The Raptor touched down on Galactica under strict orders from the Admiral that he would personally shoot Helo if he did not bring the survivors straight back to him. Everyone busied them helping Helo with the powering down so they could get off the ship as fast as possible. Everyone but Eve had people they were dying to get home to. Eve just wanted to start this horrible process so she could be accepted by the Fleet and then Lee could start teaching her to fly like he promised.

Lee was halfway through powering down the intel screens when he realized Kara was still sitting in the co-pilot seat. She had been staring out the window from practically the moment they landed. "Finish this up," Lee instructed Helo before moving to rest his hand on Kara's shoulder. "Kara?"

"Do you think he's going to be angry with me, Lee?"

"Angry? For what?"

"I left him. He needed me to stay, and I was too selfish to do that one little thing for him."

"You earned a right to make your own decision," Lee assured her. "Yes, he was mad at first, but I forced him to see how stupid he was being."

"I broke his heart, Lee."

"You broke mine on numerous occasions," Lee reminded her, "and that never stopped me from worrying about you. It never affected just how much I love you. My father's the same way." Lee waited for Kara to give him a smile and a nod. When she still looked worried, he crouched down and rested his hands on her thighs. "Kara, listen to me. My father owes you the world, and you better believe I'll let him know it the first second I get the chance."

"What are you talking about?"

Kara looked so beautiful and vulnerable in the moment that if Lee hadn't already been head over heels in love with her before, he definitely would be now. "You are the only reason I'm alive, Kara, my love. You risked everything to save me from the Cylons simply because you never gave up hope. I was stuck in some horribly dark place, and I didn't care if I ever found a way out. I gave up on there being something to live for, something to fight for. Then you showed up. Over and over again, I felt myself losing my grip and you would pop back into my life. You have given me more joy and happiness in the past year than I have ever felt before, Kara. You saved me. For that alone, my father should feel indebted to you for life."

He leaned in to brush his lips lightly across hers, and when he pulled back, he saw the smile he had been searching for. His fingers brushed away her tears for what he hoped would be the last time. She had cried enough to last her a lifetime. "Are you ready?"

She gave him a small nod and, slipping her hand into his, they made their way down the ramp together.

It was instant pandemonium just like Lee knew it would be. He was bringing an extremely recognizable Cylon to the one place the machines shouldn't be. He felt Kara give him a gentle push in the direction of Eve and knew she was right. As much as he wanted and needed to stay by her side, Eve wasn't going to survive this without him screaming at the Marines to back off and let him explain.

Kara looked around the chaos of the hangar bay. Everyone's eyes were on either Eve's upcoming capture, Cottle's doctoring of Barclay, or the huge uproar of Cally and Tyrol's reunion. No one was paying her much attention. She figured that was a good thing. She didn't want to do this without Lee.

She was still scanning the hangar bay, trying to get a feel for the life she had left so long ago, which was why she was the first one to see him. Almost by instinct she screamed, "Admiral on deck!"

The hangar bay went silent as Adama followed the sound of the voice right to where she was standing. Kara felt her stomach drop out. She was supposed to be blending in, not demanding the attention of every person on Galactica.

Adama weaved his way through the crowd until he was standing before her. Kara felt her head tilt down in a move she was starting to get used to. Why was it she always felt like a little girl who did something wrong when the Old Man looked at her so intently?

"Sir," Kara said quietly.

Adama's hand ran along her cheek before tilting her chin up to face him. Kara bit her lip as she realized the Old Man looked like he was on the verge of tears. "I'm so sorry," she blurted out before bursting into tears herself.

Adama wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in to him. "I'm the one that's sorry, Kara," he whispered gently into her ear. "I'm the one who's sorry." He kept repeating the same words over and over until he could feel her body stop shaking. It was only then that he let go of his tight hold. "I would never have forgiven myself if I had lost you, Kara. You are the only child I have left."

Kara couldn't help it. The corner of her mouth turned up in a smile. "Actually, sir, I brought you a little gift that might make you feel better."

When Adama realized Kara was staring at something over his shoulder, he turned in time to see the crowd parting to let Lee through. He felt his heart stop beating for just a brief second and then it started pounding out of control.

Kara watched the Old Man embrace his son, and she suddenly realized William Adama had just gone through a full year of not knowing where Lee was. From what she had been told, Lee was commanding the Pegasus during the first rescue attempt on New Caprica and then he wasn't. Leoben took him, but the Old Man didn't know that. All he knew was his eldest son disappeared without a trace from one of the securest places left in this world.

Lee whispered something into his father's ear, and Adama took a step away. "Out of everything you could have said you chose 'who's been flying my ship'?" Adama shouted over the chaos.

Kara had to bite back a laugh. Lee really was his father's son.

Adama looked around at the celebration and realized it would be hours before anyone would think about filling reports on the situation. "Gaeta has the boards in the CIC. Why don't you two follow me to my office and we can start the long process of you explaining how you both managed to stay alive for twelve months down on New Caprica?"

Lee gave his father a quick nod and reached down to grab Kara's hand. "How's it going?" he whispered, leaning in to nip the top of her ear.

She elbowed him in the ribs before smiling. "You were right."

"About?"

"Everything."

"It's about time you admitted that."

Kara leaned into Lee as they walked down familiar corridors. She couldn't believe they had actually pulled this off. She couldn't believe she and Lee were walking down this hall together like it was the first day after the attacks. Back then, Lee was a newly-appointed CAG and she was just a rebellious lead pilot. Now Lee was a Commander who had lost a year of his command and she… she was just a woman hopelessly in love with her best friend.

Lee placed his hand on the small of her back and guided her into his father's office. They followed Adama past the desk and chairs they usually conversed over and took a seat on the couch. Kara found herself sitting so that her thigh kept contact with Lee. She knew they should ease the Admiral into the bomb they had to drop, but she just couldn't put distance between herself and Lee. She needed him close right now.

"I figured I'd start by answering your question," Adama said, leaning back on the couch. "It took me a few weeks to accept that you were really gone, son, and by that time, the survivors from New Caprica had been reintegrated into the Fleet. My only real choice for Pegasus was Colonel Tigh."

Kara nodded and looked over to see Lee doing the same. That really was the only choice. There was no one below Lee who could handle the massive amount of pressure associated with commanding a battlestar.

"The two of us have had an understanding, though. As soon as you're ready, Tigh will relinquish command of the Pegasus. He's more than happy to return to being my XO."

"How has the rest of the Fleet been?" Lee asked.

"We've been struggling through. I've been doing my best to keep making progress towards finding Earth."

"How far are we from our goal?"

"Let me put it this way, Kara. We have a lot of information to make future jumps, but I haven't let the Fleet jump that often in the past year. If the Cylons weren't right on top of us, we stayed put."

"Why?"

A look of discomfort passed across Adama's face at his son's question. "Do you remember what happened when Kara got herself marooned on that moon three years ago?" Lee nodded. "Well, this time Laura didn't object to our hanging around until the last possible second."

"I think Kara's been growing on her," Lee joked, earning himself a punch from the woman at his side. Without thought, he caught her hand as she went to hit him again. His fingers rubbed across the tattoo, and he couldn't help but hold it up to his lips for a quick kiss. As soon as he did it, he realized what a huge mistake it was.

"Someone please explain to me what I'm seeing."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Kara spit out, practically shoving her hands underneath her thighs to cover up the evidence. Lee wanted to laugh. He could always count on Kara for balls-out denial.

"What happened between you two down on that planet?"

"She saved my life," Lee answered.

Kara sighed and twisted herself to face the only man she had ever considered a father. "We can beat around the issue for hours, sir, but I honestly don't have the energy. Anders and I were heavily involved with the resistance on New Caprica. A few weeks before the Fleet returned for us, I got taken by the Cylons. I escaped."

"That's my girl," Adama growled.

"I was laid up in a hospital bed per Doc Cottle when the rescue happened. I did what I could to figure out the best way to get everyone off the planet. People volunteered to start creating diversions from the main rescue initiatives, and therefore they agreed to stay behind. Anders stayed with me." Kara paused to get her bearings. She hated thinking about all the brave people who had sacrificed their lives just so that others could live another day. They had trusted in her plan to get them saved, and she had fraked it up.

"Kara got word of the Cylons taking me, and you can just imagine what happened next."

"She went on a mission to save you."

"Am I that predictable?" Kara exclaimed.

"When it comes to my son, yes," Adama insisted.

"Frak you," Kara hissed good-naturedly.

"She brought me back to the resistance's headquarters and told me of the plan she thought up with Cally."

"It was a good plan by the way," Adama interjected.

"I thought so up until the point that it all went south. We showed up at that clearing and for a second, I thought it was all going to go off without a hitch. A Raptor landed, and I thought it was the start of the end. It turns out the Sharon piloting that thing was not the model we wanted to be seeing." Kara cleared her throat and hopped no one would scold her if she sort of bulldozed over the next little bit. "We were stuck, and everyone knew it."

Lee reached out to grab Kara's hand and smiled. "Kara's husband sacrificed himself to find out if we had a chance. He's one of the main reasons the five of us were able to make it out of that situation."

"I thought there was six of you. Or are we not counting the Cylon?"

"You heard about that?" Lee said, wincing.

"I might be a little overwhelmed by seeing both of my children alive and well, but I'm still the commanding officer of this Fleet."

"Give Eve a chance," Kara said.

Adama smiled. "Kara Thrace standing up for a Cylon? I never thought I'd live to see the day."

Kara laughed. "Why do I get the feeling that you already decided to not throw Eve out an airlock?"

"I told you things changed while you were gone," Lee reminded her. "Dad's a huge Cylon lover now."

"Don't get carried away," Adama warned.

When the laughter died down, Lee picked up the explanation. "Eve showed up while we were sitting ducks for the Cylons to pick off. She offered us an out, and we took it. For the next eight months, we locked ourselves into the old bunker. It was a tough time for everyone."

"You don't have to protect me," Kara interrupted. She turned to Adama. "I had a bit of a breakdown, sir. Your son is the only reason I was able to get myself back together. He pulled me through."

Adama nodded. "I really didn't think the bond you two have could get any more intense, but I guess I was wrong. Almost losing your lives and minds can make you get your head in gear real fast. You start realizing all the stupid mistakes you've been making over the years." The phone on the Admiral's desk started ringing, and after a second's deliberation, he excused himself from his two children.

Kara shifted to look at Lee. "It took us a little while, but I think we talked our way around that little kiss of yours, Adama."

Lee nodded. They had both agreed on the last part of their Raptor ride home that they were going to do their best to wait until the newness of the situation had faded away before they sprung the whole marriage thing on the Old Man.

Adama set down the phone. "I'm sorry about that. Gaeta wanted to make sure the orders to keep the Cylon alive were by my approval."

"No problem," Kara said. "We were pretty much finished with our report. Eve contacted Sharon, and then you showed up two weeks later. Happily ever after."

Adama chuckled. He had really missed this young woman. "Well, then if there's nothing else, I propose a little dinner and then I'll figure out where you can bunk for the night."

"No."

Kara and Adama both snapped their neck to look at Lee.

"No what, son?"

"Yeah, no fraking what, Lee?"

"No, I'm not done talking. Yes, there is something else." Lee turned to give Kara a small shrug, and he could see her eyes go wide.

"Do not fraking do this, Lee."

"I'm tired of not being honest."

"But now?"

"I'm not waiting."

"You are such a selfish bastard sometimes."

"Yeah, I know that. I don't care."

"You should care. We talked about this. You're fraking everything up."

"I always do."

"Maybe I want to be selfish and not have you frak up one of the best days of my life."

Lee reached out to grab Kara's hand. "You really think telling him will ruin the day? Shouldn't it make it all the better?"

"Stop trying to make me smile, Lee."

"Stop being so happy."

"Why don't you both just stop?" Adama yelled. His outburst earned him the immediate attention of both Kara and Lee. "Now, would someone please tell me right this minute what I'm not supposed to know?"

Lee grabbed Kara's hand and thrust it out alongside his for his father to see. "We're getting married just as soon as we can find a priestess."

Adama's eyes went wide, and he fumbled for the words to respond. "I… when… how did you… but… I don't see… are you two out of your fraking minds?"

"I thought that had been established," Kara mumbled.

"I'm just tired of trying to be responsible and putting the Fleet before myself," Lee explained. "This is something I want, something I've wanted for a long time. In my opinion, it does nothing but strengthen my command to have Kara by my side."

Adama considered this for a moment and then turned to the woman sitting next to him. "Kara?"

"You know me, sir. I've been dying to be an Adama for years." Kara was rewarded with a laugh, but seeing the stern look on Lee's face made her realize her future husband deserved more than just a joke about a family name. "Seriously, sir, I went through a rough patch down on New Caprica, and your son was the only reason I could find to get up in the morning. I'm not sure I could go back to the way things were. I'm not sure I can give him up."

Adama took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose for a minute. "Fine. What do you two propose I do with this new development?"

"Make Kara the CAG of Pegasus. Since I'm Commander, there's not a lot of complaints that could be lodged about favoritism. She'll be making flight schedules I won't even see until they've been approved by my XO, which I assume is still going to be Helo." Adama nodded his approval, and Lee continued, "Having Helo with me will keep me from doing something stupid like letting my worry about Kara getting hurt keep me from assigning her to head up missions. Karl's very vocal when he thinks he sees a problem."

Kara bit back a laugh. Very vocal didn't even begin to cut it.

"I can't say I'm happy about this," Adama growled. Kara was scared for a few seconds until Adama's serious face shifted into a rare smile. "But I can't say that I'm that mad about it, either."

Lee's eyes went wide. "You're actually going to let us do this?"

Adama shrugged. "You're grown adults. It's the end of the world. Why not?"

Kara was so excited that she didn't even register what she was doing until she had Lee pinned against his father's couch. She was on a one woman mission to keep Lee Adama occupied so that he wouldn't start to wonder why his father wasn't stunned by the news of their upcoming marriage. Knowing Lee, he'd change his mind just because his father seemed to approve of his spontaneous decision.

"Kara," Lee groaned against her mouth. "My father.."

Kara pulled back for just long enough to hear the hatch shut. "Your father is a very smart man," she smirked.

Lee shifted to make sure that his father had indeed left them along. When he felt certain they were alone, he let his hands start to wander his future wife's body. "I think I'm a pretty smart man, too."

"How so?"

"I figured out a way to get you to admit you loved me, didn't I?"

Kara playfully smacked his chest as she slid a leg across his lap in order to straddle him. "I'm never going to get tired of this, am I?"

"I hope not."

Kara smiled. "That's a word I've never really appreciated before. Hope… yeah, I like the sound of it."

Lee pulled Kara down so that her head rested against his shoulders and just held on tight. "We're going to be okay, Kara."

"It took me over three years to believe you when you said that."

"Worth the wait?"

Kara gave a rather suggestive nod and wasn't surprised when Lee moved his head to kiss her again. Learning how to press Lee's buttons just right was something it hadn't take three years to learn. Frak, it felt so familiar half the time that she wondered if she had had it since birth.

"Kara." Lee's voice made her stop the kissing onslaught she was waging on his neck. "I love you and all, but I refuse to frak you on the couch in my father's office."

"Well, then you better start using that head of yours because if you don't find a suitable place within the next couple minutes, I am most definitely fraking you on the Old Man's couch." A wicked smile lit up her face. "Or if you want, we can move to the desk."

Lee groaned and stood up, keeping Kara wrapped around his waist. Her fingertips danced along the small hairs at the base of his neck as Lee began to make his way to the hatch. "You got a plan, Commander?"

"If I remember correctly, there's a really nice bunkroom that you and I probably have enough rank to clear." Lee winked at her. "I always wanted to get you into my bunk back when we shared that place."

Kara shook her head with a laugh. "Lee Adama, I hope to the gods that you can handle the can of trouble you're about to open."

Lee answered her by pushing her back up against the side of the corridor and kissing her until he was pretty sure she couldn't remember her own name, let alone where she was.

Hope. It really was a nice word.