Reversus Patria
Part: 14
Rating: PG, maybe be PG-13 later on
paring: ensemble cast
Summary: continuation of Faoi Dheireadh

Note: I do want to thank AlbertG, James Axelrad, Moggie, Becky, Sue, and Rap541 for their expertise. Without their input this story would not be what it is today. Be warned, this takes place sometime near the end of season two. Anything after Epiphanies are conjectures from the author's warped mind. . . This is a sequel of Faoi Dheireadh.
Disclaimer: Battlestar Galactica and its characters are creations of Glen Larson and copywrited by Universal Studios. I make no money off this.

Colonial speech: " "
English speech: ' '

Chapter Fourteen

Gaeta slowly crawled his way back up to the world of the living. He still felt like crap, but at least that blinding headache was gone. The muscles that still weren't working quite right felt heavy to him for some odd reason. He let out a groan as he slowly sat up. "Great," he muttered at the sight of the wheelchair several feet away from the side of the bed.

Maybe I could just lay down again, he considered. But he couldn't and he knew that. He needed to get to the head. A quick glance around the room made him realize that there was nothing he could use to pull the chair closer. Now he would have to get to the chair himself, and hopefully not collapse onto the deck in the process.

"Here goes," he said softly as he swung his legs off the bed and let his feet touch the floor. The metal plates were cold, but he ignored that. He could get some socks later. Right now he really needed to reach the chair.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself off the bed. For a moment he stood there perfectly balanced, but quickly started leaning to the side. "Frak," he muttered as he reached for the chair. He wasn't quick enough and landed on the deck with a thump.

Before he could even consider what he should do he saw someone out of the corner of his eye come through the door and into the bedroom. It was Henderson. Making quick work of the situation, the Terran quickly got Gaeta into the chair and began to push him towards the head. 'I want to do this by myself,' Gaeta said just loud enough for the nurse's aide to hear.

Henderson understood exactly what the Aurorian was requesting. Suddenly loosing independence - even temporarily - is a bitter pill to swallow for anyone. And doing anything, however minor, was considered a triumph.

A short time later Gaeta was in the common room and looking over the information he had stored in the PDA about the new computer setup for the battlestars. He had yet to have the information sent back to Helo. That was something he wanted to remedy sooner rather than later. And with the information being for his eyes only, he didn't want to leak the information out by accident. 'How long will you be here?' he asked as he shut the small computer down.

'Only when Captain Glennan isn't here, or you're in rehab,' Henderson answered with a ghost of a grin. 'And it's only to make sure you don't hurt yourself by accident.'

'How long?' Gaeta asked once again.

'You're talking about today, or this situation in general?'

'Today.' Felix rubbed his forehead in frustration.

Before Henderson could say anything, the door opened and Angela stepped in. 'I can take it from here,' she told the aide while putting down several folders on the closest flat surface.

The aide nodded and quickly left the cabin leaving the two alone. She scowled a moment before letting it drop. 'No more headache?'

"No." Felix shook his head. "How long have I been asleep?"

Angela glanced at her watch, the same watch he had given her early on in their relationship. "Over a day." She sat down and sighed. "And the rehab people weren't that happy with me when you missed your session with them."

Her words made him look sharply at the clock. Just great, he closed his eyes and berated himself for oversleeping to such an extent. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Because you needed the sleep. I know all about migraines. Mum gets them every month and is wiped out for several days from the combination of the medication and the long sleep it puts her in."

Silence dominated the room for a few minutes. "I'm sorry about that."

"Don't worry, it's not your fault," Angela shrugged. She was quiet again, but this time she was looking at the PDA he was holding. "Have you sent back those files you received?"

"No. I don't know how to do that." Felix looked somewhat disappointed.

His comments made Angela realize that he didn't know fully how to operate the computers. "I'll do it," she answered while reaching for the small computer. "It's not that difficult either," she explained. She powered the computer up and selected the file in question put the destination in the correct field then hit send.

"So, it's going right now?" It seemed way too easy in his estimation.

"Not yet. It's been added to the queue so that when the next dump happens, it'll go back within the day."

The more and more Gaeta saw and worked with Terra's technology, the more and more he was impressed with it. Many things were much simpler to operate, and there were also a few things that he would never have thought of.

She was about to say something else when the comm. unit sounded. Glennan got up and retrieved the call. After a short conversation she went back over to the couch and sat down. 'Rehab isn't letting you off the hook that easily. They're coming by to pick you up.'

"I don't like rehab," Felix muttered.

"I know you don't. It wasn't easy for me either," she agreed with him. "But the hardest part is starting it."

"I think you told me that before," Felix answered. He paused before continuing, "When will they arrive?"

His question was answered by a knock at the cabin door. "Now," Glennan answered while getting up once again.

Gaeta sighed as they came into the common room. 'Ready, Major?' one of the techs asked.

'Do I have a choice,' Gaeta grumbled as he was helped into the wheelchair.

'Not unless you want to walk again. Don't worry, it gets easier over time.'

He was still grumbling as they left the cabin and out into the corridors.

Laura stood looking out the windows of her office. The brilliant colors of autumn were just beginning to show on the trees. Some of the Picts had told her that the colors were even more vibrant in the more northern areas of the continent. With what she saw right now in a half-temperate half-tropical region she wasn't that surprised at their comments. The image beyond the windows, though, wasn't what was on her mind. Last night she had talked to Bill about what to do with Dee. Ultimately it was her decision, but it didn't make it any easier.

"Where is she?" she finally asked.

Bill's silence bothered her. Laura turned to look at him, trying to gage his thoughts. His face was unreadable, which bothered her even more. "Bill?"

Adama looked down to his hands before finally answering, "With the Picts."

Laura's eyes narrowed at his admission. "Oh really?"

He looked her straight in the face before answering. "I want to make sure it's discovered who injured Captain O'Neill. As of right now, it's not been revealed either way." He could tell Laura knew what he was talking about. If they had still been in space, Dee would have already been put in the brig. It didn't matter if she were pregnant or not.

Laura seemed to capitulate to his view point. "And what if she's guilty?"

"We let the courts decide on that."

"I hate doing this, Bill," she sighed as she rubbed her arms. "Even if she isn't one, I can't take the chance."

The silence seemed to weigh heavily in her office. She was due to meet with Agent Goren about the whole issue with Captain O'Neill and Dee. The air between her and Bill was still strained. She didn't like being at odds with him, she cared for him too much. But they needed to show a united front to let the population know that they knew what they were doing.

The silence in the room seemed to thicken. It was broken by Billy coming into the office followed by the person they had been waiting for. "Ma'am, Admiral, Agent Goren is here." He went to leave but Laura stopped him. "Thank you, Billy."

Even though Billy was tired he still answered smartly before excusing himself, "Yes, ma'am."

"Madam President," Goren nodded. "You were wanting to discuss how the case is developing," he started.

"Yes, Agent Goren," Laura nodded while indicating a small sitting area. There were several chairs separated by a low coffee table. Above one of the chairs and hung on the wall was the picture that was taking on Aerlon during the attacks and on the frame were the words Never Forget. Robert sat down and pulled out his notebook and stylus and opened his files on the case.

"I would like to know how the investigation is progressing," she stated firmly.

"As well as to be expected at the current time," he answered noncommittally. "Right now Dualla is undergoing psychiatric evaluation. If she is deemed competent to stand trial, she will be afforded an attorney to represent her."

"Why so?" she answered darkly. If she was a Cylon then. . .

Goren seemed to know what she was considering, "Madam President. Everyone has rights on this planet. She has just as much right as the next person, and she is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt."

"Agent, there are many in Aurora who would like nothing better than to take her up to one of the ships and have her shoved out the airlock."

"Which is why I have asked for the trial, if it comes down to that, to be held in Avalon. Your people can't constantly dwell on the past, they need to move forward."

Laura seemed to finally capitulate at his reasoning. It was similar to what Bill had told her last night. "What if she's deemed unable to stand trial?" This reminded her of what happened to Baltar. He was now planetside, and being treated in a psychiatric facility. His break with reality was so great that even the people that were caring for him didn't think he would ever recover.

"She will be placed in a psychiatric facility. Which facility she could go to depends on how dangerous she is, or becomes."

"I see," Roslin answered slowly. "How long will the evaluation take?"

"The courts will have the report tomorrow." Goren closed the notebook and put it in one of his jacket pockets. "I can have you notified of the outcome."

"Yes, please, Agent," she responded as she stood up. "I do want to thank you for coming out here."

"Ma'am," Goren answered while bowing his head slightly. As he was leaving she called out to Billy for him to stay.

"Billy, there's something I need to tell you," she said as she closed the door to her office.

"Yes, ma'am?" he asked somewhat confused. His tiredness seemed to compound the confusion.

"You do know what's going on with Dee, right?"

Worry flashed in his eyes before it disappeared. It was at that moment she realized he had been hiding it. Laura swallowed a bit of her pride and said, "You have every right to be worried."

He closed his eyes. "I, I've been hearing things."

"I don't like doing this, but I can't have you on my staff anymore because of Dee," she told him with regret. "You've been with me since the Holocaust and have been a tremendous help." She put her hand on his shoulder, "But I'm very sorry, Billy. I held out as long as I could, but it's getting difficult to explain to the Avalon press why you're still here with Dee going possibly on trial."

His shoulders slumped in defeat. "I understand, ma'am." His words sounded wooden.

Laura never felt so alone as she watched Billy leave her office for the last time.

TBC………..