[A/N: I really do spoil you all, don't I? As you've all probably guessed, Laura's cancer will feature in this fanfiction, though I promise this does have a happy ending eventually. I've worked out the entire timeline for the rest of this fanfiction, and I suggest enjoying these 'calm' chapters, as these will become a luxury soon enjoy. As always, reviews are loved - they make my day and you get a virtual hug!.]
The Woman King
Laura awoke to the gentle shaking of her hand. "Mama?" The small voice asked, though the desire for just another five minutes of sleep kept Laura's head against Bill's chest and her eyes shut. The voice came again, this time more hoarse and lower; as though it was about to break in two. Cracking open her eyes, it took several seconds for Laura's eyes to adjust to the dim light surrounding the bunk. "Mama" Pandora spoke again, causing Laura to look down at the side of the bunk where her daughter stood, wrapped in her blanket and clutching her plush elephant.
"What's the matter, Pandy?" Laura asked, taking in the snow white skin of her daughter - it was paler than usual. "Don't feel well" The child revealed, heading down to the end of the bunk as she attempted to push herself off the floor and onto the bunk, all but crawling up to her mother at the top of the bed. Laura held her arms out for the child, who fell into them with ease, resting her head down against her mother's chest as Laura leaned back against the pillows.
Pandora turned her head to look down at her father as he slept beside them. "Papa needs a bigger bed" She announced, earning a small chuckle from Laura before the woman kissed her forehead. "Yes, I think he does too" Laura revealed, watching as the man beside her stirred in his sleep, as though he had known they were talking about him.
Upon opening his eyes, Bill took in the scene before him. It seemed that at some stage, Pandora had found her way into the bunk as well. Clearly he would have to go in search of a bigger one. It didn't take him long to notice the paleness of Pandora's skin. "Is everything okay?" He asked, reaching out to touch the child's back as he sat up on the bed as quickly as he could first thing in the morning. "I don't feel well" Pandora groaned, shutting her eyes as she rested her head down against her mother's shoulder, facing Bill.
Bill slipped out of the bunk, deciding that a glass of water might help the girl feel at least a little better. Laura left the bunk soon after him, though instead decided to pace the floors with the child, hoping that the motion might put her back to sleep. On the occasions that she had looked after Hera on New Caprica, walking around with the child was the quickest way of putting her down to sleep. "Any idea what's wrong with her?" Bill asked when he returned, holding the small glass of water. "None at all. It could just be the flu or a stomach bug. I'll keep her with me today though" Laura thought aloud as she sat down on the couch, accepting the glass of water from the man and holding it for Pandora as she drank it slowly, allowing the liquid to cool her burning throat. Bill nodded his head in agreement, sitting down beside the pair.
"If you need anything, ring through to the CIC. I don't see anything too exciting happening today" He admitted, his hand coming to rest on Laura's lower back as she turned to smile at him. "Thank you" She said, leaning forward to place a soft kiss against his cheek. He took a hold of the woman's hand, squeezing it softly as she pulled away. "I mean it Laura, anything happens, you call for me" He reminded her, knowing that as much as he would rather stay with Laura and take care for Pandora, he was needed in the CIC. Duties called.
As the wireless let out a shrilling ring, Laura sighed to herself. The joys of being the President and the Admiral? Your work never stopped. Pulling himself up off the couch, Bill headed across the room, rounding his desk as he collected the wireless off its cradle. "This is the Admiral..." He said, looking across the room as Laura wrapped her arms tightly around Pandora, swaying the girl from side to side slowly in a bid to get her back to sleep. "Of course, come right up" Bill said, shaking his head as he finished the phone call before returning the wireless to its cradle.
"Who was it?" Laura asked as the man walked towards his bunk, putting on the dark navy shirt of his uniform. "Saul, Doctor Robert, Helo and Cottle are on their way up. Do you want him to take a look at Pandy?" Bill thought aloud, though turned around to find that the child had already nodded back off to sleep. Shaking her head, Laura stood up from the couch, holding Pandora against her chest as the girl used her shoulder as a makeshift pillow. "There's no point waking her. Hopefully she'll just sleep it off" Laura concluded, knowing that waking Pandora up from her sleep was not an easy task - it would be safer to send a viper into the middle of the cylon fleet.
Readjusting Pandora in her arms, Laura smiled at the man softly. "We best get going before Saul comes, last thing we need to do is give your XO a heart attack" She joked, causing Bill to shake his head and laugh to himself, remembering the priceless look on the man's face the day before. "No, we don't" He admitted, knowing that he should probably speak to Saul about Laura, after all, he was well aware that he wasn't Laura's biggest fan by any means.
Buttoning up his shirt, Bill stopped in front of the mother and daughter duo. Dropping a gentle kiss on Laura's lips, he fixed the blanket that rested over Pandora. "I meant what I said, if you need me, you know where I am" He reminded her, knowing that Laura wasn't the sort to ask for help. Laura smiled at the man in front of her, nodding her head. "I know" She said, her voice soft as her hand cradled Pandora's head close to her shoulder.
"I'll be back as soon as I can get away from Colonial One" She promised, tightening her grip of the child as she turned on her heel and headed out of the hatch. The two armed guards followed her down the hallway, one in front and the other behind, guiding the way to the hanger deck. Laura and Pandora were only gone a minute before the others arrived in Bill's quarters, leaving no time for the man to ponder on his thoughts for the woman and child.
Laura rested her elbow on the writing desk, looking over the rim of her glasses at her Vice President. "Tell me there won't be a trial" He begged, believing that the idea was complete and utter madness. "Gaius Baltar will be tried for high crimes and treason" Laura informed Zarek, reaching her hand up to slip her glasses off her nose while her other hand rested over her stomach. From her spot on the corner of the plush leather couch, Pandora raised her head from its resting spot on the armrest at the mention of the former President's name. While she had thankfully never met the man, she was aware of exactly how Laura and Bill felt towards him. "A tribunal of judges will hear the evidence against him, a verdict will be read, he will be found guilty and he will finally be held responsible for his actions" Laura explained to the man, who simply folded his arms in annoyance and leaned back against Tori's desk
"If you summon up a little patience, as I have done, we will get though this ordeal" She suggested, though she knew Tom Zarek well enough to know that he wouldn't be silent on his opinion about the trial. "Listen to me" He spoke, his voice as low as a whisper as he addressed the President. "Baltar will get his trial, and this is what you'll get; a hurricane" He attempted to argue, watching as Laura turned on her chair slightly. "The media will descend on you and watch and scrutinize your every move, you will have sectarian violence, you will have assassination attempts - both on yourself and Pandora," He continued, glancing over Laura's shoulder at the child in the background, believing that dragging her into his argument might force the woman to see sense. "You will have civil unrest on a scale that we haven't seen. Work, labor, every day routine in this fleet will come to a stop. This trial is going to bring this entire fleet down" Zarek concluded, his hands falling by his side as he began to give up any hope he had of talking the President around.
Laura sat silently as Tori spoke to the Vice President about the measures in place to combat such issues. Next to Bill, Zarek was the most confident, headstrong and self-assured person she knew, though in that moment he looked truly terrified. "If I were you, I would declare marshal law during the trial" He informed her, pushing himself off the desk and standing in front of her as he spoke, her eyes following him across the room. "You are going to need a lot more than a little patience too survive - both of you" Tom said, glancing over at the child once more, knowing she was the best card he had to persuade Laura. "I'm here if you need me" He finished, holding his hands up as he finished speaking, turning on his heel to leave the room.
Pandora sat with her knees against her chest, her blanket wrapped tightly around her as she watched her mother. Just the sound of Zarek's voice made her want to cry. Bill clearly disliked the man, and didn't trust him either. That was enough for Pandora to hate and fear him. "Can we go and see Papa?" Pandora asked, struggling to keep her eyes open as Zarek walk towards the door.
Hearing the child's request, Zarek turned on his heel silently and watched as Laura - who failed to notice him lingering at the door - stood from her chair and walked towards the child. "Papa's busy on Galactica" The President informed her child, who seemed on the verge of tears at the idea. Zarek's eyes widened then. There was only one man on Galactica that Laura Roslin would allow her adoptive daughter to refer to as 'Papa'. Admiral William Adama. Armed with this new information, Zarek left the mother and daughter, set on finding more information about his new discovery. Perhaps the rumors around the fleet were true?
Laura reached out to touch the child's forehead, feeling the heat radiating off her skin like waves, the sweat almost sticking to her pale porcelain skin. "My head and ears are sore, I don't feel well, Mama" Pandora confessed, her breathing heavy as she tried to keep her eyes from closing. A dash of fear came to Laura's eyes. Pandora had been nowhere near as sick a few hours ago. Whatever was wrong, Laura had to get her to Galactica. Bill would know what to do, wouldn't he?
"Tori" Laura called over her shoulder, her Chief of Staff stepping closer to her and Pandora. "Send for a raptor, we need to go to Galactica, now!" The woman insisted, hearing Tori's heels disappearing down the hallway as she followed out the President's order, having seen for herself just how ill Pandora was. Lifting the phone nearest to them, Laura dialed the number for the CIC, all the while allowing Pandora to clutch her free hand.
"Admiral, it's the President" Gaeta called, exchanging the call to the wireless nearest Bill. "Madame President" Bill said, keeping his voice as professional as possible, expecting the phone call to be about a political matter. Why else would Laura call directly to the CIC? However, the tone of Laura's voice warned him that it wasn't. "Bill, I think Pandora's caught something. We're coming to Galactica" The woman's voice was laced with fear, her speech quicker than usual as she all but stumbled over her words. "Laura..." Bill hissed his voice sharp enough to grab the attention of the CIC officers nearest him as he heard Laura place the phone back on its cradle.
Saul stepped towards the man, his eye widened as he stopped at his side. "Pandora's taken ill. Laura's bringing her to Galactica" Bill revealed, placing his wireless back down as he turned to face the man. He prayed to the Lords of Kobol that Pandora didn't have the illness making its way around the fleet. "Go and see her." Saul ordered, seeing that the man was battling with himself, over his duty to Pandora and his duty to the fleet. "Are you sure?" Bill asked, unsure of leaving Saul in charge of the CIC, well aware of what had happened last time he had entrusted the man with the position. "Go!" Saul's voice was demanding, showing that he wasn't about to accept no as an answer. He knew that both Pandora and Laura would need him.
By the time Bill had arrived in the hanger deck, the raptor from Colonial One had just docked. He stepped forward as the heavy metal door of the raptor pushed out slowly, Laura stepping forward as it did, Pandora safely wrapped up in her arms. "How is she?" Bill asked, helping the woman down from the raptor by taking ahold of her hand. "She's burning up" Laura informed him, watching as the man moved to touch Pandora's forehead. He knew what mother's were like. His wife had been the same with Zak and Lee. They instantly feared the worse when their child was ill. It seemed Laura was no exception to this rule. Though it was clear that she had been right about one thing - Pandora certainly wasn't well. "Papa" Pandora mumbled softly, leaning against her father's touch as she forced a weak smile. Bringing his hand to touch Pandora's back, Bill pulled his other hand away from her forehead, having felt both the heat and the sweat.
"We'll take her down to Doctor Robert" Bill thought aloud, knowing that he was closer than Cottle and that if Pandora did have the illness, then Doctor Robert was best to treat her. Not having to be told twice, Laura followed the man through the hanger deck and around the hallways of Galactica, the two armed guards accompanying her struggled to keep up with the couple as they took their steps two at a time.
Arriving in 'Dogsville', Laura was glad for the first time of the guards who followed in her shadow. Between them and Bill, she had managed to cut through the crowds in record time, arriving at the makeshift hospital bay in under a minute. "Admiral, Madame President, what can I do for you?" Doctor Robert asked, before his eyes landed on the sickly child in Laura's arms. "It looks like she's just over the twelve-hour time, take her over to the bed" The man ordered, filling a syringe with the antibiotics as Laura walked towards the bed, attempting to put the girl down, however Pandora protested by tightening her grip of Laura's neck until the woman gave up and simply placed the child on her knee. Bill stood beside the pair, unable to believe that the child had turned so quickly. She had been absolutely fine last night.
Laura exchanged a worried glance with Bill as the doctor quickly examined Pandora before confirming his earlier belief. "Just over the twelve hours, but I don't see why the antibiotics shouldn't still have the same effect" The man admitted, taking the needle and checking the measurement of antibiotics before taking Pandora's arm. At the sight of the needle, the child's eyes widened - even in her state of daze - and she looked worriedly from Laura to Bill; the latter responded by bending down beside the pair so that he was near eye level with Pandora.
"Pandy" He spoke, pulling both Laura and Pandora's eyes away from the sharp needle. "Remember what I told you about viper pilots?" He asked, watching as the child concentrated for a moment before speaking. "They're not afraid of anything" Pandora said, her voice soft as she spoke, failing to notice the needle going in until she felt a sharp pang of pain as it left. "There, that should do the trick. Though it might make her a little drowsy, so I suggest staying here for a couple of hours, let her sleep off the worst of it and she should be as right as rain. Though I'll give you some medicine to take with you" Doctor Robert informed the pair, taking his gloves off and placing them, along with the needle, into the bin nearest Pandora's temporary bed.
Dr. Robert pulled the thick army green curtains around the bed to offer the trio some privacy as he left. "I over reacted didn't I?' Laura asked, looking up at the man beside her, who simply smile and shook his head slightly. "Every mother jumps to conclusions and worries when their child is sick, especially the first time. Though, if you hadn't overreacted, she would have went well passed the twelve-hour stage" Bill reminded her as he sat down beside her on the bed. Laura moved to rest her head down on the man's shoulder, shutting her eyes for a moment as Pandora wrapped her hands around her mother's arms, looking up at her father. "I'm as brave as a viper pilot, Papa" She joked, and Bill could have swore that the colour was already starting to return to her flushed cheeks. "Oh, you definitely are" He agreed, allowing a chuckle to escape his lips as he reached out to touch Pandora's forehead for a moment.
It didn't take long for the antibiotics to kick in and for Pandora to fall into a peaceful slumber. In fact, the girl slept for almost three hours. "Can we stay on Galactica?" Pandora asked, her pleading eyes looking from Laura to Bill, the former being well aware of her daughter's new-found hatred for Colonial One. "You'll have to ask, Bill" Laura said, her voice concealing a smile as she packed up her folders and papers into her leather tote. Bill finished readjusting his jacket before he spoke. "You know very well young lady, that you're allowed to stay on Galactica for as long as you like" Bill reminded the child, who simply smiled happily and swayed her feet from left to right.
"Let me carry that" Bill insisted, moving to take Laura's bag and throwing it on his shoulder, freeing the President's arms to allow her to scoop up her daughter, placing the child on her hip. Stepping out of the hospital wing of 'Dogsville', Laura walked behind Bill, with the two guards three steps behind her, as they attempted to find the quickest route out of the chaos.
Pandora tugged on the collar of her mother's blouse when she noticed something - or rather someone - across the room. "Look, Mama" The child said, pointing across the mad, chaotic room at two figures in the distance. Laura stopped mid-stride and followed her daughter's finger, watching the two figures who were advancing towards them, seemingly heading in the same direction as them.
"Laura" Bill said, stepping closer to the mother and daughter, his eyes following the direction of Pandora's. The girl was waving her right hand towards the pair as she smiled brightly. Laura's eyes widened as they fell on Athena and Hera. Usually, Pandora avoided any and all contact with other children, yet now she was trying to get Hera's attention across the room by waving at her. Maybe things were starting to improve?
Laura found that her voice failed to work by the time Athena stepped in front of her, holding Hera in a similar manner to the way she was holding Pandora. The girl had surely grown since New Caprica, though she still had her soft chocolate curls and adorable dimples. Laura silently wondered if the child remembered her at all; though she doubted it. "Hello" Athena spoke, greeting the older couple and their child first. "Hera..." Pandora said happily, reaching out for the younger child, who seemed to grab her hand without resistance.
"We came to check that Pandora was okay" Athena admitted, watching how the two children interacted with each other; as though they had known each other for their entire life. "How did you know?" Laura asked, confusion masking her face. She was sure that Athena wasn't on the hanger deck when she came in, nor was she in the hospital wing at the same time as them. "You were a bit hard to miss, Madame President. That and the fact I was on my way down to check on Hera as well" Athena explained, before turning her glaze to Bill who stood contentedly to the side, not believing the scene in front of him.
"I'm sorry. For everything" Laura confessed, her voice heavy with guilt and sorrow as she looked at the woman in front of her with pleading eyes. "I don't know what I would do if someone took Pandora" Laura spoke truthfully, shallowing her pride as she attempted to build a bridge with the cylon in front of her. Shockingly, Athena seemed to accept her apology. "It's okay. It's in the past. Hera's here now and that's all that matters" The cylon said, smiling at the woman in front of her. Forgiveness was hard; but it was easier than holding a vendetta against the President for the rest of their lives.
As the two women spoke, Bill kept his eyes on Pandora as the child rested her head on Laura's chest but continued to smile at Hera. Perhaps the pair had met at daycare? Though Bill was glad that Pandora seemed to have made a connection with at least one child - even if it was the human/cylon hybrid.
"We need to go, but I hope that Pandora and Hera can be friends" The pilot said, nodding her head at the President and Admiral. Laura held her hand out for the younger woman to shake, hoping she would accept the offer of peace between them. "Madame President" Athena said as she put her hand out to accept Laura's peace offer, shaking the older woman's hand before looking at Bill. "Admiral" She spoke, before turning away from the couple and heading back towards Helo.
Laura looked down at the child as Pandora wrapped her arms around her mother's shoulders. "Let me take her" Bill offered, after all Laura looked exhausted - both mentally and physically. Nodding her head, Laura allowed the man to slip the child out of her arms and into his. Walking out of 'Dogsville', she slipped her hand through Bill's arm and allowed him to silently guide her back to his quarters.
"You need to go and see Cottle, Laura." Bill announced upon entering the privacy of his quarters, the guards standing watch in the hallway behind the hatch door. "At the end of the week" She compromised, knowing that the man was not going to back off until she agreed to at least visit Cottle. Bill knew there was no point in fighting with her and instead nodded his head in agreement, though made a mental note to make sure that the woman made herself an appointment. "Let me look after Pandora first, then I'll go" She concluded, watching as he rested the half sleeping child down onto the bunk.
Laura yawned loudly, the sound filling the room as she glanced down at her watch. It was almost half eleven at night, usually Laura would still be busy dealing with paperwork or preparing herself for a meeting of the Quorum, but today, it felt as though it could be three o'clock in the morning. She had hit a brick wall and crashed. She knew that much now.
"Get some sleep, I'll be back soon" Bill said, his hand resting on Laura's arm as his eyes watched her with concern before he pressed a gentle kiss against her forehead. "Don't be too late" Laura insisted, her droopy red tinted eyes struggling to stay open as she listened to Bill's heavy footsteps disappearing out of the hatch door and into the deserted hallway of Galactica.
"What are you doing here?" Saul asked, his curiosity clear as the Admiral walked into the CIC, stopping beside him. "My job" Bill said, stating the obvious as he looked up at the monitors. Yet again, it seemed the cylons had yet to catch up with them. In fact, it had been quiet on that front for several days now. "Your job is looking after your girls" Saul's words caused the man to check his hearing. Had Saul just referred to Laura and Pandora as 'his girls'? Perhaps the man really had turned a corner in regards to Laura.
While he wouldn't openly admit it, Saul had come to accept Laura as being apart of Bill's life. Ever since the exodus from New Caprica, he had seen a change in Bill. He had a sense of life to him again. He smiled more, he laughed more and he looked more happy with his life than Saul had seen in decades. Laura and Pandora were to thank for that. Yesterday and today's events were testimony to that. Bill had willingly slipped into the father role in the family unit he had Laura had created for Pandora. Saul knew he had no choice but to accept the woman and child as being a center point in Bill's life.
"They're asleep anyway" Bill confessed, or at least he hoped Laura had went to sleep, though a part of him suspected she would stay up until he returned. At this time of night, most of the CIC staff were either in the bar - or half under the bar - or in their bunks catching up on some much-needed sleep.
"Who would have thought it, William Adama, a family man" Saul teased his oldest friend, and he could have sworn that Bill was doing his best to conceal the smile that was pulling at his lips. Even when Bill was married to Carolanne and the boys were young, he had never put Bill down as a 'family man', though he believed that may have had something to do with Bill's more than rocky relationship with his wife soon after Lee was born. "Don't let the idea go to your head, Saul" Bill warned, expecting Saul's teasing to continue for at least a few weeks - if not longer.
It was only when he was standing in the CIC that he remembered what the next day was. His anniversary. Though perhaps, for the first time since his divorce, he wouldn't mourn the loss of a marriage and a failed family unit, but bask in the warmth of another. Laura was not Carolanne, a fact that Bill was glad of, and Pandora was certainly not Lee or Zak, but why did he feel like more of a family with them than he ever did with his real family? Though he was sure of one thing. Tomorrow would not be the usual nightmare he was forced to relive on that faithful day every year; because he had Laura and Pandora now.