A/N: So, the bad news is that I'm a horrible author and left you hanging for much longer than I intended but the good news is that because I ignored everything else all week, my thesis is almost finished and I'll soon have more time to spend on this fic. I hope you'll forgive the delayed posting and as a peace offering, I've made this one a longer chapter.
It hasn't been bataed yet, but I didn't want to leave you all hanging any longer than I already did. I did my best to check it for major errors but if it's really terrible, please let me know.
Everyone knows I don't own any of this stuff and since I'm not pretending that I do, please don't get mad at me if you do.
Chapter 8
Alone in the War Room, Lee sat motionless in a chair. The slight man with the cold smile had left Kara's cell a moment ago; left her lying perfectly still in the middle of the room.
Move Kara. Sit up. For fraksake, do something! He begged her in his mind. He dug his fingers into the arms of the chair until his knuckles turned white. Move. Please gods, let her move or cough or something. Anything. Finally, after what felt like a lifetime, the young woman moved her hand, just slightly. Lee released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding and ran a hand through his short hair. Thank the gods.
He watched as Kara gently ran her good hand over her eyes and then gingerly turned over onto her side, pulling her legs in towards her chest. Wrapping her good arm around her knees, she closed her eyes. Lee could see her lips moving slightly. He'd never seen her pray before but he was certain that is what she was doing now. Eventually she opened her eyes and shifted her gaze to the camera. She started speaking again, slowly this time, and it didn't look like she was yelling this time. Lee watched her lips moving, trying desperately to understand her message. Her eyes looked intently into the camera, the sadness and pain in them bringing tears to the Captain's eyes.
He thought he saw her say his name a couple of times but couldn't be sure. Gods Kara, please, please hang in there, he replied to her unheard message with an unspoken one of his own. His heart reached out for her and, watching her watching the camera, he could almost convince himself that she could somehow hear him. We're coming for you. Kara, there's so much I need to say, please come back to me. He felt his eyes tearing up and, for once, didn't try to stop them, somehow feeling that if he felt strongly enough, if he let enough of his heart open, he could send his message to hers. Please don't leave me here alone again.
Lee jumped when the hatch to the War Room swung open and quickly swiped away the tears that had started to run down his cheeks. Tearing his gaze away from Kara's face, he saw his father in the doorway dressed in a hospital gown. The pain that was plainly written across his father's craggy face matched his own and touched Lee's vulnerable heart.
"Sir, I - " Lee faltered as he quickly rose from the chair. He didn't know what to say.
Bill Adama shuffled into the room, the pallor of his face sending a fresh snake of fear down Lee's spine. He went to his father and took his arm to guide him back to the chair, subtly turning it as he did so, to keep his father from seeing Kara on the monitor.
"I can't believe Cottle let you out like this," Lee muttered under his breath, as Bill settled himself in the chair with a slight groan. Seeing his father so weak, on top of everything else, left him shaken and uncertain of what to say or do.
"Who says he let me out?" Bill growled as he squinted up at his son. The pain etched in Lee's face was more than he could bear. "Lee…" his deep voice was heavy with emotion.
Despite an overwhelming desire to drop down beside his dad and sob away all the tension and emotion that was crushing in on him, Lee turned, stepped away from the Commander and busied himself with tidying up the notes they'd strewn across the map table earlier.
Watching Lee keeping himself busy and avoiding his gaze, Bill found himself thinking back the events that lead up to this current crisis.
--
"… and at eleven hundred hours there was a disturbance in the CAP related to an irregular flight manoeuvre but the CAG disciplined the pilot involved and the rest of the second watch passed uneventfully," Lieutenant Gaeta said quickly, snapping the folder he held shut as he finished briefing the Commander on what had happened while he held the Conn. Awaiting dismissal, he stood at attention in front of the Commander's desk.
"Wait," Bill said, "what was that you said about the CAP?"
"Well, sir, it would appear that Lieutenant Thrace attempted a non-regulation manoeuvre during her rotation in the CAP but Captain Adama dealt with the breach in protocol when she returned to the deck and at no time was the fleet endangered in any way," Gaeta explained quickly, hoping the Commander would be satisfied with his vague description. He sure as hell didn't want to be the one to tell the Commander that the CAG and his star pilot had had yet another shouting match on the deck.
While everyone enjoyed the peace on one level, several weeks without Cylon contact had resulted in tensions on board caused by both boredom and the interminable sense of waiting for the inevitable that built with each passing peaceful day. Starbuck had not taken to the change of pace well and had been picking fights with anyone near her until the Commander had threatened to ground her. After that, she'd started relieving her boredom and tension by pushing her viper as far as she could, trying more and more difficult manoeuvres which resulted in more and more heated "discussions" with the CAG when she returned to the deck.
Everyone knew the Commander sympathized with Starbuck but also that he was getting fed up with her reckless tricks. After her last outing that resulted in two nuggets almost colliding because they were more interested in watching her than their own flight paths, the Commander had been overheard reprimanding the CAG for not maintaining control of his pilots and the last place Gaeta wanted to be was caught in the middle of a three-way battle involving the Adamas and the intimidating Lieutenant Thrace.
Bill watched the young man in front of him patiently. Lieutenant Gaeta was far too disciplined a soldier to actually squirm but years of living and breathing military life had taught the Commander how to recognize an uncomfortable subordinate officer when he saw one. In the past couple of years, Starbuck's behaviour alone had resulted in a countless number of officers who did what they could to avoid giving him fully detailed reports and it looked like this was going to be no exception. Realizing Gaeta wasn't going to fill in the blanks voluntarily, Bill took pity on the dutiful Lieutenant.
Sighing as he absently rubbed at his forehead in an attempt to stave off the headache that was beginning to pound behind his eyes, Bill asked wearily, "Did she hit him again?"
"No sir," Gaeta snapped out, glad to have avoided actually having to describing the incident.
"Is she in hack?" he asked wearily.
"No sir," Gaeta repeated, "last I heard they left the deck still arguing and the CAG hasn't filed his CAP report yet."
Bill nodded, "Thank you Lieutenant, that is all."
Gaeta snapped a quick salute and left the Commander's office quickly before the old man asked him for any more details.
Bill sighed once he was alone again. I'm going to have to speak to Lee about this. He thought, he can't go letting a pilot run roughshod over him, even if it is Starbuck. He's going to have maintain his command and to find a way to control her. Bill chuckled to himself, not envying his son the task in the least. Gods help him.
Hours later in CIC, the Commander was wondering where Lee was with his CAP report. Lee never forgets the paperwork. He must still be fighting with Kara. No, even those two couldn't fight for this long. With that thought, the Commander felt a flash of worry for his son's safety. Starbuck had sent more than one member of his crew to the Life Station during an argument. Shaking it off, he reassured himself. Despite their differences, Kara would never seriously hurt Lee. She probably just talked him into a conciliatory drink. Her favourite way to mend fences. But Bill had also seen crew members end up in the Life Station as a result of trying to keep up with Kara downing shots as she 'made peace'. Perhaps I should be worried about him, after all.
A sudden buzz from the DRADIS monitor broke through his thoughts.
"Sitrep," he snapped out, instantly back on point.
"Fifteen, no make that twenty DRADIS contacts just jumped into range, bearing 625-Karon-283" came the efficient reply from the crewman serving at the tactical station.
"Cylon?"
"No colonial transponders detected," the crewman paused briefly to check his monitors before replying urgently, "Yes sir, confirmed Cylon attack."
"Give me the CAP and set action stations one throughout the fleet, " Commander Adama calmly ordered, reaching for the wireless handset.
'Action stations, action stations. Set condition one throughout the ship. This is not a drill' Dualla's voice echoed throughout the battlestar as klaxons sounded and lights flashed.
After instructing the CAP to engage the raiders, weapons free, Bill asked the Dualla to get the CAG on the comm.
'Captain Adama, contact CIC. All hands pass the word to Captain Adama to contact CIC," Dualla's voice intoned over the ship wide PA.
Everyone in the Command Centre kept their eyes glued to the icons on the large DRADIS monitor, watching as the green markers of their vipers slowly inched their way towards the red markers that denoted the Cylon raiders.
"I have Captain Adama for you , Sir." Dualla announced after a moment.
Picking up the receiver once again, Bill quickly explained the situation to Lee and issued his orders for deployment of the alert vipers to support the CAP.
"And Captain? Send Lieutenant Thrace out in the blackbird, I want to see what Laura can do in a real combat situation."
"Sir? I don't think that Starbu-" a hint of anger overshadowed the Captain's normally formal tone before the Commander cut him off abruptly.
"I don't care what's been going on between you two," Bill snapped, "I need to get a better understanding of what that ship is capable of doing and unless you can think of some reason as to why our best pilot cannot fly at the moment, I don't want to hear whatever else you might think of this order."
"Yes, Sir," Lee snapped out quickly. "Is that all, Sir?"
"That is all. Good hunting, Captain."
"Thank you, Sir."
Commander Adama quickly informed the other pilots in the air that the blackbird was going to be joining them on the field, reminding them that they wouldn't see Starbuck on their DRADIS displays and cautioning them to watch where they sent any stray rounds.
Watching the icons on his DRADIS monitor, Bill absently listened to the chatter of the pilots. He had worried the break in attacks might have dulled their reflexes or undermined their discipline but he was pleased to see a textbook defensive battle playing out in front of him. Lee's done a good job with them, he thought to himself.
It was textbook, that is, until a raider disappeared with no Colonial viper anywhere near it. A millisecond later, Starbuck's exuberant cries reverberated over the wireless,
"Yeeeeeeeee-aaaahhhhhh! Take that you frakkin' pile of scrap!"
"Starbuck, Galactica Actual," Bill said over his wireless handset. "How's the new ride?"
"As graceful as her namesake, Sir, and twice as sneaky, " Starbuck's voice carried her mile-wide grin right into the Command Centre. "That toaster never had any idea I was there until I sent a volley straight up its tailpipe. Kaaaaaaaaa-boom!" she finished with a shout.
"Starbuck, that's good to hear and I'll be sure to pass your compliment on to the President. But for future reference, Lieutenant, the President is not sneaky, she is discrete," Bill chuckled, knowing that Kara had meant it as a compliment. It's good to hear that energy back in her voice. "You call the ball here, Lieutenant, you're cleared to engage as you will, free from formation." Without hesitation, the Commander gave her free reign to stretch both the limits of her considerable talent and those of her new plane, "Give it all you've got, Starbuck, let's see just what that bird is capable of."
"Wilco that, Actual. You know me, I'd rather stick to protocol but if you're going to insist, I suppose I could try out some new moves."
He could almost hear her winking at him from her cockpit.
Gods, I missed Starbuck, Bill said to himself, thinking of the difference between this version of Kara and the petulant, moody and aggressive Lieutenant who'd he'd had to call into his office for verbal reprimands more times than he wanted to remember over the past few weeks.
Kara's voice echoed over the wireless again, her tone dripping with condescension, "Ok, nuggets and other lesser mortals, give me some space out here," she commanded the rest of the viper pilots. "I'm going to take the five sparrows out on the right flank, no one else fires on them without checking with me first, got it?" she snarled. "Apollo, you wanna come along for the ride?" Kara turned the last word into a sarcastic slight that carried more animosity than usual towards her C.O.
Bill tensed, waiting for Lee to rise to her bait. That must have been some fight.
"Sure thing, Starbuck. I always have your back, you know that." Apollo answered seriously, uncharacteristically ignoring her jab.
Bill furrowed his eyebrows. There was an undercurrent of tension in Lee's voice but the Commander couldn't guess at what was really being said in the banter between the two pilots.
"I never said anything about needing you on my six," Kara huffed, angrily. "I just need some fresh meat to use as bait and figured your rusty stick could use the work out. Think you can keep them busy while I sneak around and do the all the work?" She didn't pause long enough to let him answer the question before she added more soberly, "It'll be on you to make sure the fleet's protected in case by some miracle one of these frakkers gets by me. This is a test ride, after all, and as much as I trust the Chief with anything to do with a viper, we still don't know if this bird can stand up to the Starbuck treatment. So just stay out of my way and who knows, you might even learn a thing or two."
"Wilco that, Starbuck." Apollo answered evenly, "I'll do my best to keep all five engaged."
Bill noticed that Lee didn't even hesitate to put his life in Kara's hands, trusting her to use him as bait while she tested out the new plane. Whatever went on between the Lee and Kara on the battlestar, whatever unsaid messages were silently carried in their bickering over the wireless, in the air it was just Starbuck and Apollo and there was never any question of their partnership. As well as they flew together, though, it was still a testament to Kara's uncertainty of the new plane that she, in her backhanded way, actually asked Lee to be her backup as she tested how far she could push the machine. Bill knew that if the plane had any flaws, she would push it until she found them.
"Apollo, Galactica Actual."
"Go ahead Actual."
"I want to know exactly what that blackbird can do. Do what you can to keep Starbuck on your gun camera and switch over to Gamma frequency to give me a running commentary on what she's doing without interfering with the rest of the wireless comm."
"Yes Sir, switching channels now."
"Starbuck? Actual. Did you get that? Switch over to Gamma on your wireless if you need Apollo."
"Aye Sir. Can I go play now?"
"Yes, you may," he smiled, "good hunting, Lieutenant."
Watching the single green marker of Apollo's viper peel away from the rest of the fleet of vipers, Bill nodded to Dualla to switch his wireless channel.
While Bill kept one eye on the rest of the viper squadrons as they took on the fifteen other raiders, most of his focus was on the Apollo's plane and Starbuck's five targets. During the first three kills Apollo described Starbuck playing chicken, moving closer and closer to the targets before taking them out as he ducked and rolled, herding the enemy crafts away from the larger battle and the fleet of Colonial ships.
"Ok, Apollo, see if you can put a little distance between yourself and our two remaining buddies," Starbuck directed.
"Wilco that."
There was silence over the wireless for a moment.
"FRAK!" Apollo's hoarse shout echoed around the CIC, "What the frak was that Starbuck? Cutting it a little close, don't you think?"
Starbuck's chuckles answered his desperate shouting, "Thought I'd check just how much these frakking Cyclops can actually see. Turns out – not much."
"Well, couldn't you have done it without practically taking off my tail?"
"Aww come on, Apollo, that wouldn't be nearly as fun and besides I wasn't even close to your tail, that time," Starbuck sniped. "I would never do anything to risk damaging that pretty little ass of yours," an edge of sarcasm undercutting what was usually friendly ribbing had Bill again wondering what had gone on since the two pilots had returned from their shift on CAP.
"Just leave my ass out of your little air show out here, ok Lieutenant? I for one would like to return to the barn in once piece, thank you very much."
"Whatever you say, Sir."
"Apollo, Actual. What's going on up there?"
"Sorry, Sir, I was momentarily distracted. It would appear that the bird isn't picked up by the raiders' visual tracking -GODS, STARBUCK! Are you trying to kill us both??" Apollo's report was cut off by another cry of shock tinged this time with anxiety. He cursed under his breath, "You're a frakking maniac. Actual, Starbuck has successfully attempted every type of full stop, drop, roll, cut, climb, vert, invert and revert in the book. It looks like the blackbird can handle any manoeuvre a standard viper can manage," Apollo clipped out.
"She handles like a dream, Commander. Tell Tyrol he did good!" Not satisfied with Apollo's functional description of her experience, Starbuck added her own two cents.
"Apollo, keep cutting back and forth until my mark and then hold as straight a course as you can, letting our friends get as close to you as possible. I'm going to try to get close enough to test out a theory of mine."
"What theory?" he demanded quickly.
"Gimme a sec," she stalled. "Ok, five, four, three, two, mark! Hold that course!"
"What are you going to do, Starbuck? Actual, she's in my twelve-strike my last, she's dropped down and away from my trajectory-I've lost visual contact." Apollo called rapidly. "Starbuck! Where the frak are you?"
"Just hold that course, Apollo," Starbuck grunted, obviously exerting herself with whatever manoeuvre she was attempting now.
"These shots are getting a little close for comfort, how long Starbuck?" Apollo asked.
"Hold that course!"
"I am, godsdamn it but it's getting a little tight. Where are you Starbuck?... Starbuck?... STARBUCK!"
"Shut up, Apollo!" Kara ground out.
There was silence over the wireless for a few moments broken at last by the sound of a single shot being fired.
"YEAH! That's four out of five Commander!"
"Actual here, what was that?"
"I couldn't see for sure, Sir, but I think Starbuck found a weak spot in the Raider's armour and took it out with one shot," Apollo's voice was ripe with relief.
"Trying to steal my thunder, eh Apollo?" Starbuck chided. "He's right Sir. I found the spot working on my Raider but couldn't test it until now because I couldn't get close enough without the toasters taking aggressive evasive action. Looks like one good shot aimed up and under it's chin will take the whole damn bird out. One more left, how are you holding up there, Apollo? Need a clean pair of shorts?"
"Don't you worry about me and my shorts, Starbuck. What do you have in mind for our last little metal friend here?"
"Something sorta like that last one, ready? Five, four-"
"Wait, this one's a lot closer than last time I-"
"You can do this, Apollo," Starbuck's voice was low and reassuring, all hint of sarcasm had evidently vanished upon the sound of the anxiety building in Apollo's voice. "Evade its shots but hold that linear course – three, two, mark!" she cried.
"Actual, Apollo. Starbuck was in my twelve but she's cut away, upwards from my trajectory this time," Apollo reported, his voice tense once again. "She's curving up and back in a steady arch. Ah, I've lost visual contact again."
A moment passed, grunting and exhalations from Apollo came over the wireless as he attempted to evade the raider's shots without taking it off the course Starbuck asked him to hold.
"Starbuck?" Apollo called tentatively.
"Hang on, I'm doing another pass."
"You missed??" Apollo's disbelief burst out across the transmission. "Frak, come on Starbuck! My ass is hanging pretty far out there on this one." Apollo shot out quickly, his breathing becoming laboured with the exertion of the tight flying.
"Come on, Starbuck, where are you?" he muttered.
"Hang on, Apollo," she snapped.
"Come on, come one," he repeated under his breath. "Come on-FRAK! That shot was close, too close. Where are you at Starbuck?"
"I'm coming back again!"
"WHAT? You missed it again??" he shouted breathlessly, "Toss your frakking theory and just take it out! I don't know how long I can hold this course without taking a shot up the tail end!"
"Hang on Apollo, I'm almost there!"
"Starbuck, I can't hold this. I gotta pull away!"
"No! I'm almost there. I can see you, you're ok-ROLL RIGHT!" she ordered urgently.
"Thanks," Apollo grunted as he automatically followed her instruction and made the small evasion without hesitation. "How long, Starbuck?" desperation was edging his voice.
"Twenty seconds. LEFT! Good. AGAIN!" Starbuck shouted before returning to her calm tone, "Fifteen."
Pause.
"Starbuck?" the CAG's voice echoed off the walls of the silent CIC.
"Almost there, Lee, hold on. Ten seconds."
"FRAK! Come on, Kara!" Lee shouted as he heard shots being fired from Kara's end of the wireless feed.
"Five seconds."
More shots.
"STARBUCK! WHAT'S GOING ON?"
"Revert on my mark . Four…Three…"
"WHAT!? ITS PRACTICALLY SITTING ON MY TAILPIECE!"
"Two."
"KARA!"
"MARK! NOW LEE!" she yelled furiously.
There was a strangled grunt as Apollo fought against his viper's momentum and flipped the bird end over end to face back the way he'd just flown. He gasped sharply before his breath burst out in a strangled laugh,
"Frak you Starbuck, that is NOT funny!"
"Oh come on Apollo," she laughed before echoing his words in a taunting falsetto, " 'He's practically sitting on my tailpiece! Oh Save me, Starbuck, save me!' " she sang.
"Frak off," Apollo laughed breathlessly. "Actual? Apollo here. Starbuck has disabled the last of the raiders, do you want to send a raptor out to tow it in or should we take it out, out here?"
"If you're sure it's disabled, we'll bring it in. Since Kara left her first pet back on Caprica, Tyrol can pick up where he left off with this one," the Commander let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Everyone still in one piece up there?"
"Yes Sir," Bill could hear Lee trying not to laugh as he responded, "Lieutenant Thrace thought it would be fun to disable the toaster and have me revert suddenly to find myself practically nose to nose with it. And now she's…. Oh frak me! Come ON Starbuck!" he cried.
"What? I'm not doing anything!"
"Seriously, we don't know what it can still do. Get out of there!"
"What's going on?" Bill demanded.
"Lieutenant Thrace is currently sitting in her cockpit inverted and hanging about ten feet above the disabled raider which is still, uhm, alive, as far as I can tell."
"I told you, Commander, she handles like a dream!" the glee in her voice spread across the command centre as the crew broke into relieved grins.
"Yeah, yeah, we all get it. You fly real good, Thrace," Lee's voice carried the usual light mocking that characterized most of the Apollo-Starbuck chatter between their vipers.
"Say it, Apollo," she countered.
"Say what?"
"You know what."
"Come on, Starbuck, don't be stupid."
"Say it, Adama, or I'll get even closer to our chrome friend here."
"I'm not saying anything until you get away from there Thrace."
Gods, they're both stubborn as Picon mares, Bill thought as he listened to them bicker.
"Kara, gods! Be careful! Actual, she's about five feet above the raider now, wanna give me a hand in this?"
Bill stood silent. Lee had not attempted to order Kara to obey him and unless she was explicitly insubordinate, he wasn't going to intervene. The CAG had to learn how to deal with his pilot on his own. He needed to find away to sort out the complicated mess that Lee and Kara called a friendship so that Captain Adama and Lieutenant Thrace could get through a shift together.
"Say it." she sang out mockingly.
"Ok, ok," Lee laughed. "You're the… craziest damn pilot who ever flew a viper." Lee laughed as Kara gasped in mock horror at how he ended the sentence.
"Kara, I mean it, be careful!" The teasing fell away from Lee's voice to be replaced with concern and a hint of frustration.
Bill blinked when he saw the red enemy contact icon vanish suddenly from the DRADIS screen, leaving Apollo's green icon alone out on their starboard flank.
A sudden cry sent a shiver of fear down the Commander's spine, "Kara? Where are you? Quit frakking around! KARA!?"
"Commander, it looks like the raider jumped away," the tactical officer called quietly across the room, his voice carrying through the silence that had enveloped the room at the sound of Apollo's cry.
"KARA? I mean it! This is NOT FUNNY! Come on out!" Lee was yelling into his headset. The sound of his flightsuit rustling as he frantically swung back and forth to peer out of his canopy traveled over the wireless along with the desperation in his voice.
"Actual?" Lee's voice caught as he called to his father, "Do you have a read on Starbuck?"
"Negative. The blackbird doesn't show up on DRADIS." Bill frowned, Lee knows that. So why was he asking? It's not like she could just vanish even if the raider jumped away. "What's happening up there Apollo?" he asked sharply, worry starting to gnaw at his gut.
"She's gone, Sir. She's just – gone? I don't kn.." Lee trailed off, confusion sliding in to mix with the fear and desperation of his tone. "Kara? Starbuck?!" He called before dropping his tone again, "She was here and now she's gone. I don't know where she went, I mean, she was right here and I was just looking at her. I would have seen her go if she flew away. The raider jumped and now she's just go--"
Bill could hear the panic setting into Lee's voice and he cut him off, hoping refocus the young man. "She can't have vanished," he said tersely. "Maybe the disruption of the raider's jump knocked the blackbird away?"
"No. No. I was looking right at her and then she was gone. Just gone…" the empty grief carried in that word sliced through Bill's heart. He knew then that something was indeed very wrong. Kara had not just slipped off as a prank this time.
"Come on Kara. Come on…" Lee begged under his breath.
In the CIC, they watched the green icon of Apollo's viper move slowly around the last coordinates of the raider, searching for his wingman.
"Come Kara," Lee whispered desperately. They heard the sound of him striking something in his cockpit, "Gods DAMN it Kara! Where are you??" he shouted.
Bill quietly ordered Dualla to send the search and rescue raptor to look for Starbuck.
"KARA?" Lee called. His voice rose as if she was just out of earshot and would come running back to him once she heard his call, "KARA?... KARA?... KARA!!" Apollo's desperate scream echoed across the silent Conn.
--
I know, I know, Kara's still stuck there on the Astral Queen but I promise you I'll get back to her soon. I wrote this chapter because I know a bunch of you wanted to see more of Bill and I wanted to get some of the antecedent events out of the way so we can move ahead with the rest of the story. Do you hate me for that? Are you going to give up on me if I don't get on with it soon? Let me know, feedback fuels the muse and I promise, I'll take your requests/ideas into account as I pound out the next couple of chapters.
So that was my first action/dogfight sequence, what do you think? I know I kind of copped out by not talking about it from the pilot's POV but I liked the idea of seeing it from Bill's eyes as he sat with his hands tied in CIC. Was it too slow? Too vague? Not enough description?
If you'll indulge my newbie-ness for a moment, I don't mean to be fishing for reviews, but I'm confused about something. My previous chapters have hundreds of hits but few reviews, is this normal in fandom? As I've said, this is my first fic and I don't know how all this usually works but if you're enjoying the story and want to see more, please let me know. I'm starting to worry that the story sucks but no one wants to actually tell me. Am I worrying needlessly? Is this how it normally goes? I apologize if this sounds really pathetic but I'm a perpetual student and I have trouble functioning without feedback.
That being said, if you have sent me a review, THANK YOU!! You've kept me motivated and are bolstering my failing confidence so please don't desert me now!
