Stand to face me beloved
and open out the grace of your eyes.
-Sappho
She woke up when a small body crept into the bed along with her, wresting the stuffed cat from her hand and burrowing as close to her chest as possible. Laura opened her eyes to a close-up view of Hera's scalp.
"You're not exactly who I was hoping for," she murmured, feeling so heavy with sleep that she wasn't sure she could get up. Hera wrapped an arm around her neck, silently telling Laura that the child didn't intend to move anytime soon. Laura curved her right arm to cradle the girl's back, tangling her fingers in the Hera's fine hair. She could hear Starbuck's voice murmuring in the next room, though not her exact words. Who was she talking to? Tigh? Lee? Bill?
Part of the mystery was solved when, a moment later, she heard Tigh's distinctive timbre reply to something Kara had said. Laura briefly wondered if the events of the morning had been one final dizzying chamalla trip- that happened sometimes, days or weeks after it was metabolized- but then she wondered why she would be in Starbuck's bed if that was so. She took in a slow breath, inhaling the clean scent of Hera's hair, that indistinctive scent that all children seemed to have and that bolstered her already impressive maternal instinct, and lifted her head slightly to check the rest of the room.
No one. Or, so she thought, until a figure stepped out of her blind spot and perched on the few inches Hera had left unclaimed. Bill untangled her right hand from Hera's hair and enfolded it between his own, peering down at her surprised expression.
She watched his face carefully. He looked about as stoic as ever, but if she wasn't mistaken… ah yes, there it was- a tiny glimmer of a smile at the corner of his mouth, and possibly a few tears gathering in his eyes. For a moment, they just stared in silence, only held in place by the presence of Hera between them. Finally, he moved his face closer to hers, and said, "According to Starbuck, I owe you a wedding ring. I think I know why, but I'd like to hear you say it."
"I wouldn't say that you owe it," she murmured in reply, her tactile senses flaring at the touch of his hands around her own, the scrape and slide of ridged and calloused fingers. "No one will hunt you down because you got me pregnant out of wedlock." She slid the pads of her fingers delicately across his palm, rememorizing the lines, and amended, "Except perhaps Starbuck."
"She did seem particularly indignant," he replied, allowing the smile to creep full-fledged onto his face, reaching with his free hand to trace the curve of her cheekbone and the slant of her jaw. "Although that may have been because we stayed away too long."
She raised a somewhat scolding brow, feeling an ache begin in the back of her throat. He was here, and whole, and well, and the good fortune was almost overwhelming. "And why was that, exactly?"
"In hindsight, none of our reasons are worth mentioning. And before you take me to task, perhaps you could explain some of the more risky parts of your insurrection."
They exchanged measuring looks for a moment. "Truce?" she finally asked, fighting to keep her voice steady, and his grip on her hand tightened.
"Truce." He eyed her sternly a moment longer. "Temporarily."
"Then the same goes for you," she replied, and glanced at Hera. "Could you take her to Starbuck?"
His smile returned, and he carefully gathered Hera in his arms. She awoke, and stared up at him silently. "Didn't we toss her out the airlock?" he asked teasingly, giving Laura a sly glance.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," was her answer, and she propped herself up on one elbow while she waited for him to return. In the other room he said something unintelligible to Starbuck, who laughed. Finally he returned and slipped an arm around Laura's now-nonexistent waistline, helping her to a seated position.
He placed his free hand on the top of her abdomen, his other arm still secure behind her back. "Well, you did say we should start having babies."
She smiled, slightly. "I wasn't planning on making a personal contribution to the cause, at that time."
"And now?" He moved his hand lower, right above her belly button, feeling a heel thump against his palm.
"I'm happy," she stated plainly, placing her hand over his. "But," she added, "disappear for another eight months and I'm throwing you out the airlock."
He chuckled briefly, and then pulled her closer. It should have been an awkward embrace, logistically, but she found that it certainly didn't feel like one. He tunneled a hand through her hair, cradling her head at the bottom of her skull. "I nearly had a frakking heart attack when Starbuck and I got to your home," he said quietly, resting his forehead against hers. "And I wasn't just worried about the baby."
"I know." She slid her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. "I'm very, very glad that you've finally come back." She felt a tear slide from the corner of one eye; with a sheepish smile she blinked the rest away. "Hormones."
He kissed her, then, in a way more like he had on Colonial One after his promotion, and less like the kisses they had shared his last night on New Caprica. Gentle, but nostalgic, almost as if he didn't quite believe she was really there with him. When he pulled away- much to soon, in her opinion, although her bladder thought his timing was just about perfect- she dropped her head onto his shoulder and found herself weeping again, much to her own embarrassment.
"Frakking hormones," she muttered, comforting herself with the smell and feel of him.
He ran a hand over her hair, longer than when he had seen it last. "We'll be on our way soon."
"Thank the gods." Feeling another twinge, she pulled away slightly and laughed a tad shakily. "I need to visit the privy." She ran her right index finger over his grinning lips, and then a thought occurred to her. "Lee…?"
He winced, slightly. "Probably. But you shouldn't worry- I'm the one who will be hearing all about knocking up the former president." He helped her stand and they walked together into the other room, where Starbuck, Tigh, and Hera looked at them with varying degrees of interest.
"Well?" Starbuck asked Adama, crossing her arms cockily, "Are you going to do your duty?"
"Don't ask him that; I'm still thinking," Laura replied, almost cross, although that was more on the part of her insistent bladder than anything else. "Frak!" she cursed suddenly, halfway to the door, "I forgot my shoes."
It was Hera, surprisingly, who was first to move; she skittered into the other room and returned with Laura's shoes in hand. "Frak, Auntie Laur?" she asked innocently, and Adama gave Starbuck a knowing glance. Starbuck held up her hands in an almost supplicatory fashion. Hera returned to her play as Laura put on her shoes, letting Bill steady her when she almost lost her balance.
Tigh stood and walked out the door ahead of them ("I don't need a frakking procession for this," Laura protested) to act as an additional guard, both against the odd Cylon raid and curious passerby. There was many of the latter- Starbuck looked out the door after them and said to Adama, "Have I told you about her cult yet?"
Laura had muttered something unintelligible in reply and smiled briefly at some of the newcomers, all of whom seemed to either be extremely amused or horrified.
"You have a cult?" Bill whispered in her ear.
She sighed. "I'll tell you later," she replied, and disappeared into the privy.
Upon returning- thinking she had never missed indoor and relatively private plumbing more- she linked her arm with his for the first time in months, and they shared a smile.
"You are going to marry me, right?" he asked quietly as they made their way back, a few of the more amused members of the fleet leading a small round of applause.
She glanced back at their audience briefly, checking to make sure that they were reasonably out of earshot. "Not if the offer is only because of your insufferably traditional sense of honor."
"If I was insufferably honorable, I would have married you before I frakked you," he pointed out, looking as if he was enjoying the conversation much too much. "Which the evidence disproves."
"She's going to enjoy making your life miserable," Tigh muttered from behind them, and she smirked.
"And now," she continued, intentionally saving Bill's question for a more private time, "…Lee."
"Lee," Bill agreed. All three of them, Tigh included, heaved a deep sigh.
It was going to be one of those conversations.
Starbuck looked up as they entered, her brow creasing as she noticed their slightly gloomy expressions. "Well?"
Laura took one of the other chairs, watching as Hera navigated one of Starbuck's shoes around a pot. "We're just considering what to do about Lee."
Now Starbuck looked equally gloomy. "The thorn in everyone's side." She jolted, slightly, bringing a hand to her abdomen and rubbing one spot gently. She slanted a curious look at Adama. "How is… Lee?"
Bill, who had taken a seat between the two women, gave her in return a perceptive glance. He was well acquainted with the tumultuous relationship between Kara and Apollo, and Laura could tell that he was prepared to intercede for Starbuck as well as herself, if necessary. "A bit withdrawn, since the initial invasion of New Caprica. He and Petty Officer Dualla seem to be on the rocks, lately."
Laura couldn't tell if Starbuck was pleased or disturbed by this news; she had dropped her head slightly upon hearing, the movement shadowing her eyes. Bill unhesitatingly dropped a gentle hand on Kara's shoulder, a silent gesture of support. She gave him a tiny smile.
Laura smiled slightly, as well. Starbuck now had the assurance of the eldest Adama male, which would go a long way in softening whatever Lee might say without thinking first.
"Now," Bill said, changing the subject, "what was that you were saying about a cult, Starbuck?"
Whatever shadows had still remained in Kara's expression abruptly fled, and she tipped her head back in a loud laugh while Laura groaned. "Laura's adoring devotees."
"Haven't we gone through all this before?" Bill asked Laura, smiling fondly and placing a hand on her knee. She had her head in her hands, and did not deign to reply. Starbuck, she was sure, would take care of that for her.
And Starbuck did. "See, it really all started when everyone found out she was pregnant," she expounded avidly, "I mean, one day shrouded in sweaters and the next miraculously fertile, it was like Hera herself had appeared in the settlement. And then she headed up the insurrection-"
"I did not head up the insurrection," Laura corrected, still in her abject pose of I-can't-believe-this-is-happening-to-me.
Tigh snorted. "Of course not. You weren't the one to call the first meeting, or the one to think of chamalla, or the first one to be adamant about sacrificing yourself." He glanced at Bill and shrugged apologetically. "I tried to stop her."
"Anyway," Starbuck cut in, before Adama could say anything incriminating (she figured it would either be a threat to Tigh or a comment about Laura's innate blockheadedness). "After surviving the amphitheatre, she just became this frakking legend. Now everyone keeps talking about how oh, they voted for her in the last election and oh, they knew Baltar was evil from the beginning, and oh, isn't Laura Roslin just the most amazing, magnificent heroine to ever grace the mortal plain of existence-"
"They did not say that," Laura gasped in horror, finally looking up.
"Of course they did, but in much more flowery terms," Kara assured her. "Right now, they think the Admiral is a prick for abandoning you- sorry, sir- but before you know it there will be a rumor about communicating telepathically or something, your love overcoming the boundaries of space."
Laura didn't think she had ever seen Saul Tigh laugh quite that hard, or Bill, for that matter. Hera lost her interest in Starbuck's shoes, and moved to stand next to Kara at the table, giving her a questioning look.
Starbuck's humor tempered, somewhat. "And you," she told the little girl more seriously, "you can be thanked for changing history for the better, even if it was through tragedy." She and Hera exchanged seemingly serious looks, the toddler looking as if she understood more than might be expected of her. Starbuck hoisted Hera into what remained of her lap, and returned to her tale. "Now, a lot of women had been pregnant before the insurrection, but even more now. They seem to be inspired by Laura's example."
"I prefer to think that it is merely the normal result of surviving an unexpected tragedy," Laura commented dryly, barely glancing at Bill as he slid his hand a bit farther up her leg.
"I did see an unusually large amount of babies and pregnant women when I arrived," Bill said thoughtfully, gazing at Laura's own extended abdomen for a long moment. "What about the early batch?"
"We haven't quite figured that out yet," Laura admitted, watching as Hera examined Starbuck's dog tags minutely. "It seems… farfetched… to attribute it to something about the planet."
He considered the suggestion for a moment. "The planet does seem to have an overabundance of fertility, in itself," he finally said, and ignored her incredulous look. "But it's misplaced, perverted. All the rain, but no time given for the rest of the process." He shrugged. "On the other side of the planet, there is a rather large expanse of lush greenery. I believe that Baltar chose not to settle there because of some interesting animal life, but the climate was a bit more moderate."
Tigh nodded. "I remember some of the surveillance pictures," he added. "They came across a few huge packs of catlike creatures; we almost lost a few men to them. They had no fear."
"Perhaps they had been exposed to humans- or seemingly human behavior- before." Laura glanced at Bill. "Cylons?"
"Possibly. Or, for all we know, we aren't the first group to attempt settling here."
Starbuck looked up from her quiet converse with Hera. "The thirteenth colony?" she asked in surprise. "But that was centuries ago."
"Maybe a group decided to settle early," Tigh posited. "They may have had the same sort of situation that we did."
"That wouldn't explain the planet being responsible for our baby boom," Laura noted, "except for indirectly. Unless this supposed group introduced something to the environment."
"Some sort of fertility drug?" Starbuck replied skeptically. "There is nothing manmade that would last that long."
"Nothing we have. And they may have found something natural," was Laura's response. There was a gust of wind outside, and the rain lessened to a soft, constant drizzle. "Something that liked rain," she added dryly, dropping her hand over Bill's.
"It almost makes you wish that we could check out that spot more closely," Starbuck said thoughtfully, braiding a small section of Hera's hair. "For clues."
"No," Adama and Tigh said in unison.
"I'd rather just get everyone off this planet and continue with our journey," Bill continued, exchanging decisive nods with Tigh. "Especially since almost half of the fleet is pregnant or still considered to be on maternity leave, and nearly everyone else is woefully out of practice. It would be too risky."
Laura nodded in assent, although she thought Starbuck's idea had merit, at least for appeasing their curiosity. "How soon can we be back in the sky?"
"Less than a week," Tigh hazarded. "Sooner, if we can get the civilians organized quickly."
"I don't think we'll have much trouble convincing everyone to leave," Laura said assuredly. "The sooner, the better- especially with the Cylons still around."
"What are we going to do about that?" Starbuck asked. "Besides taking their rides."
"We have some warheads," Bill offered, and Laura grimaced.
"Although it would be poetic justice to payback in turn, I'm not exactly thrilled with the idea," she admitted. "I'd rather just let them rot."
"But if there was a human civilization here at one point, they could have left ships behind," Bill pointed out. Laura considered that in silence for a moment, and eventually nodded slowly in agreement.
"I suppose, then, we should send them a parting gift as we leave," she said quietly. "Let it be done."
She looked across the table, and by chance met Hera's clear and attentive gaze. She's going to remember this, one day, Laura suddenly realized, as her child aimed a sharp kick at her bladder, and she sent up a desperate plea to the gods that on that day, Hera would understand why they had done everything they had done.
And hopefully, on that day, Hera would listen to every shred of human mercy and love that resided within her. Starbuck's arms tightened around the child, and she met Laura's gaze over the table.
Raise her well, Laura told her silently, and Starbuck dipped her chin slightly in acknowledgment, shouldering the immense responsibility without hesitation.
Bill turned the hand that was on her thigh palm up, capturing the hand she had laid on top of his. He had seen the silent communication, and knew what it meant.
Gods, she was glad that he was finally here.