AN: this chapter is a little big huge. :) I tried to parse it down, but it made the story flow better to leave them all together, Enjoy!

19 years earlier -

Anastasia Dualla finished logging the call between Cloud Nine and Galactica. She would put this transcript on the Admiral desk. She was kind of curious about which officers were seen kissing in the lounge, though. She would have to ask Lee about it when she saw him next.

Although, come to think of it, she hadn't heard from him in a few days. He had come on board yesterday, but she didn't have a chance to talk to him. She hoped nothing was going wrong. Lee was fun, but he could sure get moody at times.

Especially when it came to Captain Thrace. Dee wondered sometimes why Lee put up with her antics. She knew why the Old Man did, he saw Starbuck as a daughter. But Dee was fairly certain Lee did not see her as a sister.

She walked down to the Dradis console and saluted the XO. "Colonel Tigh, sir."

Tigh looked at the petty officer. He approved of Dee's no-nonsense approach to her job. She was very efficient. He did not, however, approve of her relationship with Apollo. Fraternization regs aside, she seemed like nothing more than a status-seeker. First, a presidential aide, and now a Battlestar XO. He scowled inwardly. Next you would see her going after the Admiral.

"What is it Dee?"

She handed him the report. "It seems there was a display on Cloud Nine last night sir. A couple of our officers were seen kissing on the main stage of the lounge."

Tigh snorted. "Where the frak is the universe going? Kissing in the lounge. Humph." He read through the report. "Must be why the Old Man called Apollo and Starbuck to his office."

"Sir?" Dee was certain she had misheard.

"They were on Cloud Nine last night. He probably wants to know if they saw anything." Tigh turned away, missing the stricken look on the petty officer's face.

Dee stumbled back to her post. That had to be it. They might have seen something. There wasn't anything else going on…was there?

Admiral Adama paced his office liked a caged tiger. He was trying very hard not to glare at the two officers standing at parade rest. He sighed again and spun around. Gathering his control, he asked in a soft voice, "Would someone please care to explain why the CAG was seen kissing the Pegasus' XO?"

Lee hid a smirk. This wasn't the time for humour, but for some reason he was having a hard time controlling it. "Actually, sir, I was kissing her, not the other way around."

Bill pinned his son with a glare. "That is not funny, Major." He glanced at Kara's impassive face. He could see thoughts flitting across her eyes, but he couldn't tell what she was thinking. "Do you have anything to say, Captain?"

Kara raised a single delicate eyebrow. "Nothing you are going to want to hear, sir."

"Try me."

Kara exchanged a look with Lee. Steeling herself, she leaned her hands on the desk and looked at Bill. "I love you like a father, and I believe in my soul that you want all of us to find some form of happiness, correct?"

Unsure of her tactics, all Bill could do was nod.

Kara glanced at Lee. "Well, I have. With Lee."

Bill twisted his mouth wryly, and looked at her. Her eyes begged him earnestly to understand. Biting the inside of his mouth to keep from smiling, he looked at her. "You and Lee? And what kind of example does this give the rest of the crews?"

Kara threw up her hands. She turned away for a minute and then turned back. Spinning back around, she leveled a finger at the door. "Do you frakking think I give a damn what any of them think? Do you think their opinion matters to me? The only opinions on the ship that matter to me are right here in this room…" She inhaled to start again, but Lee laid one hand on her back and the other on her shoulder.

She looked at him, and he minutely shook his head. A moment passed, full of silent communication. A communication that was not missed by Bill. He bit his cheek ever harder to keep from grinning.

Lee finished calming Kara, never removing his hand from her lower back. He looked at his father, and thought he could see concealed mirth lurking in his eyes. "It was not intended to happen. It just did."

"And the future?"

"Well, you could try to forbid us, but honestly, we all know how that would end. One or the both of us would be in the brig for insubordination."

Bill was quiet for a moment. He mulled it over and decided to let them off the hook. He came around the desk and opened his arms. "I am happy for you."

Kara stared at him stunned. Then it dawned on her that he had been playing with them, trying to get a reaction. "You twisted bastard."

Bill chuckled. "Ah, feel the love." He embraced Kara and kissed her cheek. "Congratulations." He pulled Lee in on the embrace. "Just keep it behind closed doors from now on."

"And the Regs?"

"Let me handle that. However, you both have a briefing in 10 minutes. And Lee, you need to talk to Dee."

Lee acknowledged this with a nod. He queried his father, "What is the briefing about?"

"The President has decided to hold a rescue mission to Caprica."

Lee stepped into CIC and glanced around. He could see Gaeta talking to Tigh over near the Dradis console. But he couldn't see Dee. This was not going to be a fun conversation, but it had to happen. There was just no way around it.

He moved around the side of bulkhead, and peered up into the observation deck. He could just catch a glimpse of her standing up there. He moved quickly to the ladder and made short work of the steps.

Dee was concentrating on the report she was running and was unaware of him behind her. So when he tapped her on the shoulder, she barely contained a screech. "Major Adama!"

Lee gave a small smile. "Sorry if I startled you."

Dee smiled brightly at him. "Just a little. I wasn't expecting you." She moved to embrace him, but Lee sidestepped her. Dee frowned, and then she remembered where she was. "Oh, sorry, I forgot. Not in public."

Lee grimaced. "It's not that. We just need to talk."

Dee's heart turned over in her chest. "About what?"

Lee looked down at the main deck for a second, and then turned to look at her again. "Do you want me to say this with all the flowery language in the universe, or would you just like to me to get to the point?"

Dee felt her breath hitch. Oh, gods, this wasn't happening. "Get to the point."

Lee swallowed. "Well, first I have a question for you. Why me? Why all of a sudden did you attach to me?"

Dee glared at him, mildly stunned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, it was rather sudden that you transferred your affections from Billy to me. I want to know why." Lee pinned her with a mild glance. "Was it because he proposed to you and you freaked out?"

Dee gasped. Was this what this was all about? A little bit of jealousy?

"And before you go thinking I am jealous, I want to say this. You aren't being fair to him, Dee. He loves you. He loves you in way that I never will."

"Never will, or never can?" Dee felt tears start prickling behind her eyes. "Is this because of Captain Thrace?"

Lee looked at her sadly. "No. We have to face this, Dee. This relationship would never have lasted. I was a stand in. You think I haven't noticed you looking at Billy when he is on board?"

"But I am with you. Only you."

"Not anymore." Lee leaned against the console and looked at her steadily. "Look at it this way. We could keep this up and do you know what would happen?"

She shook her head.

"You would begin to feel left out. I am the XO of the Pegasus and I am not always going to be here. And you would resent Kara. Don't shake your head. You would. Not only because she is my BEST friend, but because of her job and mine, we would be spending a lot of time together. Can you honestly handle that?"

Dee closed her eyes. She thought about what he had said, and to be fair he was right. She was already jealous of Starbuck, and Lee wasn't even talking to her right now.

"Just tell me one thing, Lee. Did something happen with Starbuck?"

Lee looked at her. He knew his answer would hurt, but he couldn't lie to her. It wasn't in his nature. "Yes."

Dee inhaled. She nodded, "The thing on Cloud Nine?"

He sighed. "Yeah."

"The Admiral must have gone ballistic." She smiled tentatively.

"Not as much as you might think." He looked at her closely. "Are we okay?"

Dee considered it. "Well, honestly, I could be nasty about this, but it would accomplish nothing. We all still have to work together. I will say this; at least I am only losing you to Starbuck. Anyone else would be unworthy." She smiled crookedly. "Although, I am not sure I ever had you."

Lee smiled back at her. "Well, I hate to cut this short…"

"But there is somewhere you have to be." She finished for him.

"Presidential briefing. And Dee…" He caught her eyes with his. "I meant what I said about Billy. Talk to him."

Laura Roslin looked around at the faces sitting at the table. Some of them were dearer to her than others, but they were the faces of her people. Nothing would ever change that. And yet, she had such a difficult task for them. Lords of Kobol, please let them all return.

"As you know, there are survivors on Caprica. Captain Thrace and Lieutenant Agathon have both file reports stating this as a fact. I believe it is our duty to see them rescued. To that end, I have been working on a plan to accomplish that goal." She gestured to Adama, who stood up in her place.

Bill looked around. "We all know the Cylons are there. We all know they want us dead. What they don't know, is we are going back." He looked sternly at the assemblage. "We have insider information, and the Cylon in the brig has filled us in on their security."

"Chief Tyrol has been working with the Cylon, attempting to hybrid the FTL drive. Chief?"

Tyrol looked up and nodded. "We found a way to splice the FTL's on at least 2 raptors to the FTL on the Heavy Raider. That said; we only know of one person not currently in the brig that can fly that thing. Captain?"

Kara smirked. "It's not that hard, Chief, you just can't have a problem with getting a little dirty."

Karl snickered and whispered to her in a sotto voice. "That has never been your problem."

Making as though she was leaning back, Kara caught him with her elbow. She grinned cheekily. "Oops. Sorry."

"A-hem." Bill waited for everyone's attention to come back to him. "Based off of our intel, a small surgical team has a better chance of succeeding. That and the fact that we need room to carry the survivors. Therefore, mission assignments are as follows. Starbuck, you will pilot the Heavy Raider, that makes you navigational lead. Apollo, you are mission commander in everything EXCEPT for the transit, and you will fly the first raptor. Helo, you are flying the second raptor."

He looked at his three officers closely. "I expect you to bring each other back…alive. On board each of your ships, you will be accompanied by 2 marines. That should leave plenty of room for survivors and give you trained combat assistance. Any questions?"

He caught Lee looking at him sharply. Giving his son a 'drop it' look, he looked around the table again. "Very well, the mission leaves in 3 hours, you are all dismissed." He waited for most of the room to clear, and then he looked at the president. "Madame President…"

Laura smiled at him. "Please, Bill, call me Laura."

Bill smiled. "Laura, would you like to join me for some lunch?"

Laura threaded her arm through his, "I would be delighted. Billy, I'm sure you can find something to amuse yourself with."

Bill looked at the aide. "Actually, Mr. Keikeya, you might want to look up Petty Officer Dualla."

Billy looked at him blankly. "Sir?"

"Just trust me, go see her." Bill waited for the young man to leave before looking at Laura. "Shall we?"

Laura looked appraisingly at him. "What are you up to, Bill Adama?"

Bill just smiled enigmatically at her. "You'll see."

Galactica Brig

Helo looked through the glass at Sharon. She lay curled up on the bed, facing away from him. He tapped on the glass. When she didn't turn, he tapped harder. Finally she rolled over and looked at him. He gestured with the phone.

Reluctantly she got up and walked over to the phone. Placing it to her ear, she looked at him expectantly.

"How are you?"

She looked at him. "You really want to know?"

Helo groaned inwardly. "Of course I do. I wouldn't ask if I didn't want to know."

Sharon sighed. She gazed at him through the window. God, she thought he was so handsome. All of her implanted memories told her she had lusted after this man for so long. It was all so confusing. She had known she was a Cylon, but the other her hadn't.

"I'm okay. Not great, but then a cage will do that to someone."

Helo grimaced. "I know. But there is nothing we can do right now."

She placed her hand on the glass. "So how have you been?"

Helo reflected for a moment. "Good, I guess. Still a little messed up over losing the baby. But otherwise, okay. Had to rush Kara to med bay the other day though."

Sharon gasped. "Oh my god, is she okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, just exhausted. She hadn't been sleeping well."

"Why not?"

Helo gazed at her, thoughts churning in his head. He never kept anything from Sharon, but somehow, it didn't seem right to tell her Kara's news. Making a decision, he smiled lightly. "Oh you know Kara, 65 million ways to Sunday and no rest."

Sharon accepted his answer without question. After all, Helo never kept anything from her. She leaned her forehead against the glass. "So, I guess you heard about the mission."

"Yeah. Admiral had a briefing a little bit ago."

"So who did he assign to it?"

"Starbuck, Apollo, and yours truly."

Sharon felt her temper go through the roof. "I can't believe you. You bastard."

Helo looked at her stunned. Where the frak had this come from? "Sharon?"

"You are helping them. They stole our baby, Helo. How can you help them?"

"Sharon, the baby is dead. You know this. They didn't steal her."

"I would know if MY baby was dead. And she isn't. You would know that if you were a real parent. But we both know that you never wanted the baby. Just like you never wanted me." She dropped the phone and walked away.

Helo stared after her, his features slack with disbelief. He tried to get her attention but she just ignored him. Hanging up the phone in resignation, Helo walked away. He would try to talk to her when they got back.

Galactica Hanger Bay – 45 minutes to launch

Kara finished running through the checklist and handed the board back to Cally. "Everything looks good."

Cally grinned. "Thanks, Captain. So good hunting, right?"

"Right." Kara stepped away from the Cylon vessel, noticing Karl walking onto the hanger deck. She turned to ask Cally a question, and noticed the specialist's attention was riveted on Helo. "See something you like?"

Cally turned crimson. "SIR." She swatted at the laughing Captain. "I just…"

Kara threw an arm around her shoulders. "I know, I know. There is just something about that man that just makes a girl go 'oooh yummy'."

Cally raised an eyebrow. "Much like Apollo?" she asked impishly.

Kara grinned at her. "No, Apollo makes a girl drool, and swoon, and well…you know."

Cally laughed. "He's all yours, Captain."

"But seriously… You like Karl?"

Cally opened her mouth and closed it again. She tried again. "It's like there is this pull with him. Any woman around him feels like the center of the universe and I have to say, I WOULD not mind being the center of his universe."

Kara chuckled. "And to think everyone thinks you and the Chief will hook up."

Cally frowned. "Nah, he is too much like an older brother. Besides I have always had a thing for pilots."

Kara laughed wickedly. "A thing for Pilots, or a thing for Pilot's…bodies."

Cally glared repressively at Kara. "Even you have to admit that pilots are in the best shape in this fleet."

Kara's eyes twinkled, "I wasn't disputing that." She started to say something else when she noticed Lee gesturing to her. "Hey, I gotta run. See you when we get back."

Kara strolled over to Lee and lazily saluted him. Lee glanced around, grabbed her arm and dragged her into the storage room behind him. Kara glared at him and wrenched her arm out of his grasp.

"Gee, manhandle much?" She rubbed her forearm. "What is your deal?"

"You're not going."

Kara squinched her mouth for a second. "The hell I am not."

"You can't. You're pregnant."

"Right, Lee. Pregnant, not handicapped."

Lee glared at her. "You can't even fly."

"Bullshit. I am cleared for flight for another few months. You can ask Doc Cottle." She looked at him, eyebrow arched high on her forehead.

"I can't believe he would agree to this."

Kara scoffed. "It isn't his choice. It's my body."

Lee pressed her against the wall and trapped her there. "It's my baby."

Kara glared at him. "That is a low blow, Adama."

"It's the truth, Thrace." He leaned against her gently.

Kara brought her hands up to his chest. Only rather than push him away, she rested them against him instead. "No one else can fly that thing but me, Lee."

Lee let his hands come up to rest on her hips. "But…the baby."

She smiled gently at him. "Quite frankly, my love…" she felt a thrill at calling him that, "if you leave me behind, I will be distracted, wondering what is happening to you. And you would be wondering about me."

He leaned his forehead on hers. "I want you safe, Kara."

Raising her arms to wrap around his neck, Kara kissed him gently. "I know. But there is no safe place in the universe. Other than right next to you. That is the only place I am safe."

Lee returned the kiss with controlled passion. "Promise me. No Starbuck, crazy, retina-detaching maneuvers."

She smiled at him. "Unless the situation calls for it." She silenced his protests with a kiss. "Besides, you will be there to baby-sit me anyway, sir." She wiggled free.

Lee couldn't help but smile at her. "Fine. But at the first sign of anything…"

"I shall hide my delicate little self behind your big strong, well muscled body."

He chuckled. "Delicate, my ass."

"Oh, but it's a very nice ass."

Lee was about to retort, but they heard the klaxon blaring, telling them it was time to depart. He looked at her, and Kara cheekily blew him a kiss. "See you on the other side."