Because She Loved Himby Allison K. East
The Chief probably hates me now. It was a thought that would flit through Cally’s mind as she sat in the brig. But even though he likely hated her for it, she did not regret shooting and killing the Cylon impostor Lieutenant Sharon ‘Boomer’ Valerii. That frakking toaster deserved what it got. It had beguiled the Chief, tricked him into falling in love with it, causing him to do morally questionable things in covering up for its crimes and mistakes. And when it was discovered for the toaster it was when it tried to assassinate Commander Adama, the Chief was immediately arrested by Colonel Tigh upon his return to the Galactica. His crime: being a Cylon. The evidence: his questionable relationship with the Cylon Sharon Valerii. It was wrong, it was unfair, and it was all the toaster’s fault. So Cally did not regret shooting the Cylon. But she did not do it simply because of the Chief’s incarceration. Or rather, she did, but not from the reasoning that Tigh or the other knuckle draggers assumed. It was not simply because the Chief was being maligned that she did it. It was because she loved him, and had for a long time. Cally had loved him for so long that it had burned her when Chief Tyrol had become involved with Lieutenant Valerii, which had been an open secret. That relationship had been ill-advised and against regulations, but Cally refrained from commenting on it to the Chief as much as possible—partly because he was the chief, and partly because she respected his right to choose his own relationships, however ill-advised they may be. A great part of loving someone was respecting their choices, even if you did not understand them. It did not mean you loved them less. This respect may seem at odds with her decision to shoot the Cylon and the lack of regret for the crime, but it was hardly a normal situation. As much as Cally loved Tyrol and respected his right to fall in love with whomever he wished, while the toaster ‘lived’ the Chief would always be under suspicion—whether official or not. And while it lived, Tyrol would always be conflicted and confused. So even though he would likely hate her for it, Cally made the decision to shoot the Cylon. Her personal cost was nothing compared to saving the Chief.
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