This will be a series of stand-alone stories which deal with the choices that the characters on Battlestar Galactica have made throughout the first half of the second season (I'll be posting in as much of the order of the season as I can). I want to explore what would have happened/changed if things had gone differently. Some of the stories will be angst, some will be shippy, some will be funny. There will be different pairings throughout. Don't feel like you have to check out each one to understand the others. All I ask is that if it intrigues you, then give it a try. Hope you enjoy reading the stories as much as I enjoyed writing them!


There are pivotal moments in one's life where if you take the wrong path everything may change. Those changes may be for the good or for the bad. The possibilities are endless.

Kara Thrace found herself truly happy for the first time since Zak had died as the Galactica came into view through the window of theRaptor. That should have been her first clue that she fraked up somewhere down the line.

The bad news hit her without any warning. She stepped off theship she had piloted back from Caprica, prepared to introduce Anders to the way she lived, but she didn't make it two feet. The Old Man was waiting for her, and the look on his face made her heart drop out.

A lot had changed. Chief had led the crew of Galactica in the building of a new stealth ship out of leftover parts. When it was finished, Hot Dog volunteered to fly it. The ship and its pilot dropped off the radar as soon as they launched from Galactica. They still hadn't popped back up.

Kat had gotten addicted to stims when everyone was too busy to notice. The death of her best friend sent her over the edge completely. She ended up killing a deckhand in a fit of stim rage and was currently in the brig, awaiting a proper trial.

It was hard for Kara to accept that two of her pilots had fallen so far from grace in such a drastic way. She held herself partially responsible for any mistake or success those nuggets had. It was her job to be there to talk them through the hard points and to take the dangerous missions so they didn't have to.

The Commander quickly relayed all these developments to her as they walked through the corridors. Kara glanced back only once to see that Anders was following them. It was reassuring to have him there. She reached back to grab his hand and pull him into line beside her.

"I hope you don't feel guilt for what happened to Kat and Hot Dog," Adama said, coming to a stop.

Kara frowned at the fact that they were in front of the doors to sickbay but tried to ignore that detail as the Commander waited for her answer. "You know I do. They were my responsibility."

"Both of the pilots were promoted to Lieutenant while you were away on Caprica the first time. They weren't yours to watch over anymore."

"Fine. I'll let go of the guilt," Kara muttered. She shifted her weight from side to side, suddenly growing impatient. She just wanted to take Anders back to the bunkroom and get some rest. "Is there anything else you need to tell me, sir?"

"Yes." Adama's eyes shifted to Anders for a brief second before returning to meet Kara's gaze. "I'm afraid there's a lot more I have to tell you, and I don't think you'll let me talk you out of feeling guilt for this one." He took a deep breath. "The Cylons infected Galactica with some sort of virus when it lost the rest of the Fleet. It was festering within our systems for weeks."

Kara rolled her eyes. "Come on, sir. I have no guilt about that. The frak-up was all on the XO."

"I'm not finished, Kara," Adama whispered. "The virus started attacking us through our normal ship functions. They messed with the electronics in the CIC and the landing system in the hangar bay. Dee was almost electrocuted, and Seelix suffered a broken arm from an accident caused by an out of control Viper. They're both fine, thankfully." Kara gave a small nod of understanding. "The worst attack was on the firing range one floor below the officer's quarters. The oxygen was cut off for far too long without anyone realizing, and when it was discovered, the door had been bolted shut."

Kara's eyes went wide as she remembered whose personal hideaway that particular firing range was. After a moment of silence, she found the strength to whisper, "Lee?"

"He barely had a pulse by the time we got through the door. Doc Cottle did the best he could with what he had, and he did stabilize Lee after working for over an hour."

Kara pulled her hand from Anders and pushed the tears out of her eyes. "Where is he now?"

"He's in the fifth curtain area, back away from the main traffic. There's something you need to know, Kara." Adama shut his eyes and sighed before looking back up at her. "He hasn't woken up. It's been four days, and he's still in the coma."

Adama watched her bite her lip and smile, fighting to remain brave. She took a step forward before turning to look at the man beside her. "I need to do this alone, Sam," she whispered.

"I understand," Anders replied even though he really didn't. She had mentioned Lee, her CAG here on Galactica and the Commander's son, but it had never seemed like she was particularly close to him. Anders had never seen Kara struggle to hold back tears like she was now, so obviously she had left a few things out when she told him about her life.

Kara glanced at both men once more before she walked into sickbay. Anders turned to the man beside him. "I'm Samuel Anders. I was the captain of the Caprica-"

"You're the reason she went back there," Adama said shortly.

Anders let the older man measure him up and down before answering. "She wanted to stay and help the resistance I was leading as we tried to destroy as many Cylon farms as possible, but I wouldn't let her. Kara made me a promise that she would come back to get me… us."

"Come with me," Adama said as he started walking again. "We need to talk. Seeing as you're the self-proclaimed leader, you can brief me on the situation you were in for the past few months. The President is currently on board and I'll have the XO and our temporary CAG paged so you only have to go through this once. The briefing should only take about an hour if you give it to us straight. I'm sure you're exhausted by now, and the last thing you want to do is talk with us. It has to be done, though, and now's as good of a time as any."

"Thank you, sir," Anders said. "It'll be nice to have a distraction until Kara's done."

Adama pulled the ex-pyramid player to a stop. "She never mentioned who Lee was, did she?"

"She told me he was her CAG and your son," Anders replied. "Why?"

"Because if she told you who Lee was, you'd know she won't be stepping foot outside that sickbay until he wakes up." Adama let the information sick in before he started moving again. Anders was helpless to do anything but follow.

This was not the welcome he had expected.