Kestra walked into the hangar deck to the deafening screams of the crew members. She surveyed the scenes from the dim corners of the room. Lee was in the ring with Karl Agathon. Kestra recognized him from his frequent visits to Sharon when she and Kestra shared a cell. Lee was getting his ass kicked. Kestra kept to the back of the crowd and watched the others gathered. She saw Starbuck with Sharon cheering Helo on. Starbuck seemed to revel in Lee's failure. Lee had become increasingly irritated with Starbuck lately when all his attempts to connect with her had been met with harsh words and an even more vulgar attitude. Doc Cottle kicked Lee out of the ring, and Tigh announced Helo had won the match. Kestra could see that Lee was furious at not being allowed to continue the fight. Part of her wanted to see if he was alright, but she knew better than to try to approach him now. He would not be in the mood to talk after the humiliating match, and she wasn't looking for a fight today. She made her way around the ring as the next fight started. She saw the Admiral enter and stand at the edge of the ring. He watched the fight with satisfaction. Kestra was reminded of her own father as she watched a crooked smirk creep onto the Admiral's face. Kestra continued to wander around the ring until a voice grabbed her attention.
"Didn't expect to see you here," Cottle said gruffly from behind her. She turned and smiled at the older man.
"Are you kidding?" she asked as she hugged him, "I came to get in the ring."
"I've already patched up your husband today, I don't wanna see you like that," he replied as he continued to watch the fight.
"How was he?" she asked with feigned nonchalance. Cottle was not fooled and chuckled as he raised a brow at her.
"He's fine. Don't you worry, he'll be around to fight another day," he assured her. Kestra smiled and nodded.
"I don't doubt it. I just worry that he doesn't know his own limits," she said.
"No, I don't think he does," Cottle said with a laugh, "none of them do. It's probably why we're still alive." Kestra looked questioningly at him, but Cottle's focus remained on the match. "Good swing," he muttered. Kestra followed his gaze back to the ring. She noticed another figure had joined the Admiral on the opposite side of the ring. Kestra watched as Laura and Bill talked. They looked so at ease with each other, much like they had on New Caprica. Kestra was struck by the sheer amount of time that had passed since they'd all been down on the planet. It seemed as though it had been ages ago, and yet she remembered it like it was yesterday. She remembered the idea that they could all settle down and start a new life on a new planet. She thought of what it might have been like if she and Lee had been married on New Caprica, maybe he would have been there when the cylons came. She wouldn't wish that upon him no matter how hard it was to go through it without him. Her gaze focused on Laura again. She looked happy, whispering to Bill through the cheers of the crowd. He laughed. Kestra was half tempted to walk over and interrupt them, nearly jealous of the attention Laura gave Bill. She knew it was immature, but as long as Adama insisted on keeping her at a distance Kestra felt she had to fight for Lee and Laura's love. Cottle had long since lost himself in the fight, so Kestra waved halfheartedly as she wandered away. She took great pains to stay away from Laura and Bill as she walked toward the back of the hangar. The fight had ended and now Starbuck and Hotdog were taking their place in the ring. Kestra smirked as Starbuck knocked him out flat on the mat. It had not taken long. Kestra's eye was caught by a figure in the doorway to the hangar. She diverted her path to catch him before he could get away.
"Sam," she called down the hall. Sam stopped and faced her. "Sam I wanted to apolog-"
"Just leave it alone, Kestra," Sam snapped, interrupting her apology. Kestra's mouth gaped open as she tried to formulate a response to him. Before she could find the words Sam continued. "You made it perfectly clear the other day that you don't want anything to do with me, so just leave me alone." Kestra grimaced.
"I know, and I'm sorry-"
"No, you don't get to come tell me it was nothing and you didn't mean it. You meant everything you said and so did I so let's just stay away from each other." Kestra's eyes widened in shock.
"Sam, I was upset, we both were, but I didn't mean the things I said about our friendship. You are still my friend and I'm worried about you." Sam scoffed angrily and glanced back into the room behind them. Kestra followed his gaze and saw Kara being congratulated by onlookers for her victory against Hotdog. "Is this about Kara?" she asked, turning back to him.
"No!" he spat, "you don't get to blame this on Kara. This is between you and me, she had nothing to do with it." Kestra crossed her arms, finally getting fed up with Sam's attitude.
"It wasn't about Kara the other day, but this," she pointed at him, indicating his attitude and anger, "this is most definitely about Kara." Sam rolled his eyes and glanced back at Kara exiting the ring.
"I'm done trying," he said, still watching Kara, "I'm done begging and I'm done being used at everyone else's leisure. I'm just done." The fight had left Sam and he now wore a look of utter defeat. This was a man who had lost his belief, though Kestra didn't know in what. Maybe in love or maybe in humanity itself. He turned to walk away but Kestra put a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"I know that you're mad… at me and Kara, and I know you're tired of fighting… so I just want you to know that I still care for you, and I haven't given up on you. When you're ready, I'll be here." Sam did not turn to face her. He simply shook her hand off his shoulder and marched away down the hall. Kestra watched him walk away sadly. When she turned back to the room, she caught sight of Kara. She too was watching Sam storm down the hall. She met Kestra's eyes for a moment before redirecting her attention back to the fight currently taking place in the ring. Kestra sighed and watched from the doorway. It took her a moment to realize that one of the figures in the center of the room was the Admiral himself. Admiral Adama was covered in his own blood and looked as though he might drop. Galen stood across from him panting and covered in sweat. Adama had stopped fighting and was addressing the crew. His speech was moving, and apparently everyone thought so because Colonel Tigh called the end of the dance. Crew members started filing out of the hangar behind the Admiral who left on Laura's arm.
"Hey! Hey!" Starbuck yelled from across the ring. Kestra looked up and saw her yelling at Lee from up in the ring. She slowly inched closer to hear what she'd say.
"It's over Kara," Lee said in irritation.
"So what? You have the guts to frak another man's woman but not to fight one." Lee grabbed his dog tags out of the pot.
"We both know that's not what this is about Kara," he said as calmly as he could. He'd tried to talk to Kara about the night on New Caprica many times, but she wouldn't have it.
"I know you don't mind getting sloppy seconds, but I didn't know your whore was in the game too." Now Lee swung around, his fist cocked to punch the closest face he could find.
Lee!
Lee remained facing Kara, but he was acutely aware of his wife's eyes on the back of his head. He fully understood her warning without her spelling it out for him. Starbuck was right in front of him, insulting them both, and she wanted him to walk away. Lee could never just walk away from Starbuck. She was too infuriating. Too pigheaded. Someone had to put her in her place. He met her glare and saw something there he didn't expect. Desperation. Maybe it was all the time he'd spent with Kestra, but in that moment, Lee stopped to notice the fear behind Kara's cocky demeanor. It was like Kestra had told him: Kara had changed on New Caprica. She had lost that carefree swagger that she had before the occupation. Something on New Caprica had broken her. Lee could see it in her eyes. She wanted to fight, because that was normal. She wanted to fight Lee, because he was something she had lost on New Caprica. Lee suddenly lost all the desire to fight. He lowered his fist, and captured Kara in an embrace. Kara stiffened immediately and struggled to get away. Lee held her tighter and whispered in her ear.
"You don't have to do this alone, Kara," he said, "you don't have to be brave all the time." Kara's struggle ceased slowly, but she did not relax. She pushed against him so hard that she nearly fell over when he let go.
"Lost your fight Captain?" Kara asked mockingly, "the Lee Adama I know would never back down from a fight. But I guess that's what marriage does to you isn't it? It makes you weak."
"I don't want to fight you, Kara," Lee said in a dangerous tone, "I want to help you."
"I don't need help from a toaster loving, sissy," Kara spat, "you know they're frakking each other behind our backs right? You don't see cause you're too busy trying to share your feelings and trust people. The only people we can trust out here are ourselves, Lee." Lee was temporarily at a loss for words. Kara took advantage of this. "Maybe we should give your alien to the cylons. If she's got you this confused maybe we won't have to fight them at all. They'll just frak her and let us win." Lee's anger was rekindled at this, but Kestra's voice stopped him again.
She's just trying to rile you up. Don't let her.
Kestra sounded so calm. Lee was half tempted to turn and take a swing at her. How could she not be enraged by the things Kara was saying? Lee shook his head and took a steadying breath.
"It's over, Kara," he said lamely. He turned and walked away, still feeling the intensity of Kara's glare. However, his attention was quickly stripped from Kara.
"You want a fight, Starbuck?" Kestra called over the dissipating crowd. Lee looked up into the ring and saw Kestra climbing up on the ropes. "I can see why you'd want to fight Lee. You think he'll take it easy on you cause you're friends." Lee saw Kara's attention shift to the ring where his wife stood. "That's a lot of talk for someone who's too afraid to say it to my face, much less do something about it." Kara's eyes blazed with fury.
"If I'd known you were on the table, I'd have started with you," Kara spat as she jumped into the ring.
Kestra don't!
Lee jumped toward the ring, but Kestra was doing a very good job of ignoring him. She and Starbuck were already gloved up and circling each other.
"Sam was right about you," Kestra taunted.
"Don't you talk to me about Sam," Kara spat as she made a wild swing. Kestra easily blocked it and continued to evade Kara's wingspan.
"Why? You won't talk with him. Somebody should give him some attention," Kestra said. Lee was right up against the ropes watching. He knew Kestra was taunting Kara, but he also feared that she wouldn't be able to handle what she was asking for.
"Get her Starbuck!" Lee's attention was diverted when he realized that the crew members who had been leaving had come back to witness the fight. The ring was surrounded by onlookers again, all eager to see the fight between Starbuck and the CAG's wife. Many of the occupants of the Galactica didn't know Kestra, but they all knew who she was. Kara swung her left hand and connected with Kestra's jaw. Lee winced as her head wrenched around to the right. Kestra stepped into it and stumbled out of the way before Kara could hit her again. When Kara failed to land a second hit, Kestra came back swinging and landed a right hook to her cheek. Kara stumbled back, but managed to get her hands up in time to fend off another hit. Lee watched, both worried and enthralled. He'd never seen Kestra fight before, but as he watched his earlier worries faded away. What she lacked in strength she made up for in agility. She fought smart, and it showed. Kara was already mad, and her punches were becoming more erratic as the fight went on. For every swing Kestra made Kara made four, but Kestra's were landing. Kestra held back until she was confident she would hit, and when she hit it counted. Gut. Face. Gut. She was hitting Kara in places that would disorient her or knock her out for a few seconds. Kara's punches, when they were landing, hit Kestra's arms and back. She'd be bruised, but she was recovering from hits much faster than Starbuck. Kara let out a frustrated yell as she swung wildly at Kestra's face again. Kestra easily dodged it, and Kara lost her balance. Kara scrambled back up to her feet, fuming. Kestra smirked as she prepared for Kara's next attack. Kara squared up to Kestra with a fury that Lee had rarely seen. Kara charged at Kestra hard, but when she stepped to evade it, Kara stuck out her leg and tripped her. Kestra began to fall, and Kara turned and slammed her into the ground. She landed one good punch to Kestra's face before she rolled out of the way.
"Hey, that's enough," Lee yelled as he tried to muscle his way into the ring. People were packed tightly around him, and he had to struggle to make his way up to the ropes. Everyone around him just watched in stunned silence. Kestra had been able to roll far enough away to get to her feet before Kara landed a punch to her gut. Lee saw blood trickling from both their heads as Kestra worked to regain her focus. Lee had made it onto the ropes and was about to enter the ring and stop the fight.
No!
Her voice rang in his mind. She was back on her feet and circling Starbuck again. Lee froze as he watched. Kestra's earlier precision was gone. Her determination now matched Starbuck's. Both women looked like they were fighting to kill.
"What the frak is this?" came a voice from behind Lee. He turned to see Sam had joined them.
"What does it look like?" Lee said. Sam looked at him incredulously then back at the girls.
"Are you going to stop them?"
"Do you want to get in the middle of that?" Lee asked. Sam looked up and saw the flurry of arms swinging wildly.
"Kara's gonna kill her," Sam said nervously as he saw the fury in his wife's eyes.
"I wouldn't be so sure," Lee said, seeing the same look in his wife's eyes. He could tell Kara was running out of steam. Kestra had held back in the beginning, and it showed. Kara's punches were becoming weaker and sloppier until Kestra finally knocked her to the ground. The crowd watched, mesmerized, as Kara struggled to stand up. Kestra let her, only to knock her right back down. Kara struggled to stand again.
"You can stay down if you like," Kestra spat breathlessly. Kara glared as she lunged up at her, but Kestra merely dodged it and shoved her back to the ground. Kestra stood above Kara as she rolled to look up at her. "I'll be around, if you feel like making an ass of yourself again," she said. With that, Kestra left the ring, throwing the gloves down behind her. The crowd parted for her as she made her way out of the hangar. She made eye contact with Lee briefly as she passed him. As soon as she was in the hall and out of sight, Kestra's shoulders slumped. She could taste the blood in her mouth and felt it rolling down her cheek. Starbuck had managed a few more good hits than she would have liked, but it was worth it. To have beaten Starbuck in her own arena was a feeling Kestra would carry with her for a long time. She silently thanked her father for forcing his interests on her. While she was never a huge fan of tai chi chuan or any of the mok'bara lessons she'd been given, she found that they had come in handy in this instance. A pang of regret shot through her as she lamented the fact that Will hadn't been there to see it. She knew he'd have been proud, even if her mother would have criticized the need for physical altercation. Kestra finally made it to sickbay, intending to get something from Cottle to stop the bleeding. Unfortunately for her, she had not counted on Laura being there with Bill Adama still. The Admiral was laid out on a bed with a bandage over his head and torso. When she entered, Cottle was the first to see Kestra.
"What the hell happened to you?" he asked, shocked. Laura turned, and her eyes widened when she saw Kestra.
"Kestra!" she exclaimed as she rushed over to her, "who did this?" Kestra smirked as Laura led her to a bed and Cottle came quickly with bandages. She glanced over at the Admiral who seemed to be watching with interest.
"I asked for it," Kestra said with a smile. Laura and Cottle both recoiled in shock. Kestra was tempted to laugh, and probably would have if she wasn't developing such a terrible headache. "You should see Starbuck." This had the desired effect. Cottle dropped the swab he'd been using to clean her wounds, and Laura audibly gasped. Even Adama looked shocked over in his bed. Kestra couldn't help herself and let out a small laugh.
"What do you mean by that?" Laura asked seriously.
"She wasn't ready to let the dance end, and I didn't want to disappoint her," Kestra explained with a smirk.
"Why would you get into a ring with Starbuck?" Laura admonished, "you're lucky your injuries aren't worse." Kestra laughed at Laura's motherly tone, then winced as her head pounded harder than before.
"Luck had nothing to do with it," she said, still smirking, "it's easy to make mistakes when you're angry, especially with a temper like hers."
"You… beat Starbuck?" Cottle asked with as much skepticism as awe.
"Yeah," Kestra said through another wince, "though it was a little closer than I would have liked." Cottle was the one who had to suppress a laugh this time. Laura shot him a glare, but he was focused on Kestra.
"Should I be worried about her stumbling in here to settle the score?" he asked with amusement.
"No, but if someone wants to carry her in I'd be glad to go another round," Kestra replied smartly. Cottle smirked and shook his head.
"I wouldn't trust either of you in the same room. I don't care if you're both too beat to fight. You'd find a way," he said in mock reprimand.
"Of course I would," Kestra said firmly. Laura rolled her eyes.
"Why did you fight Kara in the first place?" she asked sternly. Kestra watched Laura send a nervous glance over to Adama who was clearly pretending not to listen.
"It's not like I walked up and asked if she wanted to go a few rounds, Laura," Kestra said, irritated. Laura rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. The two women were locked in a staring match until Kestra finally sighed in defeat. She glanced at Cottle who took the hint and walked away. Laura furrowed her brow and came to sit closer on the bed.
"Kara was trying to provoke Lee into a fight after Tigh called the dance," Kestra explained. Laura nodded.
"Then how did you end up with the bloody face?"
"Laura, she's out of control and nobody will acknowledge it. Lee admitted that she's put pilots in danger during training, and she's only becoming more reckless. Not to mention how she's been treating Sam," Kestra fumed.
"None of that explains why you got into a ring with her," Laura said sternly.
"Because if she's going to accuse me of being unfaithful she should get used to having a broken nose," Kestra spat, "and she shouldn't insult me to Lee without having the guts to say it to my face. She's trying to use me to manipulate Lee, and I'm sick of it." Laura's eyes were wide when Kestra finished. Kestra looked away to avoid her gaze. Laura tried to reach out a comforting hand, but Kestra pulled her arm away. Laura chanced a glance at Bill who looked shocked until he noticed she was looking. He quickly schooled his features, but Laura raised a brow to let him know that she was not going to let him off the hook that easily.
"So you fought her for Lee?" Laura asked, returning her attention to Kestra. She laughed softly.
"That's one way of putting it. I can't say I didn't enjoy beating the crap out of her but," Kestra said, pausing for a frustrated sigh, "she's been terrible to everyone since we got off New Caprica. I know it was hypocritical to tell Lee not to fight her, but she's too used to getting her way where he's concerned. She needs to know he's not there for her every whim, and he needs to stop letting her think he is." Laura nodded.
"But Lee didn't fight her?" she asked. Kestra smiled.
"No," she said, clearly pleased with her husband, "he turned and walked away. I was surprised. I didn't think he would listen." Laura smiled back at her.
"If there's one thing I've learned about Lee Adama," she said, "it's that he's full of surprises."
