Bill paced the hallway, outside the guest quarters that the religious faction had commandeered for this purpose; he couldn't believe it had been nearly forty weeks since the damn ritual.

"LEE YOU'RE DEAD YOU HEAR ME!!! OHHHH FRRR-AAAAAAAAK!!!"

Bill sighed, Kara had been shouting curses like that for hours, blocking out the calm voices saying things he just couldn't make out. When a few priests had insisted the ritual life-giver give birth in the traditional way, how could he object? Inside now were several female priests and midwifes, and Lee of course, who, although knowing traditionally he should not be there, convinced them to bend the rules. Well, actually he stood outside the door hollering until Kara got annoyed and yelled for them to let him in. After all Sharon was inside, doing what he wasn't exactly sure, she said something about helping out. At least when Racetrack gave birth to her twins over three weeks ago, they had permitted Hotdog inside without a fuss. Then again, they'd had their twins delivered in sickbay. Even Doc Cottle wasn't allowed into that room, which he was oddly grateful for.

"FRAAAAAK!!! OH GODS IT HURTS!!!! LEE YOU-FRAAAAK!!!! AHHHHRGGGHHHH!!!"

Finally, Bill heard the noises of a baby's crying, it had seemed so long, thirteen hours, when in reality, he remembered that Lee had taken much longer. Bill slumped against the bulkhead and took another swig from the flask in his pocket Saul had lent him for this special occasion. A few more minutes passed, hushed voices were heard and he expected they were cleaning up.

Lee opened the hatch smiling, "Come on in Dad."

Bill Adama glanced around the room, filled with fabrics, towels, strange looking devices he did not wish to know the purpose of, two brick-like objects with sweaty footmarks on them, strange looking devices which he had no desire to learn the purpose of, blood, and a makeshift chair which had Kara sitting up on it, covered in blankets and holding a bundle wrapped in a green towel. The priests hung around commenting a little, and giving Kara water, and so on.

"You did really well." One of the women told her as she began to pack up the bricks and whatever else.

Kara smiled, "Admiral, meet our daughter."

Bill leaned forward to take the baby from Kara, "She looks like you Kara."

Lee immediately reached out to take the baby from his father and cuddled her close to his chest, "I think she looks like me too, she has my eyes."

"All babies have blue eyes when they're born." Bill countered with a taunting smile, he couldn't resist teasing Lee, in reality he saw much of Lee as he had been at birth in the face of his granddaughter, "What are you going to name her?"

"Well, if we'd had a boy, he would have been William, after you." Kara said smiling

"But since we knew we were having a girl, we named her the next best thing," Lee paused dramatically, "Galatea."

Bill sat for a moment, staring at the small squirming baby, "After the Galactica?"

"Be happy sir," Kara smiled tiredly looking at her baby, "If it was a boy I wanted Viper, Viper William Adama."

"Took me weeks to convince her not too, then we found out we were having a girl."

With that Bill sighed and simply tried to enjoy the moment, after all, it was good news and Laura was coming to discuss some shortage tonight.

FIN