She was right. Her days were mostly consumed with reports. Fuel. Rations. Water. Deaths. Births. Military assets. Even education.

That last one was a gift from the gods. She gladly devoted the time to those reports. It was the one semblance of her former life that remained. And the fact that there were enough children in the fleet to hold a school was more than she could have hoped for in the aftermath of the attacks.

Commander Adama had been very helpful in the school's setup, donating books and supplies. One of their first joint efforts as leaders was to attend the "ribbon cutting" of the fleet's school. Adama was surprisingly great with the kids. He was patient and kind, answering their questions about what he and his pilots did.

During their raptor ride, she smiled.

"What?" He asked.

"You're great with kids."

"Really? I never know how to act around them."

"Hmm."

"I think you confused them, though."

"Really? How's that?"

"I'm not sure they know you're the both the President and the 'reading lady'."

"Oh, well. I suppose their parents will tell them later."

She looked away for a minute.

"Madame President?"

She sighed. "Just thinking about...things."

He nodded. He always seemed to take things at face value. It was refreshing.

"Did I ever tell you about Cami?"

"No, sir."

"She was on the Botanical Cruiser."

"It didn't have FTL drives, did it?"

"No. We had to leave them. I didn't want to. I hesitated, tried to listen to everyone's opinion." She looked at him. "That's my leadership style, by the way."

"I noticed."

"Yeah, well, Doral was adamant about us staying-"

"Of course. He wanted you all dead."

"Yeah, but we didn't know that. Anyway, it was Captain Apollo who finally convinced me. But that little girl. All she wanted was to see her parents on Caprica, have some chicken pie and go to bed."

"Maybe it was good she didn't know."

"Hmm. That's always the debate, isn't it? Sometimes, I think I'd rather not know, but then I remember what ignorance can mean, and I'd rather be informed."

"Me too."

"But you're right about Cami. I'm glad she didn't know. In the final moments of her life, she was probably the only one on that ship who wasn't afraid."

"And now you're wondering if you could have saved her. Saved all of them."

She shook her head. "No. I know, logically, I couldn't have. It came down to physics and math. They couldn't make the jumps, and the cylons were coming. We knew it. There wasn't time to transfer passengers. I could lose some, or I could lose all. And I'd already risked losing all. I couldn't do it again."

"Then why think about her?"

"It's important to remember what we've lost and the situations we've faced. No, in this instance, I couldn't have done anything different, but there are other times, other things I could change."

"Like the Olympic Carrier?"

"Yes. Dr. Baltar was adamant about destroying it. I'd like to know why."

"I've been keeping an eye on him."

"And?"

"He talks to himself a lot, and stares into space. But I don't see anything to be alarmed about. Not saying I trust him, though."

"Well, keep him busy with the cylon detector."

"You don't think he can do it?"

"I hope he can, but I'm not sure he's as good as he thinks."

He snorted. "Gods no. We couldn't take any risks with the Olympic Carrier, though. We tried everything, and it kept coming. You made the decision that probably saved the fleet."

"Probably. We can't know."

"No. But we have to move on."

"I am, Commander."

"Good."

The raptor landed on Colonial One's hangar deck. The door opened and Adama stood first, offering his hand to help her down the ramp.

"Thank you, Commander."

He escorted her to her quarters. "That was a very pleasant evening. Goodnight."

That probably sounded like she was speaking to a date instead of her top military officer, but she never quite knew how to act around the man. He didn't react. "Goodnight, Madame President."

/

If she'd been unsure of how to act around her chief military officer before, she was even less sure now. The Commander had invited her for an official visit/tour of iGalactica/i, promising to show her the CIC among other things. The agenda was full - Billy and Dee had worked out the details.

"Will it be like this every time I visit?"

Billy shook his head. "They'll always show you some decorum, but not to this extent."

"Why this time?"

He smiled. "I think Commander Adama is making a gesture. I could ask that he won't do this in the future."

"No, Billy. That's okay. I want him to be comfortable on his home turf. That may make him more amenable to my wishes."

"That's smart."

"It's politics."

Gods, how she hated it. She threw on her jacket and buttoned it. "How do I look?"

"Fine."

"Fine?" She said the word sardonically.

He blushed slightly, looking for the right word. He was too much fun to tease. "You look great."

"You don't know much about women."

"Yes, ma'am."

She smiled. "Let's go be Presidential."

As soon as they landed they were met with what Billy explained was the honor guard although she wasn't sure of his accuracy. They presented the colors (flags) and as she and Billy exited the raptor, every member of the welcoming party saluted her. She returned the salute, trying to mirror their actions as best she could. It was something she'd need to practice later.

Commander Adama and Colonel Tigh were at the end of the row of Colonial officers. Commander Adama said, "Welcome to Galactica, Madame President." He turned slightly to the officers. "Present arms," he ordered.

As she stood there, the fleet saluted her again.

"Order arms," he shouted.

And they all dropped the salutes.

"Fall out," he ordered.

They systematically returned to their previous positions.

Commander Adama offered his arm. "Madame President, allow me to escort you to the CIC."

She took his arm. "Thank you, Commander."

They walked to CIC in formation. Colonel Tigh remained behind them, and the upper echelon fell in behind him, as the deckhands and other crewmembers remained on the hangar bay or left for their other workstation on the battlestar. It really was quite a spectacle - everyone looked dignified in dress greys.

"That was quite a welcome, Commander."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, Madame President."

"It must have taken hours to coordinate."

"Not so long. It's part of every Fleet member's training."

"Oh."

"We do like our ceremonies."

There was a teasing tone in his voice. "You don't, do you?"

"I could live without them."

She lowered her voice. "Between you and me, so could I."

He turned to her. "I'll have to remember that."

They entered CIC. She looked around. He hadn't been exaggerating before. There were many computers onboard. And monitors. "This is where it all happens."

"A lot of it anyway."

When the rest of the crew arrived, Adama formally welcomed her, and she declared her gratitude for the hard work and sacrifice of each member of Galactica. Adama excused himself and went to stand with Colonel Tigh.

She moved to where Captain Apollo was standing. "Do you usually stand in here?"

He shrugged. "Sometimes. It depends."

"And the other pilots?"

He laughed. "They're all over the place. Their racks, the rec room, the gym."

"Such freedom."

"Yes, sir."

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

She was walking around. Interested in everything. Talking to his son. Saul clapped his back. "You feel like a tour guide, don't you?"

Bill nodded.

"Well, she is a school teacher. This is all one big learning experience."

When he'd returned from the Ragnar Anchorage, he'd heard about the way Saul had treated the President. Not from her, surprisingly, but from his son. Saul was faithful to a fault; he was similar to Kara in that sense. And both of them were loyal only to him unless he ordered otherwise. Saul wouldn't give President Roslin his regard unless Bill showed him it was okay.

"What ya thinking about?"

"Nothing. Just things. I better go."

"Don't keep the President waiting."

Bill shot him a look, and approached the President. She looked very comfortable standing there talking to Lee, who looked like he was enjoying himself too. The bond between them was obvious, and he felt a pang of jealousy he couldn't understand. He shook those thoughts away; they were silly.

She saw him and smiled. "Back to babysit me some more?"

He shook his head. She had a great sense of humor. "I just wanted to tell you about our water recycling system."

"That sounds captivating, Commander."

Lee moved away as Bill explained how the fleet depended on Galactica for its water supply. Virgon Express arrived for its water transfer, which Bill authorized. She was impressed with Galactica's near-perfect water recycling systems. At least she was until the explosions.

Bill ordered his MPs and Tyrol to investigate the blasts, and he sent his raptor crews to search for alternate sources of water.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

He turned to her. "There's nothing further we can do now, Madame President. I suggest we wait in my quarters. Take the time to go over some reports."

She nodded. "Of course, that's true. Yes. Let's."

She looked like he felt. Like they'd never catch a break.

He led her to his quarters. After he closed the hatch behind them, she asked, "It's sabotage, isn't it?"

He nodded. "I think so."

"Someone on this ship is a cylon."

"At least one."

"We need that detector."

He sighed, sitting down on his sofa. She sat down beside him.

"Which brings us back to Baltar."

"Hmm. Maybe if he had a partner."

"I have the perfect one in mind."

"Good." She sighed. "What else can we do?"

"If I were a religious man, I'd say pray. But I'm not, so all I can do is have faith that my raptor crew will find water, and that we can repair the damage to our systems."

"You have faith in your people and not the gods?"

He nodded. "I know my crew. I trained most of them. They're worthy of it."

"Very interesting."

"Yeah, what about you?"

"I've never been very religious. My parents were 'twice a year' temple goers." He snorted at that. "And I only learned a bit from school." She smiled. "I actually learned more about the scrolls when I got into politics."

"Oh yeah? Was President Adar religious?"

She snorted. "Gods no. I'm more religious than he was. He was a bit of a megalomaniac, and the temples and scrolls detracted from that."

He nodded. "Of course."

"No. I learned because it was important for me to understand the various sects throughout the Colonies. Attempting to streamline the education system proved difficult with the Colonies' practicing in different ways. And we can't force the people to adapt because that violates their rights as citizens."

"So what did you do?"

"We-meaning I-was in the process of creating specialized curricula for each Colony, in which there were certain standardized subjects but enough wiggle room for the schools and teachers to do their jobs."

He nodded. "Sounds like it would have been perfect."

"I guess it doesn't matter now." She gave a sad smile. "But that's how I picked up my religious education." She sighed. "Thanks for making me feel welcome here."

"You're always welcome here, Madame President." He gestured to his bookshelf. "How's Dark Day coming along?"

She smiled. "Wonderfully. Prima tells a great story."

They proceeded to talk about the characters and the story. He was careful not to spoil anything for her, and she joked about having a lot to look forward to. Before she knew it, Lieutenant Gaeta and Colonel Tigh were standing in the quarters giving their preliminary report. She and Adama exchanged quick looks. Time to get back to work.