General disclaimer, author's notes, timeline and storyline description may be seen in the prologue chapter. All reviews have been answered through the site's email response thing. Onto the story…

x-x-x

Chapter 2

"Can I help you, sir?"

Commander Lee Adama turned and cleared his throat, seeing one of the new Galactica pilots behind him. Lords, he could barely keep up with his own staff. It seems that ever since the exodus began, new faces started filling in. This young woman was nothing different. "I'm looking for Captain Thrace."

The young woman bit her lip and looked down. "I'm… I'm not sure if I should be the one to tell you this, sir," she stammered, unable to make eye contact.

"Out with it," Lee challenged her, tapping his foot impatiently.

The woman seemed to steel herself, set her shoulders and looked him in the eye. "She's not onboard Galactica, sir."

Lee frowned as he regarded her. "Where is Captain Thrace? She's not on this ship, she's not on the Pegasus. She's not in the air, not if Kat is running CAP—" His voice trailed off as something seemed to click in his head. "Is she on New Caprica?"

"To be honest with you, sir, I don't know," the woman said. "The only person she told was the Admiral."

"Figures," Lee muttered under his breath. "Could you tell the Admiral that the Pegasus Commander was looking for him?"

"I would, sir, but Admiral Adama is not on board."

Now this was getting ridiculous. "Would you care to enlighten me—"

The woman cut him off before he could continue. "I wish I could tell you, sir, but I don't know."

Her groveling attitude was starting to wear thin now, too. He just rolled his eyes and stormed on, trying to find someone who did know what the frak was going on. He almost sighed with relief when he saw Lieutenant Agathon walking in his direction. The moment Agathon saw him, though; he turned on his heel and marched the other way. Lee found his footsteps faltering as he stared after the Lieutenant, absolutely flummoxed as to what was going on. He found his confusion easing as he realized what was going on. Starbuck was doing something. She was doing something that involved his father. And as Agathon was one of her friends, he was avoiding him for that very reason. Grinding his teeth together, Lee stomped down the corridor. He'd drag it out of Tigh if he had to.

Most of CIC was quiet save a few familiar faces. Despite being appointed as the newest aide to President Baltar, Felix Gaeta was at his post talking on his headphone, looking concerned. The post usually occupied by Dee was empty as she was now on Pegasus. Lee had to hide a smug smile at that; Dee was a fine catch from the Galactica and he was proud to have promoted her and given her a position worth something. He knew his father respected Dualla, but not nearly as much as Lee had.

But where was everyone?

"Lieutenant," Lee said, moving to Gaeta and tapping the younger man on the shoulder. Gaeta ended his call and turned to the Commander. "Where is—"

"Admiral Adama is not on board, sir," Gaeta said, setting the headphones aside. "Colonel Tigh is down at flight deck if—"

"Thanks," Lee said, patting Gaeta's shoulder and making his way through CIC and down to flight deck. Even the flight deck was empty. Tigh was nowhere to be seen. All he could see was—

"Oh, frak!" Lee moaned, putting a hand up to cover his eyes as two figures broke apart, laughing. "For gods sakes, you two… get a room!"

"Sorry, Commander," Cally said with a slight giggle, quickly snapping a salute. The Chief was slightly flushed as he stared hard at his toes. "We were just—"

"Cally," the Chief said, his voice a bit higher than normal, "he doesn't want to know. Just leave him out of this."

"Yes, please," Lee said, trying desperately to hide the disgust on his face. "I'm trying to find Starbuck."

Cally and Chief Tyrol exchanged a nervous look. "She… she has the day off, sir."

"That much I could figure out on my own," Lee said patiently. "I'm just trying to find her, trying to run some ideas by her… but I can't find her. I can't reach her on wireless, can't reach her by anyone else because apparently the only person she told was the Admiral."

"We know nothing," the Chief said, looking Lee in the eye. "All we know is she took off in a raptor yesterday and hasn't been seen since."

"And not one of those raptors going down to the planet either, sir," Cally added. "She was going somewhere else in the fleet."

"Was my father with her?"

"Yes, sir," the Chief said.

"And…" Lee prompted softly.

"There was a civilian with her, too," Cally replied. "I'm pretty sure you're no dimwit, Commander."

So Starbuck had hopped a raptor with her precious civilian Sam and Lee's old man… it didn't make a lot of sense except for one reason. Lee found something clench painfully in his stomach as he turned away. As much as he wanted to deny it, the past few weeks had been hard. He and Starbuck talked, sure. They talked CAP routes, schedules, training essentials, the new Viper modifications… anything but the personals. He knew that she and Sam were close, though. But he hoped – no, prayed – that they weren't out eloping. That would be like a dagger to the back. Or the heart.

"Sir?"

Lee took a deep breath and forced a smile. "I'm sorry, guys. You can get back to—" He waved his hand helplessly and walked away. His eyes sought out Colonel Tigh. He finally found the Colonel by an old Viper examining something on a board. The Colonel turned to face him, looking somewhat unsurprised to see him.

"Commander Adama, to what do we owe this honor?"

It would probably be best to leave Starbuck out of this, he thought, as she was a sore subject for them both. "I'm looking for my father."

Tigh eyed him for a moment before turning back to the board. "He's not on board."

"You gonna tell me where he is?" Lee asked.

"To be frank, I don't know," Tigh replied evenly.

"This is my father you're talking about."

"If you must know, he took off early yesterday," Tigh said, setting the board aside and turning to face Lee. "He had Kara and some others with him. They hopped a raptor and headed to one of the ships orbiting New Caprica. As far as I know, they're all coming back."

As Tigh moved back towards the steps back to CIC, Lee sighed and leant against the Viper, his hand smacking the hull in frustration. Is that where the past three months had brought them, to this point?

"Can we do anything for you, sir?" Cally asked him softly, approaching him from behind.

Lee scoffed as he pushed himself off. "When my father gets back, could you have him call me?"

"And Starbuck?"

Lee paused, emotions crossing his face. "I've got nothing left to say to her."

- - -

"Will you stop fidgeting?"

"No," Kara said, moving her arm which was twisted uncomfortably by someone pushing pins into her sleeve. "Whoever thought of wearing one of these things anyway? I feel like I'm in a burial shroud."

"Maybe you are," Sharon said with a laugh as she attempted to pin Kara's other sleeve. "But it's not everyday we get to a live funeral."

"Funny," Kara snorted as she was pushed to the wall.

"I don't think I've ever seen you out of uniform," a masculine voice chided. Sharon chortled and turned to see Helo's form standing in the doorway.

"Hey, get out. This is a private area."

"Well, we've got one former Buccaneer crawling the walls waiting for his princess to arrive." His smirk grew when he saw Kara and her attire. The smirk soon turned into laughter.

"Shut up!" Kara said weakly, staring down at her reflection. "This is only the second time I've dressed up since I've been on this ship and they've both been within two years." Kara frowned as she picked at her dress. "But Sam wanted—"

"We know, Starbuck," Sharon said, touching her arm. "And I appreciate you asking us here."

"We both do," Helo said, entering the room. "This is your big happy day."

"I know most little girls probably dream about this big day," Kara replied, running her hands through her hair, "but I used to dream about how my dad would ditch my mother and shack up with the soprano from the Virgon Opera."

"Oh, she had a voice," Helo said, smiling fondly.

"With her voice and my dad's piano…" Kara sighed, turning her attention to her friends. "Do I pass inspection?"

"If you were on duty, you'd be shot," Helo smirked. "But you look… beautiful."

Kara looked up, her eyes softening despite the mocking look on her face. "Did you just say I'm beautiful?" she teased. "Did Karl Agathon, lover of one Sharon Valerii just call me beautiful?"

"I was just about to say the same thing," Sharon whispered, blinking tears back. "You look great."

"You're both freaks," Kara ragged. Helo just rolled his eyes as he took Kara by the shoulders and marched her into a second room.

Kara had one wish for this day. She knew that there were small temples scattered on ships throughout the fleet. But she had her favorite. If she were ever to get married, she would have wanted it to be in one of these. The soft golden glow by a hundred candles set a warm, comforting feel over the cramped quarters. Large, like-like statues of the gods surrounded them. There was a single pillar atop which a thick candle burned. Standing behind it was a single figure that turned and looked at her. His look turned to shock as he moved towards her.

"I never thought this day would come," Admiral Adama said, attempting to keep the emotion from his voice. This was Kara… she was almost his daughter-in-law. There were some days when he would look at his living son and his former prospect and realize that someday she could be his daughter-in-law. But that time had passed as he knew the bridges between Lee and Kara were burnt and ash by this point. That didn't stop him from loving her. He had loved her since the day they met at Zak's funeral. So proud, so arrogant, so talented… and so vulnerable. Even now, he could see the tears in her eyes as she smiled up at him. "Even though it's not what I expected, I have never been more proud of you to take this step. I can only wish you all the best."

Kara's smile grew misty and she blinked uncertainly, as though trying to figure out where the tears came from. "Thank you," she murmured.

Bill Adama cleared his throat and stepped away from the young woman who was soon joined by her fiancée. "Now… the book please?"

The former president rose and handed him the book. Her eyes grew soft and watery as she looked at the future of the human race. A man and a woman, deeply in love, deeply entwined by the destiny they were about to face. Despite the fact she had moved to Galactica, her soul was taking her down to New Caprica along with others, including the Chief and his newly pregnant wife, Cally. This was her last order of business, a favor asked to her by Bill Adama. Though he wasn't quite in agreement with her choice to move, he wasn't about to convince her to stay. That had never really worked well for them in the past.

Her eyes searched out the other few that were in the room, illuminated by candlelight. There was Lieutenant Agathon and, to her surprise, the Cylon Sharon. She knew though that Kara Thrace was friends with both and it made sense that they were here. She was just shocked to see Sharon on another ship besides the Galactica.

"We are gathered before the eyes of our gods today in the hopes of adjoining these two mere mortals in their eyes and in their hearts…"

- - -

"Kara… Kara?"

Starbuck blinked and glanced up, losing her train of thought. She had been thinking of nothing but duty rosters and assignments since they boarded the raptor to head back. Galactica was gleaming outside the tiny window and she sighed, turning her attention to her husband.

Whoa… husband? She was going to have to get used to this.

"Yes?" she asked kindly.

"You just seemed like you weren't all there."

"No," Kara smiled. "I'm here. See?" She repositioned herself so that she was on his lap. "I'm here, too." Her lips found the least stubby part of his face. "I'm here. I'm all here. And I'm all yours."

His hand reached down to hers as he examined the ring. "Where did you find these?"

"They were a gift," she smirked as she leaned back in his arms, enjoying the play of light across her ring.

"And to thank you for that gift, I have an idea for one of our own."

Kara glanced at him suspiciously. "Like what, Sam?"

"Nothing too painful," Sam said, laughing at the expression on her face. "Really, Kara. I just thought a symbol of our love and devotion would be good enough."

"More than this?" Kara asked, holding up her hand with the flashing ring.

"Have you ever considered a tattoo?"

"You're kidding, right?" Kara asked, smirking slightly now.

"No, I'm not kidding. I really think we should consider it. See, we can lose these," he said, touching his own ring thoughtfully. "But when we ink the skin, it's hard to lose that."

"I know what I feel Sam… loving you isn't just loving this gold or ink or whatever I can put on myself to show you how I feel. I love you and that doesn't change, even if we lose the rings or get inked."

"This ring isn't just a piece of metal, Kara. It means something." Sam leaned forward and took her hands in his. "It's a symbol of undying devotion and the sacrifice of self to the good of us both, remember? We need to have something that reminds us of who we are… sometimes thoughts aren't enough. Symbols can mean more to us than love itself. They remind us that there is something we can look at and something that we can touch that show us who we are."

Kara thought for a moment on his words before nodding. "All right. Let's do it."

"Are you sure?"

"Are you always going to question my word?" she smirked.

"I shouldn't."

"That's right, you shouldn't," Kara said, leaning forward, her smirk growing. But when she saw the look on his face, her smirk faded. "You have something else to say."

"Can't surprise you anymore, can I?"

"You probably could if you said the right thing—"

"I think we should leave Galactica."

"You can still surprise me," she deadpanned.

"I know you've been frustrated with the military for a while now since the exodus to New Caprica began," Sam began. "And it isn't that you don't love what you do. You wouldn't have come back for me if you weren't great at what you do. But what you do and what will happen are two very different things now. There hasn't been sight of Cylons in months. For all we know, we may never see them again. You're a talented, beautiful young woman," he continued, leaning closer to her. He saw the beginnings of her pout and thought quickly about dispelling it. "But your talents are going to waste. They don't need a Viper pilot."

"Are you saying I should just give up?"

"Instead of fighting day after day with Pegasus and your own air squad? It's not giving up, Kara. It's taking a break."

"So you're saying I should retire because I'm obsolete?"

Sam sighed deeply. "You're not obsolete Kara. You're just…"

"Archaic," Kara remarked heavily. "I'm out of date, outdated, stale… I know my skills aren't very useful right now but in the next moment—"

"Look, a lot of Colonial officers have moved down to the planet. You heard the former President talking about starting up a school there. You heard the Chief was going down because he had been elected to serve in the worker's union. There is still a chance for us down there. Don't you see it?"

"I see it fine," Kara said stubbornly. "The point is, I'm fine with what I have here."

"But it isn't just you anymore," Sam reminded her. "There's two of us now. And while playing Pyramid seems impossible whether on the ship or on New Caprica… if we hadn't done this, if we hadn't… gotten married…" His lips twitched at the sight of her amusement. "I would have gone down there a long time ago. But I was waiting for something… someone… a lot more important to make that decision."

Kara eyed him for a moment before shrugging. "I'll think about it."

"I know it's a big step to take, Kara… but this is our future. This is us, for better or worse. In the eyes of the gods, they want the best future for us. And I'm thinking about that… what's best for us."

"I can't believe you sprung this one on me as we're flying back from our own ceremony," Kara sighed.

"I didn't spring anything on you," Sam argued. "I've been talking about this for months and you just brushed it off."

"So you're telling me not to brush this off?" Kara asked. "You're asking me to be serious?"

"Yes."

"Right," she sighed. "I'll think about it. You have my word. And as you're alive here today, you know my word means something."

x-x-x

Author's Note: I realize that my timeline for things may be a bit off, but I'm going by what I feel is right. Considering that the new season has probably shocked a lot of fans into thinking 'what the hell just happened?', I'm just doing my best to catch up. Originally, my story wasn't going to be planned for much more than the end of the prologue, but now I have to take events from the beginning of the season into account. I think I found myself a converted fan.

Oh, and as you lovelies have all written such great stories, could you be kind as to recommend some to me? I know some of you fell in love with the genre just by reading and I'm looking for that chance, too. An email is easy enough, right? I like happy stories, dramatic stories and, of course, shipper stories. But really… I would love some recommendations. Please?

Thank you for reading my story!