Disclaimer: Battlestar Galactica belongs to Ronald D. Moore and the Sci-Fi channel.
Chapter 19: Adding
Cottle happened to glance over at the door as Laura entered Life Station with Caprica. "What's wrong now?" he asked her.
"Caprica might be in labor," Laura replied.
The doctor walked the blonde woman over to a bed. "You let me be the doctor here. Someone find me that ultrasound machine." Laura pulled up a chair to sit next to the bed.
Morgana appeared over Laura's shoulder, wheeling the machine with her. "I don't mind if you use my first name," she chided Cottle.
He rolled his eyes. "I requested an ultrasound machine, not an attitude."
"I believe you already have one of those, and it wasn't my fault," she threw back with a smirk.
Laura cleared her throat. "I don't mind if you two flirt, but we do have a situation here."
Morgana blushed while Cottle turned back to Caprica. He applied the gel to her abdomen and began the ultrasound. She took Caprica's pulse. "Hmm, the baby's already changed position. You're in labor alright," Cottle relayed.
Caprica faced him, worry etched into her face. "But isn't it early?"
"It is a little early, but the baby should be fine. This is the first Cylon/Cylon pregnancy and we should consider that we're in unknown territory," he responded.
Laura stood. "Someone should call CIC."
Panic appeared in Caprica's eyes as another contraction hit. "No! Please don't go!"
"I'm only going to the phone," Laura told the other woman.
"Don't be long. Her blood pressure seems to do better when you're around, strange as that might sound," Cottle mentioned.
Laura walked over to the far wall where the phone was. "Bill, it's Laura."
"What's going on? I thought you were resting," he inquired.
"I ran into Caprica in the hallway. Tell Saul she's in labor. She wants me to stay with her," Laura explained.
"But you're alright?" he questioned.
"I'm fine. I need to go. She was very upset by me leaving just to use the phone," Laura added.
"Alright. I'll call Lee and see if he can come by another time," Bill suggested.
"That would be good. I'll see you later," she ended.
In CIC, Bill turned toward Saul after Laura had hung up. "You need to get down to Life Station. Caprica's in labor."
Saul ran a hand over his balding head. "Frakking lousy timing."
"At least we're not getting shot at," Bill pointed out.
"I need a drink," Saul muttered to himself as he headed for Life Station.
He arrived to be dragged over to the other side of Caprica's bed. Laura sat on the left side, holding one of Caprica's hands. The blonde woman grimaced in pain as another contraction hit. Saul sat down in the other chair. "I'm here."
Caprica smiled weakly at him. "This hurts and I don't want to be alone."
Laura looked up as Morgana came over. "How much longer do you think?"
"It will probably be several hours. Fortunately she's our only patient that needs any attention at the moment," the doctor mentioned.
The blonde woman faced Laura. "I don't know how to do this."
Laura ran her thumb over the back of the other woman's hand. "Neither do I, but it'll be alright. You're in good hands here and there's no need to panic."
Caprica shook her head. "I didn't mean labor. I don't know how to be a mother. I never had a mother, and Cylons are born adults. They don't have child-sized Cylons on the base ship."
Saul kissed her other hand. "I don't know much about being a father, but we'll learn together."
"Thank you," she told him before turning back to Laura. "What's it like to have a mother? What does a mother do for you?"
Laura smiled warmly. "A mother takes care of you when you're sick. She makes sure that you eat healthy food. She sees that you learn good manners. Some mothers help their children with school work. Mothers also read to their children. It helps stimulate the mind, and it helps get them interested in reading. Parents, in a general sense, protect their children and teach them right from wrong. Parents also pass along cultural traditions and stories. For example, you know how to sew, therefore you can teach that to your child."
"I forgot that you were a teacher. I'm still scared that I'll do a bad job though," Caprica commented.
"Everyone is. You will make mistakes along the way. You can't get through life without making mistakes. But you learn from them, and a lot of times you learn with children. As they learn something to help them grow, you'll learn something about them. For better or for worse, children will always surprise you," Laura explained.
With her free hand she rubbed the bridge of her nose. Saul turned toward her. "Laura, since Caprica is probably going to be here for quite a while, why don't you go home and get some rest."
Laura turned toward Caprica. "I really do need to rest. Will that be alright?"
Caprica nodded. "Saul is here. Thank you for staying for a while."
The former president left, heading to her quarters. Once inside she did not see Lee sitting on the couch, but slipped her shoes off and laid down on the rack. Lee wandered over. "Laura, are you okay?"
She sighed and sat up. "I had completely forgotten about our meeting. I have had a very long day. I had to talk with D'Anna, and then when I came back here to rest I found Caprica in the hallway, in labor. I got her to Life Station and then she didn't want me to leave for a while."
Lee put up his hands. "Rescheduling is fine with me. Maybe we can meet tomorrow during lunch."
"That sounds good," she said with a yawn. Though tired, she realized as her stomach growled that she was also hungry. After eating an algae sandwich, she laid back down and drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
The next time she woke, it was when she felt a familiar weight on the bed. She blinked to see Bill, who had sat down next to her. "Hi."
He smiled at her, brushing her cheek with his thumb. "Hi."
She sat up, moving to put her legs over the edge of the bed. "How long have I been here?"
"Cottle said you left Live Station about six hours ago. I called him to make sure that you got some rest, but he told me you'd already left," Bill explained.
As she was sitting to his left, she curled her right arm around his left and leaned into him. "Caprica didn't want me to go at first, but then Saul dropped in. Speaking of which, don't you have to cover his shift?"
Bill kissed the top of her head. "I just took a quick break to find you."
She looked up to kiss him soundly. "Actually I should be going back to Life Station to check on Caprica."
He leaned back against the wall and pulled her over to him. Then he kissed her deeply. She moaned as his hands roamed over her back. He had one had in her hair as they parted for breath. "You should stay here and rest."
Extricating herself from him, she giggled. "This is rest?" she asked, gesturing between them.
"In a manner of speaking," he protested.
Still laughing, she shook her head as she stood. "I can't today, and neither can you. Both of us are too busy."
Sighing, he stood and straightened the blankets. "Don't forget to take care of yourself."
"I'm fine, Bill. Caprica is scared and for some odd reason, she has decided to look at me as a mother figure. I want to help her," Laura remarked.
He acquiesced, walking over to the hatch. "I suppose dinner's off then?"
"I can see you moping, though you don't think you show it. I promise that I will still make dinner," she told him.
He gave her a half-smile. "How about we move that to tomorrow?"
She grinned back. "Alright, I can live with that."
As they walked through the hatch, he had one more point to make. "Admirals don't mop."
Laura snorted. "Bill mopes, and you're not getting out of it because I saw you moping."
As Laura returned to Life Station, Cottle spotted her and sauntered over. "I was just about to call you. Caprica's been asking for you."
Laura rushed over to sit next to the blonde woman. "You're back!" Caprica exclaimed.
"I'm sorry I wasn't here sooner. What can I do?" Laura asked.
"Just be here please," Caprica requested, gripping Laura's hand as another contraction hit.
Saul glanced at Laura from where he still sat, in the chair on the other side of the bed. "I had no idea it took this long."
"I hate to tell you, but this isn't long. First pregnancies can take much longer than this," Morgana stated, checking Caprica's blood pressure.
Fortunately two hours after Laura had returned, Caprica gave birth to a healthy baby girl. As the infant was handed to her, she smiled at Saul. "I think I have the perfect name. Since it's a girl and we can't call her 'Liam,' we can name her 'Wilhelmina.'"
Then she let Laura hold the baby. Wilhelmina looked like a normal human baby, though she was small. As she looked down at the infant, Laura felt a hand on her shoulder. "Congratulations Saul, Caprica," the familiar gravelly voice behind Laura said.
Laura handed the baby to Bill. "They named her 'Wilhelmina.'"
Bill smiled down at the infant and handed her back to Caprica. "It's a good name."
As the two men exchanged grins, Laura rolled her eyes. "Stop pretending like you didn't know they named the baby after you."
He chuckled. "Did they?"
"That honor is only reserved for my best friend," Saul mentioned.
Bill cleared his throat. "With that out of the way, I think I'll take my wife home. We've got dinner waiting."
Laura stood, smiling as she looped her arm through his. Just before they were out of Life Station, Caprica called out, "Her middle name is going to be Laura."
When they reached their quarters, Bill spoke. "They're naming her after both of us."
"I'm not sure how I feel about that," Laura responded. As she slipped out of her shoes, she noticed two plates of noodles already on the coffee table. "This looks good. Thank you for making dinner."
He unbuttoned his uniform jacket and took a seat on the couch. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
They settled down to eat. Laura did not speak again until all of her noodles were gone. "I think they'll be alright, Caprica and Saul. It's almost a miracle that Cylons can now have children with other Cylons."
Bill sipped his water. "All life is a miracle."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "I thought you didn't believe in miracles."
He set the plate back on the coffee table and patted her right arm. "Let's say that circumstances have changed my mind."
Unable to resist, just as she was when she asked him what made him believe, she continued, putting her plate next to his. "Such as?"
"You here with me, cancer-free. You agreeing to marry me. You carrying our child," he told her with a grin.
She leaned toward him and kissed him soundly, sliding the jacked off his shoulders. His hands ran over her back as he returned the kiss passionately. "Bill," she whispered hoarsely.
They stood together, kissing ardently, hands roaming freely. Somehow they found the rack. With another intoxicating kiss, they were soon in the rack and the rest of the world was forgotten.
Both of them were still in their bathrobes after their morning showers when there was a knock at the hatch. Bill opened it to find Lee. "You're early."
Lee stepped inside, noticing his father's attire, as well as Laura's while she sat on the couch. "I'm sorry. I just wasn't thinking. With you two being married, I need to call ahead first."
Laura chuckled lightly. "One of these days you'll have children to walk in on you, so I'm not really bothered. Sit and have some coffee."
The younger man took the mug that Bill handed to him and joined Laura on the couch. "I was only thinking that you'd want to get the reports out of the way quickly."
"I'm going to get ready for my shift," Bill remarked, leaving the living room area.
Laura looked back to Lee. "It's fine. I understand. By the way, Caprica had her baby yesterday."
Lee handed her a few folders. "That's good. What's the name?"
"Wilhelmina Laura," the former president told her with a grin.
He smiled. "Somehow I'm not surprised."
When they had finished going over reports, Laura decided to visit Caprica. She entered Life Station as Saul was leaving. He gave her a nod and a smile. When she reached the blonde Cylon, she saw Athena and Hera sitting to the right of her bed, facing her. Caprica was holding her sleeping infant. The Cylon spotted Laura and waved her over.
Laura smiled at her and then Athena. However, Athena's expression was one of shock as Laura sat down in a chair to the left of the bed. "Madame President! You're..."
"Actually it's just 'Laura' these days. Lee is the president," she corrected.
"But you're...," Athena leaned over the bed to whisper, "pregnant."
Laura smirked. "I'm aware of that, thank you."
Athena paused, thinking of how to word what she wanted to day. "With all due respect, Ma'am, that shouldn't be possible."
The former president nodded. "Under normal circumstances, you would be right."
Before Athena could ask again, Hera wandered over to Laura. She placed a hand on Laura's abdomen and said one word. "Cousin."
All three women blinked in surprise. "I didn't know she knew that word," Athena admitted.
Caprica turned to Laura. "Perhaps it's time to tell her."
Nodding, Laura faced Athena. "Think back to the dream we've all been having. The red-haired girl is very clearly my daughter."
"If that means what I think it does, then you have a problem," Athena assessed.
Laura leaned closer so that the conversation could be kept as quietly as possible. "It means I'm the last of the Final Five."
"Wow, I wasn't expecting that. The dream does mean something more though, doesn't it?" the dark-haired Cylon reminded.
"Since we're all here, we might as well try to make sense of things. There has got to be some kind of numeric significance with the balls and the jacks. The first sequence, with Hera was five bounces and six jacks. The second, with Caprica's daughter, was four bounces and fifteen jacks. The last sequence had nine bounces and eight jacks. Do any of those numbers mean anything to either of you?" Laura questioned.
As they were thinking, Hera walked over to Athena and tugged on her sleeve. "Mommy, it's my birthday."
Athena smiled at the girl and shook her head. "No, sweetie. Your birthday's not for another month."
"Mommy, it's my birthday," Hera insisted.
Laura's eyes widened, realizing what the girl meant. "She means the date. That's the day and the month of her birthday, the sixth day of the fifth month. The bounces of the ball mean months while the number of jacks mean days. Yesterday was the fifteenth day of the fourth month."
"But what do the numbers mean? What are they for?" Athena questioned.
Folding her hands in her lap, Laura sighed. "I don't know."
In a brown-orange cavern, Tyrol and his crew had been mapping other caves past the ones containing the weather controlling equipment. As his flashlight blinked, he looked toward one of the specialists. "Do we have enough batteries?"
"Yes, sir," the other man said, reaching into his pocket and handing two batteries to Tyrol.
"I just hope we aren't getting lost down here," Tyrol muttered as he tested the flashlight's beam.
They turned a corner and found a curtain of spider webs. "I wish we'd quit running into these," another specialist commented.
"Be grateful we haven't found the spiders that made them," Tyrol called back.
As they found themselves in a bigger room, Tyrol nearly tripped over a square mass by his feet. He shined the flashlight on it, finding it to be a generator of sorts. "What's a generator doing down here?"
Receiving no answer, he shined his flashlight over the rest of the room. The beam of light froze on the center as he stared in astonishment. On the floor was a stone triangle, and in the middle of the triangle was a podium. Tyrol slowly approached the podium. "What the frak is all this?" he wondered. Brushing cobwebs aside, he came face to face with the blank screen of some sort of technology.
He reached into his pocket, pulling out the two-way radio. "Admiral, I think we found something important."
(I'm sorry this took so long to post. I was busy. My thanks to , carolann, WonderfallsOnDaisies, and Mythtern13 for reviewing :D)