[A/N: Not a great deal occurs in this chapter - which is a common occurrence when following the structure of each episode. Though this won't be the case when we get to the latter episodes of Series 3. Thank you all for your lovely reviews and comments on tumblr! They're appreciated more than I think any of you know. I hope this feeds the 'addiction' that several guest reviewers have. Reviewers all get a cookie and a virtual hug!]
Hero
"Is there really any place in all the universe for such a piece?" Tori joked, lifting the rather ill chosen painting of Gaius Baltar. In Laura's mind, a ceremonial burning of the painting was in order. "Over the toilet perhaps" Laura suggested, shaking her head as she pealed her eyes away from the horrific painting. She had almost forgotten how ego centered Baltar had been. Almost.
Pandora slouched on Laura's leather chair, struggling to keep her droopy red eyes opened as she attempted to recover from the excitement of yesterday's events. Gripping her blanket close to her chest, Pandora yawned loudly, grabbing her guardian's attention once more. "Too much excitement in one day I think" Laura chimed, thankful that the girl had at least enjoyed yesterday, even if it had left her completely exhausted.
It was then that something caught Laura's eye. A black leather spiral folder embossed with the Galactica symbol. They had no such thing on Colonial One - that was when she remembered the origin of the piece - Billy. "I can't believe I was going to throw this out" Laura muttered, covering her mouth with her hand for a moment before opening the folder slowly, as though it could fall apart at any moment. "This is the dossier that Billy prepared for me for my first day on Galactica" She revealed, flicking her eyes up at Tori as her current assistant walked towards her.
Glancing at the dossier, Pandora spotted a familiar face staring back at her. "Bill!" The child marveled, lifting herself up onto her knees as she reached out to clasp her hands around Laura's upper arm in order to get a better look at the photographs. Of course, the child was only interested in the photographs of Bill - as well as her Uncle Saul. "Can I see?" Pandora asked, reaching out to take the crippled photograph from her guardian. As Tori appeared at Laura's shoulder, she read the black text at the bottom of the first photograph. "The Valkyrie, was that Adama's command before Galactica?" She asked, looking up at Laura for an answer. Laura nodded and hummed in reply before handing the photograph over to the impatient Pandora.
"This year marks Admiral Adama's..." Tori spoke as she leaned over Laura's shoulder to get a better look at the information, nodding her head as she attempted to do the math in her head. "45th anniversary in the colonial fleet" She concluded, smiling to herself as Laura flicked through the pages of the dossier. "In fact his commission date is only a few days away" Tori informed her, taking the dossier from Laura as the President stepped around her desk.
Laura walked the length of her office, placing both hands against the thin material of her army green shirt before turning on her heel to face Tori and Pandora. "I think I want to have a ceremony" She thought aloud, pursing her lips as she pondered it for a moment before nodding her head. "Let's give the Admiral a medal - for forty five years of devoted service" Laura concluded, coming to a stop in front of her desk. This was exactly what the fleet needed; a celebration, and who better too celebrate than the great William Adama himself? Laura could think of no one else. "Couldn't come at a better time" Tori agreed, thinking on the same wavelength as Laura. The last two years had been plagued with nothing but tragedies, it would be refreshing to have a celebration instead.
"Give the people something to celebrate for a change" Laura added, heading back up to the desk and stepping around her chair to stand beside Pandora. "Can I wear something pretty?" The child asked, hiding her teasing smile behind her blanket. After all, she had been limited to the small selection of clothes that Laura had managed to gather for her following her arrival on Colonial One. "Only if I can wear something pretty too" Laura joked with a chuckle, placing herself down on the leather armrest of Pandora's chair, earning a giggle from the child in response.
Due to the difficulty in manufacturing clothes in the fleet, the majority of people often donated clothes that they no longer wore, had grown out of or that had belonged to family members who has passed away. It was small mercies like this that Laura was glad of. The slightly battered cardboard box sat on the coffee table of her office, filled too the brim with children's clothes. "Pandora" Laura spoke, causing Pandora to unwillingly pull her eyes away from the book that Laura had given her. "Come and help me pick something for you to wear to Bill's medal ceremony" She coaxed, watching the child putting down her book before stepping towards the cardboard box, curiously looking inside.
Laura quickly threw aside everything that was simply too small or too big for Pandora, leaving a small pile of suitable clothes for the child to pick from. "See anything you like?" She asked, bending down onto her knees beside the girl so that she was at eye level with her as they rummaged through the small pile, casting away items that neither liked. "This one!" Pandora announced happily, clutching the vibrant red pleated dress in one hand and the matching cardigan in another.
The colour reminded Laura of the outfit she had worn at Baltar's ground breaking ceremony on New Caprica. In fact, Laura was positive that it was the same tone of red. She felt the corners of her lips beginning to turn up in a smile as she remembered Bill's comments about the outfit, and how the red had apparently suited her. As much as she would have loved to wear it again, it was hardly appropriated for a President to be seen wearing it at a public event. Though, she could only begin to imagine Bill's reaction to such an outfit. Pandora looked rather pleased with herself for selecting such a piece. "Can I try it on?" She asked, raising her eyebrows as her eyes widened slightly before Laura nodded her head. "Of course" She replied, moving to help Pandora into the selected outfit.
Yes, Bill would certainly like it. Tori appeared at the door then, peering in at the President and her ward after Pandora had gotten into her dress. "The Admiral's on the line" She admitted, causing Laura to abandoned the mountains of boxes in order to get to her office and pick up the corded phone.
Telling Pandora that she had to stay on Colonial One hadn't been easy. The girl had all but cried her eyes out, begging to come with her. Though Laura was cautious about taking the girl to Galactica's daycare - not wanting to have to see another display of Pandora's discomfort around other children. With the promise of going to Galactica with her on the next visit, Pandora eventually calmed down well enough to allow Laura to leave on the raptor to Galactica.
Laura knew in her very bones that Bill was lying, without even a shadow of doubt in her mind. As Bulldog and Tori left them alone, she readjusted her suede teal blazer as she slouched back in her seat for a moment, crossing both slender legs as she eyed Bill across the table. He was lying too her - plain and simple. As he turned to finally look at her, she raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to tell me what really happened?" She asked, resting her arm on the back of her seat as she waited for his answer. "You're going to have to trust me on this one" Bill concluded, trying to avoid answering the lingering question as best he could.
"This is my mess. I'll fix it" He said, his voice dropping as he spoke. The last thing he needed was for Laura to get roped into his mistake, to have her name connected to his life changing mistake. The woman stood up from the metal seat, allowing it to scrap against the floor as she pulled it away from under her. "Where's Pandy?" Bill asked, attempting to ease the tension in the room. "Colonial One" Laura said in a sharp tone before leaving Bill's quarters, allowing the 'click clacking ' of her heels to echo around her as she walked. It was her belief that she could talk to Bill about anything, but it seemed that the feeling was not mutual. Bill couldn't even trust her with this, and that hurt her more than she thought it possibly could.
It wasn't long until the man himself made an unexpected visit to Colonial One. Bill looked like death warmed up. Whatever sort of fight he had gotten into, she could tell he hadn't went to Cottle afterwards. Not with the dry blood still glimmering under his nose and cheek, with three skin deep scars decorating his left cheekbone. What secret was he trying to keep from her? Laura hadn't bought his story about Bulldog's disappearance from the very beginning. Over the last two years, Laura liked to believe that she had come to read the man like an open book. Now she was sure of that. Bill was lying through his teeth. Even worse, he couldn't trust her enough to tell her why.
"What is this?" Laura asked, confused as she opened the beige cardboard folder, seeing the crisp black print displayed on the ivory parchment. Bill's resignation letter - something Laura believed she would never see. Her eyes scanned through the page, shutting it as Bill lowered his head in dismay. "Your resignation? You've got to be kidding me" She announced, a sense of disbelief in her voice as she dropped the folder onto her desk in shock.
Bill folded his hands in front of his waist, taking a breath before speaking. He had known as soon as he made his decision to resign that Laura would be the toughest to convince. "I've said before, we can't hide from the things we've done" He confessed, shaking his head. Laura was the last person whom he wanted to tell the truth too, but his resignation letter had forced him to tell her the truth. He didn't want her impression of him changed. What he did wasn't right, and if he could he would change it all in a heartbeat - but that was the past, and he had to pay for his mistakes. "I see no other way around this situation" He concluded, deciding that the only way to deal with his guilty conscious was to resign from his position. Perhaps this was all coming to the surface for a reason? As a sign from the Lords of Kobol themselves.
Pandora sat at the back of Laura's office, sitting in the left corner in one of the former flight chairs. Curiously, the child looked up from her seat at the two adults as she heard the pitch of Laura's voice jump slightly, clearly unamused with the Admiral, while Bill's had a more mournful tone to it.
"Maybe it's time, Laura" He suggested. After all, wasn't his time up? He wasn't fit to be the Admiral. The fleet needed - no, they deserved - someone young, fresh and modern like Lee. Without the stress of being Admiral, Bill could focus on the more important things in his life. His relationships with Lee, Laura and Pandora being central to that. He just prayed that the latter two hadn't been damaged as a result of his mess.
However, Laura knew that Bill could never separate himself from his position as Admiral. Even if he did resign, she was confident that he would never be out of the CIC. Being the Admiral of the fleet was engraved into his blood and bones. While she had no doubt about Lee's ability, he was not his father. He was not the infamous William Adama. His time would come eventually, but it was not today.
"Sit down, Bill" Laura ordered, feeling her blood boiling as she squinted her eyes slightly. Watching Laura for a moment longer, Bill sat himself down on the visitor's seat; feeling like a school child who had been sent to the headmistress' office. "I've been naive" He attempted to explain, straightening his back as Laura slouched forward on the desk, using her elbow to balance herself. "Have you ever thought that the Admiralty may have set you up to provoke a war they wanted?" Laura wondered aloud, knowing exactly how Bill would have thought. She had the displeasure of meeting several of the Admirals during many of Adar's galas and functions; she wouldn't be shocked if Bill had been set up as a scapegoat for them. "We know why the cylons attacked us and it wasn't any one thing" She reminded the man, wanting to show him that it was not his fault. He was not to blame for the provoking of an attack that resulted in the genocide of billions of innocent human beings.
Though Bill was stubborn, Laura had always known that. She did however agree that something needed to be done about it. Lifting the beige envelope from her writing desk, Laura took the freshly printed invitation out of its envelope and held it out for him. The gold foil glimmered in the dim light. "Medal of distinction" Bill's voice was soft as he dropped the invitation back down onto the desk.
Pandora's feet gently pattered against the carpet floors of Laura's office as she moved towards Bill, stopping beside the man. "I picked a pretty dress" The child confessed in a soft voice, looking up at Bill with pleading eyes. Although she didn't understand the seriousness of the situation, she could sense Laura's discomfort and Bill's sting of depression. Bringing her cotton blanket up to her face, Pandora shifted from foot to foot. Sighing to himself, Bill knew he couldn't deny Pandora anything in the universe. She had him well and truly wrapped around her little finger. Reaching out, he lifted her up by the waist, as though it was the most natural thing in the world, before setting her down on his knee. Pandora rested her head against Bill's chest, using it as her own personal pillow before she glanced over at Laura.
"Let me strap a frakking medal to your chest" Laura argued, feeling her own stubborn personality coming to play as she folded her hands on the writing desk."I can't" Bill fought back, even though Laura did have a point, something had to be done. "It's not for you. It's for them. Stand up there, acknowledge your fleet and give them what they need - a hero." Laura paused then, looking down at Pandora - it wasn't just a father figure that she needed in her life, but a hero as well - then back up at Bill "That will be your penance, even if it kills you" She concluded, resting her head down on the palm of her hand. Having the final word on the argument.
"On the behalf of everyone in this room, it is my honor to present you - Admiral Adama - with the Medal of Distinction for your 45 years of courageous service to the Colonial Fleet" Laura announced.
The hanger deck had been transformed into a makeshift ceremony room. The vipers and raptors had been moved to allow standing space for the invited guests, Galactica crew and members of the press. Laura stood at the podium, her fingers clasped around the cold metal of the medallion as she finished her address to the watching audience. As Bill came to stand level with her, Laura tried her best to conceal her smile as she raised the medallion above his head before placing it around the man's neck. As she pulled away, the President allowed her hand to brush against Bill's for a short moment.
Stepping down from the podium, Laura could hear the fierce round of applause that broke out across the room. This was exactly what the fleet had needed. A celebration; not their usual mourning session. Standing beside Helo, Laura felt a small familiar hand reach out to grab her own. Pandora had a joyful smile plastered across her porcelain face, her heart pounding in time with the applauding as she had to stop herself from jumping up and down with excitement - remembering Laura's words of warning about having to be on her best behavior. Laura had been cautious about the ever present press, and the last thing any of them needed was another series of awkward and difficult questions about Pandora. Even more so when even Laura herself had countless of unanswered questions about the child. Though, like Bill had said, perhaps it was for the best that she wasn't aware of all the facts.
Bill's response had been short and sweet, just as she had expected it to be. He wasn't the sort for long, drawn out, extravagant affairs; in fact, Laura was surprised he even allowed her to give him the medal. As he finished speaking, another series of applause filled the hanger deck. Once again applauding the father figure of the fleet. As Bill moved to step off the podium and towards Lee and Kara, Laura kept a hold of Pandora's hand and escorted the girl off as well, though staying well behind Bill. After all, this was his moment of celebration; not theirs'.
Stepping off to the side, Laura watched as Bill walked towards his only son, shaking the man's hand before accepting a warm hug from Kara. As Tori arrived at her side, Laura allowed her assistant to escort her over to the waiting press. The sooner she gave a comment on the ceremony, the sooner the press would leave her and Pandora alone. While talking to various reporters, Laura was cautious about the ever watching eyes of Bill Adama, even as he moved through the crowds too meet and greet his guests. Bill was never far away. He acted as Laura's permanent shadow, and now Pandora's as well.
As the guests began to file out of the hanger deck, with it once again returning to normal as the crew dismantled the podium, Bill headed towards the waiting Laura and Pandora. "Congratulations" Laura praised, smiling at the man as the child beside her moved to tightly hug him around his legs. Bill chuckled to himself as he ruffled Pandora's hair slightly before looking up at Laura. "I think this calls for a celebration" He admitted as Pandora let go of his legs and stood between the two adults.
It was then that Bill spotted the raptor being brought forward, with Bulldog and Cottle appearing through the hanger deck entrance. "I have something to do first, it'll only take me a minute" The man admitted, taking the uniform from the bench before walking towards the other pair as Cottle was speaking to Bulldog. He waited until the white haired man had finished speaking before he spoke.
"Bulldog" At once the former pilot looked up at the oncoming man. "You forgot something" Bill said, holding the neatly folded colonial uniform in his hands as the younger man turned to face him. "I can't" Bulldog muttered, shaking his head as he looked from the uniform to the Admiral. "Take it. You're not getting off that easy" He coaxed, holding the uniform out for the man to take. As the younger man reached out to take the uniform from him, holding it as though it was a plane of glass, Bill nodded his head. "Once a pilot, always a pilot" He announced, relieving the tense atmosphere around them.
"I see a lot has happened since" Bulldog joked, nodding his head towards the two figures on the balcony of the hanger deck. Bill glanced over to the pair, feeling the corners of his thin lips pull up in a smile as he saw Pandora waving at him excitedly as Laura simply smiled at him. "I guess you could say that" He admitted, not sure exactly how he would describe their current situation. What exactly was he to Laura - and Pandora as well? Whatever it was, Bill wouldn't have it any other way. "I'm glad you finally found some happiness" The younger man admitted, nodding his head at his former superior officer as he stood to attention and saluted the man one final time. "Admiral" With one last salute, Bulldog boarded the raptor that would take him to his new ship - for a new start and a second chance.
Watching as the heavy metal doors of the raptor shut behind the former viper pilot, Bill set off towards the balcony, his eyes glued to the two figures at the top. His Laura and Pandy. As he reached the top steps, Laura walked towards him. A content smile playing on her lips as she reached out to slip her hand through his arm as Pandora took Laura's hand, holding it as the trio left the hanger deck.
The walk through Galactica had been a silent once, each of the trio lost in their own thoughts. As they arrived in Bill's quarters, Pandora slipped her hand out of Laura's grip before making her away across to the sofa at the corner of the room. "I think this calls for a glass of something strong" Bill thought aloud, disappearing in such of her remaining bottle of whiskey and two whiskey glasses. Heading over to the sofa, Laura sat herself down next to Pandora.
Bill stepped back into the room, one hand balancing the neck of two whiskey glasses while another clutched the half drunken bottle of whiskey. "Just a small glass" Laura requested, deciding that drinking anymore than that was unacceptable around a child of Pandora's age. After filling the glasses, Bill handed one over to Laura then seated himself down on the other side of Pandora. Before speaking, Bill took a sharp drink of the liquid, allowing it to burn the back of his throat. "You were right, that is a very pretty dress, Pandora" He admitted, admiring the girl's pleated dress when he noticed a striking similarity to another outfit. "It looks exactly like something your mother wore once" Bill admitted, catching Laura off guard and almost causing her to choke on her whiskey. She wasn't sure if it was the fact that he had made the connection between Pandora's outfit and the one she had worn on New Caprica that shocked her - or if it was the fact that he had openly for the first time referred to her as Pandora's mother. Laura presumed it was more of the latter. "I told you so!" Pandora giggled, her eyes glimmering in the dim light.
Composing herself once more, Laura pulled her eyes away from the floor to look up at Bill, attempting to ignore the black flips that her stomach was currently doing as her heart pounded loudly in her chest. Reaching out, she wrapped her arm around Pandora's shoulder and allowed the child to rest her head down against her. It didn't take Bill long to reach out and take Laura's hand in his own, giving it a gentle squeeze. In that moment, Laura couldn't picture any other place in the universe that she would rather be in. Dropping a kiss on Pandora's forehead, Laura looked over the child's head at Bill as he beamed down at them both. New Caprica happened for a reason. In that moment, Laura had came to accept what had happened. Destiny was often a wicked thing, but it had brought her to Pandora; and for that, she was eternally grateful.
"Bill..." Laura began, but stopped when a loud knock sounded from the door. There was more than enough rumors flying around the fleet about them, and the last thing they needed was another set added to that. Standing up from the sofa, Laura reached out for Pandora's hand before disappearing into the other room as Bill went to open the door for his uninvited guest. Laura sighed to herself as she heard Saul's voice echo through Bill's quarters. It seemed they would be stuck in there for a while.
Sitting herself down onto the bed, Laura helped Pandora to sit next to her. Deciding that it would be best if Saul didn't hear them, Laura took too absentmindedly braiding Pandora's hair for her. The comforting action was quickly putting Pandora to sleep. As Laura secured the hair tie to the bottom of Pandora's braid, she rested her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Go to sleep, Pandy." She whispered, hoping that Saul wouldn't be talking with Bill for too much longer.
As Pandora rested her back against Bill's bed, she pulled the only woman down with her. She turned to rest her head down on Laura's arm, allowing the woman to hold her protectively against her chest; like any mother would with their daughter. Within mere moments, Pandora could no longer keep her eyes opened as her chest began to rise and fall in time with her deep breathing. Laura allowed herself a moment to enjoy the silence, and unusual occurrence for the President. She slipped the blanket up around Pandora's shoulders as she stroked the girl's hair for a short moment before she too fell into a peaceful slumber.
Even though Bill was glad that Saul had finally began to open up to him, he was cautious of the woman and child currently hiding from his long term friend. If Saul's reaction to the dinner he had managed to walk in on was any indication, he wasn't exactly overjoyed with Laura's more active role in Bill's life. As Saul finished his last sip of whiskey, he stood from the table. "Thank you, Bill" He said, filled with a new sense of motivation. "I expect to see you in the CIC tomorrow" Bill announced in a serious tone, to which Saul stopped mid-step and turned to face his friend and Admiral. "You can count on it Bill" Saul announced before leaving the Admiral's quarters, allowing the door too shut behind him. After clearing away the half drunk whiskey bottle and stained glasses, Bill went in search of Laura and Pandora.
The scene in front of him warmed Bill's heart, and engraved itself into his memory for eternity. Laura lay peacefully asleep in his bunk, her arms filled with the sleeping Pandora. She looked as though she didn't have a single care in the universe - if only that was the truth. He couldn't help himself from walking towards the sleeping pair. As he stopped at the side of the bed, he lifted the cotton crimson red blanket and dropped it across Laura's sleeping body. While lifting Laura's pale slender hand to rest it over the blanket, Bill took a moment to hold it in his own, giving it a small squeeze. Reaching over Laura, he managed to drop a kiss on Pandora's ivory forehead before dropping another on Laura's soft cheek. It seemed the small compassionate action was enough to disturb Laura's peaceful slumber.
Bringing his free hand to Laura's cheek, he gently creased her soft skin. "Go back to sleep Laura" He whispered, knowing that Laura was in desperate need of catching up on at least some sleep. However, as he tried to slip his hand away from Laura's, she tightened her grip of his hand, preventing him from doing so. "Stay" Laura pleaded, her eyes struggling to stay open as her thick eyelashes fluttered. Bill didn't have to be asked twice as he lowered himself down onto the bunk. With one arm wrapped around Laura's waist, Bill rested his head down against the soft ivory pillow next to Laura's. Before long, the man had followed the other pair into the land of dreams. If morning never came to be. Bill would be content to stay like that for eternity. Without a care in the universe.