AN: Final chapter of Tabula Rasa, hope you enjoy! x

Tabula Rasa

Chapter V

You'd think that after almost two months of waking up in cold sweats the impact of her nightmares would have lessened some, or so Laura grumbled to herself as she doused her face in cold water. For all intents and purposes she had done her best to put the election behind her and move on, unfortunately her subconscious didn't seem to have gotten the memo and she was still being reminded of what Baltar's presidency had already cost the human race several times a week. She was never going to be free of the man.

She brushed her teeth and swept her hair up into a ponytail, getting ready for her run though Bill wouldn't be expecting her for another half an her quarters were not as depressing as they'd once been for she'd made an effort to trade for some, if not tasteful, at least cheerful tapestries and throws to brighten the place up as well as a couple of cushions for the sofa. Hell, it was practically homely and Laura was able to make herself quite comfortable as she poured herself a drink, lit a cigarette and settled down to a chapter of the latest novel she'd stolen from the admiral. There was nothing like sinking into another world to take your mind off your own, especially a good mystery. Unfortunately, this was nothing like a good mystery, and by chapter three it wasn't a mystery at all.

'I mean, it couldn't be any more obvious that it was that Darius guy but I can't even be bothered to read it just for the satisfaction of being right. What dross.'

'You say that like I recommended it,' said Bill, secretly wondering how she could run and complain at the same time.

'It was on your bookshelf.'

'Generally where books are kept. I haven't read them all.'

'Well, this is one less you have to read,' she said, as if she had saved him from mental agony.

'Must be why I never got past chapter two,' he pondered.

'You could have warned me.'

'Yeah, advise the book-thief on the best volumes to steal. Why didn't I think of that?'

'I bring them back, don't I?'

'So far as I can tell.'

'Are you saying you don't know?' she asked, with a saucy look. 'I thought you had a 'system'.'

'I'm beginning to think I need an inventory list not a system.'

'You know this doesn't count as one of my loans,' she said, having made him issue her with IOU's after their little triad game with Tigh.

'You still borrowed it.'

'But I only read three chapters. I want a new one, one you've read - and enjoyed,' she added, covering her bases. She trusted Bill's taste in books since they were so similar to her own, but her faith in his library was slightly battered. She used to think she could pick anything off his shelf and it would have at least some merit: no more. From now on she was getting recommendations.

'Running out of steam?' she asked when he didn't say anything. Well, they had been round the ship twice. Fortunately they were almost back on their own corridor so it was a good place for him to call it quits.

'Are you implying that I can't keep up with you?' he asked, trying not to sound as fagged as he was.

'No, I'm inferring it.'

'Once a school-teacher,' he accused, both he and Laura eyeing the home-straight as they rounded the last corner then looking at each other impishly. It was unbelievably childish but there didn't seem to be anybody in this section yet.

'Last one back's a rotten egg!' challenged Laura suddenly, putting on a spurt of speed to get ahead of him.

Why that cheeky- 'Cheat!'

She turned just long enough to flash him a grin, knowing he didn't stand a chance of catching her though he was giving it a good effort. She hit the end of the corridor, jumping neatly down the steps a second later when Bill nearly squashed her colliding with the wall himself.

'I win.'

'You cheated,' he panted, as he followed her into his quarters.

'Says the rotten egg,' she gloated.

'You're five years old.'

She shrugged sheepishly, not really in a position to argue with that assessment at present, especially when she had such playground classics as 'I'm rubber, you're glue…' running through her head. 'I'm hitting the shower,' he announced needlessly as she started warming down.

'Don't forget to shave that bit under your nose,' she called just as he was shutting the door and chuckling evilly at his completely unintelligible yet doubtlessly acerbic retort. She'd been teasing him about his fledgling moustache all week. Not because she had a particular problem with it, it was just fun to finally have something to wind him up about, especially after the whole Zeus incident. She'd thought he was going to drown himself in his porridge when Tigh pointed out he'd missed a bit yesterday. It couldn't have been funnier if she'd planned it.

Finishing her stretches with no sign of Bill, she wandered over to check her agenda for the day and noticed a new batch of names for the settlement list. Every day, more and more names. With a dozen ships now landed the work on the ground was speeding up. Tents were being set up as temporary accommodation but the real construction work hadn't even begun. The prospect of spending gods knew how long living in tents didn't seem to phase people though, especially those currently living aboard ships that weren't going to be able to land.

They obviously hadn't been reading the weather reports otherwise they might have realised that it was winter on New Caprica, no time to have only canvas standing between you and the elements. Which was exactly why nobody would be able to settle minus a ship for at least another month. Even Baltar could recognise the dangers of subjecting people to that kind of cold.

She glanced over the new list, attention arrested on the second page. Not believing what she saw the first time, she picked it up, holding it closer to her face and praying that she'd simply misread it without her glasses on. She hadn't. Maya was on this list. Maya and Isis. Maya, who'd lost her baby, and Isis, the hybrid child who Laura had secretly stolen from the cylon currently stewing in a Galactica jail-cell and given to Maya to pass off as her own. Not her finest moment as president but a necessary step to protect the child from cylons and humans alike.

She couldn't just have them wandering around on the surface unwatched and unprotected. Frak, Tory was meant to be keeping an eye on them, it was no accident that she was housed aboard the same ship as Maya. How had this slipped by her?

She had her hand on the phone to find out just that but thought better of it, Bill would be out of the bathroom any moment. She'd be better off going over to the Zephyr in person to sort this mess out, then she could visit Maya too and convince her of the mistake she was making. Easier said than done when Maya had no idea that Isis was really Hera. Frak. She was going to kill Tory.

'All yours.'

She jumped. She'd been too horrified to hear Bill come out of the bathroom but thankfully she had her back to him.

'Sorry,' he grinned, pulling a clean uniform out of a cupboard. 'Something wrong?' he asked, probably because she had failed to remind him of his deficient shaving skills again.

She forced herself to act normal. 'No, no. I was just thinking of paying Tory a visit. I haven't been off Galactica since I got here.'

'Sounds like a good idea,' Bill agreed, pulling out a clean uniform.

'Yeah,' said Laura softly, sharing a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. 'Can't just stay locked up here forever.' Much as she might want to.

AN: Not quite satisfied with this final chapter for some reason, not sure I got that first bit of banter quite right. Hopefully nobody saw the cliff-hanger coming, I hate to be too predictable! Let me know what you think if you wanna know what happens next, mwah ha ha…

COMING UP: The Ex-President part 3: The Ghost of Presidential Decisions Past