Notes: When I originally came up with the idea of this story, I was going to end it where Chapter Thirteen ended. However, with the great response I got when I started posting chapters of this story, and with some people curious about whether this was going to go into the time frame of the miniseries and series, I decided to go ahead an extend the story forward in time. The remaining chapters of the story are the end result. Some elements will be AU, obviously because the fact that Zack didn't die and Lee and Kara are romantically involved where the story intersects with the series' timeframe. But other elements come directly from events of the show, so you will recognize familiar scenes and dialogue with different twists thrown in to fit the new circumstances. But other story elements, scenes, and events will be different from the show due to the AU nature of the story. I also don't plan a play-by-play of events from the show in the story because we all know about what happens in other scenes not involving Lee and Kara or elements orbiting their relationship. I hope what results will be just as readable as the previous chapters have been.

Chapter Fourteen:

(14 months later)

Captain Lee Adama flew over the Galactica in his Viper on his approach run. His gaze fell over the lines of the old warship, now soon to be a museum. "Doesn't seem right," he thought. "The old girl is too proud for that."

He was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of Galactica approach control, calling him in for a hands-on landing. "Some things never change," he thought with a smile.

When his Viper was brought onto the Galactica's main hangar deck, Lee opened the canopy of his ship and removed his flight helmet. He then stood up, removed his gloves, and climbed down the ladder brought to the side of his craft by deckhands. Standing at the bottom of the ladder was Chief Tyrol.

"Sir," saluted Chief Tyrol. "Good to see you again, sir. Welcome back aboard the Galactica."

Lee returned the salute with a smile. "Chief Tyrol. Good to see you again, too."

"Your father sends his regards, and apologizes that he couldn't be here to meet you himself," said Chief Tyrol. "He had to meet the Secretary of Education, who is arriving for the decommissioning ceremony."

"Yes, the Galactica will be under her department when it becomes a museum," said Lee.

"Yes, sir," said Chief Tyrol, dourly.

Lee smiled knowingly. "I know how you feel. She's a warship, not a floating tourist attraction."

"My thoughts exactly, sir," said Chief Tyrol

"So, have you seen Lt. Thrace? She was supposed to meet me when I landed."

"She's…in the brig, sir," said Chief Tyrol.

Lee looked at the Chief with a mixture of irritation and amusement. "Frak, what's she done this time?"

"She decked the XO at a card game, sir," said the Chief.

Lee let out a deep sigh. "At least she could have controlled herself today. I haven't seen her for two months."

"When's the wedding, sir, if I may ask?" asked Chief Tyrol.

"A week from tomorrow, on Caprica," said Lee. "That is, if she isn't court martialed before I can marry her."

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Tyrol, Lee made his way through the Galactica's corridors, heading for the ship's brig. The Chief was good enough to give him directions, for the straight-laced young Captain had never been to Galactica's brig. He said hello to several people along the way that he knew from his semi-frequent visits to the ship to see his Father and fiancée.

"Of all the days, Kara," he thought, as his course took him ever closer to the brig. He didn't know if he was going to scream at her or kiss her when he got there.

Their romance survived the year since they had to postpone their wedding and the distance between them was alleviated by Lee's visits to the Galactica, hers to the Atlantia, and shared leaves spent on romantic getaways. Lee's career continued to flourish on the Altantia, where he was about to be appointed to the position of ship's CAG on the orders of Admiral Nagala himself. In the meantime, Kara had thrived on the Galactica, earning back her Senior Lieutenant's rank and the respect of her fellow pilots. Whenever she and Lee were together, she talked about how much she loved serving under Lee's father, and how the two of them got along like a house on fire. Sometimes, Lee almost felt jealous because Kara was closer to his father than he was. The only stumbling block was the ship's XO, Colonel Saul Tigh. He and Kara were constantly at odds with one another, and it took everything Kara had not to take things too far with the XO. Apparently, that control had broken down.

"I figured you would be headed this way," said a familiar voice to Lee. He turned and saw his father standing in a doorway with a smile on his face.

"Dad, hi," said Lee, saluting his Father.

"A 'hi, Dad' accompanied with a salute," said Commander Adama. "Trying to compromise the familial with military, huh?"

"Trying, sir," said Lee, as his father returned the salute. "I thought you had a meeting with the Secretary of Education."

"She's running late," said Adama. "Civilians. Can't tell time."

They both chuckled a little. Then, the Father continued.

"You heard about Kara, obviously" said Adama.

"Yes, sir," said Lee. "Dad, isn't there anything…"

"I'm trying to talk Colonel Tigh into dropping the charges," said Adama. "He's being stubborn, but if given time to cool off, I think he'll let it drop. His pride was hurt more than his face. He also did some things to provoke the assault. I've been extremely pleased with Kara in her time here, and don't want to see it ruined now by something so stupid."

"Leave it to Kara to do this a week before our wedding," said Lee. "I'm pissed at her but can't help but love the fire in her."

"Interesting conundrum," said Adama. "But its one you'll have to work out later. You have a flight briefing in ten minutes."

As if on cue, a voice came over the intercom calling Captain Lee Adama to the pilots' briefing room.

"Frak," said Lee.

"Don't worry," said Adama. "You'll get a chance to see her before you have to go. In the meantime, you'd better get to your briefing. Talk to you later."

"Yes, sir," said Lee, saluting then turning to walk back down the corridor the way he came.

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After the briefing, Lee finally found time to go and see Kara in the brig. He walked in and found her doing push-ups in her cell. He stood there for a moment, admiring the lithe strength of her body, thinking on the last time he made love to her. Two warm, sweaty bodies clung together in a dance of lovers that the two of them did so well. Lee remembered the feel of her cuddled in his arms after their lovemaking, as he kissed the top of her head and told her he loved her, receiving a mumbled "I love you" in return.

Finally, Lee snapped out of his thoughts and spoke to his fiancée.

"This seems familiar," said Lee.

Kara looked up. She didn't smile, but merely stood up and looked at Lee with a sort of half-amused expression. Most of the time, after long separations, Lee and Kara couldn't wait to get their hands on each other. This time, the bars got in the way of that. They also had a Marine guard for an audience.

"Captain Adama, sir," said Kara, half-formally. "Sorry I wasn't there to greet you with the rest of the squadron. Did they kiss your ass to your satisfaction?"

Lee smirked with amusement. "Gods, I love her," he thought. Then, he turned to the guard sitting at his desk. "Corporal, I believe you were ordered to give us some time."

"Yes, sir," said the Corporal, getting up to leave his post, handing Lee the keys on the way out.

After the guard left, Lee started fumbling with the keys to open the cell. "You know, the only person I want kissing my ass is you," he said, as he put the key in the lock. "Literally."

"That's not my favorite part of you to kiss," said Kara with a smile.

Then, when the door opened, they grabbed each other and started kissing each other wildly, all sense of decorum lost in the moment. They stayed that way for several moments, just grabbing, fondling, and tonguing each other's brains out. Finally, they broke their kiss, but not their hold on one another.

"Here to bust me out," she said, with a chuckle.

"I wish," said Lee.

"Think this bunk will support us both," she said, pulling him towards the bunk in the cell. "I can remind you what parts of you I like to kiss."

"I wish I had that kind of time," said Lee. "They've got me flying with the squadron for the ceremony in less than an hour, and I have some kind of photo op for the press with my Dad. By the way, he's working on Tigh, trying to get you out of here."

Kara smiled. "Old softy," she said. "I can't wait until I can call him Dad."

"I know," said Lee. "He already loves you like a daughter."

Then, they both got quiet, and just looked at each other. Kara broke the silence.

"I'm sorry, Lee," said Kara. "Not for striking that superior asshole, but…"

Lee laughed, kissing Kara once on the lips. "That's my Kara," he said. "How long have you been waiting to use that line?"

Kara laughed in return. "Most of the day," she said. "Lee, I just lost it, and…"

"Shh," said Lee, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "I have to admit to being kind of pissed with you. Seems like every time we plan a wedding you have to haul off and hit somebody. But hell, I can't help but love you for all you are, so you're forgiven. By me, at least. Colonel Tigh…well, we'll just have to work on that. It might help if you apologize to him."

"Frak that idea," she said.

"Kara," said Lee. "It might help to make sure you can marry me in a week, and not face a court martial."

Kara backed off. "No way, Lee," she said. "I am not apologizing to that drunken sot!"

"Okay, fine," said Lee. "You leave me no alternative. I'll have to go and punch him, too, so we'll end up in the brig together."

Kara looked at him with a bemused look. "Yeah, right."

"Not buying it, huh?" asked Lee.

"Not for a second," she said. Kara and Lee stared at one another, and Kara was clearly thinking things through. "Look, maybe I'll think about it."

"That's better," said Lee.

A page came over the speakers calling Captain Lee Adama to the conference room ASAP.

"Gotta go," said Lee, pulling Kara to him once more.

"Have a good flight," she said.

"They're letting me fly Dad's old Mark II," said Lee. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Yeah," said Kara, with a sigh of regret. "I wish I could see it."

Lee kissed Kara on the lips one last time. "I love you, Kara.

"I love you, too," she replied, kissing him back.

"One more week, Kara," said Lee.

Kara smiled. "Then you are mine, Captain Adama."

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A day later, all was chaos as the worlds were coming to an end around them. Kara was out of the brig, on the orders of the Commander, and had just fought the first real aerial battle of her life. She had survived it, but her craft was in pretty bad shape when she brought it into Galactica's main hangar bay.

"Lieutenant," said Chief Tyrol, as Kara climbed out of her Viper. "What did you do to my Viper?"

Kara didn't respond immediately. She was shocked at the condition of her fighter's engine, but didn't show it. "I was wondering why the engine gave out," she said nonchalantly.

"We're going to have to pull the whole mounting," said Tyrol. "Get the high lift," he said to one of his deck crew. Then, standing next to Kara, he said. "I don't know how you managed to fly this thing much less land it."

"That's not something I want to think about right now," she said. "Where's Prosna. He's gotta get that fracking gimble locked or I'll have his ass."

"He's dead, sir" replied the Chief solemnly. "He died in the fire."

"Frak," thought Kara. "Poor kid." Then, verbally, she asked, "How many did we loose?"

"Eighty-five," replied Tyrol.

"Hell of a butcher's bill," thought Kara. She kept her cool though and simply replied with a quick "right" before walking away to get out of her flight suit. She also wanted to check with the Commander to see if he had heard anything about Lee. As if on cue, Chief Tyrol spoke to her.

"Lieutenant," said the Chief.

Kara turned to face him with a look of consternation.

"Um, I don't know if I should be the one to tell you this, but before you hear it from someone else," said the Chief, looking for the words.

"Spit it out, huh Chief," replied Kara, with irritation.

"Its Captain Adama, Lieutenant," he replied.

Kara's heart fell into her stomach, as she stood there without reply. Her whole world was collapsing, as she understood the implications of the Chief's words and expression. Lee was among those lost on this terrible day, and Kara wanted to scream in agony. But she didn't flinch, didn't cry, didn't react openly. Instead, she held her emotions in check, and tried to speak.

"Right," she said curtly. "Um…any word on Sharon?"

It was all she could think of to say. She hated reminding the Chief of his own pain right now, but she needed to take her mind off Lee momentarily until she could find privacy.

"No," replied the Chief, holding in his own pain.

Kara nodded, turned, and walked towards her quarters. She tried not to run, but her pace accelerated as she made her way down the corridors. As she moved, memories of Lee rushed through her mind. His smile, his laughter, his stern expression when she played a prank on him once, the feel of his arms around her, their first kiss, the first time they made love, the first time they told each other they loved one another, and the moment Lee proposed marriage.

When she got to her bunkroom, she found none of her roommates were present, and was glad of it. Kara shut the hatch behind her, and then walked over to her locker in a daze. She opened it and saw the picture she kept in there, one of her and Lee taken on Picon when they were dating. Shane Flavia took it of the two of them, Lee holding her close as she gazed at him with a big smile on her face. The happiness of that moment in time, now seeming to be an eternity ago, clashed with the agony of reality as it finally hit her like a punch in the stomach. Her beloved Lee was dead, taken from her forever. Then, all of her pent up emotion found release in a loud, long scream. After screaming, Kara began to cry as she collapsed on the floor and pulled her body into a fetal position on the cold deck. Kara felt like she was dying as her body shook violently with sobs.

Some time passed, as Kara stayed on the floor thankfully undisturbed, the only sound in the room was that of her sobs. The hatch opened, breaking the silence and solitude of the room, and someone walked in. "GO AWAY!" she screamed.

Strong, but loving arms pulled Kara off of the floor. She looked to see Commander Adama pulling her up to him. Kara could see the sadness in the old man's eyes, and even signs of tears that had fallen down his cheeks.

"You know," he said simply.

Kara collapsed into his arms and cried. "Shh," said Adama, trying to calm her.

"He's gone," said Kara. "Gods, he's gone. They took him from us."

"I know," said Adama. "I was in CIC, I heard it happen. A Cylon raider took out the transport he was on with a nuke. There was nothing I could do to save him."

"It's not fair," she said. "Not fair."

"None of what has happened this day has been fair, Kara," Adama said. "But we are going to have to pull it together. We are fighting for our lives, and it is going to take all of us to survive. We are coming into Ragnor Anchorage. I need to oversee the re-supply operations. Are you going to be okay?"

"No," said Kara. "I don't think I'll be okay again."

Adama held her away from him. "You have to be for now, Kara. Later, we will both mourn him. But for now, we need to press on. Chief Tyrol needs every qualified person to work on getting as many Vipers up and running as possible. He needs you, Kara. I need you. I need you to be my CAG. Can you do this?"

Kara looked at Adama's determined expression, and found renewed strength in his gaze. She always was inspired by Commander Adama and impressed by his ability to reach deep down inside her and pull out her strength to the surface. Kara came to attention and saluted.

"Yes, sir," she said, holding back further sobs.

"Take a few moments, clean yourself up a bit before reporting to the hangar," said Adama. He then kissed her on the forehead, before turning to leave her in the room.

Kara was tempted to start crying again, and loose herself in mourning for Lee. But the Old Man was counting on her, as was everyone else. She pushed away the sadness, and headed out of the room, leaving her grief in there to be taken up at a later time.

End of Chapter Fourteen. Chapter Fifteen coming soon.

As always, feedback/reviews are welcomed and appreciated, especially now since the story is entering into new territory. Please let me know what you think.