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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 11:51 am 
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3. Flaming O
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Joined: Thu Dec 21, 2006 11:59 am
Posts: 139
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Location: Germany
Coming Spring 2010

“ Signs and Portents”

The penultimate installment of
“A Love Beyond the Stars”

The earlier instalments:

I: “In the Beginning”

II: “Love on the Run”

III: “Against all Odds”

IV: “A Race Through Dark Places”

_________________
Today my friend, your diary entry will read: Took a […] hostage and got shoot by three armed bastards.”
Gene Hunt – Ashes to Ashes
“A Love Beyond the Stars”
“What Dreams may Come”


Last edited by Dax on Tue May 15, 2012 12:36 pm, edited 4 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Mon Mar 01, 2010 9:47 pm 
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1. Blessed Wannabe

Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2005 3:13 pm
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You do mean meteorological spring, I hope?


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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sat May 29, 2010 10:59 am 
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3. Flaming O
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Location: Germany
Title:
„A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents”

Author:
Dax

Über Category:
Battlestar Galactica

Rating:
PG

Disclaimer:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer and all related characters are registered trademarks of 20th Century Fox Film Corporation.
Battlestar Galactica, created by Ronald D. Moore. Based upon the 1978 Series Battlestar Galactica created by Glen A. Larson. Copyright 2006 USA Cable Entertainment Inc.
Chapter and instalment title come courtesy of Babylon 5, created by J. Michaels Strazynski. Copyright 1997 Warner Bros. PAY TV.
Quotes preceding the chapter titles are lyrics from “Queen” songs, Copyright Queen Productions LTD.

Summary:

Still on the run from the Cylons and in search for the planet of the Thirteen’s Tribe of Kobol – Earth, Willow Rosenberg has an important decision to make. A decision that has the potential to change the future for her, as well as her wife and family.


A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents


For we who grew up tall and proud
In the shadow of the mushroom cloud
Convinced our voices can't be heard
We just wanna scream it louder and louder and louder

What the hell are we fighting for
Just surrender and it won't hurt at all
You just got time to say your prays
While you’re waiting for the Hammer to fall


Chapter One
Ship of Tears


Mayor Willow Rosenberg stared open mouthed the screens of her flight console, while she listened to the voices of Admiral Adama, Col. Thigh and Lt. Gaeta in the CIC.
Surely this could not be happening!

But then Willow knew her commanding officer not to be the type who bluffed such a situation. Should the Cylons really attempt to land those five heavy raiders that they’d just launched, the old man would launch every nuclear missiles Galactica still had and destroy almost the entire continent of the Algae Planet they were still orbiting and with it the Temple of Five.
He would also destroy the Eye of Jupiter that, according to the secret scrolls, should point the way to Earth.
However, so far Chief Tyrol had been unable to find the Eye.

Nuking the entire continent would not only kill him but all the other twenty-something people who for the past days had harvested and pre processed the algae.
It would also kill the admiral’s son and daughter-in-law, which only further proved how serious the old man was about not letting the Cylons get their hands on the key to find Earth.

And rightly so: Not only did the people of the Twelve Colonies need to find Earth and its population in order to secure the survival of their species. It would also be wrong to have the humans of Earth deal with the mistake of their far removed brethren.
‘There has to be a way to solving the Cylon problem, without resolving to genocide. By killing each and every humanoid Cylons there is,’ Willow thought, ‘like that other plan had.’

Some time ago they had encountered a inoperative Basestar and upon boarding found every humanoid Cylon either dead or dying and the same was true for the cyborg Cylon raiders.
Doc Cottle found out they were dying from what was a rather serious infection caused by a germ, picked up from probe left behind by the thirteen’s tribe of Kobol.
For humans this disease was easily treated and once vaccinated the human immune system created the necessary antibodies to defeat the germ for good.

However the Cylons advanced and highly aggressive immune system destroyed the vaccine within mere days but without attacking the germ itself. So surviving Cylons they had brought over from the Basestar were doomed to die unless regularly treated.

The plan that evolved from the knowledge they had gathered, called for the Cylon prisoners to be kept alive until Galactica would engage another Basestar and then the prisoners were to be executed.
Upon downloading into a new body, the Cylons would somehow bring the germ with them and thus infect that resurrection ship and in time every humanoid Cylon and Raider in existence. Genocide on a wholly new cosmic scale.

Luckily, or so Willow thought, the plan could not be put into action because somebody among those in on the plan, thought the same way and killed the Cylons by suffocating them before they had come near the Cylon resurrection ship.
How in the name of the Lords of Kobol could they justify their own survival while wiping out an entire species?

“Open missile hatches two through ten,” came the calm order from Admiral Adama, that soon was acknowledged by Gaeta.
‘Now the Cylons will know that the old man isn’t bluffing,’ Willow thought. Or at least they should know as their instruments would show them the radiological signature of their warheads. ‘They should know that he really would turn the continent into a nuclear wasteland.’

Willow couldn’t help it but feel glad that for once – after Kobol and New Caprica – neither she nor Tara were on the planet’s surface, that in a time of crisis they weren’t separated.
‘But maybe it doesn’t have to come to this,’ Willow thought, watching the Cylons Heavy Raiders still advancing towards the planet.

But then why should they give up so easily, they wanted the key to Earth possibly as much as the Colonials and had followed the same signs and old scrolls. Why else could they have found them here so fast?

One Day Earlier

“It’s all right, I’ll go,” Willow whispered into her wife’s ear. “You go on sleeping.”
“But what if she‘s hungry?” Tara mumbled into her pillow.
“Then I’ll feed her,” Willow answered with a smile and couldn’t help but start giggling a bit. Clearly Tara was more asleep than awake she reckoned.

“Tara as much as I regret it, I know that I’m not ‘producing’ milk myself,” she said quietly. “And that’s the reason,” she went on. “Why you used this breast pump to…” she struggled for words, “save some milk for the night. So I can look out for Hope and you can get some sleep for a change.
“Sweet dreams my love,” Willow said and gently kissed Tara’s ear.
“Right-o,” Tara whispered and was asleep once she’d finished speaking.

‘She still so weak sometimes,’ Willow thought lovingly watching Tara’s sleeping form. ‘She’d lost some weight too, during the occupation and the following coma she had suffered.’ Though not that dramatically but notable to anyone who knew Tara and especially Willow who knew and loved every part of Tara’s body so very intimately by heart and touch.

Luckily the food shortage was starting to come to an end and by now the food processing facilities throughout the fleet were running on maximum, turning the rather blunt tasting algae into something that tasted rather convincingly like potatoes and other vegetables, a process that Willow still found quite amazing – if not a tiny little bit gross.

“Well, well Hope, Momma’s here,” Willow said softly and gently lifted her crying daughter out of her cradle, who upon feeling her mother’s presence, hiccupped herself into silence.
“So what’s wrong?” Willow wondered and slowly carried her over to the living room, closing the door behind her before she switched on the lights.
“You need a change?” she asked Hope and then held her baby’s bottom to Miss Kitty sitting next to her and when the tiny kitten didn’t protest concluded: “No.”

Willow then walked over to the sideboard and switched on the bottle warmer and placed one of the bottles with mother’s milk into it, that Tara had prepared in advance. “Then maybe you’re hungry.”
She sat down in a armchair right next to the sideboard and laid Hope in her lap, joined by Miss Kitty Fantastico, who had taken up place on the left armrest to continue her nap. But not without glancing one or the other look at mother and daughter. ‘It’s like she’s scrutinizing me,’ Willow thought.

She reached for the bottle and after checking the milk’s temperature at her wrist and then offered it to Hope.
“You know, you always look kinda disappointed if you get milk offered out of a bottle than out of your mommy’s breast.” Willow whispered as she watched Hope suck the milk out of the offered bottle and added in her mind: ‘not that I blame you.’ And her thought went back to the last time she and Tara had made love.

Watching her daughter drink peacefully brought tears into Willow’s eyes and when their eyes met and Hope looked at her mommy (though not really seeing her) with the complete and unconditional trust only a baby would ever have, silent tears ran down her face.
Tears of joy as well as tears of utter sadness.
Things were looking so very hopeless at times.

They had made their escape from New Caprica but at what cost?
Of the 44035 people both Galactica and Pegasus had to leave behind when the Cylons jumped into the planets orbit, 5179 had died and Dawn was one of them.

Tears were now running freely down her face and dripped from her chin and some fell onto Hope’s head.
“Sorry Hope,” Willow whispered and wiped her forehead with a handkerchief, though Hope didn’t seemed to mind and continued sucking her bottle, like she wanted to say ‘don’t mind it momma, I know how much you miss her’.

How similar the background had been and how horribly different the outcome.
Both Tara and Dawn had at one point in their lives been in love with Faith aka Roxie aka ‘Rogue’ – the Cylon No 10 and had their heart’s broken by the same said Cylon.
Tara when Faith had dumped her for her best friend and Dawn when she thought Roxie was dead, killed in the nuclear fire unleashed by the Cylons.

And then one day both woman had found themselves forced to face the horrible truth, that they both had been in love with a Cylon – the enemy.
But whereas Tara had had her new fond love for Willow; Dawn had still been mourning the loss of the girlfriend she believed killed back at the colonies, when she had been come to realise that the woman she loved had been responsible in killing so many people.

It had been a realisation that had driven Dawn close to suicide by wanting to blow herself up together with one of the doubtless many copies of the No. 10 Cylon.
In the end she no longer wanted to kill herself but had died after all when she’d sacrificed herself to save Tara and unborn Hope.

She looked down at Hope who had finished drinking and some more tears fell on her daughters forehead and she wiped them away right away.
She then changed Hope’s diapers, brought her back into the bedroom and put her back into her cradle.

Willow slipped back under the covers next to Tara.
“Brr you have cold feet,” Tara protested with closed eyes.
“Then you better warm them,” Willow whispered back and snuggled closer to her wife and kissed her gently onto her ear.
Soon they were all soundly asleep again, watched by Miss kitty who had taken up position at the bedroom’s sideboard.

***
“Cylon Raider, Galactica. You have been cleared to land,” Willow called out, still not believing that she had been ordered to allow an enemy craft to land aboard Galactica.
“Approach port landing bay. Hands on. Speed 106. Checkers red. Call the ball,” she informed them. “Cylon Raider you’re advised that your Viper escort is authorized to open fire, should you drift from your ordered trajectory.”

“Copy that Galactica,” an all too familiar female voice replied – Sharon Valerii!
But not the Cylon Sharon that Willow now knew and trusted as Sharon Agathon, call sign ‘Athena’, but ‘Boomer’ the one who shot and darn nearly killed the old men or at least Willow was pretty sure that this copy of Cylon No. Eight was said sleeper-agent.

Willow shook her head,.
‘Focus Rosenberg, focus,’ she scold herself
‘Athena’ will be down there too and if anybody can hold all these different but still identical copies apart then it’s her and she’ll know if it really is the murdering ‘Boomer’ then it will be her.’
Who would ever have thought they would actually let Cylons come aboard Galactica, Willow wondered while she communicated the landing instructions to the Heavy Raider closing in to Galactica’s landing bay, escorted by ‘Hotdog’ and ‘Mouse’.

They wanted to negotiate and Willow had no doubt about what, not since Chief Tyrol found the Temple of Five down on the planet’s surface.
The legendary temple held according to the sacred scrolls the Eye of Jupiter, a vital pointer towards planet Earth.
And if the Cylons wanted the Eye, then they wanted Earth, though what for Willow didn’t dare to guess.
Another occupation perhaps? Only this time with more willing subjects since they didn’t know anything about the Cylons past.
Or maybe they wanted Earth as a new planet for their own race, but then what about the home they supposedly found themselves forty years ago?

Or…?
A cold shower ran down Willow’s spine, what if they only wanted to find Earth to get rid of the human race once and for all?
‘Here we are, still chased by our own creation,’ Willow thought. ‘What right do we have, if we really ever find Earth – the home of the decedents of the Thirteen’s Tripe of Kobol, to go there while we still haven’t dealt with the Cylon situation, one way or the other.’

The heavy Raider was now entering Galactica’s landing pod and Willow broadcast the information about the Raider’s designated landing pad to the Cylon Pilot – ‘Boomer’, if it really was ‘Boomer’.
“Mag lock secured,” Willow reported to the Raider, then switched channels. “Flight control to CIC, Raider secured, bringing them down now.”
“Copy that Major,” Gaeta answered and in turn ordered the armed marines down in the hangar bay to standby.
They would escort the Cylon delegation to their meeting with Admiral Adama and President Roslin. And blast them right into their next life should they try anything funny.

But then the Cylons obviously really wanted to negotiate or they would have come into the system guns blazing and starting Raiders.

***
“Honey I’m home!” Willow called upon entering her quarter. Though she didn’t call to loud, not wanting to wake Hope.
“Hi sweetie,” Tara said, took Willow into her arms and kissed her gently. “So is it true? She asked next. “Are there Cylons aboard the Galactica?”
Willow nodded and like she read the next question in her wife’s mind she added: “And no, Tara, Faith is not among them. Only six, that blond bombshell, that Brother Cavil bloke and would you believe it, Boomer.”

“Boomer?” Tara asked unbelievingly, “that Boomer? Who shot the Admiral?”
“The very same. Athena recognized her, so they didn’t let her through,” Willow said. “And that’s not even the really weird part. Guess who the Cylons brought along with them?”
“Not Baltar?” Tara asked, a bid louder then she had wanted and both woman alike look into the cradle were Hope was still soundly asleep, with Miss Kitty dozing right beneath her on the floor.

“Gaius Baltar. The very same,” Willow concurred. “And now we know how the Cylons found us.”
Willow led Tara over to the sofa and they both sat down. “From Felix we know that Baltar had been obsessed with finding the road to Earth during the occupation. Obviously he has continued his research aboard the Cylon’s Basestar.”

“Figures,” Tara mumbled under her breath. “Why else would they let him live, if he wasn’t of some value to them. And now they’re here and that means… they want the eye!”

Tara, Willow could see, had come to the same conclusion, that the Cylons wanted the eye of Jupiter and thus wanted Earth.

“So how was our little angel today?” Willow asked to change the subject, much to Tara’s relief since subjects like these always brought back the painful memories of the occupation and how Dawn gave her life to protect both Tara and Hope.
As if on cue Miss Kitty walked over from under the cradle and jumped onto Willow’s lap, meowing affectionately.
“Actually,” Willow said with a giggle and stroking the felines head, “I meant our little daughter.”

“Hope was fine,” Tara said beaming. “Doc Cottle looked her over today and he said that she’s developing quite normal for a baby her age.”
“And?”
“And he’s totally satisfied with my on-going recovery too,” Tara said with a sexy half-smile, thus assuring her sometimes still worried wife.
“So he doesn’t mind you working again?” Willow wanted to know next, as she put the food on the table which she had picked up on her way back from her duty station.
“No,” Tara answered vaguely.
Willow raised an questioning eyebrow.
“He didn’t ask and so I didn’t feel the necessity to tell him.”

Willow looked at her with some apprehension showing on her face, as she put their food on the plates Tara had already laid out for them on the table.

“Willow,” Tara said after a while, “I’m going crazy in here!
“Don’t get me wrong, I love taking care of Hope but I need a bit more to do than just that. So when Vice-President Zarek topped by the last time he was around and asked me if I could look over some papers concerning the school system within the fleet, I said yes.
“I mean, why shouldn’t I be Sec Ed again?” She stuck out her chin, defying Willow to contradict her.

“I’m just afraid you might overwork yourself,” Willow said worried. “You know after all you went through with the coma and so on.”
Tara smiled brightly at her wife. “Willow I know how much I can do, without using up to much of my energy so I couldn’t look after Hope anymore.”
“I just worry you know,” Willow said in a small voice.

“I know you do,” the blond woman assured her. “But it is only paper work anyway.” Her face lit up. “Oh and I forgot to tell you, I’m getting an assistant, who for the time being will do all the necessary travelling around the fleet for me.”
“Anyone I know?”
“I would think so,” Tara said with a big grin, “it’s Alyson Benson.”

“Alyson Benson!?” Willow cried out, “as in Specialist Benson?”
“Yep.”
“But she’s a member of the colonial forces!”
“So you said,” Tara smiled and started on her tofu steak but then took pity on her wife looking totally bewildered. “You know that because of the destruction of the Pegasus, there’s some surplus in specialists, at least in certain areas and since I needed an aid and Zarek couldn’t spare any of his he asked the Admiral if he could spare someone.
“So to make a long story short, he had Gaeta ask around and Alyson volunteered.”
She happily munched away on her steak while Willow racked her brain in order to remember this particular first class specialist.

“Alyson Benson,” she said slowly. “Tall, nice curvy figure, reddish brunette hair?”
Tara nodded, while Willow started on her own lunch. “But don’t you go all jealous on me, only because I’m going to work with a cute gay specialist.”
“She’s gay?” Willow cried a little too loud and she hurriedly turned around to find that little Hope did not even stir at her mother’s outburst.

Tara laughed. “Of course she is! My gaydar registered her the moment she brought my messages over for the first time.”
“Gay, no kidding.”
“Nope. And you know there’s no reason for you to be jealous.”
“Of course I know. I was just surprised that’s all. I mean my gaydar isn’t even up and running yet.”
That remark made them both laugh and they both continued with their dinner.


***
The Cylons wanted the Eye of Jupiter and the Admiral was determined not to let them have it and rather let it leave useless to an entire continent of this planet with no name - killing both his son and his daughter-in-law and several other members of Galactica in the process.

Willow watched the screens seeing the ship still proceeding towards the planet.
Time was running out and they were nearly through the launch procedure protocols at the CIC. Not long and the Admiral and Col. Tigh would launch the nuclear missiles.
And if that wasn’t bad enough, Gaeta had just found out that the system’s sun was about to go nova and send the entire solar system to kingdom come.
Could be weeks, could be days, could be hours Willow knew.

There! A change in the telemetry readings!
The raiders were turning back!
Willow let out a sigh of relief, she had seen too many of her comrades killed in action to be able to bear watching these on the planet’s surface die by the hand of their own kin.
But what was that?
One Raider continued on its path towards the planet. They were still trying to land!

What would Adama be doing now? Would he launch a nuclear strike against one single Raider?
He wouldn’t.
With feelings inside her mind ranging from relief to dread, Willow listened to Lt. Gaeta order the launch proceedings to be cancelled and the launch tubes to be closed again.
Now the members of the Colonial Forces down on the Algae’s Planet’s surface had to either defend the temple against the Cylons or destroy it.

***
“Launch the evacuation Raptors!” came the order from the CIC.
“Raptor Eight Three Niner you are good to go for launch!” Willow called into the microphone of the headset she was wearing.
In preparation, she had brought four Raptors up into the pod which she was now launching in fast succession.
This was going to be a close call she knew, a very close call indeed for the sun this planet was orbiting was to go nova soon and then they had merely minutes until the resulting shockwave would destroy everything including the Galactica and the planet they were orbiting.

It would also destroying Dawn’s graveside down on the planet’s surface.
Two days after they had made their way through the infernality of the star cluster to the Algae Planet, Buffy had gotten the permission to lie her dead sister to rest in real earth, rather than to send her bodily remains out to drift in space for all eternity.
How much Willow regretted to not have been able to be at Buffy’s side when she had put Dawn to rest but Col. Tigh had absolutely refused for Willow to go down there, on grounds of her disability.
He almost had forbidden Buffy herself because she was still suffering from severe radiation sickness.

***
The Raptors were airborne again.
“Galactica to all Raptors! You are cleared for immediate combat landing! Willow called out to the Raptors approaching Galactica, “landing order is at your own discretion.”
‘Make it fast,’ she added in her mind. ‘Make it very fast!’
The shockwave came ever closer.

“All Raptors aboard!” Willow reported to the CIC. No sooner had she finished talking the landing pod started to move inwards, as they were retracted in preparation for the immediate FTL jump.
“All hands stand by!” echoed Lt. Gaeta’s voice throughout the ship. “Five, four, three, two, one jump!”
With a sudden jerk Willow was violently thrown out of her chair, as another forerunner of the destructive shook wave hit the Galactica right the instant she had made the jump.

Hitting the deck hard with her already weakened knee, a blinding flash of pain seared through Willow’s body, letting her lose consciousness before she came to lie on the deck.

_________________
Today my friend, your diary entry will read: Took a […] hostage and got shoot by three armed bastards.”
Gene Hunt – Ashes to Ashes
“A Love Beyond the Stars”
“What Dreams may Come”


Last edited by Dax on Mon Apr 18, 2011 10:43 am, edited 2 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sat May 29, 2010 12:59 pm 
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Yay for great update-y goodness... I hope Willow's bad knee doesn't cause too much problems... I hope Tara very soon introduces Amber to Cally soon...

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We few, we happy few. We band of buggered.

Posting While Nude Improves Your Mood.


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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 12:47 pm 
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A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents


It's not easy love, but you've got friends you can trust,
Friends will be friends,
When you're in need of love they give you care and attention,
Friends will be friends,
When you're through with life and all hope is lost,
Hold out your hand cos friends will be friends right till the end


Chapter Two
Interludes and Examinations


Tara’s eyes rested on the new picture frame that stood on her desk, of course they all were new. She had to replace all of her pictures since the ‘Originals’ had been destroyed when the Pegasus had crashed into that Cylon Basestar.

Tara still didn’t know who had saved not only Miss Kitty Fantastico but also her laptop computer.
This old thing held all of her favourite music, some movies and most importantly many, many pictures of her colonial home of Geminon and Caprica; a valuable keepsake of her friends and family – from what now seemed like ancient past.
Just some 750 Gigabits worth of data but to Tara it was all that was left of her short stint on the planets the children of Kobol once called home.

Tara looked at the pictures one by one lined up at her desk as well as on the sideboard. First of course a picture of Hope together with Willow and herself.
Then her younger self together with her mother, father and brother standing in front the old farmhouse where she grew up.
There was another photograph of herself. This time older and with her classmates from college, though not one among them whom she ever called a friend.

Then one of the newer ones, with Willow, Buffy and Dawn.
The next one had been taken on her wedding day.
Willow in her best dress uniform and Tara in a light blue dress. With them in the picture were Buffy, Admiral Adama and Jessica Cally – Willow’s best man.
A really happy day except for the absence of Dawn.

The picture of her very best friend, if not the sister she never had, Lyari was standing right next to an empty frame.
Ever since she had taken up permanent residence aboard Galactica, she had begun to print out pictures of her friends and family.
It had taken her some time and just as she had come around to print out a picture of her ex-girlfriend, whom she believed dead, when she found out the hard way that she not only was very much alive but also a Cylon.
When she came out of the hostage situation with Cylon No. 10 she tore the picture to shreds and left the frame empty on the desk.

The empty frame remained in its place, after Faith had given her life, well one of the many ones she had, to save her from certain death.
At one point in time Tara had been in love with the Cylon she knew as Faith and whether she liked or not that made her part of her life and even though after New Caprica she could no longer look at her face, the love she had felt had been real for her.

The second to last picture showed Buffy with Dawn, right after they had been reunited.
A picture of sisterly love and happiness, right next to the newest picture only recently added to the collection, the picture of Dawn’s graveside on the planet down below.
It was a fairly plain grave and it was, Tara knew, what Dawn might have wished for. The grass had been put back again, by the marines who had volunteered to help Buffy with digging the grave and putting her sister to rest.
At the top of the grave stood the plain headstone, marked only Dawn.

Tara stared at the picture of the woman, whose young life had ended so violently, a few tears ran quietly down Tara’s check.
How could she ever learn to live with the ever returning feeling of guilt over Dawn’s death?
Sure it wasn’t like it was dominating her every waking thought but in a way it was always there, lurking in the back of her mind, reminding her that the happy times she had with her wife and daughter Hope had come at a very high price.

‘Maybe that’s the whole point,’ Tara thought. ‘Make Dawn’s death count for something. Never let her have died in vain.’
But then she had made that promise ever since she woken from her coma and had learned that Dawn hadn’t made it.
“Live a good life Tara Maclay,” Tara advised herself. “For Buffy, for Willow and little Hope, and your own peace of mind.”
It felt like a huge responsibility but at the same time it made Tara understand part of the pressure Willow was under every time when, as head of flight control, send fighters into danger.

Miss Kitty jumped into Tara’s lap and pouring loudly she rolled herself up and was fast asleep in no time. Tara smiled at her kitten, pouring happily in her slumber.
“You certainly don’t let yourself be bothered by the fact that you might very well be the last cat within the entire fleet, do you?” she asked the black cat and gently tickled her behind her furry ear. “Well at least we do know that you’re the only cat aboard this Battlestar.
“I wonder if there’ll be cats on Earth, should we ever find it that is.”

But then who could tell if you’ll be still with us when we eventfully find Earth.
“If we ever going to find this planet of legend and sacred scrolls – the home of the thirteen’s tribe of Kobol.
They’ve been searching for so long, it was getting hard not to lose faith. Tara had nightmares about this some nights.
Nightmares of Hope growing up a woman, never having set foot on a planet’s surface, never felt the warmth of rays of sun on her face, or the cooling of a light spring rain.

Or what if they actually found Earth but it was devastated like the Colonies?
Tara shook her head, like she wanted to rid herself of this particularly unpleasant thought. She couldn’t even start imaging what it would be like to finally reach Earth and find it uninhabited and unfit to ever support human life.
Not to mention with less than fifty thousand survivors, they weren’t hardly any longer what a geneticist would call a solid gen-pool to sustain the human race.
For that reason alone they needed to find Earth and its people.

A knock on the quarters’ bulkhead stopped Tara from further pondering about the search and all its negative consequences on the people living in the fleet, who were desperate enough as it was and who would go ‘over the cliff’ if the search for earth would end in such a dark way she just thought about.

Tara picked Miss Kitty from her lap and placed her on the couch right next to Hope’s cradle and went to get the bulkhead.
“Hi Alyson!” she greeted specialist Alyson Benson and showed her in. “Is this an official visit or are you still on duty?”
“Actually both,” Alyson said and stepped into the living room, lowering her voice as she did. “I brought you some messages that came in just as I went off duty, so I thought I bring them along,” by now she was all but whispering.
“They are both asleep Ally,” Tara said with a bright smile, while she closed the bulkheads behind her guest. “And once my daughter’s asleep nothing or so it seems, can wake her up. At least for now,” she added with a frown.

“Here are your messages,” Alyson said and handed Tara two sheets of paper. “Nothing important though, Madam Secretary, or should I say sir?”
Tara laughed at the specialists mock confusion.
“Well technically I am a colonial lieutenant on permanent leave of absence,” Tara said, “and at the same time I’m the newly appointed Secretary of Education.”
She gave Alyson a bright grin. “So better start calling me Tara if you don’t want to get into double trouble with a superior officer or an member of the colonial government, my friend.
“And since these messages aren’t in any way urgent, they can wait till tomorrow.” She turned around and dropped the papers on her desk. She closed the paper she was working on her laptop and keyed the computers media player to play some light music.

“She’s kind of protective isn’t she?” Alyson asked as she watched Miss Kitty jump up to the arm rest next to the cradle and keep her green eyes firmly affixed on Alyson watching the still sleeping Hope.
“Amazing, isn’t it? Tara said, watching Miss Kitty roll herself up again after a while, though doubtless still alert as she closed her eyes again. “She certainly would take up a good fight if anybody would try to get to Hope who wasn’t ‘friendly’.
“Please have a seat,” she added.
“Thanks.” Alyson sat down at the sofa right next to Miss Kitty, who soon relocated herself onto the specialist’s lap to continue her nap there.

At that sight both woman laughed whole-heartedly.
“It sometimes makes me sad to think that she might be the only cat around here,” Tara said.
“Not necessarily,” Alyson answered and gave the black feline a cuddle. “Remember that lawyer Romo Lampkin?”
Tara nodded.
“Well, he has a cat, I think it’s named Lance or something like that.”
“Maybe we should introduce them to each other,” Tara speculated, “you know anything else about that guy?”
“No, but I’ll ask around.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”

There was a lengthy pause between them, with the only sound being the soft purring of Miss Kitty, Hope’s regular breathing through her open mouth and the ever-present hum of the mighty war machine surrounding them.

“Can I offer you something to drink?” Tara asked. “Cocoa, ice water or some tea?”
“You still have tea?” the young specialist asked amazed.
“I brought a rather large supply with me when I first came aboard Galactica for this decommissioning ceremony,” Tara said with a shrug.
“But surly all this was destroyed when the Pegasus got blown up over New Caprica.”

“Well it wasn’t aboard Pegasus when it got destroyed,” Tara answered and got to her feet.
She went over to her desk and picked up the notebook case that stood beneath the desk and carried it over to the living room table.
“Somebody was kind enough to save both Miss Kitty and her Deluxe Portable Kitty Home from home, as well as my notebook and its case,” she opened up the backside to reveal rows upon rows of boxes with instant hot chocolate and teabags, many of them now empty.

“Tell me Tara, you always take a year’s supply of tea and hot chocolate with you when go on a three day trip?” Alyson asked curiously and opted for some green tea that was soon prepared by Tara.
“Well yes,” Tara replied sheepishly. “I mean I have been to some places since I started travelling with Laura Roslin and they seldom had a descent cupper of tea or coca, so I made it a habit to always bring some with me.”
“Some?”
“Okay a lot!” Tara admitted with a laugh. “You don’t think I’m some kind of weirdo, do you?”
“No,” Alyson assured her. “Quirky would be my choice of words,” she added with another laugh.

Looking at the laptop case leaning on the sideboard where Tara had put it down, “You know I wondered why it was so unusually high compared to a standard laptop case. Where did you get this?”
“Costume made, like Miss Kitty’s portable home,” she paused looking bewildered at her friend. “Wait a minute, what do you mean, ‘you always wondered…?’ I never showed you that case before today.”
Alyson was just about to answer when it dawned on Tara.

“It was you!” Tara cried out. “It was you who saved Miss Kitty and my computer!”
“On Commander Adama’s orders,” the specialist said humbly.
“Doesn’t matter. You save two of the things that mean the world to me. Except for Willow and Hope of course.” Tara beamed and before Alyson knew it, a overjoyed blond gave her the hug of a lifetime.

“Thank you so much Ally,” Tara said, “the pictures alone on this laptop are very dear to me.” She then gave Ally a brief kiss on her cheek and then stood to get them some cookies to go with their tea.
“You might wanna be careful with kissing other girls,” Alyson warned. “Or your wife could get jealous.” Alyson warned.
“Oh that’s all right,” Tara assured her friend. “Willow’s not the jealous type. Besides I doubt she would mind me kissing a straight girl on the cheek. Although me kissing a gay girl…?”
“Like I said,” Alyson smiled.

Tara laughter out loud, but soon covered her mouth.
“What?” Alyson asked.
“Oh nothing,” Tara said tears of laughter glistening in her eyes. “Just for a moment it sounded to me that you’re gay too.”
“Well I am.”
Tara’s eyes grew wide. “You are?”
“I am,” Alyson repeated and with a frown she added, “Maybe I should write it down or otherwise I fear I might start to sound like a parrot and I can’t stand these birds, seriously I hate them.”

“I must be losing my touch,” Tara whispered.
“Why?”
“Because I used to recognize a lesbian or bi woman, after I spent some time with her. Whether I am or not interested.
“And now, for the second time I find myself totally surprised by a girl coming out to me.”

“You don’t need to be too hard on yourself,” Ally said with a smile. “You’ve gone through a lot lately, we all have. You know the occupation and all.”
Tara nodded.
“What I’m trying to say,” Alyson went on, “is that there are worse things in life than missing out on a fellow lesbian.”
“I know,” Tara said. “It’s just another serious dent in my lesbian street cred…”
With that both woman broke into a hysterical laugh, until tears were running down their faces.

“Oh gods!” Tara panted, whipping the tears from her eyes. “With all the darkness and hopelessness that has been with us, ever since this all began, such a heartfelt laugh is almost as good as all the time I spend with my family here or when I’m making love to Willow.” She couldn’t help it but blush on having revealed such a private thing to her friend.
“However,” she tried to cover her slip, “in moments like these, the darkness takes a step back and life is good, really good.”

“That’s beautifully said,” Alyson said with a thoughtful smile.
“So,” Tara said after a moment’s pause. “Tell me all about it.”
“About it?”
“Well you know about your being gay. When did you know, how did you tell your parents and so on.”
“Sounds like I’m applying for a membership in a club,” Allyson laughed.
“Oh you do, and it’s a really exclusive club!”

For the next hours Alyson told Tara about her gay life, her first girlfriend and the heartbreak that came with her.
Tara also learned that the young specialist had been single ever since she had been transferred to the Galactica.

‘Don’t we know another single lesbian who lives and works aboard this Battlestar?’ Tara’s little matchmaker asked inside her mind.
The thought of maybe being able to help a good friend find love and happiness, kept Tara from entering the long dark tea time of the soul, as she sometimes had at this time of day, when Hope was asleep and Willow on duty.

***
At the end of the day, Tara felt the darkness weigh as heavy as ever on herself, when Willow briefed her on the events of the day.
Again the Cylons had found them, had arrived with two Basestars and they too wanted the Eye of Jupiter.

The fleet had jumped to safety but Galactica had to stay behind, since the Admiral refused to lead the Cylons have the eye and the vital pointer to earth that it represented.
Of course there were also those people that still were down on the planet’s surface, including Buffy Summers!
“Oh Lords of Kobol hear my prayer,” Tara whispered, “save all the people down there and most of all save our friend Buffy Summers. Because I can’t stand the thought of losing any more close friends.”

***
“Yes?” Tara spoke into the phone, wandering why anybody would call her, usually calls were for Major Rosenberg only and never had the phone rang before when Willow wasn’t in.
“Tara, it’s me, Ally, you need to come down to the infirmary, Willow's been injured!”

‘Will the darkness never end?’ Tara asked herself and with Hope in her arm hurried down the hallway towards the Galactica’s sickbay.

_________________
Today my friend, your diary entry will read: Took a […] hostage and got shoot by three armed bastards.”
Gene Hunt – Ashes to Ashes
“A Love Beyond the Stars”
“What Dreams may Come”


Last edited by Dax on Mon Apr 18, 2011 10:42 am, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 1:14 pm 
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Yay for excellent update-y goodness... Big yay for Tara finding out that Aly is also part of the exclusive club... I hope Willow & Tara soon introduce Aly & Cally...

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sun Sep 12, 2010 7:21 pm 
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Awesome story and update. Can't wait to read more!


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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 3:49 pm 
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:party :party :party

I'm in total AWE from this story!!!! love them!!!!!!!!!! You're a great writer!!! Please continue this story!!!! Wish you all the inspiration in the world!!!!!!!!


I hope, everything will be dandy for our fave girls???? Love Will & Tara in all interpretations!!!!!!!!! And love your Buffy - she's not easy to write))))

Expect to see Will not severely injured!!))

Love your story!!! More, more, moooooooreeeeee!!!!!!!! :wtkiss :wtkiss :wtkiss

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"I'm so evil and... skanky. And I think I'm kinda gay." Willow

"I kind of love you." Buffy


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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 3:19 pm 
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A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents


Oh yes we'll keep on trying
Hey tread that fine line
Yeah we'll keep on smiling yeah
And whatever will be - will be
We'll just keep on trying
We'll just keep on trying
Till the end of time
Till the end of time

Chapter Three
The Ragged Edge


“Can you believe how stupid your momma Willow has been?” Willow asked her baby daughter in a funny voice. “Not at all prepared for a bumpy ride and then falling on her funny little face?”
Not understanding a word but nevertheless liking the voice of her mother, Hope giggled happily and tried to get hold of some of Willow’s now longer red hair with her tiny little hands.

Tara however, standing near the sideboard, rolled her eyes, “Will you give it a rest?!” she said annoyed. “It’s been five weeks since your hurt your knee!”
“But I should’ve known better Tara,” Willow said miserably. “Always a hand for the ship, that’s one of the most basic rules aboard any ship in the force. Especially when you’re in a combat situation or if the ship is making a run from the shockwave of a nova.”

“But that’s in the past! And nothing you’re telling now will change a thing!” Tara said, her voice getting a bit louder now.
“It just annoys me that I made such a stupid mistake!” Willow began again.

“Cut it out Willow!” Tara yelled and Hope looked alarmed into her direction. “You know, I have it up till here with you moaning constantly about this stupid accident!”
With that Tara turned on her heels and stormed out of their living quarters.

Flabbergasted Willow started at the opposite wall, totally surprised by her wife’s sudden emotional outburst.
She then looked down at Hope who was now reaching for her mother’s dog tags dangling in front of her.
“What’d you mean? Has Momma been a little bit whiney in the past days?” she asked Hope.

“I say you certainly have been, Mayor.”
Willow head snapped around to see Kathryn Pulaski standing in the doorway through which Tara had just left.
“May I come in?” The elderly physician asked politely. Not waiting for an answer she stepped in and closed the massive bulkhead behind herself.
“Doctor Pulaski!” Willow said surprised.
“And I thought we were on first name basis,” Kathryn Pulaski wondered while making the beeline for the chair opposite her patient.
“Of course we are,” Willow said sheepishly. “But in my defense it’s been a while since we last met. Speaking of which, have you already met our daughter?”
She held Hope up so Kathryn Pulaski could see her.
“May I introduce you to Hope Alexandra Maclay,” she said and right on cue Hope giggled happily at seeing a new face.
“You wanna hold her?”
“Oh yes please!” Kate beamed and walked around the table to sit down right next to Willow on the sofa. “It’s been a while since I last held a baby,” she said thoughtfully. “My youngest grandchild is twelve; she and her mother are on the Rising Star.”
She felt silent for a bit before she went on, more quiet now. “If only my son and his family had been out in space by the time of the attacks.”

Seeing Kathryn Pulaski sit there with Hope in her arms, Willow realized how Hope would grow up without grandparents or an uncle for that matter. Though given that Willow was an only child and Tara’s brother and father had cast her out for her being a lesbian, she might not known them in any case.
Still, it was a thought that made her quiet sad.
At least Hope wouldn’t be an only child, though Willow and Tara had not yet decided on when to “initiate” Willow’s pregnancy.

After a view minutes Kate handed Hope back to Willow, who carefully laid her now sleeping daughter into her cradle.

“Now back to the reason for my visit,” Pulaski said and got her briefcase. “Sorry I couldn’t manage to see you sooner but I have been rather busy over at the Geminon Exxpress.”
“No problem,” Willow assured her physician, though she had started to wonder why she hadn’t heard from her until now.
She also had been unable to contact Pulaski herself, since these days it was still quiet hard to find out where people had gone after the second exodus.

“Anyway,” Kate Pulaski broke Willow’s train of thoughts. “For the past few hours, I’ve been going over your case notes with Doctor Cottle. Though mind you, half the time I spend on fighting to keep him from lighting cigarettes all the time!
“I mean, did I survive all of this just to die of secondhand smoking?”

Dr. Pulaski extracted some papers from her briefcase, including a set of x-rays, presumably both sets taken from the day of the accident as well as the control pictures, taken only yesterday.
“As you know Willow,” Kate began, “Cottle decided to have the swelling reduced first, before we decided on further treatment.
“With the knee that much swollen, it was hard to precisely deduce how much damage your knee had suffered. And that’s of course the reason why it had to be immobilized.” She pointed at the brace that kept Willow’s knee from bending.

Willow too looked at her knee now; she certainly didn’t need to be reminded of what her knee had gone through on Kobol what with the crash and that bullet she took from a Cylon Centurion. It had taken such a long time to get back on her feet and walking again…
Of course it wouldn’t have taken as long if she hadn’t gone completely to pieces over the loss of her flight status.

She turned her attention back to Kate Pulaski who was holding an x-ray up to the light.
“I will be honest with you Willow,” she said solemnly, “it looks bad. Falling onto the already injured knee joint has damaged it even further and I’m afraid, no conventional surgery will able to put it back together without you losing even more mobility in your knee. It might even be rendered completely unbendable.”

Whatever little hope Willow had sustained over the past weeks fell to pieces. She had gotten used to walking supported by a cane and the slight limp that came with it. But at least she had been able to move relatively freely but what if she lost even more mobility?
Willow’s mood darkened even further as she started to imagine what further consequences her continuing disability would have.

However at that moment her mind pointed out a particular thing Pulaski had said to her.
“You said,” she began slowly, “that no ‘conventional’ surgery could save my knee.”
Kate nodded and placed the x-rays in front of her on the table. “Yes, conventional in terms of reconstruction surgery, since your knee joint is so badly damaged.” She paused for a bit before she continued. “What we can do however, is to replace your knee joint with an artificial one.”

“But, but, but…” Willow stammered, sounding remarkable like a chicken. “But back then, I mean after Kobol, you told me that it could not be replaced, because there was no such thing anywhere left in the fleet.”
Another detail forced itself into Willow’s mind. “You also told me that there was no… no… well no specialist ether to build such a ragged thingy!
“So are you now about to tell me that you actually have found such a specialist after all?”

“No I haven’t,” Dr. Pulaski shook her head.
“Then why are we talking about this?!” Willow yelled, startling little Hope who started to cry. “Sorry Hope,” Willow said and gently lifted the crying baby out of the cradle.
“There, there,” she said musingly and caressed Hope’s cheek who soon stopped crying and to Kate Pulaski she said. “Sorry for going ballistic on you Kate.
“It’s just…” she let out a sigh. “It had been so hard losing my flight status and needing a cane for support and now my knee is even more damaged.” She took a calming breath.
“So Doctor Pulaski Kate, how can you replace my knee joint when there’s no one to make the artificial one?”

“Believe me I understand how you’re feeling,” Pulaski assured her. “We’ve all been under a lot of pressure lately, well ever since this all began.” She shook her head, as if she needed to clear her mind from all the bad memories she had gathered.
“Now,” she began anew, “I couldn’t find a specialist to build the necessary spare parts to get you going again.”
That earned her a wicked half grin from her patient and a sarcastic: “It really cheers me up if you speak of me like a broken car that needs fixing. And I don’t need spare parts! Only one!”

“Now I talked about your case with some people on my ship and I think we can make this work,” Kate explained.“
“What people?” Willow asked carefully, no longer sure were this conversation was leading.
“Daniel Briggs, he’s a precision engineer.
“Jennifer Doronkien, a dental technician.
“And Emil Steinberger…”
At this point Willow refused to be surprised anymore then she already was, however her face belied her effort when Kate concluded.
“… a master watch maker.”

Willow’s chin dropped to her breast and her eyes went as big as a saucers, “You’ve got to be kidding,” she eventually pressed out in a hoarse voice. “That sounds to me like the start of a bad joke, you know like ‘an engineer, a technician and a watch maker meet in a bar…”
“Really, I don’t know this one, how does it go?”
“This isn’t funny!”

“No, it isn’t,” Pulaski said calmly. “But I’m serious about what I said. All these persons are specialists when it comes to building small and delicate objects. In addition Doronkien is a expert at working with the kind of materials we intent on using.”
“So you have these people… experts to do it” Willow said, “and what about the materials?”

“We’re still working on that one,” Pulaski answered. “You see the standard materials we need aren’t around, so we’re looking into alternatives that could be expected to perform to the parameters that are set for an artificial knee joint.”

“You’re not doing a really good job here Kate, convincing me that this is a good idea,” Willow said doubtfully.
“I assure you Willow we are doing our best.”
Willow sighed. “Just promise me you don’t equip me with some Mark II Viper spare parts will you.”
“Mark VII?”
“Okay!”
Again both women laughed.
“So do you have some old blueprints you can use on me?” Willow asked next.
“Not exactly blueprints, no,” Pulaski explained. “I have found some books on the subject and I also managed to find very useful information on Galactica’s educational database.
“I’m telling you; who ever set up this database did a very god job.”

“That would be Tara,” Willow said.
“Did she?”
Willow nodded proudly.
“Then tell her that I really appreciate what she did here.”
“I will,” Willow said. ‘Provided she’ll ever talk to me again,’ she added in her mind.

“So what we are going to do, if you decided to go with this procedure,” Pulaski continued, “is to make some additional x-rays and also a session with the MRI, the Magnetic Resonance Imaging. From that we’ll construct and build that new knee joint.
“Once we made sure that it is working properly, we can do the replacement surgery.”
“Sounds all pretty straight forward to me,” Willow said.

Pulaski slowly nodded her white haired head, “basically it is. Medically speaking it is a quite common procedure.
“Of course there are always risks, like the long hours of anaesthesia and some other risks I’ll be telling you about later on. However, as you very well know, these are no longer common times so it will take much longer until you will actually undergo the procedure.
“We need to construct your knee joint from scratch, as well as search out alternative materials we can use and that means additional testing before we can think about transplanting it.”

“So what does that mean for me here and now?” Willow asked, looking at her splinted leg.
“First of all, that you have to be patient,” Pulaski said kindly. “We’re talking about several months here.”
“Several months,” Willow cried out. “What am I supposed to do in the meantime?”

“For one, you need to think about the two options I’ve laid out to you here – after all you can still decide against this rather risky procedure.” Pulaski then explained some of the other risks involved with the procedure.
“You’re right,” Willow said, after Kate had finished. “That certainly gives me something to think about while you are building me that new knee joint.”

“Of course it is also important for you to continue to work out and stay in top form, for the operation and the following convalescence.
“But there’s an even more important task that you have to undertake in the coming weeks,” Pulaski said and got to her feet.
“And what’s that?” Willow wondered.
“Spend as much time with you angel baby girl here as you can.” She gently stroke Hope’s cheek. “And now you must excuse me Willow but I have some more patients to see aboard Galactica.”

And with that she left Willow alone. Alone with a cat who had started chasing a gummy ball through the living room, a soundly sleeping baby and one of the most important decisions she ever would have to make in her life.

***
Willow found herself in the middle of a green field under the dark night sky, a single full moon hanging in the sky illuminating the earth beneath it.

Willow turned slowly around; there were nothing but grassy fields surrounding her. She started to walk down the hill she had been standing on and only then she started to feel the grass beneath her feet. Looking down at her bare feet she also noticed that she wasn’t wearing her uniform anymore but a sort of rudimentary dress, made from a primitive woven fabric.

In the meantime, having walked up another hill, Willow found herself looking down into a valley.
It was covered with some tress and without thinking about it, Willow made her way down the hill and towards a small fire that was burning in midst an opening surrounded by the tress.
Sitting around the fire, Willow could make out some people, with another two standing as sentries.

As the sentries became aware of Willow approach, they turned towards her raising, what looked like, primitive spears.
By now some of those on the ground stood as well and they too had spears.
Willow didn’t feel alarmed at all but raised her own spear in greeting, which only now she realised she was carrying in the first place.

The night darkened, as some clouds hid the moon. [“Where have you put it?!”]
In the distance some animal was howling.
A baby was crying.


Hope was crying.
Willow sat herself up on the sofa, on which she had fallen asleep.
The dream still very present, it took her a moment to fully come to her senses.
It had felt so real that even now she believed to be still feeling the soft grass beneath her feet. She glanced quickly at her watch – it was well past 1900 hours!
Tara had been gone for several hours now!

Crying even harder Hope demanded her mother’s immediate attention and Willow leaned over the cradle to see what her daughter was in need of.

“Hope you don’t mind I let myself in?” came a cheerful voice from the bulkhead and Willow turned around to see Buffy Summers standing on the threshold.
Still wearing her flight suit, ‘Slayer’ obviously came right from flying cap.

“Oh good you’re here,” Willow said relieved. “Tara isn’t back yet and Hope needs a change.”
This announcement produced an immediate reaction in ‘Slayer’, who with a hint of panic on her face turned around, to leave again – fast!
Unfortunately, while still holding onto to the handle, in turning around Buffy closed the bulkhead in front of her and walked right into it, hitting the metal surface - hard!

“Didn’t that hurt?” Willow wondered, as Buffy closed the bulkhead for good, then turning around pretending like nothing had just happened.
“Na.”
“And what was this sudden change of direction when I needed aid anyway. If I didn’t know better I would say you were trying to run away.”

Buffy’s features, slightly marked by her close encounter with the bulkhead, turned uneasy again.
“Don’t tell me,” Willow laughed and lifted Hope from the cradle, who calmed down a bit. “Captain Buffy Anne Summers, who fights Cylons in ship to ship combat and hand to hand if she needs to, is afraid of changing the diapers of a little baby.”
“Well, in my defence… a Viper is much more robust than a baby!” Buffy protested.
“Oh come on, I’ll talk you through it ‘Slayer’!” Willow said lightly. “Don’t make me pull ranks Captain!”
“”You wouldn’t dare Mayor!”
“Wouldn’t I?”
“Perhaps you would at least try,” Buffy said wriggly, “okay, what must I do?”

In no time Hope was changed and soon sat happily on her Aunty Buffy’s lap, playing with Buffy’s dog-tags.
“Saw your wife by the way…” Buffy said casually.
“Tara?”
“Of course or do you have any other wives I should know of?”
“Ha, ha, very funny,” Willow said with a pout and then asked. “Where have you seen Tara?”
“Down at Joe's Bar.“
“Our new ship’s pub?“
“Yes, unless there’s another one. “
“Oh cut it out!“ Willow said and gave her daughters godmother a wry laugh. “So how was she?”

“Tara?” Buffy asked back, “oh she really looked to me like she really needed to blow of some steam. You know drinking, flirting…”
“But she’s married!” Willow burst out, “I mean she’s still breast feeding, so she can’t drink!”
“Relax Will,” Buffy laughed. “You know she would never do one or the other.” She shook her head. “You know she really only needed a break and get out of these four walls for a change, have a drink of juice and talk a bit with your friend Jessica.”

“I know,” Willow said ruefully. “I’ve been a real pain in her back lately.”
“I imagine as much,” Buffy said. “I’ve offered her to sleep in my bunk for this night, by the way.”
“You’ve what?!”
“Relax, she’s not breaking up with you or anything like it,” Buffy assured her best friend. “She just wants one night on her own and then she’ll be back again first thing in the morning.”

“On her own,” Willow repeated doubtfully, “surrounded by lots of hot young female pilots.”
“Only one or two, the others are flying the nightshift.”
“So!” Buffy went on, startling Willow. “Mind if I bunk with you tonight?”

Willow gave her a critical all over look.
“Okay,” she said, “but I’m telling you, if you start snoring you’ll find yourself sleeping on the couch right away!”

_________________
Today my friend, your diary entry will read: Took a […] hostage and got shoot by three armed bastards.”
Gene Hunt – Ashes to Ashes
“A Love Beyond the Stars”
“What Dreams may Come”


Last edited by Dax on Mon Apr 18, 2011 10:39 am, edited 4 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Mon Feb 28, 2011 6:17 am 
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Yay for great update-y goodness... I truly hope that Willow & Tara very very soon work out their differences so they can go back to :wtkiss ...

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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 11:44 am 
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A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents


Tonight I'm gonna have myself a real good time
I feel alive and the world it's turning inside out Yeah!
I'm floating around in ecstasy
So don't stop me now don't stop me
'Cause I'm having a good time having a good time

Chapter Four
A view From the Gallery


Furiously Tara stormed along Galactica’s hallways.
Once she had decided that she needed a break, she had rushed out of their living quarters and past Dr. Pulaski, who had been just about to knock, without really recognizing the elderly physician, such a fury she was in.

Hurrying along like the female lead in one of the screwball comedies of times past, Tara could almost hear the mouthorgan mimicking the sound of an even older steam engine and just like in those movies, like the one featuring a Glass Bottom Boat, Tara came to a fast stop when she realised that she had no idea where she was heading.

Taking some time to catch her breath, Tara took a look around and realised that she had walked into what was known aboard the Galactica as the Hall of Tears.
The hallway had been plastered bottom to ceiling with pictures of people, loved ones; friends and comrades who had been believed lost or died in the first big holocaust. Pictures put up by people in the early days of the first exodus, when they still had hope to find their relatives or friends somewhere within the ragtag fleet of spaceships.
In the meantime, these pictures had been joined by images of those who had died on Galactica and Pegasus, as well as those who had perished on New Caprica.
Only if there had been someone left to put up the picture of course, to keep the flames of remembrance burning, like the candles burning alongside many pictures.

Among the pictures, there were some people who Tara knew, some from Galactica and those ships she had visited during her first term as Secretary of Education. Others she knew from her brief stint as colonial officer aboard Battlestar Pegasus.
Absentminded Tara looked for the picture of one particular specialist she had served with aboard Pegasus and whose picture she had put up here personally, once she had been strong enough after her short coma and the surgeries she had to endure.

Tara found the picture of Lonny Henderson right next to the one of Xander Harris, childhood friend of Willow and Buffy, the father of their daughter Hope, whom Tara had never met in her life and who had died before she had returned to Galactica for the second time. Xander Harris who also would become the father to all future children of Willow and her, should they still want to have another child.
But somehow and she couldn’t tell how or why, Tara knew that she and Willow would decide about this future sister or brother to Hope rather sooner than later.

For the longest time, Tara stared at the picture of Xander, it showed him amongst some of his fellow Galactica deck hands, including one other who had died in the same fire as Harris and Jessica Cally, who had become a very close and dear friend to Tara during the time they had spent together during the Cylon occupation of New Caprica. They had even shared a tent, until Tara had found Dawn and Jessica had swapped tents in order for Tara to be able to bunk together with her best friend’s little sister.

Dawn!
Tara’s eyes wandered further, now in search of the picture of the young woman who had become the little sister she had never had and who had given her life to protect Tara and her unborn child.
She found Dawn’s picture not too far away from Xander’s and right next to a little lantern placed there together with the picture by Buffy.
The candle was close to burning down and so without thinking about it, Tara reached for a spare candle that she was always carrying in the pockets of the light jacket she was wearing and replaced the old one.
She sent a short prayer to the Lords of Kobol, to protect the souls of her fallen friends, silent tears running down her cheeks.

***
After walking aimlessly for another quarter of an hour, Tara found herself in the bow observation launch, in the nose of Battlestar Galactica.
The room was completely dark, except for some small light pointing out the steps leading down to the big observation window in the front.
Quietly Tara made her way down to the huge window, dominating the far wall of the room.

Looking out, her eyes were drawn to the countless stars out there in the eternal darkness of space.
Willow had called it Hope’s playground, Tara found space beautiful dangerous and intimidating, most of all, it made Tara feel really insignificant, an invisible dot on an invisible dot.
And without all the technology surrounding them, they couldn’t even survive in the emptiness and darkness that surrounded them.

Technology that was getting older with every passing day - Tara knew Galactica was more than 50 years old and hadn’t seen a shipyard in years.
What would happen when the day came that Galactica could no longer sustain them, could no longer protect them?

“It’s hard not to lose yourself in that view, isn’t it?” A soft voice brought Tara out of her day dreaming, if day dreaming was the right word, given that they were surrounded by eternal darkness.

Turning around she saw Jessica Cally sitting to her left, in one of the comfortable chairs, almost hidden in the darkness of the observation launch.
“I didn’t startle you, did I?” Cally asked next, sounding a bit concerned.
“No, not at all,” Tara assured her.
“Well, then I’m relieved,” Jessica said with a laugh. “Wouldn’t want to have to explain to a superior officer why I gave her wife one hell of a fright.”
“That might be a bit odd,” Tara agreed and sat down next to the young lesbian specialist, who had her left arm encased in plaster and supported in a sling around her neck.

“Wow, Jessica what happen to your arm there?” Tara asked and gave her friend a bear hug.
“Broke it,” Jessica replied.
“Well, I supposed as much,” Tara said and gave a tut, “better should have asked, ‘How did this happen.’”
“Well I would like to say that it happened, while I was doing something really heroic. You know a dyke in shining armor, heroic, saving a beautiful lady in distress,” Jessica said with a rueful smile. “But in fact it was more like really stupidly ordinary,” she paused.

“Now don’t leave me hanging like that!” Tara protested.
“If you have to know,” Cally said.
“Yes!”
“I was standing on the wing of the Mark VII-X Viper, you know ‘Red-Dyke’s’ old bird,” she explained, “making adjustments to one of the flow regulators, when suddenly I slipped. Before I knew it, I was sliding down the wing on my back.
“I tried to grab something in order to keep myself from sliding over the wing and hurting my… pride.” She paused again for a moment.
“Didn’t exactly work though,” she went on, “next thing I know, my arm is burning like fire and I’m sitting right next to the Viper.
“And if you laugh, I’ll never talk to you again,” she threatened, will Tara bit hard down on her lip, trying to not burst out laughing.
She wasn’t very successful though, because very soon her face was all red and she had tears in her eyes.

“Okay you can laugh,” Cally said, already herself laughing. “It is kinda funny!”
They both laughed hard until their sides hurt and tears were running down their faces.
“Oh gods,” Cally said holding her side, “I really needed that, you know!” She wiped the tears away from her face. “You know, to just laugh out aloud. We have so few reasons to laugh; it’s almost worse than the pain.”
“Not sure I would go all the way to break an arm just to have a good laugh,” Tara said doubtful.

“There are downsides I grant you,” Jessica said, while she adjusted the fit of her sling. “For one, there’s the pain and the fact that turning around in my bunk becomes like a major operation. You know I’m a really serious turner.”
“A what?”
“A turner,” Jessica said like the word was explanation enough, but soon took pity on the confused look on Tara’s face. “Well I usually toss and turn in my bunk alot before I can get to sleep. You know like turning from one side to the other or from my back to my tummy.”

“Ah right,” Tara said slowly, “A turner.”
“And then of course there’s the biggest let down,” Jessica went on, more quietly. “Because even though I’m right handed, my sp hand is the left one and it’s just not as effective when I do it with my right.”
“Your sp hand?” Tara asked confused.
“Well,” Jessica said slowly, “you know my self-pleasuring...” Her eyes wandered from her playing fingers to Tara’s lap and back again, and gave her a wink.

“You can wink as much as you want Jessica Cally but I still have no idea what you mean with your… s… p…,” She broke up and turned seriously red, but hopping that Jessica couldn’t see that in the twilight they were sitting in. “Okay I like totally get it now!”
“You’re not turning red on my don’t you?” Jessica asked curiously.
“So much for that theory,” Tara thought out aloud. “I admit it I’m going red here. I know it’s stupid but I can’t help myself.”
“Oh that’s all right,” Cally laughed. “I actually find you like really cute when you start blushing like this.”
“Calm down!” Tara warned, “I’m a married woman!”

“Don’t panic! Besides, you’re not my type, no offence,” Cally said.
“None taken,” Tara assured her. “So what is your type then?”
“Single,” Jessica answered with a laugh, “a bit more on the butch side. You know short hair, looks good in a muscle shirt. But at the same time not afraid to show her soft side.
“And of course she needs to be a real tiger between the sheets!” she added with a devilish grin.
“Jessica!” Tara murmured and gave up her fight not to turn into a tomato.

“You know what Tara?” Jessica went quietly on, the seriousness in her voice let Tara forget her own embarrassment. “That’s the real downside of being ill.” She went silent for a bit, before continuing even more quietly and more hurt, “that there’s no one to look after me and care for me.” By now her voice was barely audible and thick with unshed tears, “to not have somebody to hold and love you no matter what.”
“Oh Jessica,” Tara whispered.

Can anybody find me somebody to love?” Jessica whisperingly started to sing and Tara heard the utter loneliness the young specialists’ voice.
Each morning I get up I die a little,” Tara sang on, barley thinking about it as she did. “Can barely stand on my feet, take a look in the mirror and cry, Lords what you're doing to me.”

Soon Jessica Cally joined in the song and the two women sang the entire song together.

I have spent all my years in believing you
But I just can't get no relief, Lords!

Somebody, somebody
Can anybody find me somebody to love?

I work hard every day of my life
I work till I ache my bones
At the end I take home my hard earned pay all on my own –
I get down on my knees
And I start to pray
Till the tears run down from my eyes
Lords - somebody - somebody
Can anybody find me - somebody to love?

(She works hard)
Everyday - I try and I try and I try –
But everybody wants to put me down
They say I'm goin' crazy
They say I got a lot of water in my brain
Got no common sense
I got nobody left to believe
Yeah - yeah yeah yeah

Oh Lords
Somebody - somebody
Can anybody find me somebody to love?

Got no feel, I got no rhythm
I just keep losing my beat
I'm ok, I'm alright
Ain't gonna face no defeat
I just gotta get out of this prison cell
Someday I'm gonna be free, Lords!

Find me somebody to love
Can anybody find me somebody to love?


“Come here,” Tara whispered and took Jessica into her arms and gave her a friendly embrace. Sometimes Tara had to remind herself, that unlike others, she had been lucky to not only to have found the love of her life, but to be reunited with her again and again after having been separated at Kobol and New Caprica.
“Sometimes it’s just so hard,” Jessica whispered, her tears wetting Tara’s shoulder, “spending time together with my comrades and friends, but still being all alone at the same time.”
She sat up again and took the tissue offered to her by Tara to dry her tears.

“I know what you mean,” Tara said and told Jessica about her time at university, back when she had not been out but longed to be and find herself a girl to love and end the utter loneliness she had been experiencing ever since her father had cast her out.
Of course at the same time she had feared coming out, because back then there still was a strong anti-gay climate in Gemenon City.

And all the while the little matchmaker in the back of Tara’s head rattled at the bars of the cell that IT had been locked in by Tara because of a disastrous attempt to hook up two friends during her first year with the ministry.

Tara and Jessica looked at each other in silence for a while, knowing that they had done another step to further deepen their friendship.
“You know what?” Tara asked, sounding more cheerfully now, “I need a change of scenery. What’s the name of this new pub or bar that I heard some of the pilots talk about?”
“Joe's Bar,” Cally laughed and they quickly got to their feet and after another look out of the observation window, made their way down to Galactica’s pub.

***
“You know Jessica,” Tara said over her drink of orange juice on the rocks, “I’m really glad that Galactica has these special ultra violet lights all throughout the ship or otherwise we would all look like ghosts by now.”
She looked down at her hands,” mind you I’ve always been more of the fair skin type. I don’t get a dark tint when sunbathing; I get sunburned and then my skin peels itself soon after.
“Unlike you, you got yourself a really nice meditarianien type of skin colour.”

“Yea but it’s starting to fade,” Jessica answered. “Still, I suppose it’s better than to go all white, like the first long time astronauts.” She gave Tara another wicked grin, “and of course, there are the sun beds that help make it a seamless kind of look.”
“You’re really enjoying this don’t you?”
“What?”
“Making me turn red,” Tara laughed, changing colour once again.

***
In the following hour Tara’s and Jessica’s topics had finally moved away from things that made Tara turn red and onto subjects like Mayor Lee Adama returning his commission, because of his work defending Gaius Baltar together with lawyer Lobo Lumpkin and of course the pending verdict in the case: ‘the People vs. Gaius Baltar’.
Jessica Cally as it turned out, even though she had ended up on one of the death lists, supposedly singed by Gaius Baltar, wasn’t convinced that Baltar really should be found guilty for crimes against humanity.

“You know, Tara, that statement of Mayor, well Mr. Adama now,” Jessica said, “or rather the speech he gave and all the things… the mistakes we made since the first holocaust, like Pegasus and Galactica leaving all of us behind on New Caprica for example and all the other things really made me question my need to see Gaius Baltar punished.”
“But he signed your death sentence!” Tara pointed out.
“Yes, but who’s to say he wasn’t forced to do that by the Cylons in the first place?” Cally answered.
“Not according to Mr. Gaeta he wasn’t!” Tara could see that Jessica had not been convicted by Felix Gaeta’s testimony.

Tara was about to further discus Gaeta’s testimony, when she spotted Specialist Alyson Benson approach the bar to order a drink, while right next to her a pilot tried to find a station on his wireless radio.
It was in that moment that Tara’s little matchmaker gave up rattling at the bars and smashed through her prison walls instead and took control from Tara’s surprised intellect.

“Ally, over here,” Tara cried.
Her drink and what looked to Tara like a bowl of peanuts in her hands, the attractive communications specialist made her way over to Jessica’s and Tara’s table.

“Hi,” Tara said and stood up to greet Alyson with a quick kiss on the cheek. Turning around to Jessica Cally she said, “You two know each other of course.”
On this the two women became very quiet.
“Actually,” Ally said with a slight blush, “people from CIC and the flight decks usually don’t mix that much.”
“That’s right,” Cally agreed.
“But…” Tara found herself lost for words and sank down at her chair. “We’re on a Battlestar, far away from home; surely there can be no need to cling to old military protocol!”

“Of course not,” Jessica said, “all we meant to say was that we don’t know each other…”
“Yet,” Ally completed her sentence and sat down right next to Jessica. “Hi I’m Alyson Benson, a good friend Tara and Willow’s.” She offered Jessica her hand who took it.
“Jessica Cally,” the other woman answered, “and I’m also a friend of Willow, Tara and their cat,” she added in a hushed voice, making Tara role her eyes.
‘Like there’s anybody left who doesn’t know about Galactica’s only resident cat,’ she thought.

A quick glance at Jessica’s face brought on a grin told Tara that the young specialist had, once again, successfully pulled her leg and soon joined in the friendly laugh. Even more she enjoyed the friendly banter when she noticed Ally laughing too.
‘Cry havoc and let’s slip the dogs of love!’ the little matchmaker cried, quoting incorrectly, from her favourite playwright.

“So you like cats, too?” she asked the other specialist at the table.
“Yeah,” Jessica answered. “Though I actually see myself as more of a dog person, but I’m not like ‘death to all cats’,” she added.
It was that remark that turned Ally’s already bright smile radiant, sending Tara’s little matchmaker dancing round and round in her mind singing loudly, ‘Love is in the air!’

In the meantime the three women engaged into a spirited conversation involving pets, pets they had as kids or dreamt of having, like Jessica talking about a sort of living fur ball called a Tribble.

All the time Ally and Jessie – as the little matchmaker started to call them – went along like a house on fire and while her alter ego already heard wedding bells, Tara saw it all a bit more level-headed.

***
“That Ladies, is one really tired looking reserve lieutenant,” a friendly voice right next to Tara said, bringing her out of day dreaming. ‘What time is it anyway?’ Tara thought to herself as she looked up to see to Buffy standing at their table, dressed in her flight suit.
“Well I didn’t see you coming Buffy!” Tara cried.
“I thought as much,” ‘Slayer’ answered with a laugh and sat down right next to her, after Tara had motioned her to join them.
“First time I see you at this place Tara,” she observed casually.

“Well, I’ve needed a bit of fresh air,” Tara said and was pleased to notice that Jessica and Alyson had taken up their conversation again and now where talking quietly between themselves.
“Fresh air?” Buffy asked, raising an eyebrow.
“You know what I mean,” Tara laughed and then got serious again. “Willow was getting on my nerves and so I stormed out and I ran into Jessica,” she pointed at the specialist sitting across the table, who was now talking to Ally in a hushed voice. “And then ended up here,” she finished.

“Has Willow been wallowing in self-pity again?” Buffy asked matter of factly.
“Oh yes,” Tara said, but hastily added, “I mean I sort of understand her. She took it really hard when she lost her flight status back then after Kobol and now it might even get worse,”
Suddenly Tara found herself at a loss for words, as contradicting feelings of anger and shame ragged inside her. “I just needed to get away, from Willow, her whining, from Hope – from everything!”
Tara’s eyes widened in shook and her hand flew to her mouth.

At first Buffy looked puzzled, and then she understood, “No, Tara!” she said calmly.
“But it is such a terrible thing to say,” the blond woman whispered, even though feeling a little bit distressed right now, she didn’t want to disturb Ally and Jessie planning in what she hoped to be their first date.
“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to get away for a while,” Buffy said, placing her hand on Tara’s. “After all, you would never really leave Hope and Willow, now would you?”
”Never,” Tara answered.
“See,” Buffy smiled, “plus, I know what pain in the neck Willow can be at times. Sure, she’s upset because of her knee but that doesn’t mean she’s allowed to keep on wallowing all the time.
“As for Hope, she knows that you love her no matter what – even if she should turn out to be straight,” she added with a grin.

That remark finally brought a smile to Tara’s face and Buffy seemed satisfied. “So if you need a little break once in a while that’s totally okay. And if you need the night of too, you can have my bunk,” she offered. “And don’t you worry, my bunk mates are really nice female pilots.”
“But I couldn’t take your bunk!” Tara protested. “Where would you sleep?”
“Oh I’m willing to sacrifice myself and bunk with Willow in your comfy double bed!”
“Such a sacrifice,” Tara laughed drily.
“You know me.”

So it was decided and since Tara was pretty tired anyway, she called it a night and said her good nights to Jessica and Allyson – who, the little matchmaker pointed out to her, were getting along even better.

***
Tara snuggled herself into the blanket, marveling how very comfortable Buffy’s bunk was, despite it being such a small enclosed space.
Outside the drawn curtains she could hear two pilots talk quietly to each other.
There had been no problem with Tara taking over ‘Slayer’s’ bunk for a night. They had welcomed her and had assured Buffy, that they would behave themselves.

Turning around once again, Tara soon was fast asleep.

Tara shielded her eyes from the sun shining down on her and down over the vast green plain stretching out beneath her from the small hill she was standing on.
In the distance she could see some kind of animals graze peacefully in the midday sun.

She took a deep breath, inhaling the clean fresh air, feeling alive in a way she wouldn’t have thought possible back when... when?
How long had it been? She couldn’t remember but knew it to be of no importance the way things were going now.

Laughing from the top of their lungs, two small children, a boy and a girl were running past her and down the hill, persuaded closely by an older child that looked vaguely familiar to Tara.


Last edited by Dax on Mon Nov 19, 2012 1:05 pm, edited 7 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Mon Apr 11, 2011 8:36 pm 
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1. Blessed Wannabe

Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2005 3:13 pm
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Every time I have checked Pens for the last few days, another one of my favorite fics has been updated. Today is no different.
I love how you have been able to create Tara/Willow story lines within the world of BSG.
I hardly ever leave feedback (because I feel that my words can never do justice to the marvelous stories here on the board), but after reading this latest chapter, I felt that I had to at least let you know that your work is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
emsaunt


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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Tue Apr 12, 2011 11:45 am 
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Still loving it :smash But then again, you already knew that.
Cory

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Wed Apr 13, 2011 11:50 am 
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Yay for great update-y goodness... I'm glad that Tara finally introduced Callie & Aly... I truly hope that Tara very soon goes back to Willow and that they really start to work out their differences...

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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sat Apr 21, 2012 10:22 pm 
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A big Hello to all readers and fans of Willow & Tara :wtkiss in Space!

I know it tookme a while, but thanks to my great betareader who took the time, eventhough she's extremly busy right now :buried , I will be able to upload the penultimate chapter to "Signhs and Portents" later this day.

Thank you very mutch for that Cory :heart
And thank you very mutch too to all readers who stayed with me, Willoe & Tara and the migjhty Battelestar Galactica throuigh all the time it took me to write this series. :applause

Dax
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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sun Apr 22, 2012 11:21 am 
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A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents


Breakthrough -
these barriers of pain
Breakthrough -
to the sunshine from the rain
Make my feelings known towards you
Turn my heart inside and out for you now
Somehow I have to make this final breakthrough
Now!

Chapter Five
Phoenix Rising


“So what do you think, Tara?” Willow asked uncertainly, twisting the towel she held in her hands. Only now, almost one week after Dr. Pulaski had presented her with her diagnosis, had she finally told her wife about the choice she had to make.
Not that she had been angry with Tara about her sleeping in Buffy’s bunk for a night – not at all.
She just had been so overwhelmed with the sheer size of both the diagnosis and the choice she had to make, she needed the time to come to grips with what she had learned from Katherine Pulaski.

Tara looked down at the documents spread out at the table in front of them. It was a relatively short dossier sent over by Katherine Pulaski about the, what Willow referred to as ‘spare-part surgery’, listing both the benefits as well as the dangers that came with this particular kind of procedure.
“I’m not sure I’m really qualified to make any judgment on this kind of procedure,” Tara said thoughtfully. “After all even though I’m a doctor, I’m not a medical doctor.”
“Of course you’re not,” Willow answered with a smile, “but what do you think?”

Tara sat back, closing her eyes and Willow could see that she was really thinking hard about what she had just learned.
The blond woman remained silent for quite some time; for so long in fact that Willow started to suspect that her wife might actually have fallen asleep.
She was just about to give her a gently nudge, when suddenly Tara’s eyes flew open again. Their eyes meet and without thinking Willow asked: “what did you see?”

“The surface of a planet and a grassy hill,” Tara answered whisperingly.
“A single moon hanging in the sky,” Willow finished for her. They continued to look silently at each other for the longest time, with Hope’s steady breathing and Miss Kitty’s purring being the only sounds in the room, besides the constant barely audible low rumble of Galactica surrounding them.
“You’ve seen it too?” Willow said, not so much a question but stating a fact, “in your dreams?”
Tara first nodded, and then shook her head, “not so much a dream, more like a vision or portent. But the same time it was so very real. I think I can still feel the grass between my toes and smell the clean night air.”

“I know what you mean,” Willow said. “How often have you had these dreams?”
“Twice, including the one I just had.”
“Me too,” Willow whispered in amazement. “Surly that has to mean something, don’t you think?”
“I do,” Tara took both of Willow’s hands into her own. “And I think it means for you to undergo that surgery and get your knee fixed.”

Willow nodded and knew that this was the right decision. Certainly these were more than mere dreams and that they told her that for her future she needed the full mobility in her knee back and soon.
“I’ll contact Dr. Pulaski right away,” Willow said and reached for her crutches but Tara stopped her by gently placing a finger upon Willow’s lips.
“Do you really have to call her right away?” she asked in a very suggesting low voice that turned Willow’s blood hot.

“Well if you ask me like that,” the redhead murmured feeling herself melting under her wife’s touch, “it can wait another day or so.”
At this Willow’s mind shut itself down and she reached for her wife’s hand kissing her fingers one at the time. “Yes, yes, yes,” Tara whispered.
Then Hope started to cry in her cradle and it knocked at the bulkheads.
‘No, no, no!’ Willow yelled in her mind, as Tara stood up to get the bulkhead and she reached for her crying daughter.
“You think she needs a change or perhaps she’s hungry?” Tara asked opening the bulkhead.

“Hi! We’re not intruding or anything are we?” Jessica Cally asked cheerfully as she and Alyson Benson stood hand I hand on the threshold.
Willow looked up and something about Jessica’s expression told her that the young specialist wasn’t at all talking about work, dinner or in fact little baby Hope. ‘Who would’ve thought that Jessica could cast such dirty looks,’ Willow thought by herself.
She turned to Hope, who had stopped crying as soon as she had her mother’s sole attention.

“Of course not,” Tara assured the young couple, not sounding entirely convincing, “come on in!” she said with a bright smile.
“So how are my little angels?” Cally asked cheerfully meaning both the black kitten and her godchild – Buffy Summers was the other godmother and William Adama her god grandfather.
“She’s neither hungry nor in immediate need of a change,” Willow said, taking Hope into her arms. “She probably just woke from a bad dream or something and now she needs to get back to sleep again now, don’t you, Hope Alexandra?”

“Maybe we’ll need to go with her for a walk,” Tara thought out aloud. “Hope always goes right back to sleep again, after we drive her around Galactica’s A-shaped halls for a bit.”
Before Willow had any time to make up her mind, Jessica who had been kneeling down right next to her, jumped to her feet.
“Ally and I could do that!” she cried. “Can’t we?” And before Willow knew it, she found Hope scooped out of her arm and placed into her stroller being pushed by Alyson, while Jessica persuaded Tara to give her a bag that included diapers and everything Hope would need for a night out.
“We’ll return her first thing tomorrow morning,” Jessica said in a tone of voice that didn’t allow for either Willow or Tara to object and after they both kissed their daughter good night, Jessica, Alyson and Hope left.

“Well that was unexpected,” Willow spoke her mind.
“Not to mention fast,” Tara added. “You think she’ll be okay?”
“Hope?”
Tara nodded and sat down right next to Willow at the sofa.
“Of course she will,” Willow said with conviction. “You know Jessica loves Hope like her own daughter, she and Ally will take good care of Hope”

“You know Willow,” Tara said and kissed her lips softly. “That provides me with the unique opportunity to take good care of you my love.”
With that she put Willow’s arm around her neck and lifting her up she carried her wife – the love of her life – into the bedroom, for a night of passionate love.

***
A few months later

“Dee is dead?” Willow asked, she need to make absolutely sure she had understood what her wife had just told her about Anastasia Dualla, the young petty officer who had taken her own life.
“Shot herself, they are saying,” Tara said quietly.
Willow nodded absentmindedly glad that Tara didn’t try to protect her feeling by withholding the truth.

Suicide!
A concept quiet alien to Willow but at the same time some part of her could understand what had incited her comrade to end her life.

So much had happened in the past months.

‘Starbuck’ had returned from the dead (or so it seemed) and claiming to have been to Earth and now knew the way.
Col. Tigh and Chief Tyrol, together with Samuel Andersen and Tory Foster had turned out to be four of the finale five Cylons.

And two days ago they had finally reached Earth.
They had found the destroyed home of the Thirteen’s Tribe of Kobol, found Earth a nuclear wasteland, result of total warfare many centuries ago.
A war it should later turn out, that had been fought between Cylon Centurion and their human masters – humanoid Cylons, because the 13th tribe that left Kobol had been comprised of humanoid Cylons only.
The finale five it turned out had lived on Earth too and since they had recovered the previously lost secret of Resurrection, they resurrected themselves on a waiting star ship and made their way with sub light speed towards the twelve colonies in order to stop the story of happening there too. But then of course they arrived too late, the Colonial–Cylon-War having been fought for many years when the Finale five or rather the First Five arrived at the Colonies.

And now after all these years on the run, years of sacrifices and loss, all they had found was the nuclear remains of the 13th Tribe and no new home.
And so Dee alongside with properly other people within the fleet had lost all hope and ended her life.
Luckily for both Willow and Tara, they had baby Hope and thus a very important reason to stay strong and not lose faith that things will turn out for the better in the end.

“So you still wanna go through with it, Willow?” Tara asked carefully, referring to something they had started to talk about right after Willow had gone into surgery to replace her damaged knee joint, five weeks ago.
It had taken Dr. Pulaski and her team, longer than expected to construct and build the artificial knee joint.
According to Kate Pulaski the procedure had been completed without any complications and by now everything was progressing nicely and within the next days Willow was supposed to start physiotherapy.

“You know Tara,” Willow said sitting up on the coach, “two days ago, when the reports came through that Earth was a nuclear wasteland, where nothing was alive anymore and that could not support any life either; I said to myself: ‘that’s it, let’s just pack it in there’s no hope left, nothing to go on for.
“But then of course there is our daughter, but even more so, that very afternoon I fell asleep and had this dream, this vision again. You know like the ones we talked about, with the planet, sun shining, wind blowing in the trees and the cry of babies.
“And it told me, that we should not only go on with our plan but to do so rather sooner than later. You know what I mean?”
Tara nodded silently and Willow could see that her visions had developed along the same line.

“You shouldn’t wait,” Tara whispered. “You had the same feeling when I had this dream where I stood on a grassy hill and had children run past me and down into some kind of primitive settlement in the valley.
“I couldn’t see their faces but the older one did feel kinda familiar to me, like it really was Hope only two or three years older.”
She looked down into the cradle were Hope was sound asleep. Only yesterday she had tried to crawl for the first time and as determined as had she been, Tara was quite convinced that she would soon succeed.

“Okay then,” Willow broke her chain of thoughts. “Let’s do it! Let’s have another baby!
“Well at the next possible time that is,” she added sheepishly.
“You’re sure?” Tara asked, just to make sure.
“Yes!” Willow declared whole heartedly “My knee is healing fine and Kate is convinced that there will be no need for additional surgery.
“And so we have to do is to wait for me to get to the right place in my circle,” she made quotation marks around the last word, “and we’re good to go!”

“I can’t believe how lucky we’ve been, that we didn’t take Xander’s ‘inheritance’ with us when we got transferred to Pegasus but had the insemination done aboard Galactica instead and left it in cold storage here.”
“Yea funny how things turn out sometimes,” Willow mussed, “had we taken it with us...”
“I know.” Tara agreed, feeling overwhelmed by the sheer of power faith seemed to have over their lives.
“So you want to get some sleep?” she then changed the subject, “I mean you’ll start your physiotherapy tomorrow and you’ll need to be rested and strong for it.
“Oh I don’t know,” Willow said suggestively. “Lying together in bed with you, I could think of far more interesting things to do than sleep.”
“Vixen!” the blond woman smiled back.

***
As it turned out, they had to wait another two months before Willow could actually undergo the insemination procedure, because in Willow’s case Dr. Bashir had recommended a light hormonal treatment to heighten her chances to get pregnant on the first try, because they had to be careful with what was left from Xander’s inheritance.

“So another doctor’s appointment for you Mayor?” Buffy asked mockingly as Willow made her way towards the sofa, where one year old Hope was waiting eagerly for her momma Willow to pick her up for a cuddle, before she went on playing with her wooden Viper, a present from her auntie Jessica.
“Yes Captain,” Willow retorted the friendly banter.
“And judging by the stupid smile on your face, I take it you had some good news today?” Buffy went on.
“Yes!” Willow beamed.
“You mean?” Tara asked bashfully.
“I mean,” Willow answered positively radiating from sheer joy.

“And I take it we’re not talking about your knee ‘Red-Dyke’” Buffy said, sounding more than a bit frustrated when she added, “if we ever talked about it anyway.”
“No,” Willow beamed, “not about my knee. I wasn’t seeing Dr. Pulaski nor Doc Cottle but Dr. Bashir.”
“The Gynaecologist?” ‘Slayer’ wondered.
“Yes.”
“So does that mean that the two of you are having another baby?”
“Mostly me,” Willow pointed out, “but otherwise you’re spot on.”
“Pregnant – wow,” Buffy was obviously lost for words.
“Yeah we know it must look strange wanting to have another child, with the times being as dark as they are,” Willow said. “But Tara and me, we just know that it is the right time.”

“You don’t need to justify yourself,” Buffy said now beaming too. “I’m all for signs of hope, and as far as I’m concerned nothing is more hopeful than having a baby.”
She stood up and gave both Willow and Tara a bear’s hug. She then gave Hope, who was sitting right next to her, a hug too, who responded with a bright laugh before she returned once more to playing with her wooden Viper.

Tara and Willow exchanged some knowing looks and after Willow nodded quietly, Tara asked Buffy another of those important questions friends sometime have to ask.
“Buffy,” she began, “Willow and I have been talking and we would like to know if you would mind that if we should have another girl, we would call her Dawn?"

Buffy’s right hand went up and clasped on to the locket she wore around her neck together with her dog-tags and which contained her most precious possession, a single strand of sister’s hair.
“Yes of course,” she said, her voice thick with tears, “There’s nothing I would love more and I know that Dawn would’ve liked it too.
By now they all had tears in their eyes and it was Willow who spoke first after a long and meaningful silence.
“And if it is a boy we’ll name him William Alexander, after Xander and the old man. Maybe we will even ask him to be the godfather.”

“Sounds marvellous to me,” Buffy said thoughtfully, “though I hope you don’t mind me praying for a girl.”
“We don’t mind either way,” Tara said, “as long as she or he is healthy.”

***
Later that night Willow woke up; both Hope and Tara were soundly asleep.
Willow put a hand on her tummy, there was a new life growing under her heart, the lovechild of her and Tara and Xander who had been her friend since they had been infants back in Sunnydale on Caprica.
‘I’m pregnant,’ she thought happily. “And I will be looking after you and protect you; you and your sister and mommy Tara,” she whispered to her little unborn son or daughter.


Last edited by Dax on Fri Jan 11, 2013 10:05 am, edited 1 time in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sun Apr 22, 2012 1:04 pm 
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Yay for great update-y goodness... I really hope that Willow, Tara, Cally, Aly & Hope are not harmed during the coup attempt... Big yay for Willow being pregnant...


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 Post subject: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Fri Nov 16, 2012 2:04 pm 
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A Love Beyond the Stars – Signs and Portents


And another one gone, and another one gone,
another one bites the dust.
Hey, I'm gonna get you too,
another one bites the dust

Chapter Six
Dust to Dust


“You wanna do what!?” Tara yelled, making Miss Kitty dash under the sofa hissing furiously and Buffy hurrying into the bed room, holding a very surprised looking Hope in her arms.

“Apply to the XO to have my flight status reinstated,” Willow began to explain but found herself soon cut off by her enraged wife.
“I perfectly understood it the first time you said it!” Tara went on. “I’m just wondering if you’ve noticed that you’re completely out of your fraking mind?!”
Tara couldn’t remember having been this angry before in her life. To hear from Buffy Summers, that Willow, as part of her ongoing physiotherapy, was pushing the envelope towards proving that her new knee was able to handle the pressure coming with flying a Viper in a combat situation.
A fact that Willow had omitted to tell her wife and that she had to learn it from ‘Slayer’ by accident infuriated her even more.

“Willow”, she said, a bit more calmly now, “you are seven weeks pregnant! You haven’t forgotten about this little detail or have you?”
“Of course not!” the redhead replied defensively.
“Then why do you insist on risking your life and that of our baby, by shooting out of the Galactica in a Viper and to go into combat!” Tara demanded to know, getting a bit louder again.

“First of all,” Willow began and by her tone of voice Tara could tell that she had given this a lot of thought beforehand. “The pregnancy is going very well and I’m in great shape, both Doctor Bashir and Cottle say so.
“Secondly, I do not want get my flight status back to get back into flying Vipers, but to fly a Raptor. No catapult launch and only minimum G-forces during combat.”

“But nevertheless you are endangering yourself and the baby by going out there in the first place, even in a Raptor,” Tara pointed out.
“I know that too!”
“Then why are you doing it?” Tara began, and then suddenly stopped as an alarming thought entered her mind. “You’re not doing this only to secure your future career with force, are you?” As soon as the words were out of her mouth Tara wanted to take them back, because she saw by the hurt look on her wife’s face, that she was like completely off track there.
“Willow, I’m sorry,” she said quietly but the redhead’s hand went up quickly to stop her.
“Never mind,” she said, “Tara, Galactica is dying! It’s not official yet but rather sooner than later she’ll have to be evacuated and given up. Maybe she even needs to be striped for spare parts. When that time comes, the military, Admiral Adama and all, will be transferred to the Cylon Basestar that we have in our midst now.” She gave her wife a small smile, “so no, Tara, this is not about my career.”

“Then why?” Tara asked weakly, unshed tears burning in her eyes and her heart on the edge of being overwhelmed by the fear for the woman she loved so very much.
Why would she want to go out and get herself into danger? Not that it was all that safe aboard Galactica.
‘Plus she’s pregnant for the gods’ sake!’ she thought and had to fight to not let her anger get the better of her.
Willow stood silently in the middle of the room, she hadn’t moved from her spot since Buffy had dropped the bombshell and so Tara repeated her question, “then why, Willow?
“Why do you need to sit at the helm of a Raptor again?”

Willow closed her eyes for a bit then opened them again and sat down right next to Tara on the sofa.
“Tara, I just have to,” she said softly. “Don’t think that I risk the life of our unborn child on some vane idea of honour and glory, or just fool hearted heroics. Not even ‘Semper Fidelis’ though that has always been of great importance to me.
“All I know,” the redhead went on, “is that it is of vital importance that in some point in the near future I am able to be out there rather than standing in flight control.”

“Was it a dream?” Tara asked. “You know like the ones we had about the planet and having another baby?”
“No,” Willow shook her head. “Nothing like it I swear. No, some time back, I stopped by at the hangar deck to have a chat with Jessica Cally and her deck gang, when I saw ‘Athena’s’ Raptor and suddenly I knew that I must be able to fly that thing again or all might life to regret it. I know I should have told you right away,” she lowered her head and her voice was barley louder than the constant hum emitted by Galactica when she said, “but I knew you would be upset... are upset even now because I kept it from you.
“Maybe I wanted to be sure first that I really was fit enough to actually get my flight status back, before I tell you.”
She sighed, “no there is no excuse. I should have told you and if you are now angry with me you have all the right...”

“Willow sh, sh, sh,” Tara said, as tears started to well up in Willow’s eyes. “I’m not angry with you. But you have to understand that I have always been worried when you flew into combat. I wasn’t happy when you lost your flight status, but to be honest I was relieved – is that bad?”
“No, not at all,” Willow said with an understanding smile.
“So you understand my outburst when I heard that you wanted to get into a cockpit again, especially now that you’re pregnant.”

Having both made their point, the two women looked at each other in silence and looking into her wife’s dark green eyes, Tara somehow knew that Willow really needed her flight status back and so she silently gave her consent, knowing that their fate had been in the hands of the gods for a long time and she trusted them to not abandon them now.

“And now let’s get Buffy out of our bedroom,” Willow said and risked a little smile, “before she falls asleep in our bed – again!”

***
“All right Mayor, so far you’ve done well,” Tara heard ‘Slayer’ say over the wireless. “Now it is time for a little combat landing and make it quick!”
Tara’s pulls picked up as she watched over the shoulder of the duty officer sitting at flight control. On his screens she could see the dot, marked Raptor 2208 approach Galactica followed closely by ‘Slayers’ Viper – 4789.

Buffy Summers herself, as Galactica’s newly appointed CAG, since her predecessor had been jailed over his involvement in Felix Gaeta’s and Tom Zarek’s attempt to take over both the legitimate fleet government and the command of the Galactica, was in charge of Willow’s – ‘Red-Dykes’ finale examination flight that would decide whether or not she would be returned to flight status.
So far Willow’s performance had been extraordinary and so Tara had no doubt that both the XO and the CAG would pass her.

“‘Sorceress, they are coming in now,” Captain Nimoy informed her and Tara was touched that he still remembered her honorary call sign.
Hope stirred in her arms and Tara adjusted her, so she could sit more comfortable.
“There, there,” she said soothingly, “no need to worry. Your momma Willow is doing fine,” comforting both her little daughter and herself.
Carefully Tara leaned forward to look out of the window and down into the enormous landing bay, just in time to see the Raptor zoom past her and out again just after she heard ‘Slayer’ call out for ‘Red-Dyke’, to overshoot and fly out of Galactica again.

“Beautifully done ‘Red-Dyke’, beautifully done,” ‘Slayer’ congratulated. “Now back to the base – you’ve passed!”
“Whoo Hoo!” Willow cried out and Tara was very proud of her wife.
“Okay ‘Red-Dyke’, this is Galactica,” the flight officer said and gave Willow her instructions and Tara looked out again to see Willow land her Raptor at the landing pad, soon followed by Buffy, who sat her Mark II Viper down right next to Willow.
As soon as they were secured, Captain Nimoy brought them both down into the hangar.
“Thanks for letting me, I mean us, watch from up here Captain,” Tara and Hope gave the nice captain her prettiest smile.
“You’re welcome, Lieutenant, you’re welcome.”

‘Well, now Willow has her flight status back,’ Tara thought as she walked out of the flight control room and towards the next elevator to bring her down into the hangar deck to meet her wife and congratulate in person. ‘But in the name of the Lords of Kobol, let’s pray she doesn’t need it before the baby is born!’

***
“Willow, what’s the matter with you? Are you okay?” Tara cried and darted towards her wife, took her by the hand and led her to the sofa were they both sat down, Willow looked very pale to Tara but she remained still, staring into the air ahead of her.
“Willow, talk to me,” Tara becked, “are you okay? Or is something wrong with the baby?”
That finally brought Willow back, from wherever she had been, looking at her wife she gave her a small smile and said, “oh me and the babies are fine Tara.”

“Then why are you walking in here like you’ve seen a ghost? You had me all worried that something might be wrong with you or the baby... babies...?” now it was Tara’s turn to go pale. “Wait a minute Willow,” she said slowly. “Did you say babies?”
Willow nodded slowly.
“You mean like in more than one baby?”
“Babies,” again Willow nodded, “twins to be exact.”
“But there was no ultra sound scheduled for today!” Tara pointed out, focusing rather on the fact that Willow had gotten an ultra sound without her.
“There wasn’t!” Willow said, “Dr. Bashir was just checking the heartbeat and there were more than one and so...” she fell silent.

“Twins,” Tara repeated and then remembered something. “Of course twins!” she beamed. “The dream, in my dream there were three children that ran past me, on older one that reminded me of Hope and two younger ones!
“I am thinking that those younger ones are the two that are still to be born – the twins”
She then put her hand on Willow’s vaguely rounded belly.

“Well, let’s hope that it’ll turn out to be a boy and a girl,” Willow said, face now having regained some of her usual colour.
“Why?” Tara wondered,
“Because otherwise we’ll have to wreck or brain to come up with another name,” Willow smiled wickedly. “William Alexander and Dawn Alexandra sound perfect.”
“You know I still think we’re overdoing the Alexander, Alexandra thing here.”
“It’s just our way of honouring their father,” Willow explained, “and they are only middle names, we always going to call them Hope, Dawn and William or Bill.” She grinned again, “of course if they are in trouble....”

“Oh come here, my beautiful mother of twins,” Tara beamed and pulled Willow into her arms for a long and passionate snuggle.

“Twins,” Willow whispered like she still needed to get use to using that word in the future. “Did you have any twins in your family?”, she asked next.
“Not at all,” Tara said, pulling down her shirt that magically had wound itself up. “Not even in my extended family. Did you?”
“Me neither,” Willow said, looking a bit disappointed by the side of the shirt coming down, “and as far as I know neither had Xander.”

“Well there’s a first time for everything – even for twins,” Tara said smiling and thanked the Lords of Kobol for the not so small family Willow, Hope and she would be in less than six months.

***
“They’ve taken her! They’ve taken her!” Willow repeated breathlessly as she stumbled into the living room, where Tara was watching little Hope making wobbly steps over from the chair to her mother sitting on to sofa.
Upon her momma’s abrupt entrance she came to a sudden stop, then fell back and came to sit on her diapered behind.
“They’ve taken whom?” Tara asked and handed Hope the toy for which she had started her walk.
“Hera!” Willow cried out, now startling Miss Kitty who stopped dead in her tracks and changed her focus from Hope to her red-haired mistress.

“Hera?” Tara asked confused.
“Yes Hera, you know ‘Helo’s’ and ‘Athena’s’ daughter Hera?”
“..era.” Hope reappeared but both of her mothers were too distracted right now to notice that their lovely daughter had added another word to her repertoire.

“Willow, calm down,” Tara advised, “just take a deep breath, sit down and tell me exactly what happened.”
“You’re right,” Willow said, took the advised deep breath right next to her wife on the couch. “You remember ‘Boomer’? That is the earlier incarnation of Sharon, who shoot William Adama while I was stranded on Kobol.”
“Yes.”
“Well, and you remember she came over to our side to seek refuge?”
Again Tara nodded.
“Turns out that bitch was two timing us the entire time only to get her greedy Cylon paws on the only human cylon hybrid there is,” Willow explained.
“They recon she’ll bring her to Number One – Brother Cavil... you know that he was moulded after the real life father of the final fifth Cylon, Ellen Tigh?

“Final Five,” Willow mumbled to herself, “if you ask me, it should really be the Primary Five since they were the ones who build the 7 to 8 models.”
She shook her head, “so where was I?”
“Hope, ‘Boomer’, Brother Cavil,” Tara offered as clues.
“Right,” the redhead said, “ever since we destroyed the Cylons’ resurrection hub they no longer resurrect into a new body every time they die and that means...”
“If they die they stay dead” Tara put in, hoping to bring here wife back on track.

“Right,” Willow said and focused again.
“To make a long story short,” she went on, “it’s believed, that this Brother Cavil thinks he might find the key to resurrection in Hera.
“Tara! We believe he might stop at nothing to get what he wants from Hera! Even going as far as...” she lowered her voice and Tara had to lean forward to understand her. “Going as far as killing and dissecting her,” Willow concluded and Tara could see the dread in her green eyes.
On that both woman turned their heads and looked down to their daughter Hope, who had fallen asleep resting her head against Miss Kitty, who was sound asleep too.

Willow looked up again, “Tara,” she said, more serious than Tara could remember her ever being. “We have to bring her back. The Admiral has formulated a plan.
“The Basestar will remain with the fleet. All civilians and nonessential personal will be evacuated from Galactica; and then we’ll going to attack the Cylon Hub – you know that space-station-like home of theirs I told you about. Forcing them to a final truce or destroy them.”

A very heavy weight came down upon Tara’s heart and she knew what Willow was going to say next. “You want to go with them,” it wasn’t a question.
Willow nodded.
“I have to, Tara,” she said. “This is what my dreams have been about. This is what made me get my flight status back.”
“But will they let you fly?” Tara asked, “With you being pregnant?” It wasn’t so much a question as a last attempt to change Willow’s mind and keep her from endangering herself and the twins she was carrying.
Though Tara knew that normally Willow wouldn’t change her decision once she made up her mind and was convinced that what she wanted to do was the right thing to do.
And then there were those dreams, or visions, in case of the Twins they had turned out to be true; so who was she to stand against fate?

Tara saw into Willow face and her eyes told her that she wouldn’t like the answer her wife, the soldier, would give her.
“As you know we are a little short on pilots, ever since several of them participated in Gaeta’s and Zarek’s mutiny,” ‘Red-Dyke’ began and Tara could see the mix of shame and anger in her features towards these offices who had rebelled against Admiral Adama and the rightful civil government.
“So we need every pilot we’ve got, including the sentient Cylon Raiders, to go on this mission, and then again there are these dreams...
“Please don’t think I’m willingly putting the lives of our unborn children at risk, by going on some gun hoe mission and...”

Tara put a finger on her wife’s lips silencing her at once. “Then let us not talk about this anymore,” she said. “I can’t say that I’m happy about this and I won’t claim that I won’t worry like hell.” She sighted deeply.
“So when will this rescue operation commence?” she asked next.
“In three days,” Willow explained, “There are still many preparations to make, like evacuating all the civilians and nonessential personal from the Galactica.”

“So these can be our last nights aboard Galactica,” Tara said, knowing very well that she, Hope and Miss Kitty would of course not remain aboard Galactica for the rescue op. “Well then let’s make the best of the time we have left here,” she stood up and lifted the sleeping Hope off the floor. She carefully changed her into her pyjamas and put her into her cradle that stood in the living room corner, where Hope continued to sleep peacefully.
Without saying another word, Tara took Willow by the hand and led her into the bedroom for one of the last nights of making love aboard the Battlestar Galactica, which had been their home for a long time.

***
“You know I didn’t think you would ever be flying me again,” Tara said to Willow, while she kept little Hope from reaching for the various blinking lights and dials of the Raptor. “I’m glad you’re flying us over,” she smiled lovingly.
Willow was to fly Tara, Hope and Miss Kitty over to Colonial One, were acting President Lumkin had arranged living quarters for them.
In the meantime the raptor had been moved up into Galactica’s landing pod.

“Raptor 1968, Galactica you are cleared for launch,” came the disembodied voice of Galactica’s duty flight officer out of the Raptors speakers.
“Copy that,” ‘Red-Dyke’ answered and piloted their craft out of Galactica. Rather than flying over to Colonial One directly, Willow took them on a little detour, for one last look over the Galactica, though somehow Tara knew she would see the grand old Lady one more time before the end.

***
The Battle of the Hub, as it later was to be known, was fought with severe losses on both sides, though the Cylons of Number One / Brother Cavil had to endure a huge loss of their numbers, eventually losing the war altogether.
And even though ‘Red-Dyke’ was in the thick of the air battle, she and her co pilot, ‘Rise-Paddy’ were never in any real danger.

In the end the Hub was destroyed and only because ‘Starbuck’ entered some random – or so it seemed – jump coordinates did Galactica and all the Vipers and Raiders that had returned after ‘Red-Dyke’ had shoot Galactica’s last nuclear warhead into the Hub, escaped the nuclear explosion.
As the result of ‘Starbuck’s’ “divine” intervention, Galactica not only jumped to safety but also right into the orbit of a planet orbiting a single sun.

This planet was not only suitable to sustain them but was also already home to its very own humanoid species, humans who, according to old Doc. Cottle, were genetically compatible to both colonials as well as the humanoid Cylons.
The only real setback of this Earth – as the planet was soon called – was, that it still was on a rather prehistoric stand of evolution, with humanity living as hunter and gatherers in seemingly (to the Colonials) primitive settlements.
On initiative of Vice-president Lee Adama, the Quorum of the Fleet, backed by the people of Kobol itself, they all decided on a complete clean slate for the people of Kobol, an actual new start for humanity.
The Cylon Centurions, along with the sentient Raiders, were given the Basestar and the freedom to pursue their own goals and find themselves their own future, their own home; and thus they left, vowing to never return.

The people of Kobol and their humanoid Cylon companions would leave all of their advanced technology behind, leave their ship, that, once the landing ships had returned to the fleet, would begin its final sub light voyage towards the single sun, lead one last time by Galactica and then be destroyed, leaving nothing of their technology behind.

Bringing only with them what they could carry, Colonials and Cylons would split up in groups and go to join with different tribes living all over Earth, thus spreading their genetic pattern among the indigent human race.

With all of that, hopefully the circle of history repeating itself, of “All this has happen before and it will happen again,” would be broken once and for all.
That never again, humanity would build intelligent machines, only to enslave them as they did on the Twelve Colonies and the Earth of the 13th Tribe of Kobol, bringing on them a bloody uprising of the enslaved machines.
Hopefully this time it would turn out differently.

***
Cautiously Willow piloted the Raptor out of Colonial One’s landing bay, with Tara, Hope, Buffy and Miss Kitty Fantastico as her only passengers and flew over to the Galactica for a final fly-by of the old and battered Battlestar.
She had taken a hard beating during her final fight and right after she arrived she had been ragged by some heavy explosions as her ftl drive had exploded on her – she would never go faster than light ever again!

"This is a new ship, but she's got the right name. Now you remember that, you hear? You treat her like a lady, and she'll always bring you home." Willow whispered.
“Huh?” Tara asked holding up Hope so she would have a good look out too.
“Just something one Admiral Leonard H. McCoy once said about the last Battlestar Enterprise,” Willow said quietly and turned the Raptor away from Galactica. “He definitely was right when it came to this grand old Lady, she certainly brought us home.”

“Yes she did,” Tara smiled thoughtfully and it occurred to her that she would indeed very much miss the Battlestar Galactica.

***
Tara took one last good look at her old laptop computer that was now lying on the copilot seat of the Raptor that had brought them down to the Earth’s surface, wondering why she had brought the computer with her.
Ever since she started High school, this piece of hardware had been with her and it held a sheer invaluable treasure of pictures, music and other memorabilia on its hard drive.

But times were really changing now and that meant to say goodbye to a lot of things and burn all bridges to the past.
Humanity had been offered a new start and Tara was willing to give all for her future with Willow, Hope and the twins.
“You’re ready?” Willow asked, she stood at the pilots seat ready to press the button that would prompted the Raptor to lift off and join the fleet on its final journey. It would take them several years and it would go out in a blaze of glory.

“I’m ready, Willow,” Tara said quietly and Willow pushed the button, hurryingly they left the Raptor and joined Buffy, who stood on the meadow, letting Hope ride on her shoulders and holding on to a leash that kept Miss Kitty from exploring their new home planet on her own.

Together the three women watched the Raptor take off and slowly fly into the sky above them.
The search was over and their future had finally begun.


The future of humanity begins with a choice

A Love Beyond the Stars – Points of Departure

_________________
Today my friend, your diary entry will read: Took a […] hostage and got shoot by three armed bastards.”
Gene Hunt – Ashes to Ashes
“A Love Beyond the Stars”
“What Dreams may Come”


Last edited by Dax on Sun Dec 23, 2012 1:17 am, edited 2 times in total.

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sat Nov 17, 2012 4:31 am 
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9. Gay Now
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Yay for excellent update-y goodness... Thank you for bringing this story to a close...

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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sat Nov 17, 2012 12:40 pm 
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zampsa19752001 wrote:
Yay for excellent update-y goodness... Thank you for bringing this story to a close...


You're welcome. :applause
And I hope you'll be happy to learn that "A Love Beyond the Stars – Points of Departure" will bring the finale conclusion to this series.

Dax
:yikes

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Today my friend, your diary entry will read: Took a […] hostage and got shoot by three armed bastards.”
Gene Hunt – Ashes to Ashes
“A Love Beyond the Stars”
“What Dreams may Come”


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 Post subject: Re: A Love Beyond the Stars - Signs and Portents
PostPosted: Sat Nov 17, 2012 1:24 pm 
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9. Gay Now
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Big Yay!

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