232 - Is there a situation where it's appropriate to be unkind?

[number_eight]

She was going to take my daughter away. I know it. I felt it.

The only regret I have in shooting her is that Admiral Adama… that he… he was disappointed in me. Angry with me.

"You murdered an unarmed woman, and by doing so you put the lives of every single person in this fleet at risk; and quite possibly cost the lives of the president and your husband. You disobeyed the direct orders of your superior officers, but more importantly, you betrayed a promise to me. I trusted you."

[Locked]

I find it interesting that he thinks what I did was murder, when just a few years ago, Cally was sent to the brig for discharging her firearm for, what? Thirty days and then she was released? Has he changed that much? Does he see Cylons as humans now – not just me? I don't understand.

I suppose it doesn't matter.

[/Locked]

I fired my sidearm twice, and the next thing I knew, I was in his quarters, shackled. I know I did the right thing to protect my daughter, but the Old Man, he… I don't know.

I haven't felt such anger from him in a long, long time. Since before New Caprica.

Next thing I knew, he'd called the guards and they sent me off to the brig, and he wouldn't let me see Hera. Helo was gone with that Cylon baseship that had jumped away, so I was the only one who could look out for her, and he wouldn't let me see her. Hold her. Touch her.

It sounds silly now, but in that cell, I pretended I was holding her and singing her favorite lullaby. It's not real, of course, but it passed the time.

It's not as if I'm not used to being locked up like this, after all.

Something changed, though, because they let me hold Hera, finally, and she was all right. God, I wanted to cry, knowing that she was okay and that Admiral Adama had allowed me to hold her, until I heard something about Colonel Tigh being our new CO, yet it was Adama's orders.

I still don't understand.

I'm a member of the Colonial Fleet. Lieutenant Junior Grade Sharon Agathon. We are in the middle of a war with the Cylons, so yes. There are plenty of times when we have to be unkind. It's part of our job.

I'm also a mother, and it's part of my job to protect my child, no matter what, so I'm not going to lie and say that I'll never shoot another person who might endanger my daughter.

I think, though, that it's what the Old Man said and did that really has gotten to me. Was it "appropriate" for him to throw me in the brig without my child – at least, at first? I don't know. I've never been in charge of a battleship or tried to work out a treaty, so I can't say what was on his mind at the time.

I'd like to think, though, that something got to him. Somehow. Because eventually, he did change his mind. Was it because of something our new President did or said? Did he remember all the times he thought he might have lost his son? Was he thinking back to the time when he delivered the news to me and to Helo about how Hera had been kidnapped?

I don't think he was fair in his judgment of me to begin with. In the end, though, it all worked out… somewhat.

At least I've got Hera to hold now.



Muse: Sharon "Athena" Agathon
Fandom: Misc. TV/"Battlestar Galactica"
Word Count: 546 (not including direct quote)

Comments

[arrow-of-apollo.livejournal.com]

I saw something in my father's eyes when we saw him off. He was... relieved, almost. As if he'd figured out something very important, and that knowledge gave him some kind of satisfaction. That must have been what changed his mind.

OOC: Great prompt, I like seeing her side of the episode.

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

Relieved? I... okay. I don't know what it was and I'm not going to try and guess. I suppose I should just be thankful.

OOC: Yay, thanks! Their scene together just about broke my heart.

[arrow-of-apollo.livejournal.com]

The decision he'd made about President Roslin... Personally, I think he admitted something to himself he hadn't yet. I guess he finally remembered that you needed your daughter, and she needed you.

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

There are some things that you just can't live without.

[cpo-galen-tyrol.livejournal.com]

OOC: Beautiful. You encapsulated the slightly "off" feeling of the entire episode. Not the episode itself, I think that with the circumstances being as they are, things really are well and truly off.

He wasn't even sure why he was here and he was even less clueless about why he had brought his son with him. The brig was no place for a kid, even one Nick's age.

He paused for a moment when he realized Athena was rocking Hera and humming. He didn't want to intrude. But he had a feeling she needed a friend, and right now, he might be the only one she had. Starbuck had been wandering around, complaining about what the Old Man was doing, conveniently forgetting that it was less than three months ago that she had wanted him to veer off-path in the off-chance that she actually frakking knew the way to Earth.

Everyone else was in a state of flux. Tigh in command, Tory stuck on Colonial One with the new President. Interim President, he reminded himself. The Old Man'll bring Roslin and Helo back with the rest of them. If not, we're all truly frakked.

He cleared his throat slightly.

"Hi."

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

OOC: Thank you! Yes, our poor muses. *pets them all*

"Hey, Ch--" Sharon shook her head and walked a step closer to him, still holding Hera tightly as if someone would take her away again. How many times had she lost her daughter now?

She'd stopped keeping track.

"Galen." Galen, because he wasn't Chief anymore, though God only knew why. She didn't understand his new haircut, either, but with Helo gone and Kara acting less and less like the friend she used to have, he was a welcome face.

"Hey, Nicky," she said with a smile, then switched Hera in her arms so that she could wave a tiny hand in the boy's direction. "Say 'hi', Hera."

Hera stayed quiet.

"What... what are you two doing here?"

[cpo-galen-tyrol.livejournal.com]

OOC: My poor baby wasn't even in it. I figure he was just hanging around on scrub duty and keeping out of Adama's way.

He was glad she didn't seem put out to see him. He couldn't exactly go barging in on Tigh now that he was the CO (something he was trying not to think about) and he wasn't sure how Sam would react. He wasn't sure he trusted anyone else to watch his son.

"He's here because I couldn't find someone to keep an eye on him." he replied, shifting Nick around. Mercifully, he wasn't crying for once. He hoped that it meant Nick was getting used to him. "I'm here because I figured the shi... crap," he amended, thinking of Hera, who probably could understand at least some of what she was hearing, "was hitting the fan all over the place and I thought I could make myself useful and visit you. I don't know what you know about what's going on, but I figured if there was anything you did want to know, I could tell you."

It sounded weak, even to him. He was getting closer to the edge, he knew it. And he needed to remind himself that he had free will.

Nick began to whimper and Galen closed his eyes, nearly whimpering himself as he began to bounce him slightly. "Come on, Nick, please."

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

She nodded in understanding. "With less and less people around these days, it seems more difficult to get good daycare here." She was still hopeful, but until Helo got back safely, she was determined to keep Hera with her, no matter what.

"Thanks," she told him sincerely. "Tell me... well, tell me everything. It's hard to get all the good scuttlebutt when you're locked up here." She tried to go for some levity, but wasn't sure if it worked or not.

"Oh, the uh, the bouncing? Doesn't work for his age. Try patting his back and then rubbing it since he could be--" She stopped herself. It wasn't her place to tell him how to raise his own son.

[cpo-galen-tyrol.livejournal.com]

But he was already following her advice. At this point, he'd try just about anything.

"I'm not even sure what's wrong with him," he muttered, patting Nick firmly but gently on the back, stopping the bouncing and instead choosing to sway with him. "Cally said something about that frakking algae mash and I haven't had a chance to talk to Cottle yet..."

When Nick's whimpers had quieted to a slight whining, he took the chance and pulled a chair over so he could sit down. "I'm not really sure what you know, but you should know first off that even all the people who aren't really sure that you had to shoot that Cylon, they all believe that you honestly believed you had to." He wasn't sure if that would reassure her at all, but he knew that if it was him, he'd be wondering about a few things, public perception among them. "I haven't talked to a lot of people, but I think even Tigh... his biggest issue is that you ignored his orders. And Starbuck does that all the time."

He shifted Nick to his knee, remembering vaguely that he liked it.

"The Admiral's gone." he said quietly. He was sure she would have heard about it, but he still softened his words in case she hadn't.

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

"You should talk to him. God knows what could be wrong with him. I think Hera must know his name by heart now, she's been there to see Cottle so often." She shrugged a little and finally put her daughter down, just to watch her run around a little bit. "Not all doctors are as considerate..." She didn't say anything else. They both knew she was referring to the time where Dee almost died simply because of her race.

It bothered Sharon, mainly because she had to deal with it from officers. But from a doctor?

She eyed Galen and smiled slightly when he sat down, so she sat on her cot. Sharon nodded. "Ignoring his orders, yeah. I get that. I was ready to take anything they'd throw at me for that, but I didn't know it would mean that the Old Man would be so... hostile to me, and that..."

Once Tyrol got quiet, though, so did she. "What? What do you mean, gone?"

[cpo-galen-tyrol.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I heard about that." Cally had spent nearly three hours raging about the guy once the news filtered down through scuttlebutt. "I hope he's getting the help he needs, but I'm guessing they had to take a number for him."

He looked at Nick, who was quiet, but still didn't look happy. "I'd give anything if he'd just smile," he remarked quietly. "He misses her. She spent all her downtime with him."

He looked up sharply at her question.

Frak. She doesn't know. He thought everyone knew.

Shifting Nick to the other knee, he cleared his throat. "He put Tigh in command and took off in a Raptor. Going after Roslin, they're saying."

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

Sharon shook her head and ran her hands through her hair.

"I knew Tigh was CO, since he was the one who had said Hera could come stay with me, but I didn't know why..." She sighed. "I hope he knows what he's doing."

But, she thought she understood. It was just one of things, one of those people, and she watched Hera run around in circles happily before hopping on the small cot and bouncing. "Hey, baby," she shushed her daughter, holding on to her again. Sharon saw the guards coming by and the looks they gave Galen.

"You better go. I wouldn't want you in trouble because of me. But thanks... thanks for stopping by."

[cpo-galen-tyrol.livejournal.com]

"He'll be back."

Of course he'd be back. If he wasn't, they were all even more frakked than they already were.

"I don't the Admiral'll stand for any other outcome. He knows how crazy things have gotten in just the handful of hours since Roslin got on that frakking baseship. Couldn't pay me enough to get on one of those things." He paused for a moment, shrugging. "I think I understand him a little better now."

He looked back at the guards, not particularly concerned but realizing that Sharon had a point. He looked at her and Hera. "You guys'll be out of here before you know it."

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

"I hope you're right," she answered as she held Hera again, who finally looked over at Galen and Nicky and said, "Bye-bye." She freaked out a little at the same words Hera had said before, then shook her head at herself.

He was right. Things would be okay.

"I'll see you around, Galen."

[laura-muse.livejournal.com]

Remember, it's when he can't even bring himself to look at you that you may want to duck for cover, Lieutenant.

[number-eight.livejournal.com]

I...

Thank you for the advice, President?.