Cleveland, Ohio," Buffy answered. "As to the other question, well, ever heard of a Vampire Slayer?"
Ron blanched. "Vampires?" he repeated. "Bloody hell. Werewolves and giant spiders were bad enough. You're telling me there are vampires here?"
"Yep, and we fight 'em," Kennedy responded.
"You fight them?" Ron repeated, incredulous.
"We fight demons, too," Dawn said. "And Willow's a witch. Although not your kind of witch. She's a Wiccan Witch, but she'll probably be able to get you back home and figure out what happened to Harry. She's, like, wicked powerful."
Willow blushed and looked away when Ron glanced at her. "I don't know any specific spell to use, so we'd have to research it first."
"Wonderful," Buffy said with a sigh. She smiled in delight. "We can always get the trainees to do that." She looked at Ron. "Word of your arrival has probably spread by now. They'll be wanting to meet you."
"Who will?" Ron asked, not liking the look in her eyes.
"Our personal in-training fighting squad against the vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness." Buffy smirked. "In other words, over a hundred and twenty-five hormone controlled teenage girls-"
"I think I speak for all teenage girls when I say, 'Hey!'" Dawn protested.
"Don't count on it, Dawn," Kennedy said with a smirk at Willow.
Buffy continued as if she hadn't been interrupted. "-hormone controlled teenage girls who have been around very few males all summer who aren't family members. A large number of them are also Harry Potter fans. They'll be wanting to meet the real Ron Weasley."
Ron gulped. He really didn't like the evil glint in her eyes, not at all.
