Ah, Screw It!

chapter 31

Harry had done a lot for magical Britain. He had defeated Riddle as a baby, as an eleven year old, as a twelve year old, as a fourteen year old, a fifteen-

He'd done it a lot.

And then he'd been thrown back to his first day of Hogwarts only to be expected to do it all again.

This time he dealt with Riddle within two months. He had outed Lockhart as a fraud and helped his victims. He had freed Sirius. He had succeeded in breaking down the barriers between the classes.

Unbeknownst to the rest of the world, Magical Britain was the most advanced country on the planet.

Amelia knew what Harry had done, what he had sacrificed. She wanted him to be able to achieve his dream of exploring space. Aurora Sinastra had cornered her in her office at the Ministry and ranted at her for twenty minutes about the injustice this was against her favourite pupil.

Amelia needed help.

"Colonel, can you tell me why you were picked for going through the stargate?"

Jack O'Neill had been surprised to find the Minister of Magic knocking on the door of his quarters at Hogwarts. Harry rarely came by and that was just to make sure he was ok. He was feeling a bit lost at the minute as he waited for instructions from Washington. Of course, what he did about those instructions was another matter.

But now Amelia Bones was here and asking questions he really didn't want to think about.

"I have a file that is filled with pieces of paper that have been blacked out." He saw she didn't understand. "I've done a lot of missions that are highly classified."

She shook her head. "You were chosen to go through the stargate. What is it about you that made them pick you out of all the other soldiers? Are you simply that good? Wouldn't the President have been more upset about losing you?"

Jack sighed. "I am good. A good leader and a good soldier. When I was recruited for the mission I was told that it had a high probability of being a one-way trip. You know about the bomb we took?"

Amelia nodded slowly.

"My job was to ensure it went off."

"So you would be trapped on the other side." She nodded in understanding.

"No...... I...... About a year before they called me, my son died. He was just a boy who managed to get his hands on my gun and...... "

"A suicide mission?!" She was shocked.

Jack just shrugged. "I had my gun to my head when they came. I just figured that this way I could do some good with my death."

Amelia sat back in disbelief. "More and more I doubt the sanity of the American government. You would be the last person I sent on a suicide mission. You would be completely unreliable!"

"Yeah...... but it wasn't like I was in the mood to be logical." He gave a self-deprecating smile.

"And now? Do you still feel......"

"Suicidal?" He finished for her. He knew this would be as uncomfortable for her as it was for him. "No. I think I found my life back on Abydos when I met Skaara and the other kids." He said fondly.

"If you truly want to, I believe His Majesty could arrange to have you assigned as an ambassador of sorts to the Abydonians." She offered.

He shook his head. "I'm a soldier, Ma'am. I lost my son. I just want to make sure others can enjoy their time with their kids."

"I understand." She saw a hint of doubt. "I am the guardian of my niece. She is fifteen and her parents were murdered when she was a baby, just like the King's. I had to raise her, just myself and our house elf."