"Mommmmy," Venus whined as she tugged at Laura's skirt. Laura looked over her glasses at the child, giving her a small smile.

"Hmm?"

"I'm boooored," she declared, climbing up into her mother's lap.

"Oh I see, and what should we do to fix that?" Laura cooed, brushing a few stray curls away from her daughter's face.

Venus simply shrugged and looked at her mother expectantly. Laura sighed. I suppose it's my job to think of something, she thought.

"Why don't we bake something yummy for Daddy?"

Venus nodded enthusiastically before hopping down from Laura's lap and scurrying towards the kitchen. Laura followed close behind, keeping an eye on her daughter, who was pulling recipe books out of the cupboard and scattering them across the floor. She flipped through them carefully, looking for a something that looked particularly delicious.

"This." She announced, pointing to a page with a picture of a strawberry shortcake printed on it.

"You couldn't have picked something easier, could you?" Laura asked sarcastically. Venus tilted her head in response.

"Of course not." Laura answered for her, lifting her up off the floor and sitting her on the counter.

Venus swung her legs back and forth while Laura began gathering ingredients from the refrigerator and collecting bowls and various other utensils as she went along. She threw the ingredients for the cake into a large bowl, then sat it in Venus's lap and handed her a wooden spoon. She began mixing diligently right away, not wasting any time.

Laura smiled warmly as she watched the child stir the cake batter rapidly, admiring how beautiful she was. Laura was very proud of her daughter. At just three years old she was already extremely bright and well mannered. Laura had discovered she was pregnant a few months after they reached "Earth" and Cottle insisted they had Hera's blood to thank for this particular miracle. Apparently the hybrid's blood had more of an effect on her body than anyone anticipated. Bill had been in the process of laying out the cabin when they found out; therefore Laura wasn't much help with the construction.

"Bill just let me help! I'll be fine." Laura huffed.

"Absolutely not." He replied sternly. Glancing up from the board he'd been cutting, he was met with an impressive glare from his wife.

"Please let me do something. I can't just sit here and watch you do all the work." She argued.

"I wish you wouldn't sit and watch. You need to get some rest."

"I'm only three months pregnant, Bill. I think I can handle it."

"I'm sure you can, but I'm not going to let you." He chuckled.

"We're both way too stubborn for this." Laura remarked, giving him a bright smile.

He abandoned his work momentarily and stood up, taking her face in his hands.

"I love you Laura Roslin."

"I love you too." She whispered, closing the space between them with a kiss.

"Is it done?" Venus asked, looking up at her mother.

"Not yet sweetheart. It'll be a few more minutes."

Venus nodded in understanding and returned to her new task: licking the spoon.

"Aren't you going to share?" Laura asked playfully, giving her daughter a mock-pout.

Venus obligingly held out the spoon and giggled as Laura licked it. Suddenly they heard the front door open and close, causing Venus to scramble off the counter and bolt into the living room.

"Daddy!" She yelled, throwing her arms around Bill's legs the second she reached him.

"Hey there," He said, scooping her up into his arms and planting a kiss on the top of her head.

"Where's mommy?" He asked.

"In the kitchen. We baked you a cake!" Venus replied with a huge grin.

"So much for surprises." Laura said from the kitchen doorway.

Bill couldn't help but stare at her. She was covered in flour, her hair was pulled up into a messy bun, and there was something red staining her apron.

"You look nice," he said.

Laura and Venus both burst into a fit of giggles at this comment. Bill set the still giggling Venus down and followed them both into the kitchen. Laura gracefully pulled the cake out of the oven and put it on the counter to cool. Meanwhile, Venus was pulling whipped cream and strawberries down from a low shelf of the refrigerator.

"Here mommy," she said, standing on her tiptoes in an attempt to reach Laura better.

"Thank you." Laura said, gently patting her on the head.

"It smells great. Looks like you two had quite a day," Bill chuckled.

"I's bored so mommy said we should bake," Venus interjected.

"Oh really? What a good call on mommy's part then," Bill answered, giving Laura a sly smile.

"Yes I thought you'd approve."

Laura moved closer to Bill, giving him a quick kiss and dotting the tip of his nose with whipped cream. Venus found the latter to be highly amusing.

"You're next!" Bill said, dipping his index finger into the bowl of whipped cream and capturing Venus in his arms before she even had the chance to run. She squealed happily, then suddenly turned serious as she locked eyes with Laura.

"Mommy's turn." She announced, sticking her entire hand in the bowl and touching it to Laura's face. Laura let out a loud laugh.

"In what universe is this fair?" She asked, gesturing to the amount of whipped cream on her face.

"You started it." Bill stated simply.

Laura threw her arms around his neck and kissed him again, making sure a large amount of the whipped cream rubbed of onto his face instead of her own.

"You are ridiculous," he said.

"Mommy's ridicliss!" Venus interrupted, earning giggles from both her parents.

"Alright, why don't we get cleaned up so we can actually eat sometime today." Laura said, taking Venus by the hand and leading her towards her room.

Bill stood in the doorway, silently watching his girls. Venus was chattering away while Laura wiped her hands and face with a damp cloth. After settlement had begun on Earth, Bill had retired from his position as Admiral and decided to focus on living out the remainder of his life with Laura. Despite his retirement he was still fairly active in the fleet, and Laura hadn't expected anything less. She however, had carried out her presidency until the next election. An election in which she did not run. Their lives were quite different at this point. They were much less busy and much happier. After Venus's birth they expected to never have a break again, but much to their surprise (and relief) Venus had proven to be a key component in teaching them how to relax and refrain from worrying constantly.

If given the choice, no matter how many hardships led up to it, William Adama wouldn't have changed the outcome of his life for the world.