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Michael C. Vaughn (born 27 November 1971) (birth name André Michaux) is a CIA agent who was Sydney Bristow's handler during her time as a double agent at SD-6 for the CIA. They assisted greatly in the takedown of SD-6, and IN SEASON 2 ep 13 entered into a romantic relationship. However, after Sydney's two year disappearance Vaughn married NSC agent Lauren Reed, who was revealed to be a double agent and was simply using him for means of getting information for The Covenant.

Vaughn was recruited to join APO along with Sydney and many of his coworkers from the CIA. He faked his death along with help from Jack Bristow and Sydney to stop the criminal organization Prophet 5 from killing him. After Prophet 5 had been taken down, Vaughn and Sydney retired from APO and moved away married and in love.

Character Analysis

(Avoiding Spoilers)

Grew Up… with a CIA agent father who died when Vaughn was only 8. Ever since, Vaughn has worn his father’s watch – though it finally stopped ticking on the day Sydney Bristow walked into the CIA.

Visiting… any foreign country he’s sent on a mission. Often that’s France, because he’s fluent in the language. Vaughn has even spent some time as a French teacher. It didn’t involve as much intrigue as a Rimbaldi puzzle, but hey, the pronunciation might be just as difficult.

Profession… CIA agent and handler for Sydney Bristow. Vaughn is the agent assigned to Sydney after she approaches the CIA about becoming a double agent within SD-6, the criminal organization she’d been (unknowingly) working for. With Sydney’s appearance on the scene, Vaughn finds himself suddenly promoted from a desk job to being one of the most important players in the CIA.

Interests... hockey and Sydney. When he's not playing hockey or joking around with his best friend and resident goofball Eric Weiss, Vaughn is dedicated to being Sydney's confidant through the most troubling time in her life.

Relationship Status… in love with Sydney, his asset. Dating a co-worker is always complicated, but dating another member of your CIA team is more than just problematic – it’s dangerous. In the high-stakes world of double-agency, even being seen together could result in death for one or both of them. Despite warning that they have to be “wildly, crazy careful,” even Vaughn admits, “I don't know how to be Sydney's handler without making it personal.”

Challenge… preventing international crime while in the throes of a complicated romance with a fellow agent. This becomes a lot more difficult when that fellow agent, Sydney Bristow, seems to be a magnet for puzzle-like mysteries and global terrorist agencies. In addition, Vaughn must prove himself to fellow agents who doubt him because his promotion came after Sydney demanded that he be her handler – and by those who can see that his interest in her goes beyond the professional.

Personality… honest, loyal, and sensitive. Vaughn is the kind of agent you want on your team; he’s reliable, smart, and level-headed under the most dangerous of circumstances. Described as “Balls of Steel” by his best friend, Vaughn is unafraid to speak his mind to anyone who steps out of line, even if that person is his boss or the intimidating Jack Bristow (Sydney’s father). But he’s not really the one you want on your team after he’s had a crisis in his love life. In those cases, Vaughn has been known to push himself too far, drink too much, and eventually take a leave of absence because he’s had an emotional breakdown.

Personal Information

  • ID-CLASS: USS-CI-2300708
  • Alias: André Micheaux
  • Call Signs: Boy Scout (CIA), Shotgun (APO)
  • Date Of Birth: 11/27/71
  • Place Of Birth: Fleury, Normandy, France
  • Height: 6'0"
  • Weight: 180
  • Characteristics: Left-handed, hot, blond, super dramatic
  • Languages: English, French, Spanish, Russian, Italian. ya ya we get it. He speaks a lot of different languages.
  • Education: Masters In French Literature.
  • Experience: Recruit, 12-1994

Family

Before Season 1

Vaughn's father, Bill, was a CIA agent, who became aware of Prophet Five and their intentions. He and Renée Rienne's father fought them for some years. When he became aware of the dangers against him and his family, he moved to LA with Vaughn and his mother. He tried to keep every information away from Vaughn. Vaughn's father died in 1979 (The Index).

Work for the CIA

Season 1

Vaughn was tasked with being Sydney Bristow's CIA handler when she came in and explained that she worked for SD-6, a criminal organization part of the Alliance of Twelve which, up until then, she believed was part of the CIA. He brought her some coffee and something to eat, but she did not touch it and continued to write pages of detailed information about what she knew about SD-6. Afterwards he told her that he was sure it would be helpful to have another double agent in SD-6. However she suspected it was all a ploy in case she was a triple agent. He told her that it was not a play, and she left (Truth Be Told).

Vaughn1x03

Vaughn lashes out at Weiss' suggestion that he is too emotionally attached to Sydney (Parity)

Vaughn met with Sydney after learning about Milo Rambaldi and the [[[Media: machine code]] written on the back of one of his sketches that SD-6 wanted. He told her to go through with the mission and to perform a dead-drop to give the CIA the information as well. He also asked Sydney about Anna Espinosa, a long-term rival of Sydney's. He then told her that he was being replaced by a senior Seth Lambert officer, as the CIA felt he wasn't experienced enough to be her handler. He said that it was good to have met her, and wished her luck for Madrid. Back at the office Vaughn complained to Weiss about the fact that he was being replaced, saying that Lambert and Davenport were idiots. Weiss said that Vaughn was being too emotional about the situation and that he was too attached to Sydney. Vaughn lashed out at the comment, saying that he merely wanted to ensure Sydney would make it back. As Vaughn passed Sydney's case file over to Lambert, the latter made a sexual comment about Sydney which angered Vaughn even further. Vaughn was reassigned to Sydney's case after she demanded him back due to poor relations with Lambert, her new handler (Parity). Sydney then at a car wash asked Vaughn about his wife(which he does not have).

Season 2

In the season 1 finale, Vaughn was stuck in the water from the destroyed Rambaldi device. He is captured by the enemy and as he is almost killed, Sydney comes to the rescue and helps him escape from Khasinuau. Sydney and Vaughn almost kiss but they can't. The CIA wants to capture something called the Bible. Weiss is later shot by Irina Derevko and Vaughn tells him that he'll be ok.  Vaughn tells Sydney how he got out of the water. Vaughn meets with Irina about CDs and about Sydney Bristow. Will, desperate for a job since no one will hire him with his faked criminal record, meets with Vaughn to ask for any job. While Vaughn cannot give him a CIA job due to the said criminal record, he uses his discretionary fund to pay Will to research aptitude tests given to first graders in the US to see if questions from Project Christmas were added to these tests. Vaughn talks to Irina again about Sydney, his Father and Moscow, Vaughn talks to Sydney about her mother.  Vaughn finds out that Jack set up Irina Derevko and he tells Jack that if he does tells Sydney he will.  He hugs Sydney at the end.  Afterwards, the CIA learns that prolonged exposure to the red-ball Rambaldi device can lead to death, so Vaughn and Sydney are tested for exposure. Turns out that Sydney is not sick but he is.  Sydney saves him and while he is recovering in the hospital, Sydney meets Alice Williams. Vaughn talks to her about Alice.  Vaughn is later worried about Sydney with her parents. He goes and saves her before being killed. He gives mini golf tickets. He and Sydney runs into each other and have a talk about them and Alice. He tells Sydney his watch used to belong to his father and it stopped October 1, the day they met. They go out on a date in Paris, where they are then intercepted by SD6 operatives. Eventually, they take SD-6 down and they finally kiss amidst the remnants of the SD6 cell. They start dating and Vaughn is investigated for secret meetings with foreign operatives; Sydney thinks he is working for someone else but is not. Instead, Vaughn has been conducting his own private investigation into Irina Derevko, but has been unable to find anything. He and Sydney go and save Neil Calpan. After the death of Dixon's wife, Vaughn catches Dixon self-medicating. He expresses his concern with Dixon going on missions in his condition, but neither Sydney nor Jack listen, so Vaughn talks to Judy Barnett about Marcus Dixon. In order to pass the drug test, Dixon fakes the results and confesses to Sydney, who then lies to Barnett and Vaughn for her partner. Eventually, Dixon confesses to his crimes. Sydney and Vaughn have ice cream afterwards, Sydney tells that she knows that Dixon forged his results but apologizes for lying to Vaughn because she now finally has someone she can disappoint. Sydney and Vaughn finds out there is a double agent and Will is initially suspected. Sydney and Vaughn then find out that Will is not the double but still are on the hunt for the real double. At the end of the season, Vaughn tells Sydney that he and her are going to Santa Barbara for vacation. Later that night, Sydney discovers that Francie is the real double and they have a massive fight that destroys their entire apartment. In the aftermath, Sydney wakes up in Taipei and goes to a safehouse. Vaughn comes to tell her that she has been gone for the past two years, and that everyone was convinced that she had died in that battle with Francie. He also indicates that his is married.

After Season 2

After Sydney's "death", Vaughn decided to leave the CIA (The Two). He left the country for six months, and even began to talk to himself, pretending Sydney was there. Vaughn suggested that he took to alcohol for a period after Sydney left (Reunion). He met Lauren Reed at an NSC function regarding Irina Derevko. The two fell in love and eventually married (Reunion). After he left the CIA, Vaughn became a French teacher (Succession).

Season 3

Vaughn was called back into the CIA, despite having left, to bring Sydney in after it was discovered she was alive. Upon the revelation that two years had passed and Vaughn had got married, Sydney lashed out thinking that it was not Vaughn at all and she had been set up. He managed to tranquillize her and took her back to America (The Two). Upon an encounter with Vaughn, Sydney told him how disgusted she was with him for giving up on her, and how she would never had done the same with him, but felt bad about this because it would have been such a waste of her time (Succession). Weiss managed to talk Vaughn back into joining the CIA, but he was unsure about it. Sydney assumed it was because of her, and she went to see him. In response to her comments he told her that he was so in love with her that it nearly killed him, and that he had moved on with his life and did not regret it. He decided to rejoin the CIA, and when asked by Dixon if he or Sydney wanted any special consideration considering the circumstances, they should tell him, but both kept quiet (Reunion).

Work for APO

Season 4

422NotMichaelVaughn

"For starters, my name isn't Michael Vaughn," (Before The Flood)

Following Lauren's demise (and between the third and fourth seasons), Vaughn appeared to go into an emotional tailspin that culminated with him setting fire to his own house. He went through a month of psych evaluations before informing his best friend and fellow agent Eric Weiss of his resignation from the CIA. In reality, Vaughn had been recruited into a black ops division of the CIA called Authorized Personnel Only (APO), along with Sydney, Jack, and Marcus Dixon (Weiss and Marshall Flinkman would soon follow). One of his new duties was to keep an eye on Arvin Sloane, who had been appointed director of APO despite his long history of criminal activities as the head of SD-6. Vaughn successfully resumed his romantic relationship with Sydney during their first mission for APO.The first season established that Michael Vaughn's father was one of several CIA agents killed in the line of duty by Irina Derevko, Sydney's mother. Bill Vaughn's death was questioned in season four after Vaughn found a journal apparently written by his father with entries dated three years after his death in 1979. Vaughn's subsequent investigation led him to conduct a secret mission in collaboration with Sydney; he turned rogue by the end of the episode "Nightingale". However, he returned to APO after discovering his father really was dead and that the journal entries had been part of a ruse devised by Elena Derevko. At the end of the fourth season Vaughn proposed to Sydney and the two took their long-delayed vacation to Santa Barbara. During this car ride he confessed that his real name was not Michael Vaughn and implied that his first allegiance was not to the CIA. The season, however, ended in a car crash that cut his explanation short.

"Death"

Season 5

After the car accident, Vaughn was captured by paramedics who were really agents of Prophet 5, a powerful and ruthless criminal organization, and airlifted to a warehouse, where he was interrogated by Ivan Curtis. They demanded to know the location of James Lehman and just as Vaughn was going to tell them, he subdued a guard and escaped. After regrouping with Sydney and finding Lehman, they went to Cape Town to find the book that would uncover the secrets behind Prophet 5. During their escape, Vaughn finds out that Sydney's pregnant. Before meeting with Lehman again, they talked briefly about their baby and Vaughn sees Lehman, giving him the book. Suddenly, a car with Gordon Dean inside arrives and Dean shoots Lehman in the back. Before Vaughn can get away, another train arrives and blocks Sydney and Vaughn from each other. With nowhere to run, Vaughn is forced to stare at Curtis as he takes out a submachine gun and riddles his chest with bullets. Despite getting shot over 10 times, Vaughn doesn't die until after he arrives in the hospital alongside Sydney, where he flatlined. (Prophet 5)

However, it was revealed that Vaughn miraculously survived his assassination and was alive and well in Bhutan (Maternal Instinct). His "death" had been orchestrated by Jack Bristow, who gave him a drug to slow down his heart rate and appear dead. He was pulled out of the morgue after being there for four hours by one of Jack's associates. Sydney was also aware of the deception (Maternal Instinct). APO finds the chip that was inside Riene and they finds Vaughn's name on the chip. Jack tells Sydney and Jack wants to send an agent in to get information from Vaughn. Sydney disagrees but then says if someone is going to bring the chip it's going to be her. Prophet Five put a bug in APO and found out and sent Anna to Bhutan who looks like Sydney to get information on the chip from Vaughn. Anna gets to Vaughn before Sydney does, Vaughn doesn't know that Anna was doubled as Sydney. They get a location to a warehouse where there were people killed by Prophet Five but Vaughn was not on there. After Vaughn gets down to the basement Anna goes down and points a gun to him. They have a fight and Anna then again has a gun pointed at Vaughn and someone then shoots Anna and the camera shows it was Sydney. Vaughn and Sydney kiss and looks at the prophet five files and then Petyon called and Sydney then used the Anna since she was doubled and got information from Prophet Five. Vaughn then meets with Dixon and then was Sydney's backup. Vaughn and Sydney goes to Mt subino and then he finds Sydney in some snow and safes her. Then Sydney Vaughn and Jack goes to Mongolia to get Sloane and Sark. Jack is shot and then They go to Hong Kong to meet with Irina Sydney goes to see irina and Vaughn goes to Sark and then shoots Sark for codes and Irina is killed by Sydney. Then Sydney and Vaughn hug and the next time you see them they are on a beach with Isabelle and new baby Jack (Named after Jack Sydney's father). Dixon comes and tells them he has a mission to catch Sark. Then walks during a sunset with Dixon and their kids.

After APO

Sydney, Vaughn and Jack tried to catch Arvin Sloane. Sydney and Vaughn went to Hong Kong and they later kill Irina Derevko . Later, Jack trapped Sloane in Rambaldi's tomb. Sydney and Vaughn are on their beach house with their kids Isabelle and Jack and Dixon visits and tells them about Sark and they walk to see a sun set.

Relationships

Sydney Bristow

Vaughn strongly loved Sydney, and by the end of Season 4 he planned to propose marriage to her (In Dreams...). He told her that without her, he would lose his mind doing the job he was doing (Search And Rescue). At the end of the series they get married and had two kids named Isabelle and Jack. Even when married to Lauren when Syd was believed to be dead, he was so in love with her. Sydney is the love of Vaughn's life.

Lauren Reed

Vaughn and Lauren met while she was investigating Irina Derevko about six months after Sydney's disappearance at the end of Season 2. They dated for some months, before getting married. (Reunion) They remained married throughout all of Season 3 even though Vaughn was still deeply in love with Syd after he found out she was alive, though Vaughn discovered that Lauren was actually a double agent working for the Covenant. (Unveiled) Vaughn eventually kills Lauren to save Sydney's life. (Resurrection)

Julian Sark

Sark and Vaughn had been through battles in 2-5.

Trivia

  • Vaughn appears in 96 episodes of Alias. See Character appearances for more information.
  • Vaughn shares his birth date with actor Michael Vartan, although Vaughn is 3 years younger than the actor.
  • Vaughn also shares the same first name with Vartan.
  • Michael Vaughn's full name is André Micheaux.
  • Vaughn loved Sydney and married Lauren
  • He is in all episodes of the fourth seasons.

Quotes

  • To Sark: Holding that thing...you almost look like you've reached puberty (Blood Ties)
  • Sydney: Wait Vaughn, what are you telling me.
  • Vaughn: For starters my name isn't Michael Vaughn
  • Sydney: Oh you think it's sexy
  • Vaughn: Only If i'd done it
  • Weiss: Did you ever stop to think the reason you and Sydney work so well together is because of the feeling you have for eachother?
  • Weiss Pause
  • Weiss: How's that for spin?
  • Vaughn: Pretty Good.
  • Vaughn: Any questions?
  • Sydney: Maybe we should go over it again it's a pretty complicated plan, maybe you could make it easier.
  • Vaughn: Okay look I don't want to be here anymore than you do.
  • Vaughn: Involing you had no upside.
  • Sydney: There's no upside keeping me informed? You didn't tell me about Maniolo or that you had discussions with my mother! You didn't even tell me you were seeing Alice again!
  • Vaughn: Wait, What's this about?
  • Sydney: This is about me being too old to be coddled! 
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