Please don't hate me! I'm currently on student exchange, so my life's been really hectic and I almost forgot I had this story going on… Internet's been really shady for a while, but I think I'm good now and can continue writing. I promise that I'll be good now. If I ever stop for a really long time again leave an angry rant below and it'll make me get on.

I changed my mind on what I was going to do, so for those of you who remember the old chapter six, please forget it :) Thanks, and sorry again! (Oh, I just reread my older chapters and I have no idea what has been doing with my dividers… There used to be transitions between scenes and no I have NO clue where they went. Luckily this chapter doesn't have transitions, but in the future, I'll try really hard to make sure they stay)

The knocking on the hatch was painfully loud, especially when considering how late at night – perhaps early in the morning, now – it was. The admiral pulled on her jacket as she crawled out of bed, holding her shoulder in pain as she moved to get the door. Years ago, decades, in fact, when Cain had just been a young lieutenant, she'd torn a ligament in her left shoulder during a training exercise. It had been easy enough to fix, but the pain still returned occasionally. Only a few days ago Gina would have offered to…

Cain stopped herself. She wouldn't think about what had been like when things were easy, when she'd had someone to confide in. Revealing herself had been a mistake, one she was not going to repeat again. Gina had ended up being the very thing she had sworn to destroy, and the only other person who she'd ever spoken to in a semi-informal manner was Jurgen Belzen, and he had been transferred to Galactica in exchange for those three coming without a fight. Even so, he had never truly been a friend or a confidant, not in the way she'd thought that thing had been.

Speaking of the devil, the admiral opened the hatch to see one of the newest officers aboard Pegasus standing before her. He looked tired, but something had made him come to the admiral's quarters, and as much as she wanted to send him away, a nagging voice in her head told her to hear him out.

"Captain, what exactly do you think you're doing?" she asked the younger Adama, the tone in her voice indicating she was not amused, but not entirely angry either.

He gave her his best salute, considering the hour, which she returned as best she good. The throbbing in her shoulder was worse now, but Cain wondered how much of it might just be mental. "Admiral, I apologize for the time, but there's something I need to speak with you about."

"And it couldn't wait until morning?" She should be angry, but the admiral simply felt too exhausted to feel much of anything at the moment. Instead, she beckoned him inside, swinging the hatch behind him once he was all the way inside. "Captain," she spoke evenly and surprisingly clear considering how exhausted she felt. "What is it you wanted to talk about?

He shifted, though not much. It was obvious Galactica's former CAG was trying to his best to be professional, but having been on duty for over twelve hours was making him a little fidgety.

"I wanted to talk to you about Kara Thrace, sir," he said.

Cain raised an eyebrow. "Lieutenant Thrace?"

"Yes, sir." Lee Adama looked uncomfortable, but the admiral was impressed, in part, by the courage it took for him to come speak to her directly about his comrade. The other part was tired and pissed off. "She's one of the best pilots in the fleet, but she's… difficult, at times, and only knows how to listen to certain people. If possible, I think it might be best for her to be transferred back to Galactica." He paused before adding a hasty, "sir."

Cain was suddenly awake enough to start being angry. "Captain, maybe you don't understand, but what you think is best doesn't matter. I am the commanding officer of this fleet, and if Thrace doesn't like it, then she will not be a part of it any longer. Perhaps it was acceptable to question your superiors aboard Galactica, but aboard Pegasus it will not be tolerated. Now, due to the hour, I am willing to pretend that you came here out of sheer exhaustion and are not thinking straight. However, if you ever question my judgment again, there will be consequences. Do you understand?"

Lee's jaw tightened slightly, and Cain found herself doing the same. However the feet had been run before her arrival was unacceptable. At least the boy had enough sense to understand when he'd lost the battle, though the admiral still felt the overwhelming desire to throw him in the brig. But it was late and to be honest, the paperwork kept her from doing so.

The captain's voice was thick when he spoke. "Yes, sir."

"Good, now if you don't mind- " Cain was cut off before she could say anything else. Outside of the hatch she could hear a loud conversation between an unfamiliar voice and her marines – the discussion not being what she'd classify as friendly. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the young Adama's face tighten even more, meaning he knew the disturber. Being a male voice, that took out Thrace, leaving Agathon.

"By the gods," she muttered under her breath, despite being a nonbeliever. Furious at this point, she strode over to the hatch, swinging open with force. Every head turned as she barked, "What the frak do you want, Lieutenant?"

It was not the most graceful way of meeting her guest, but at this point, she didn't care. She almost regretted transferring the three to her ship – almost. Cain was still not going to allow the relationship between Adama and his son and Thrace, as well as that between Agathon and their cylon prisoner, continue any longer while she was in control of the fleet.

"Admiral." He saluted her, despite his obvious anger. "I need to discuss – "

"Like hell you do." She glared at him and Captain Adama. "It is twenty three o-hundred and the amount of sleep I've gotten in the last three days probably amounts to four hours. Unless you are about to tell me that the fleet is engaging in a cylon attack this fraking minute, get back to your bunks or to work. Agathon, you're due at the deck in ten minutes. Adama, you've been on duty for twelve hours, and at o-six, I expect you back in the CIC working at full capacity. If I see either of you in the next seven hours I will haul both of your asses down to the brig myself. Are we clear?" Before she could get a response from either, she turned to one of the marines. "Unless there is an emergency, I am going to get some sleep and do not wish to be disturbed."

She stepped aside so Lee could get through and slammed the door shut, leaving the five outside rather dumbstruck. Karl made a move for the door again, but Lee grabbed his shoulder and pulled him down the hallway.

"Don't."

"She can't treat her that way," Agathon growled.

Lee gritted his teeth, assuming he knew which 'she' Agathon was talking about. "Confronting her now isn't going to do you any good, and the admiral is right, you have flight duty in ten minutes."

"She's not just a machine." Karl clearly wasn't going to let it go that easily, but considering how much easier it was to pull him down the hallway, Lee figured that he at least was listening.

"I get it, but do you really think this'll do any good? Best-case scenario, you wind up in the brig, too. You're not going to do her any good if you're locked up, so just for now, go clear your head and leave the admiral alone."

Agathon's jaw clenched, but he turned away and headed towards the deck, leaving Lee alone in the hall. He ran a hand through his hair, wondering what exactly was going to happen next, but the thought left his mind quickly. He decided to take Cain's advice and walked to his quarters, collapsing into his bed and falling asleep nearly instantly.

Okay, there you go! I am back, I promise. I will finish this story. I know I suck for getting off… And I know 4 months is a really long time, but I'm really glad that some of you reviewed and asked me to continue. Please continue with the reviews!