Battlestar Galactica is the copyrighted property of NBC/Universal Studios. This is a fan story intended for entertainment purposes only. No compensation has been received or will be accepted for this work, and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended or should be implied.
This Much, I Can Give
I. Warmth
Thought came before she was fully conscious. Cold. It was supposed to be cold. She could hear Kobol's rain on the tent fabric, feel damp air against her face. So why was she so comfortably warm?
Because she was nestled against another body. Startled, Laura Roslin came completely awake to the realization that she was spooned against none other than Tom Zarek. Zarek, who she couldn't fully classify as friend or foe. Zarek, who'd challenge her in one breath and support her in the next. Zarek, who might or might not even want her dead.
She turned slightly and his arm tightened around her waist. "What –"
"Your teeth were chattering," he whispered in her ear. It could have been intimate, yet oddly it was not. There was just shared body warmth. Just that. Nothing else.
Still, this was Tom Zarek. She started to stiffen, to pull away. "I'm fine."
"Laura." He wrapped his other arm, the one she'd been using as a pillow, around her shoulders. "Go back to sleep."
She hadn't realized that he was physically strong enough to hold her still even if she struggled against him. A frisson of fear lanced through her. But when she stopped moving, his arms loosened. He wasn't going to hurt her, she realized.
At least, not right now.
Oddly comforted by that thought, she closed her eyes and slept.